A former leader in the Muslim Brotherhood said on Tuesday that the group is facing challenges it cannot handle since the Freedom and Justice Party won a majority of seats in Parliament.
In an interview with privately-owned satellite channel Dream, the Brotherhood's former deputy Supreme Guide, Mohamed Habib, said the enormity of the challenges facing the group will force it to give up some of the principles upon which it was founded.
The group's members were detained under former president Anwar al-Sadat for objecting to the peace treaty with Israel, but once they assumed power, they stressed commitment to the treaty, Habib said.
Habib said it is too early to assess Parliament's performance, but said it complies with the general revolutionary mood. He added that the Brotherhood, when nominating candidates for Parliament, selected more obedient, rather than qualified, members.
According to Habib, the Brotherhood made a "major strategic mistake" during parliamentary elections when it competed for seats in all constituencies, stressing that no political group can face internal and foreign challenges single-handedly.
Habib argued that recent announcements by the group that it is ready to form a coalition government were an attempt to keep public opinion on their side, and stressed that the Brotherhood cannot force the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces to discuss the issue earnestly.
