The New Egypt is Here!

[NewsGuy]

Well, the Egyptian people won against Mubarak and have now exchanged a secular dictatorship with a military dictatorship that is likely to turn into a radical Islamic dictatorship. Congratulations and Mazal Tov to these freedom-loving Arabs.

You can say that finally the "Arab street" has been heard. U.S. president Obama has even compared the Egyptian revolution with that of Gandhi or Martin Luther King. Of course, let's not forget that the final fall of Mubarak was caused by being stabbed in the back by the Obama administration and now the U.S. has lost its closest Arab ally. Someone must have forgotten to tell Obama.

As for the Arab street that is now (supposedly) calling the shots - who are these people and what do they want?

First, they want more jobs and money. That won't happen.

Second, they claim they want freedom and democracy. That won't happen, as the Muslim Brotherhood, the strongest Egyptian party isn't exactly about freedom and neither is the army for that matter.

But some of the more striking aspects of the Arab street are the virulent anti-Semitism and hatred of the U.S. that they espouse, as well as their wanting to eliminate the peace treaty with Israel even at the price of war. That's very dangerous.

I personally hope for continued military dictatorship in Egypt. At least the military is somewhat beholden the U.S. (for the time being), and it understands that it benefitted tremendously from 30 years of peace with Israel. But will they open the border with Gaza, allowing Iran to build extensive military bases in Gaza and the Sinai? Time will tell.

If you have an opinion on this topic, let's hear it.

[JerichoMissile]

the only reason that there has been peace between egypt and israel for the last 30yrs is because the US bribed both sides basically to maintain peace, if the US didnt give egypt like US$1.5 Billion in "military aid" every yr, which in my view was basically a Bribe to not openly atttack israel.
I think eventully the egyptian peoples hatred of jews/israel will be greater than their love of money, and eventually egypt will attack israel, openly i mean.
Unless if course the US increases their military aid to egypt, but this is unlikely as the US is in very serious financial situation.

Egypt is now a military dictatorship, how is this the beautiful democracy that the egyptian people dreamed of?

I wonder if the people will now protest againt the miltary in power, i mean if they truly want democracy than they should continue with their protests right?

They say mubarak and his cronies were all corrupt, than im gonna take a guess the military will be even more so.

[NewsGuy]

the only reason that there has been peace between egypt and israel for the last 30yrs is because the US bribed both sides basically to maintain peace,
[...]
I think eventully the egyptian peoples hatred of jews/israel will be greater than their love of money, and eventually egypt will attack israel, openly i mean.


Another reason there has been peace is that Israel destroyed much of the Egyptian army in '73, so the Egyptians learned a big lesson about attacking Israel.

Since then the U.S. has rebuilt the Egyptian army, which quickly saw that its enemies were the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas (together with Iran), so they cooperated with Israel.

But now, who knows what the Egyptian army will do if the Muslim Brotherhood directly, or indirectly through their puppet ElBaradei will come to power. I'm guessing that Hamas and Iran will have a lot more freedom to transport weapons into Sinai and the Gaza strip, which will destabilize the whole area and might force Israel to hit Muslim extremists in Egyptian territories and certainly in Gaza.

[Mil]

They will not break peace treaty with Israel. Because if they do then it will distabilize the entire region and nobody wants another war Nobody wants to open Gaza either.

Nothing will change any time soon. Egyptians might not like Israel but they are no idiots. Alternatives are not very great.

[JerichoMissile]

I'm guessing that Hamas and Iran will have a lot more freedom to transport weapons into Sinai and the Gaza strip, which will destabilize the whole area and might force Israel to hit Muslim extremists in Egyptian territories and certainly in Gaza.

I think if that happens we might all be paying abit more for petrol!!:p

[YehudithS.]

I would hope that the Egyptians would want peace and prosperity and better opportunities for a better life. I don't imagine they are stupid enough to be misled into a conflict with Israel, when they have just gotten their freedom. What a waste that would be.

[NewsGuy]

I think if that happens we might all be paying abit more for petrol!!:p
Yes, definitely.

[Reffo]

Here is a bit of a reality check, based on some pertinent facts ...

Fact: 32 million of Egypt's 79 million population are under 18 years of age.

Fact: There is high unemployment

Fact: Egypt is NOT a rich country. It's economy is based on ...




