Egyptian Politician: 'The Brotherhood Knows the End Is Coming'
AP
Egyptian fighter jets leave a heart-shaped smoke trail in the sky during a ceremony at a military base east of Cairo on Monday.
Egypt
has been shaken by daily clashes since the recent coup. In an
interview, leftist Egyptian politician Mamduoh Habashi explains why the
military intervention was good for the country and his belief that the
Muslim Brotherhood is on its way out.
SPIEGEL ONLINE:
Mr. Habashi, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle called the
toppling of Mohammed Morsi a "serious setback for democracy." How would
you describe it?
Mamduoh Habashi:
Mr. Westerwelle has a different understanding of democracy than I do.
For me, democracy is the will of the people, and this blatantly
manifested itself in a tremendous mass movement, the largest Egypt has
ever seen. For Westerwelle, on the other hand, democracy appears to be
something purely formal. For him, this has solely to do with the 2012
vote, despite the fact that the presidential election at the time was
anything but clean.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Were the elections manipulated?
Habashi:
Definitely. First, there was no real election oversight. Every
institution was controlled by the military, and the army very much
wanted to prevent a representative of the revolution from being elected.
With candidates like (Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister) Ahmed Shafiq
and Morsi, they thought the things would tilt in their favor.
Additionally, the Islamists invested a lot of money in the campaign and
bought votes. No other political group could keep up.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: But internationally the elections were seen as exemplary.
Habashi:
Most Egyptians felt they had been cheated out of their revolution, but
they still accepted Morsi's victory. It wasn't a clear victory, though.
Morsi had only a razor thin majority. His presidency was characterized
by unbelievable arrogance and audacity. Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood
paid even less attention to the people's hardships than Mubarak.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: And that's why the military had to intervene on July 3?
Habashi:
The Egyptian military did what it had to do. There was no other option,
because millions of people wanted the Brotherhood to be stripped of
power. What was the alternative -- to look on as democracy was
undermined and destroyed? Do you know what people here say? They compare
it to the purchase of preserved food that is supposed to last for four
years. Imagine opening up the can to find that after just half a year,
it has gone bad. What would you do? Eat it anyway or throw out the can?
SPIEGEL ONLINE: At the same time, since Morsi was ousted there have been fresh protests and attacks. Egypt has become more dangerous.
Habashi:
Of course, many Islamists are radicalizing and turning to violence.
That doesn't mean, however, that the country is sinking into chaos. The
Muslim Brotherhood's popularity is sinking rapidly. Morsi supporters
have never gotten more than 100,000 people onto the streets, whereas his
opponents have drawn several million.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Does the Muslim Brotherhood still believe it can turn the tide in its favor?
Habashi:
No, the leaders of the Brotherhood know the end is coming. At a certain
point, they will negotiate with the interim government and the
military, but first they want to get as much out of it as they can.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Europeans and the Americans have called on both sides to reconcile. Do you see any chance of this happening?
Habashi: What
kind of reconciliation are we talking about? The Islamists are hardly
interested in any kind of sustainable reconciliation. They are digging
in their heels, unwilling to let go of their totalitarian ideology. A
non-secular state according to Islamist ideology, which would inevitably
discriminate against those with other religious beliefs, can never be a
democratic one. The mainstream media often refer to the post-apartheid
struggle in South Africa in this context. But the example is totally
wrong. In South Africa, the white minority very clearly renounced its
apartheid policies. That was the absolute prerequisite for
reconciliation. The Muslim Brotherhood lacks that kind of insight.
Read More Here
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Number of military coup victims in Egypt amounts to 189 people
24 July 2013, 10:57 (GMT+05:00)
Azerbaijan, Baku, July 24 /Trend A.Tagiyeva /
Some
189 people were killed in clashes as a result of unrests in Egypt,
which were caused by the overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi, Anadolu
agency repoted on Wednesday.
In addition, thousands people were
reported to be wounded. The largest number of victims - 79 people - was
recorded in Cairo and Giza cities.
Clashes between supporters and
opponents of President Mohamed Morsi have been continuing in Egypt after
the Egyptian military suspended the constitution and ousted Morsi on
July 3.
Read More Here
See Also:
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Iran is reported to be eager to project its naval power beyond the Middle East
