Brotherhood of Hate: Muslim Brotherhood's Hatred for Jews and Israel Flourishes in "New" Egypt
Introduction
Posted: September 19, 2011
Updated: October 15, 2012
The overthrow of Hosni Mubarak's regime by the Egyptian people in February 2011 marks a turning point in the political development of the Muslim Brotherhood, the country's largest and best organized religious, social and political movement. Since the upheaval, the Brotherhood has sought to quickly assert its influence and define the role it will play in Egypt's post-revolutionary political system. On June 24, 2011, one of the Brotherhood's very own leaders, Mohamed Morsi, was elected president of Egypt.
Although the group has vowed to promote peaceful co-existence and stability within Egypt by means of fostering better relations between Muslim and Christian citizens, the Brotherhood's leadership continues to articulate its historical and ideological opposition to the existence of the State of Israel and to the 1979 Camp David peace accord between the two countries.
For example, a Brotherhood rally held at the prestigious Al Azhar mosque days before the start of legislative elections featured several members of the
Hamas leadership and Al Azhar clergy urging supporters to liberate the Al Aqsa mosque and to prevent the Judaization of Jerusalem. Similarly, in response to the September 9, 2011, attack on the Israeli embassy by enraged protesters, the Brotherhood released a statement claiming the "demonstrations were justified" and criticized the government's "reluctance to withdraw the Egyptian ambassador from Israel." In another statement, widely published in the Arab press, the Brotherhood said, "…Egypt has changed, the entire region will change, and there is no room left for [Israel's] arrogance and aggression."
Moreover, the Brotherhood's leadership has taken advantage of Egypt's newfound political, civic and media freedoms to publically promote conspiratorial claims against both Israel and Jews, and to express support for terrorist groups committed to the destruction of the Jewish state. In addition to public statements by its leadership, the Brotherhood's media arm has increasingly served as a platform for such sentiment as well.
To further promote this agenda, and to circumvent the ban on religiously affiliated political parties in the new Egypt, the Brotherhood established the Justice and Freedom Party (FJP), which describes itself as a pluralistic party open to all Egyptians and secured a majority of seats in teh Egyptian parliament. Several former Brotherhood officials from the organization's 15-member Guidance Council have assumed key roles within the new party, and have used their positions in the FJP to reiterate the Brotherhood's long-standing hostility toward Zionism and support for terrorist organizations that serve as obstacles to peace and stability in the region.
FJP's stance on Israel's right to exist is documented in its official political program, labeling Israel as a "racist colonizing expansionist entity" and calling for implementation of the Palestinian right of return.
Due to the atmosphere of uncertainty that continues to shroud Cairo in the wake of the Brotherhood's electoral success, it remains to be seen what the impact of a Muslim Brotherhood led Egypt will have on domestic affairs, regional stability and the security of the state of Israel.
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