Agriculture
Tourism
Some natural resources such as coal gas and oil
Not much industry


So what does it all mean? It means that despite the "new democracy" Egypt's problems of high unemployment, poverty and youth disaffection will not disappear overnight unless they get massive economic aid. And how likely is that in the current climate in which most major economies are still suffering from the effects of the Global Financial Crisis themselves? Not very likely ....

So what will happen now? IMHO, the Muslim Brotherhood will end up ruling Egypt. They may not gain power in day one (of course even that is a possibility) but even if they don't, there will be a series of other governments first. But none of them will be able to solve Egypt's underlying problems so each of those governments will fall. The alternative to all that or at the end of it could be another dictatorship by some army general or junta who may keep the Muslim Brotherhood out of power.

Either way, my expectation is that Egypt will end up on a war footing with Israel once again. Why? Because after the mass upheavals, any army dictator or junta would have learnt it's lessons. They will revert to that old formula of distracting the masses by some external bogey. And guess who the ready made bogey is in the Middle East?

Of course, if it won't be an army dictatorship, then it will be the Muslim Brotherhood. And that definitely would mean a war footing with Israel. After all, didn't the Muslim Brotherhood murder Sadat for making peace with Israel? Wasn't the Muslim Brotherhood the organisation that spawned Al Quaida?

[Mediocrates]

I suspect that the army like in most Arab nations now has to turn its guns inward to 'protect' the state, to some degree. They will have their hands full keeping order. There is little risk of outward aggression for at least 1-2 years. The danger to Israel is that Egypt abandons patrolling the Gaza border, feeling it's better to bribe Hamas and the Muslim Botherhood.

[Mediocrates]

The new de facto ruler of Egypt:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/02/11/egypt.tantawi.profile/

Mohammed Hussein Tantawi is Egypt's deputy prime minister, defense minister and commander-in-chief of the country's armed forces. In the West, little is known about him, or how he intends to lead the Egyptian military, now that it's in charge of the government. Former U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen knows Tantawi and worked with him at the Pentagon. He told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that "the question is whether he will continue to be the head of the military, as such, or whether that will pass on to a younger generation."

Tantawi, who holds the title "field marshal," received his first military commission in 1956, He was born on October 31, 1935, and fought in Egypt's 1956 war against Britain, France and Israel. He also served during Egypt's conflicts with Israel in 1967 and 1973. Tantawi was only recently made deputy prime minister. Former President Hosni Mubarak appointed him to the position during the early days of the protest movement that eventually forced Mubarak from power.

Since 1991, Tantawi has held the position of defense minister, wielding near-exclusive decision-making power within the ministry. However, during that time, "the tactical and operational readiness of the Egyptian Armed Forces has degraded," according to globalsecurity.org, a military analysis group. U.S. Embassy cables released by WikiLeaks contain multiple references to Tantawi, his relationship with Mubarak and they way he is viewed by other Egyptian military officials. One cable described him as "frozen in the Camp David paradigm and uncomfortable with our shift to the post-9/11 global war on terror." Another quoted an unnamed Egyptian officer, who joked that Tantawi "looks like a bureaucrat." That cable went on to say he is openly mocked at clubs in Cairo where midlevel officers gather. The cable claimed these officers mock him openly as "incompetent" and as "Mubarak's poodle." The officers also say that Tantawi's unwavering loyalty to Mubarak is "running the military into the ground," according to the cable.

Most significant for the hopes of democratic-reform advocates in Egypt, the cables say that Tantawi has always supported the centralization of power in Egypt. One cable says he has become "increasingly intolerant of intellectual freedom." Another goes into greater detail on his position.

"Tantawi has opposed both economic and political reforms that he perceives as eroding central government power," according to the cable. "He is supremely concerned with national unity, and has opposed policy initiatives he views as encouraging political or religious cleavages with Egyptian society."

He has revealed a willingness to use the military to control political groups like the Muslim Brotherhood, the cables say, and opposes economic reform because it reduces the Egyptian government's control over prices and production. That cable's final assessment of Tantawi warned diplomats to "be prepared to meet an aged and change-resistant Tantawi. ... He and Mubarak are focused on regime stability and maintaining the status quo through the end of their time. They simply do not have the energy, inclination or world view to do anything differently."

