Egypt a coup for Islamic fundamentalists

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-pushes-ahead-controversial-law-143148323.html
4/24/13
Egypt pushes ahead with controversial law

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt's Islamist-led parliament on Wednesday pushed ahead with a controversial judicial law, despite a rising uproar among judges and the opposition who fear Islamists' control over courts. The judiciary, with mostly secular-minded professional judges, is seen by many Egyptians as the only remaining buffer against Islamists' monopoly of power following the ouster of authoritarian ruler Hosni Mubarak in 2011. Since then, Islamist parties have swept most polls and dominated legislative councils and the presidency, the country's top executive post. The opposition vowed to escalate a campaign against the bill and judges called for emergency meeting later in the day. Presidential spokesman Ihab Fahmy told reporters on Wednesday that the Islamist president respects the judges and has assured them that he won't accept an assault on the judiciary. "The president is keen on containing the judiciary crisis," he said. He added: "The president firmly stressed that it's unacceptable to hurt or encroach on the judiciary." Egypt's President Mohammed Morsi has been fighting with judiciary since he was elected last summer. Last year, courts disbanded the parliament, dominated by Islamists, over unconstitutionality of the election law and last month challenged a parliamentary elections law.

Morsi has waged a campaign against the judiciary and the country's most prestigious Supreme Constitutional Court, saying judges were plotting conspiracies against his administration. At the same time as Fahmy's remarks, the legislative committee of the upper house, which was seated as a transitional parliament, voted in favor of three draft laws on the judiciary proposed by Islamist groups and opened the floor for further debate. One proposed by Morsi's Freedom and Justice party, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood group, drops the retirement age for judges from 70 to 60, which would affect nearly a quarter of Egypt's 13,000 judges and prosecution officials. The draft also would bar the courts from reviewing or overturning the presidential decrees issued by Morsi late last year. The same proposal mandates that judges oversee polling stations and punish those who refuse to carry their duties — a job that used to be voluntarily. Last year, during the vote over a controversial draft of the country's new constitution that was written by Morsi's allies many judges boycotted the vote to protest a decree that temporarily granted Morsi's decisions immunity from judicial review.

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[Kilika]

It sounds as though Islam has taken over Egypt now. The rest is just clean up of any opposition to Sharia law.

[Mark]

Egypt's Shura Council and constitution panel 'invalid'

Egypt's top court has ruled that the upper house, or Shura Council, and a panel that drafted the new constitution are invalid. The Supreme Constitutional Court ruled that the laws governing the election of members of the Islamist-dominated Shura Council and the constitutional panel were illegal. But the court said the Shura would only be dissolved after new elections. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-22745568

[Psalm 51:17]

more from this article...

Egypt's Shura Council and constitution panel 'invalid'

Egypt's top court has ruled that the upper house, or Shura Council, and a panel that drafted the new constitution are invalid. The Supreme Constitutional Court ruled that the laws governing the election of members of the Islamist-dominated Shura Council and the constitutional panel were illegal. But the court said the Shura would only be dissolved after new elections. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-22745568

It was unclear what effect the ruling would have on the legitimacy of the constitution.

The Supreme Constitutional Court had ruled last year that the electoral law under which both houses of parliament were elected was invalid, prompting its dissolution.

The Shura Council was then given legislative powers by the constitutional panel.

Mr Morsi's Freedom and Justice party, the Muslim Brotherhood's political wing, holds 42% of the Shura Council's seats and can easily gain a majority with support from conservative allies.

Opponents say the president has used the council to rush through an Islamist agenda and laws that have too many loopholes.

In the latest ruling, the presiding judge, Maher al-Beheiry, said the Shura Council should remain until the election of a new parliament. A date has yet to be set for elections.

There was high security at the court building in southern Cairo ahead of the latest ruling.

This

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/egypts-islamists-opposition-closely-eye-turkey-203004485.html
Egypt's Islamists, opposition closely eye Turkey
6/8/13

CAIRO (AP) — Liberal-minded Egyptians and supporters of the ruling Muslim Brotherhood now share one thing: the rival sides are closely following protests in Turkey, a country that has provided the heavily polarized and increasingly impoverished Egyptians with a tantalizing model for marrying Islamist government with a secular establishment and achieving prosperity along the way.

