Several Muslim Brotherhood parliamentary candidates gathered their supporters and organized marches on Monday in an effort to incite security forces, reports state-run Rose al-Youssef, in a report about “new Muslim Brotherhood terrorism.” The report’s title reflects the heightened tone of the confrontation between the National Democratic Party (NDP) and the "outlawed" opposition group, as several NDP and Muslim Brotherhood (MB) officials continue to launch attacks against each other.
According to Rose al-Youssef’s report, MB candidates continued to organize government-deemed illegal marches in several governorates, including Alexandria and Assuit. In Alexandria, MB candidate Sobhi Saleh, who will be vying for a seat against popular NDP member Abdul Salam al-Maghoub, rallied thugs and organized a march using religious slogans, according to the coverage.
NDP officials have persisted with vitriolic attacks against the MB as well. NDP secretary Ahmed Ezz said the Brotherhood continues to “steal” the achievements of the NDP and the Egyptian government, reports state-run Al-Akhbar. Ezz added that the Brotherhood’s claim that its parliamentarians contributed to the implementation of the Emergency Law with regard to terrorism and drugs is unsubstantiated, given that its parliamentarians abstained from voting on this issue. Ezz also asserted that his MB competitor in the district of Menouf in Menoufiya has distributed fliers that include NDP achievements, reports state-run Rose al-Youssef.
Ali Eddin Helal, NDP secretary of the media, said Brotherhood Supreme Guide Mohammed Badie’s statement, which claimed that the NDP has lost legitimacy, represents the Brotherhood’s understanding of its lack of popularity. In another press statement posted on the NDP’s website, Helal accused the Brotherhood of using violence in organizing demonstrations in violation of court rulings in an attempt to exhibit its strength.
Helal argued that the movement should be the “last” to talk about terrorism because its history is rife with violent activity, including assassinations. The Brotherhood should also be the last to talk about legitimacy since the movement has refused–both before and after 1952–to establish a political party.
The NDP campaign to discredit the Brotherhood also includes accusations that the group is using the government as a scapegoat for the Brotherhood’s failure to communicate with the Egyptian population. The website also charged the Brotherhood with lacking a real electoral program and relying on the “fabrication” of crises without offering alternative solutions. Moreover, the website provided information to combat the MB’s claims that allowing open districts has left the NDP more internally divided.
In response, the Brotherhood has accused NDP-affiliated “thugs” in the district of Bandar al-Menya of attempting to assassinate MB candidate and head of the MB parliamentary bloc, Mohamed Saad al-Katatni, during a campaign march on Monday evening, reports privately-owned Al-Shorouk.
According to Islam Online, the Brotherhood’s official website, a group of thugs and NDP supporters wielding knives and swords interrupted the march and tried to attack Katatni, reports Al-Shorouk, quoting dozens of injured al-Katatni’s supporters. Car tires were also reportedly slashed.
In addition, an MB candidate in the Tal al-Kabir district in Ismailia, Hamdi Ismail, asserted that the Brotherhood will not counter the NDP's use of thugs and other government attacks with its own henchmen, according to Al-Shorouk. According to Ismail, the market of thugs is doing well because the NDP does not know how to respect plurality of thought. This approach, he said, “will kill Egypt.”
In related news, Tagammu President Refaat al-Saeed asserted that Katatni’s claims of a deal between Tagammu and the NDP, that have led to the clashes in Alexandria, constitute a “continuation of the lies” the Brotherhood has propagated throughout its history, reports Al-Akhbar. Tagammu Secretary-General Sayyed Abdul added that his party supports any opposition party candidate in districts where its own candidates are not competing, with the exception of Brotherhood candidates, reports state-run Al-Ahram.
In other news, NDP secretary general Safwat al-Sherif pointed out that the 2010 parliamentary elections mark a significant juncture in “Egypt’s democratic history” because they are the culmination of several constitutional amendments and changes in Egypt’s “democratic culture,” according to a two-page long interview in state-run Al-Gomhorriya.
Egypt's papers:
Al-Ahram: Daily, state-run, largest distribution in Egypt
Al-Akhbar: Daily, state-run, second to Al-Ahram in institutional size
Al-Gomhorriya: Daily, state-run
Rose el-Youssef: Daily, state-run, close to the National Democratic Party's Policies Secretariat
Al-Dostour: Daily, privately owned
Al-Shorouk: Daily, privately owned
Al-Wafd: Daily, published by the liberal Wafd Party
Al-Arabi: Weekly, published by the Arab Nasserist party
Youm7: Weekly, privately owned
Sawt el-Umma: Weekly, privately owned