[Mediocrates]

http://www.hudson-ny.org/1882/muslim-brotherhood-reality

The Muslim Brotherhood was launched in 1928 to restore a caliphate, a global religious government aimed at fighting the "non-believers" (specifically, Christians, Hindus, and Jews) and at spreading Islam. The group opposed the existence of any secular states in all Muslim societies throughout the Middle East. The Brotherhood killed Egypt's Prime Minister Mahmud Fahmi Nuqrashi in 1948 and plotted to kill President Gamal Abdel Nasser in the early 1950s. An offshoot group, Islamic Jihad, led by Ayman al-Zawahiri, later Osama bin Laden's number-two man, assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Al-Sadat in 1981 and tried to kill President Hosni Mubarak in 1995.


In three parts. About 5 pages.

[NewsGuy]

So what does it all mean? It means that despite the "new democracy" Egypt's problems of high unemployment, poverty and youth disaffection will not disappear overnight unless they get massive economic aid. And how likely is that in the current climate in which most major economies are still suffering from the effects of the Global Financial Crisis themselves? Not very likely ....

Right and, ironically, Mubarak was most likely to be able to get that financial aid if anyone could.



Most significant for the hopes of democratic-reform advocates in Egypt, the cables say that Tantawi has always supported the centralization of power in Egypt. One cable says he has become "increasingly intolerant of intellectual freedom." Another goes into greater detail on his position.

"Tantawi has opposed both economic and political reforms that he perceives as eroding central government power," according to the cable. "He is supremely concerned with national unity, and has opposed policy initiatives he views as encouraging political or religious cleavages with Egyptian society."
That's good news. Once again the Arab street gets the leadership it so richly deserves.

[Kachah]

We should all uderstand that what has just happenned in Egypt has got nothing in common with freedom, liberties, democracy and all that nice stuff.
Mubarak's regime failed to engineer pressure relief valve which would serve for more than 30 years, that's all. Mind you, for 30 years Mubarak kept these brothers in check -just for that I would feel gratitude to the guy.
My prediction is that after some palace coups and infighting a new Mubarak will emerge and Egypt will have another quarter-century of relative calm. Most probably it'll be another general (or colonel). The prospects for the family of oriental despot are still worth fighting for power and then being friendly with the West. Apparently Mubarak's personal wealth can pay Egypt's foreign debt. Cool.
By the way, who writes Obama's speeches? THey are so unnecessarily florid and ridiculously pompose... considering in this crisis he was shown to be all but irrelevant..."The Arc of history"...Is this some kind of pentecostal preacher style?

[curlyg]

We should all uderstand that what has just happenned in Egypt has got nothing in common with freedom, liberties, democracy and all that nice stuff.

This is not entirely true. We saw massive grass-roots civil mobilisation, which most so-called experts (including, I would guess, many members on the forum, myself included) did not consider to be a real threat to the Egyptian regime in the foreseeable future. Whether they were mobilised in the name of "freedom" and "democracy" or "decent wages and living conditions" is not really relevant.


Mubarak's regime failed to engineer pressure relief valve which would serve for more than 30 years, that's all. Mind you, for 30 years Mubarak kept these brothers in check -just for that I would feel gratitude to the guy.

That is perhaps an accurate description of Mubarak's failure, but not an accurate positive description of the Egyptian revolution.


My prediction is that after some palace coups and infighting a new Mubarak will emerge and Egypt will have another quarter-century of relative calm. Most probably it'll be another general (or colonel). The prospects for the family of oriental despot are still worth fighting for power and then being friendly with the West. Apparently Mubarak's personal wealth can pay Egypt's foreign debt. Cool.

There's a good chance that something like this will end up happening. It's doubtful Egypt will have anything resembling what we would consider a democracy. The military is too strong and throughout this crisis has acted as a self-interested actor to preserve its political power in the country, I don't believe they intend to subordinate themselves to any civilian government.


By the way, who writes Obama's speeches? THey are so unnecessarily florid and ridiculously pompose... considering in this crisis he was shown to be all but irrelevant..."The Arc of history"...Is this some kind of pentecostal preacher style?