Turkey, a NATO member with a mostly Muslim population has been touted as a democratic model for Egypt and other Arab countries swept up in popular revolts over the past two years.

But scenes of tens of thousands of Turks filling Istanbul's central Taksim Square for more than a week of anti-government protests reminiscent of the mass demonstrations in Cairo's Tahrir Square that led to the 2011 ouster of authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak have alarmed Islamists in both countries.

The rapid unraveling of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's image at home has spilled into Egypt in what experts say is a warning to Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood as they balance the need to meet the demands of both the deeply conservative and the secular communities in the Arab world's most populous nation.

"This is certainly a bad omen for Islamists," said Mohammed Abdel-Kader Khalil, a Cairo-based senior researcher at the East Center for Strategic and Regional Studies. "Their model is violently shaking as the man they say they want to emulate has been dealt a blow."

Experts are more sanguine: Given the vast differences in history and circumstances, Taksim Square, they warn, is no Tahrir.

"Various parties attempt to make a connection between the so-called Turkish model and the Egyptian. They are very mistaken. The two are vastly different," said Amr Ismail Adly, a Turkish affairs scholar in Cairo. "Portraying this as a struggle between secularism and Islam is also oversimplifying a much more complex issue given the diversity of protesters and motives."

For the first time in a decade of power, however, Erdogan appears vulnerable and embattled despite the country's stunning economic performance and heightened international profile.

The demonstrations began May 31 with a violent police crackdown against a small protest over a plan to develop the landmark Taksim Square and spread to dozens of cities amid discontent over what critics see as the prime minister's increasing authoritarianism and efforts to encroach on secular lifestyles.

His critics point to attempts to curtail the selling and promotion of alcohol, his comments on how women should dress and statements that each woman should have at least three children.

A devout Muslim who says he is committed to upholding Turkey's secular tradition, Erdogan vehemently rejects charges of autocracy and points out that he enjoyed 50 percent support in the last elections in 2011.

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood has been cool to Turkey's secular leaning but gave Erdogan a hero's welcome when he visited Egypt last year, erecting giant billboards with his image on Cairo's main bridges and boulevards.

The Brotherhood's deputy leader Khairat el-Shater depicted himself as "Egypt's Erdogan" during his short-lived presidential campaign last year before he was thrown out of the race over a Mubarak-era conviction.

The opposition and many other Egyptians, meanwhile, have been skeptical about the analogy with the Turkish model, calling it a Brotherhood tactic to assuage fears in the West and at home that it would try to impose strict Islamic rule even as its members dominate the country's power structures.

Khalil, the Cairo-based researcher, said the Brotherhood actually "inverted the model" by trying to monopolize power through the infusion of its members in state institutions under the pretext of battling the "deep state," a term used in Turkey to refer to a network of military and civilian allies accused of trying to destabilize the country during the early years of Erdogan's rule.

The term is repeatedly used by Brotherhood leaders to refer to the legacy of Mubarak's 29-year regime.

"They wanted to consolidate power, take control of state institutions while the streets are boiling and the economy in shambles," said Khalil, the researcher. "They are in a rush and they didn't really benefit from Turkey's experience."

Opposition activists look to the Turkey protests — with a daily stream of pictures of injured Turkish protesters and people acting as human shields against water cannons — as a way to boost their continued movement and demonstrations against Morsi's rule, which they claim has over a very short time reproduced the authoritarian regime ousted in 2011.

"The impact is doubled in Egypt," said prominent activist Hossam el-Hamalawy. "On one hand this is a blow to Islamic project which Islamists held up high as a model they were preaching with and on the other hand, any movement in any country will have a domino effect."

But Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood appeared to be only hardening its stance in the wake of the protests.

A member of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood's political arm, Farid Ismail, said protests in both countries amount to a "war, not against the regime or President Mohammed Morsi, but against the Islamic identity."