The White House has proven itself to be completely incompetent throughout these events. Literally every day, it was sending out different (conflicting) messages. It seems like Obama didn't actually have a clear policy, not at the start, and not at the end. In case any of us had any doubt, Obama is an incompetent and naive idealist.



--

Reffo's comments about the structural problems in Egypt are spot on of course. No government is going to be able to solve the problems that demography has created. Egypt is a quasi-rentier state -- it's less parasitic than say Saudi Arabia, but overall a major component of its national economy and budget are derived from external sources (tourism and rents accrued from the Suez Canal are major components of the budget, plus American economic and military aid). That sort of economic structure is not conducive to democracy (to put it mildly) since there is no reliance by the government on the taxes of the people, the government sustains itself from external rents.

It will be interesting to see how the uneducated Egyptian masses respond once they realise that their revolution has not significantly improved their living standards - and indeed, in the short to medium run, has worsened them (tourists and investors are running scared, and the economy has been paralyzed for half a month). There will probably be a short period of euphoria and solidarity with the new leadership, followed by disillusionment.

[Kachah]

This is not entirely true. We saw massive grass-roots civil mobilisation, which most so-called experts (including, I would guess, many members on the forum, myself included) did not consider to be a real threat to the Egyptian regime in the foreseeable future. Whether they were mobilised in the name of "freedom" and "democracy" or "decent wages and living conditions" is not really relevant..

Again, the point is completely overlooked. This "grass-roots" campaign is "against", not "for". They have no idea what is it they want which can realistically be achieved. THey are just fed up with the pharaoh and possibly wound up by the islamist propaganda from the brotherhood. So the most organized force will emerge running this wave of dissatisfaction and there are only two: the military and the brotherhood. Military has tanks, brotherhood has grass-roots (no commas here) support. Both got nothing to do with freedom and democracy but the military would attempt to appear friendly to the West and stable while the brothers would pursue the sunni version of Iran. So my prayers - replace general A with general B and infiltrate and decimate the brotherhood to secure power. As for economy - none of them will bring any radical change though naturally a secular dictator like Mubarak would bring more benefits and Western aid. I mean, sure, he and his supporters will steal 50% of it but with the mad brotherhood in power it will be nothing to steal.

[Reffo]

rents accrued from the Suez Canal are major components of the budgetOooooops, I meant to include this in my list but I momentarily forgot about it.


but with the mad brotherhood in power it will be nothing to stealPlease don't underestimate the ability of the Arab masses to un-erringly zero in onto the least logical choices but which give them momentary gratification. They seem to believe in the principle of 'Act first' and rue later ...

[Mil]

Or they might actually pull off some sort of a parliamentary system - which would be the best out-come. Lets just hope it will not be proceeded by violence.

[curlyg]

Or they might actually pull off some sort of a parliamentary system - which would be the best out-come. Lets just hope it will not be proceeded by violence.

Democratic institutions without a liberal democratic cultural foundation are, in my opinion, worthless. Iran is a democracy, institutionally speaking, in many ways. The trappings of democracy don't actually create democracy.

Of course we've seen completely undemocratic countries like Japan and Germany be transformed into democracies over a relatively short period, so it's not completely impossible, but still highly doubtful. There are a lot of factors weighing against it.

[Aliyah1995]

Democracy is not just the technicality of one vote per citizen. It is also a culture that is embedded in how a society thinks and operates. Egypt will not likely be a democracy in the near future anymore than I have a chance of becoming fluent in Russian by taking a few lessons on line over the next couple of days.

[curlyg]

Again, the point is completely overlooked. This "grass-roots" campaign is "against", not "for". They have no idea what is it they want which can realistically be achieved. THey are just fed up with the pharaoh and possibly wound up by the islamist propaganda from the brotherhood.

Protests by their very nature arise in opposition to something, I don't see your point. That this movement has no uniform objective underscores the fact that it is an organic mass movement, with all of the associated weaknesses (no leadership and no clearly established consensus on objectives). Even that isn't entirely true. Most of these protesters do agree on measures they would like to see, such as suspension of emergency laws.

Anyway we're arguing over mere technicalities here, it's irrelevant.