"It is a struggle between right and wrong," he added in remarks at a rally this week in a Nile Delta province north of Cairo.

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-islamists-call-counter-demonstrations-155940092.html
Egypt Islamists call for counter-demonstrations
6/12/13

CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian Islamist groups called Wednesday for demonstrations to counter this month's planned opposition protest campaign against the rule of the country's Islamist president, raising concerns of a new round of turmoil.

The Islamists also accused a group of prominent businessmen and former regime lawmakers of plotting violence to destabilize the country, but presented no evidence to back the serious charges. The allegations were seen as an attempt to discredit the opposition that is organizing protests against President Mohammed Morsi.

Public discontent stems from a variety of ills, including an economic downturn, electricity and fuel shortages, attempts to monopolize power by installing his backers in state institutions, as well as a new crisis over Ethiopia's plan to build a dam across a main branch of the Nile River, threatening Egypt's vital water supply.

The Islamist groups, including Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, called for rallies on June 21 during a news conference that underlined growing political tensions and polarization ahead of June 30, the anniversary of Morsi's taking office, when opponents plan huge demonstrations to demand his ouster.

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[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-cuts-relations-syrian-government-191607035.html
Egypt cuts relations with Syrian government
6/15/13

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt's Islamist president announced Saturday that he was cutting off diplomatic relations with Syria and closing Damascus' embassy in Cairo, decisions made amid growing calls from hard-line Sunni clerics in Egypt and elsewhere to launch a "holy war" against Syria's embattled regime.

Mohammed Morsi told thousands of supporters at a rally in Cairo that his government was also withdrawing the Egyptian charge d'affaires from Damascus. He called on Lebanon's Hezbollah to leave Syria, where the Iranian-backed Shiite militant group has been fighting alongside troops loyal to embattled President Bashar Assad against the mostly Sunni rebels.

"Hezbollah must leave Syria. This is serious talk: There is no business or place for Hezbollah in Syria," said Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected president. Assad's regime, he said, will have no place in the future of Syria after committing what Morsi called "horrors" against its people.

Morsi's address, particularly his call on Hezbollah to leave Syria, and the fiery rhetoric used by well-known Muslim clerics this weekend point to the increasing perception of the Syrian conflict as sectarian. At least 93,000 people have been killed since turmoil there began more than two years ago.

The rally that Morsi addressed on Saturday was called for by hardline Islamists loyal to the Egyptian president to show solidarity with the people of Syria. Morsi addressed the rally after several hardline Islamist clerics spoke, all of whom called on him to do everything he could to help the Syrian rebels. Those attending the rally, about 20,000, chanted for solidarity with the Syrians, but occasionally deviated to shout slogans in support of Morsi.

The Egyptian president picked up a flag of the Syrian revolution and another of Egypt and waved them to the crowd as he entered the indoor stadium in a Cairo suburb.

Morsi also used the occasion to warn his opponents at home against the use of violence in mass protests planned for June 30, the anniversary of his assumption to power. Before he spoke, one hardline cleric, Mohammed Abdel-Maqsoud, recited an often repeated Muslim prayer against the "enemies" of God and Islam but used it to refer to the June 30 protesters.

The climate in the Cairo indoor stadium where the rally was held appeared to further entrench the division of Egypt into two camps: one led by Morsi, his Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups, and the other grouping the secular and liberal opposition together with moderate Muslims, minority Christians and a large percentage of women.

In his address, Morsi repeated the allegation that Egyptians loyal to the now-ousted regime of autocrat Hosni Mubarak were behind the planned protests and that they were working against the January 2011 uprising that toppled Mubarak. As customary since taking office, he spoke of himself as a guardian and protector of the revolution, an assertion hotly disputed by his critics.

"Some who are delusionary want to pounce on the January revolution and think that they can undermine the stability that is growing daily or undermine the resolve that people have clearly forged with their will," said Morsi.

"We will deal with them decisively and there will never be a place for them among us," he told his supporters.

Morsi's government is widely thought to have failed to tackle any of the seemingly endless problems facing the country, from power cuts and surging crime to unemployment, steep price rises and fuel shortages. The declared aim of the June 30 protests is to force Morsi out and hold early presidential elections.

Morsi's allies say the protests have no legal basis and amount to a coup against his legitimate rule. They have been calling on opposition leaders to enter a national political dialogue to resolve the crisis, but the opposition has turned down the offer, claiming that previous rounds of dialogue did not yield results.

Spearheading the opposition to Morsi's rule now is a youth protest movement called Tamarod, or rebel, which claims to have collected millions of signatures of Egyptians who want Morsi to step down. Organizers say they aim to collect the signatures of more people than those who voted for Morsi in the June 2012 election.

Some of the hard-line clerics who support Morsi have branded Tamarod activists as infidels or heretics and sought to frame their movement as an act against Islam.

[Psalm 51:17]

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/egypt-cuts-relations-syrian-government-19411550#.Ub-hjWwo5jo
Egypt Appoints 17 Governors, Including 8 Islamists
6/15/13

Egypt's president on Sunday appointed 17 new provincial governors, including seven members of his Muslim Brotherhood, adding to its already considerable power in the legislative and executive branches.

Mohammed Morsi's appointments come before the June 30 anniversary of his taking office, when the liberal and secular Egyptian opposition plans mass demonstrations to demand his ouster.

Besides the new Brotherhood governors, the appointment of Adel el-Khayat, a member of the political arm of ex-Islamic militant group Gamaa Islamiya, drew attention. He will rule the ancient southern city of Luxor, a main tourist site.

In 1997, his group claimed responsibility for what became known as Luxor massacre, when 58 tourists and four Egyptians were killed at the Temple of Hatshepsut outside Luxor. Since then, the city has seen Islamists as a threat to their tourist income.

Gamaa Islamiya later renounced violence and turned to politics. The party is a top ally of Morsi, and its leaders have threatened an "Islamic revolution" if liberals try to unseat the Islamist president.

The appointments mean that the Brotherhood controls the governorships in 10 out of the country's 27 provinces, allowing it to further consolidate power, as governors play an influential role in arrangements for elections.

Military and police generals run at least nine other provinces, a throwback to the era of ousted President Hosni Mubarak, when both powerful institutions had a share of the country's provincial authorities. Mubarak was deposed in 2011.

Some of the provinces to be run by Brotherhood governors are opposition strongholds, such as the Nile Delta provinces of Gharbiya and Menoufia.

The new governors are scheduled to take their oath of office on Monday.

[Mark]

Egypt's army delivers ominous warning...

Egypt's army chief warned on Sunday that the military is ready to intervene to stop the nation from entering a "dark tunnel" of internal conflict.

Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi spoke a week ahead of mass protests planned by opponents of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. There are fears the demonstrations calling for Morsi's ouster will descend into violence after some of the president's hard-line supporters vowed to "smash" them. Others declared protesters were infidels who deserve to be killed.

El-Sissi's comments were his first in public on the planned June 30 protests. Made to officers during a seminar, they reflected the military's frustration with the rule of Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected president who completes one year in office on June 30.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57590623/egypts-army-delivers-an-ominous-warning/

...civil war threat

High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/1cd0981c-dc25-11e2-a861-00144feab7de.html#ixzz2X64pXEud

The Egyptian army warned the country’s ruling Islamists and their secular opposition that it might have to intervene to arrest a slide into violence if they did not forge a consensus before planned mass rallies next Sunday.

General Abdel Fattah al Sisi, the defence minister, said the army had a “moral and patriotic duty” towards the Egyptian people which would compel it to step in to prevent “civil war”, “sectarian strife” or “the collapse of state institutions”.

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/1cd0981c-dc25-11e2-a861-00144feab7de.html#axzz2X64SyHNd

[Psalm 51:17]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23092817
6/28/13
Clashes break out at protests in northern Egypt

Supporters and opponents of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi have staged rival rallies across the country but there has been violence in the north.

Tension has risen ahead of a Sunday protest planned by the opposition.

Thousands of Morsi supporters rallied outside the main mosque in Cairo's Nasr district.