[Mediocrates]

The Army did not want Mini-Mubarek to ascend to the throne. They toppled the government and now they are in control. The internal security apparatus was not engaged to the army. That was a job for the police and civilian security forces. This is why the army has been able to stay above the fray of suppressing internal dissent. Which is why they were welcomed by 'the people' to take over. But in essence, this was an army engineered coup to wrest power from the head of government who controlled both the civilian security forces and the army. Now the army is at the top of that organization chart.

[Mil]

If the military overstays it's mandate it will be violence. In any case the time for military dictatorships, kings, autocrats and of other types of governments is over. They will have some sort of a Democracy but it will be messy.

[farmboy]

The only up side to all this is that there are going to be some really cheap holidays for Europeans who have always wanted to go to Egypt and see the pyramids. If the economy was floundering before it must be in real dire straits now since tourism is one of their biggest revenues. They are going to have to rebuild world confidence in its stability very quickly before the hungry people become starving people.

[Kachah]

The only up side to all this is that there are going to be some really cheap holidays for Europeans who have always wanted to go to Egypt and see the pyramids. ...Sure. And free live entertainment as well!

[farmboy]

Out of curiosity I searched for a holiday in Cairo wthin the next month and there seems to be nothing available. So in the best case scenario they will have lost 2 months revenue. Given their financial problems this has got to set them back quite badly so I don't think they could afford to start trouble with Israel really.
From Wikepedia

The Egyptian tourism industry is one of the most important sectors in the economy, in terms of high employment and incoming foreign currency. Egypt is one of the best known touristic countries in the world. It has many constituents of tourism, mainly historical attractions especially in Cairo, Luxor and Aswan, but also beach and other sea activities. The government is always trying to promote foreign tourism since it is a major source of currency and investment. There are plans to get to 14 million visitors by 2011, by means of the improvement of touristic facilities and advertising of Egyptian tourism in international media, in order to maintain a steady demand for visiting Egypt.
Well they went the right way about achieving their goals didn't they?

[NewsGuy]

Ah, yes... And now the uprising and the demonstrations continue in Egypt, this time against the military dictatorship. Not surprisingly, the Egyptians are demonstrating for more money and jobs. Good luck, sahibs... If Mubarak couldn't supply that, there's no way the military is about to hand out salary raises.

[Inquisitor]

Like most people I'm worried about the Muslim brotherhood there said to be very well organized and the fact that they've stated that they wont be contesting the next election leads me to believe they have a long term plan. No way are they not interested in power.

[farmboy]

CNN Reporter was gang raped by the mob. I'm sure that the worlds sentiments are with these demonstrators that they would be so inflamed as to be forced to do that.

[NewsGuy]

was thinking that this deserves a separate discussion altogether, considering it's so noteworthy.

Adding to the humiliation of the CIA after being caught with its pants down regarding the Egypt revolt, some interesting things surfaced today in Senate hearings.

For example, CIA director Leon Panetta and National Intelligence Director James Clapper actually told the Senate Intelligence Committee today that they were simply not familiar enough with the Muslim Brotherhood to predict whether the peace treaty with Israel would be honored or not. You'd think these were cab drivers in Brooklyn, not the heads of US intelligence! And to top it all off, they explained that it was "very difficult" to track social media, like Facebook.

678
Larry, Moe, and Curly Testify Before the Senate

[Mediocrates]

Egyptian Official Who Banned Anti-Semitic Media Placed Under House Arrest

In my article yesterday on “Mubarak and Anti-Semitism: A Boomerang Effect?” (http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/mubarak-and-anti-semitism-a-boomerang-effect/), I discussed the banning by the Egyptian government of several private religious channels in October 2010. The channels affected by the ban included Al-Nas and Al-Rahma: two Islamist channels that were well known for broadcasting anti-Semitic diatribes. The government accused the channels of “incitement to religious hatred.” The charge may also have referred to incitement against Egypt’s own Coptic Christian population.
Referring to the ban, as well as warnings issued to twenty other religious channels, the then Egyptian Minister of Information Anas al-Fiqi explained:

These corrective measures are intended to protect the Egyptian and Arab peoples from broadcasters determined to make calls for murder, degradation of religious groups, and the endangerment of people living with serious illnesses – all in pursuit of profit and extremist ideologies. (Source: Al-Masry Al-Youm (http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/news/egypt-stifles-traditionally-tolerated-salafi-outlets-ahead-polls))
Responding to al-Fiqi’s charges, a spokesman for Al-Nas insisted, “These are vague accusations. Words like ‘terrorism,’ ‘extremism’ and ‘violence’ are very loose and lack precision. There is no evidence to prove this.”
For western sensibilities, of course, the very existence of a so-called Minister of Information is suspect. But it should be noted that in banning the channels accused by it of incitement, the Egyptian government was doing nothing different than what French authorities have also done in banning Al-Rahma, as well as the Lebanese channel Al-Manar, from French satellite television.
Although the Egyptian government of Prime Minister Ahmed Shafik is reportedly continuing to conduct the business of state, one member of Shafik’s government is reported (http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/news/former-information-minister-under-house-arrest) not only to have resigned, but to have been placed under house arrest: namely, the now former Minister of Information Anas al-Fiqi. A group known as the Arabic Network for Human Rights has accused (http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/news/rights-group-launches-website-documenting-mubaraks-supporters) Al-Fiqi of committing “incitement” against Egyptians. It appears to be payback time for the minister who dared to silence the Islamist channels.


http://pajamasmedia.com/tatler/2011/02/15/egyptian-official-who-banned-anti-semitic-media-placed-under-house-arrest/

[Reffo]

BBC Middle East Business Report [about Egypt]: "... People in here have been waiting thirty years for change ... "

Implication? Forty, fifty or sixty years ago, Egypt was paradise on Earth. Then the poor Egyptians were saddled with this reprehensible western backed regime, which made peace with Israel (insult to injury) and they waited for thirty years to get their old life back ...

... And people who believe that prior to Mubarak's regime, Egyptians had a great economy, also believe in the 1001 Arabian Night Fairy Tales ... So how should the BBC have phrased that sentence instead? Here is a suggestion ...


"... People have been waiting for change ever since their liberation from British Colonial rule ..."

[Mediocrates]

Wael Ghonim, the Googlular hero of the revolution has been barred from Tahir Square by Yusuf al-Qaradawi's thugs.

[NewsGuy]

... And people who believe that prior to Mubarak's regime, Egyptians had a great economy, also believe in the 1001 Arabian Night Fairy Tales ... So how should the BBC have phrased that sentence instead? Here is a suggestion ...


"... People have been waiting for change ever since their liberation from British Colonial rule ..."
Right. Going back to the good old days when Nasser ruled Egypt, one could see what a true dictatorship was. In comparison, Mubarak would be considered a liberal reformist and champion of human rights.

And if we went even further back to the days of the British mandate and even further back to the Ottoman rule over Egypt, Egyptians were little more than slaves.


Wael Ghonim, the Googlular hero of the revolution has been barred from Tahir Square by Yusuf al-Qaradawi's thugs.

Right, Qaradawi, the radical Islamist anti-Semite who is a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, is already assuming control of the country. Just as predicted, the chances of Egypt becoming a secular democracy are thin to none.

[bararallu]

For every 10 Mensheviks there is 1 Bolshevik. But that Bolshevik is more dangerous and vicious than 100 Mensheviks. That is the story of revolution friends.

[Kachah]

For every 10 Mensheviks there is 1 Bolshevik. But that Bolshevik is more dangerous and vicious than 100 Mensheviks. That is the story of revolution friends. Not that the mensheviks are any good. But you're right, nobody wants to learn anything from history. Democracy. Just give it to them, Egyptians, Palestinians, Libyans - everybody wants "democracy" according to the BBC's and obamas. Obviously, they are all truly responsible people with the worldly knowledge and thorough understanding of what it entails. WHat a freakin' joke! Can they at least read?

[Mediocrates]

MSM gushes over Qaradaw.

http://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2011/02/daily-msm-review-david-g-wonderfully.html

He's moderate! He's inspirational! He's wonderful!

[Kachah]

MSM gushes over Qaradaw.

http://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2011/02/daily-msm-review-david-g-wonderfully.html

He's moderate! He's inspirational! He's wonderful!

"A renowned scholar". I like it! Scholars can't be bad, right?
What about Bin Laden? Should we call him "an industrious engineer and tradesman"?