At least one person, said by state TV to be a US journalist, was killed in Alexandria as protesters stormed a local Muslim Brotherhood office.

The US embassy said it was trying to confirm the reports.

Dozens more were injured when anti-Morsi protesters and Islamists clashed in the northern city, the second biggest in Egypt.

The office of the Muslim Brotherhood, which backs Mr Morsi, was set ablaze and birdshot was fired.

The authorities are reported to have called in riot police and army helicopters to try to quell the violence.

A Muslim Brotherhood-funded TV channel said petrol bombs were thrown in another northern area, Sharqia.

At least five people are now reported to have died in northern Egypt in violence linked to the political situation in the past few days.

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[Mark]

At least 16 killed, hundreds more in Egypt clashes, ministry of health says - @NBCNews

Egypt's ruling Muslim Brotherhood says armed men who ransacked its national headquarters crossed a red line of violence - @Reuters

Egyptian armed forces to issue a statement during nationwide protests, state TV reports - @Reuters

Egyptian people have expressed will in unprecedented way, Egyptian armed forces chief says - @Reuters

Egypt's military chief gives politicians 48 hours to find solution after nationwide protests - @Reuters

Update: Another non-Muslim Brotherhood government minister resigns from cabinet, bringing total number of resignations to 5 - @Reuters

Senior Muslim Brotherhood politician says no state institution will stage a coup against Morsi - @guardian

Pentagon says it is reviewing Egyptian army statement, declines to comment - @AJELive

Egypt's President Morsi meets army chief after ultimatum - Morsi's Facebook via @Reuters

Egypt presidential aide on army deadline: 'Obviously we feel this is a military coup' - @guardian

Headquarters of moderate Egyptian Islamist party Wasat set on fire in expansion of attacks on Islamist organizations across Egypt - @Reuters

http://www.breakingnews.com/topic/egypt-protests

[Mark]

Live video: Protesters fill up Cairo's Tahrir Square - @RT_com

http://rt.com/on-air/opposition-rally-egypt-morsi/


Military helicopters fly over presidential palace in Cairo - @AlArabiya_Eng

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/06/30/Live-from-Egypt-latest-developments-.html


Canada closes embassy in Cairo due to security situation; will stay closed until further notice - @CBCAlerts

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2013/07/02/egypt-military-morsi-protests.html

[Mark]

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood issues statement warning of attacks planned against anti-Morsi protesters at Tahrir Square and presidential palace - @ahramonline

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/75492.aspx

[Mark]

Egypt protests

Report: Egyptian presidential statement to be issued later in the night that includes solutions to crisis, sources tell @AJELive

http://blogs.aljazeera.com/topic/egypt/sources-tell-al-jazeera-statement-will-be-issued-later-night

[Mark]

Egyptian President Morsi demands army withdraw ultimatum; says he rejects any deviation from constitutional legitimacy - Twitter via @Reuters

UK Independent correspondent @Alastair_Beach reports there's a gun battle at Cairo University - via @guardian

[Mark]

Egypt tense as army deadline for President Morsi looms

Tensions are high in Egypt as an army deadline for President Mohammed Morsi to resolve deadly unrest approaches.

Clashes broke out at rival protests across the country overnight, with at least 16 pro-Morsi protesters killed at a demonstration at Cairo University.

Senior army officials are in crisis talks, after saying they would shed their blood to defend Egypt against "any terrorist, radical or fool".

Mr Morsi insists he is Egypt's legitimate leader and will not resign.

In a defiant televised speech on Tuesday evening, he too said he would give his life to defend constitutional legitimacy, and blamed the unrest on corruption and remnants of the ousted regime of Hosni Mubarak.

rest: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23157801

[Mark]

Sources #army in charge state tv building. Staff being told to go home early, leaving only essential personnel. #egypt

At Egyptian TV building. Staff confirm military has taken over. Only retained essential staff, others gone http://t.co/WnKTTpPJ1s

[Mark]

Anti-regime protesters start to congregate outside Egypt's defense ministry as deadline passes - @AhramOnline

Egypt's President Morsi refuses to step down, tells military not to 'take sides' - @AP

[Mark]

And its a FULL Circle!!! Military Dictatorship, revolution, democracy, revolution back to a Military Dictatorship....


Interim head of state appointed in Egypt; constitution suspended, army commander says - @Reuters

More: Egypt's military chief says president is replaced by chief justice of constitutional court - @AP

[Kilika]

Man, just can't find a dictator these days with any staying power! 

[Mark]

EGYPT TROOPS OPEN FIRE ON PRO-MORSI PROTESTERS...
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/ML_EGYPT?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-07-05-09-55-01

AT LEAST 3 DEAD...
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/05/us-egypt-protests-idUSBRE95Q0NO20130705

Army declares state of emergency in Suez, South Sinai...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/05/egypt-army-declares-state-emergency

[Mark]

Egypt: African Union Suspends Egypt

The African Union announced Friday that Egypt's membership has been suspended due to the military action in Cairo that deposed President Mohamed Morsi and suspended the nation's constitution.
 
The secretary of the African Union Peace and Security Council, Admore Kambudzi, says Egypt is barred from participating in any AU activity.
 
"The overthrow of the democratic elected president does not conform to the relevant provisions of the Egyptian constitution and is therefore false under the definition of an unconstitutional change of government. The council decides to suspend the participation of Egypt in AU activities until the restoration of constitutional order." Kambudzi said.
 
The military toppled the Morsi government and declared the constitution suspended on Wednesday, saying the president had failed to meet demands of the Egyptian people. Egypt's top judge was sworn in as the country'sw temporary leader on Thursday.
 
Egypt's ambassador to the African Union, Mohamed Edrees, defended the military's actions. He told the AU Peace and Security Council Friday there has not been a military coup.
 
"The military role in this is to support the people. The military did not instigate a coup or impose its own agenda against the will of the Egyptian people, on the contrary. The military supported the agenda of the people [and] the roadmap which was endorsed by the whole broad spectrum of the Egyptian society." Edrees said.
 
The African Union says it is planning to send a high-level delegation to Egypt to consult with the ruling authorities and others.
 
The African Union currently has three other member states on suspended status, all as a result of what are considered actions contrary to their national constitutions: Madagascar, Central African Republic and Guinea-Bissau.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201307051283.html

[Mark]

Egypt Health Ministry: 6 dead in clashes nationwide - @AP

Clashes between Morsi supporters and opponents are reported in Cairo, near Tahrir Square - @guardian

Photo: Car burns on bridge in Cairo as Morsi supporters, opponents clash - @SherineT

Al Jazeera reporter says no police, military in sight as clashes take place near Tahrir Square in Cairo - @AJELive
 

http://www.breakingnews.com/topic/egypts-president-morsi-removed-from-power


Egypt unrest: Morsi marchers die as army fires

Egyptian troops have opened fire on protesters marching in support of ousted President Mohammed Morsi, killing three and wounding dozens.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23202096

[Mark]

Welcome to the Obama version of Democracy... 


Up to 30 dead in Egypt clashes after army kills Morsi supporters

A portrait of former Egyptian president Mohamed Mursi is seen near a Republican Guard building in Cairo yesterday. Photograph: Reuters.

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/middle-east/up-to-30-dead-in-egypt-clashes-after-army-kills-morsi-supporters-1.1455519

[Mark]

BLOODBATH IN CAIRO, At least 42 killed in Egypt, Islamists call for uprising
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/08/us-egypt-protests-idUSBRE95Q0NO20130708

Massacre at Muslim Brotherhood sit-in...
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/07/20137821320932698.html

Islamists call for 'intifada'...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/egypt/10165616/Egypts-Islamists-call-for-intifada-as-they-vow-to-fight-for-Mohammed-Morsi.html

Sexual assaults rampant...
http://www.npr.org/2013/07/07/199557748/sexual-assaults-reportedly-rampant-during-egypt-protests

**WARNING GRAPHIC** Gang throws rivals from top of building...
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/egypt-violence-gang-throws-rivals-2034262