[dayag]

According to a June 2010 Pew Research opinion survey of Egyptians, it stated that, “Fifty nine percent said they back Islamists. Only 27% said they back modernizers. Half of Egyptians support Hamas. Thirty percent support Hizbullah and 20% support al Qaida. Moreover, 95% of them would welcome Islamic influence over their politics….Eighty two percent of Egyptians support executing adulterers by stoning, 77% support whipping and cutting the hands off thieves. 84% support executing any Muslim who changes his religion."


source: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/142432

[bararallu]

We should take the responsible position and bomb the bloody airforce bases once they start killing themselves. No airforce=no threat.

[Mediocrates]

The new Egyptians:

Yusuf al-Qaradawi Endorses the Holocaust, The Guardian Endorses Him as an Egyptian Democrat (http://www.solomonia.com/wp/2011/02/yusuf-al-qaradawi-endorses-the-holocaust-the-guardian-endorses-him-as-an-egyptian-democrat/)


In a previous post (http://cifwatch.com/2011/02/18/the-non-sectarian-yusuf-al-qaradawi/) on the leading Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader, Yusuf al-Qaradawi, we failed to note a speech he gave in 2009 where he argued, to a rapt audience, that Hitler’s annihilation of the Jews should be seen as Allah’s punishment for their evil ways.
Here’s the quote, and you can see the video below:
‘Throughout history, Allah has imposed upon the (Jews) people who would punish them for their corruption. The last punishment was carried out by Hitler. By means of all the things he did to them – even though they exaggerated this issue – he managed to put them in their place. This was divine punishment for them. Allah willing, the next time will be at the hand of the believers.’
But, it’s all cool, because the Guardian yesterday blogged the following (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2011/feb/21/libya-uprising-middle-east-protests?INTCMP=SRCH#block-24):
‘Qaradawi…who was banned from entering the United States, had previously visited the UK in 2004 at the invitation of the London mayor, Ken Livingstone, sparking protests from Jewish groups and gay people, who regard him as anti-Semitic and homophobic.
‘However, he is also arguably the most influential Sunni Muslim cleric in the world and has regularly spoken in the past in support of democracy.’ [emphasis mine]


http://www.solomonia.com/wp/2011/02/yusuf-al-qaradawi-endorses-the-holocaust-the-guardian-endorses-him-as-an-egyptian-democrat/

[Mediocrates]

Egyptian Blogger "Sandmonkey" weighs in

http://www.solomonia.com/wp/2011/02/egypt-the-most-moderate-democracy-advocate-speaks-and-says-a-lot/

[Mediocrates]

Are the Copts seeing justice?

http://canaryinthecoalmine.typepad.com/my-blog/2011/02/egyptian-christians-enraged-over-court-acquittal-in-christmas-eve-massacre.html

[Reffo]

The ignorance, or is it integrity, of some journalists who reported on the troubles of Egypt is APALLING. I was listening to one ABC journalist (The Australian Broadcasting Commission) who after a long tirade against the Mubarak government response to the protesters and their use of thuggery against the protesters, just made the seemingly casual remark that the Mubarak government was/is an ALLY of Israel. I guess it's his way of trying to smear using guilt by association ...

But was what he said true? Was Mubarak's Egypt an ally of Israel? Of course not. What is true is that the two countries had a cold peace. That is not, I repeat it's not the same as being allies except in the world of journalists with a particular political agenda who never want to miss an opportunity to smear those whom they consider to be the enemy, namely Israel.

[dayag]

New Egyptian Foreign Minister is anti-Israel. :tdown:



Nabil Elaraby, a former judge in the International Court of Justice, accepted the post of Egypt's foreign minister on Sunday, the Egyptian state news agency reported...

During his tenure at the International Court of Justice at The Hague, Elaraby was a member of the panel that issued the advisory opinion on the construction of Israel's security barrier.

Israel protested Elaraby's appointment to the panel, claiming he was not objective and held anti-Israel views, including his call to sue the Jewish state for genocide...


source: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4038464,00.html

[Mediocrates]

Of course he is. They all are. Always have been. What's interesting is that the gas line they shut off, while it supplies 45% of Israel's electricity, it also generates 80% of Jordan's electricity. Starving out their Arab Muslim colleagues will be interesting to watch. Not that anyone would care or do anything about it. But it will be interesting. Israel will suffer in the short term but will be able to find some kind of economic work-around. Jordan I think will slide back to the pre industrial age.

Good times, good times.