Lynch mob waving Al Qaeda banners...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2357764/Islamic-lynch-mob-waving-al-Qaeda-banners-throw-terrified-teenage-boys-20ft-ledge-beating-lie-injured-floor.html

Law requires Obama cut off Egyptian aid...
http://dailycaller.com/2013/07/05/law-requires-obama-administration-to-cut-off-egyptian-aid/

Cairo seeks Gulf help as unrest continues...
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/fa624fd8-e718-11e2-aa48-00144feabdc0.html

Gunmen attack Sinai checkpoints close to Israel border...
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/07/us-egypt-protests-pipeline-idUSBRE9660H320130707

[Psalm 51:17]

http://news.yahoo.com/elbaradei-sworn-egypts-vice-president-121206688.html
ElBaradei sworn-in as Egypt's vice president
7/14/13

CAIRO (AP) — A leading reform advocate took office as Egypt's interim vice president Sunday, reinforcing the role in the new leadership of liberals who are strongly opposed to the deposed president's Muslim Brotherhood.

Mohamed ElBaradei emerged as the top opposition leader in the campaign to oust President Mohammed Morsi, who was toppled by the military on July 3 after four days of huge demonstrations.

The military-backed government has dissolved the Islamist-dominated upper house of parliament, further angering the Brotherhood, which has won every election since the February 2011 downfall of Morsi's predecessor, Hosni Mubarak, in a similar mass uprising.

ElBaradei, 71, won a Nobel Peace Prize for his role as the head of the U.N.'s International Atomic energy Agency. He returned home to assume a role in the anti-Mubarak uprising and emerged as one of the most visible leaders in the badly fractured Egyptian liberal and secular opposition to the Brotherhood and its government.

He headed of the National Salvation Front, a coalition of largely secular groups. Tamarod, the newly founded youth movement that initiated the anti-Morsi protests on June 30 that ultimately led to his ouster, also chose ElBaradei as its representative.

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[Kilika]

Looks like Egypt has their UN yes-boy. Time for Egypt to tow the globalist line.

[Psalm 51:17]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324348504578609240584693494.html?ru=yahoo?mod=yahoo_itp
Egypt Forms Cabinet, Shuns Morsi Backers
7/16/13

CAIRO—Egypt's two-week-old government appointed a cabinet of secular-leaning ministers on Tuesday, over the objection of the ousted president's supporters, adding to the once-powerful Islamists' political isolation amid a rash of deadly street violence.

Interim President Adly Mansour swore in the 34 ministers, forming a cabinet that the Muslim Brotherhood, which backed President Mohammed Morsi, declined to participate in.

The leadership of Egypt's new regime had pledged to form a government that included members of the jilted former ruling party, as well as the liberals and youth leaders who helped to spearhead Egypt's revolution.

Yet despite the appearance of three women and a well-known labor leader, the ministers unveiled in Tuesday's swearing-in included many non-Islamists who had served in senior posts under Mr. Morsi, as well as civilian members of the military leadership that preceded him, and even members of the ousted regime of former President Hosni Mubarak.

The recycled names pointed to how difficult it has been for Egypt's new government to reach a consensus in forming a coalition with fresh style of leadership but which is composed of competent technocrats capable of navigating the troubled political future.

"It is a well-balanced government, with the exception of some members who once served under the Mubarak regime," said Magdy Sobhy, an economist and senior analyst at the government-funded Al Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies. "It would have been better to have seen some new faces."

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[Psalm 51:17]

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/egypt-starts-amending-constitution-despite-political-divisions-160734332.html
Egypt starts amending constitution despite political divisions
7/21/13

By Maggie Fick and Noah Browning

CAIRO (Reuters) - A panel of legal experts started work on Sunday to revise Egypt's Islamist-tinged constitution, a vital first step on the road to fresh elections ordered by the army following its removal of Mohamed Mursi as president.

Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood, which has accused the army of orchestrating a military coup and denounced plans to revise the constitution, staged fresh rallies on Sunday to maintain pressure on the new, interim government.

Setting a highly ambitious timeframe, the military wants new elections in around six months and has tasked a panel of 10 legal experts to present proposed changes to the constitution within 30 days for review before a broader-based body.

The original constitution was approved by a referendum last year, but critics said the text failed to protect human rights, minorities and social justice.

Ali Awad Saleh, a judge and the constitutional affairs adviser for the newly installed president, chaired Sunday's panel, saying it would spend the next week receiving ideas from "citizens, political parties, and all sides".

Khaled Dawoud, a spokesman for the National Salvation Front, Egypt's main secular political alliance, called the start of the committee's work "a very positive development".

The Muslim Brotherhood has shown no sign it is ready to engage with the new administration or the army, sticking firmly to its demand for the full restoration of Mursi, who has been held in an undisclosed location since his downfall on July 3.

Army and judiciary sources denied a report in state-run Al-Ahram newspaper's early Monday edition that the public prosecutor had ordered the arrest of Mursi for 15 days pending an investigation into charges of spying and inciting violence.

A few thousand women, children and men marched from the site of a round-the-clock, pro-Mursi vigil in a Cairo suburb on Sunday, moving to within sight of the defense ministry, ringed by barbed wire and protected by well-armed soldiers.

"Why, Sisi why, why did you kill our sisters?" the crowd chanted, referring to General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the defense minister who played a central role in forcing Mursi from office following mammoth street protests against the Islamist ruler.

More than 100 people have died in violent clashes this month, including three women taking part in a pro-Mursi rally in the Nile Delta town of Mansoura on Friday.

CONSTITUTIONAL DOUBTS

Trying to burnish their democratic credentials, the Egyptian military has said the new constitution should be put to a referendum before planned parliamentary elections.

However, some analysts have expressed doubts about rushing to revise the text given the lack of political consensus that has clouded Egypt's faltering transition to democracy in the wake of the 2011 removal of veteran autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

"The problem is not amending or drafting the constitution, the problem is deciding the direction the country is headed," said Zaid Al-Ali of International IDEA, a Stockholm-based intergovernmental organization.

"Unless political agreement is reached between all of the major political actors in the country, we are going to head from one crisis to another," he said.

Despite the continued domestic tensions, the new government is trying to show the world that business is returning to normal in Cairo. On Sunday, the cabinet held its first meeting since being sworn into office last week.

"The people need to be informed candidly about the size of Egypt's problems, which require quick and decisive action," said a statement issued at the end of the gathering.

Egypt's finances are floundering: the budget deficit has widened to almost half of all state spending and foreign reserves totaled just $14.9 billion in June - representing less than three months of imports that the International Monetary Fund considers to be a minimum safe cushion.

Some of Egypt's Arab allies welcome Mursi's demise and have rushed to prop up the nation's coffers, however.

Egypt's central bank said on Sunday it had received $2 billion in funds from Saudi Arabia, the latest installment of a $12 billion aid package pledged by Gulf Arab states.

The Egyptian stock exchange rose to a seven-week high on Sunday, encouraged by a lack of violence at weekend "anti-coup" protests in Cairo, hoping it indicated tensions are calming.

However, violence continued in the lawless Sinai peninsula, where three members of Egypt's security forces were killed on Sunday by armed men - the latest in a string of attacks blamed on Islamist militants opposed to the army.

Mursi was Egypt's first freely elected leader, but during his one year in office he drew criticism for failing to revive the ailing economy, restore security or build institutions. The Muslim Brotherhood say they were repeatedly thwarted by remnants of Mubarak's old government and forces hostile to them.

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Egypt unrest: 'Scores killed' in Cairo protest



More than 100 people have been killed at a protest by supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi in the capital, Cairo, doctors say.

They said more than 1,500 were also hurt. The state health ministry says 38 people had died - 180 injured.

The army ousted Mr Morsi on 3 July. He has been formally accused of murder relating to a 2011 jail outbreak and of links to militant group Hamas.

Pro- and anti-Morsi supporters staged huge protests overnight in the capital.

Jim Muir reports from Cairo.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23474269