A source within the Muslim Brotherhood, speaking to Al-Masry Al-Youm on condition of anonymity, said that the majority of members of the group’s Guidance Bureau are inclined to run in the next parliamentary elections without allying with other forces, especially since other Islamist forces have already initiated alliances.
GOVERNMENT & OPPOSITION
Brotherhood party inclined to run in elections without alliances
A source within the Muslim Brotherhood, speaking to Al-Masry Al-Youm on condition of anonymity, said that the majority of members of the group’s Guidance Bureau are inclined to run in the next parliamentary elections without allying with other forces, especially since other Islamist forces have already initiated alliances. The Guidance Bureau on Wednesday had met to discuss previous meetings that Freedom and Justice Party members and the group’s Deputy Supreme Guide, Khairat al-Shater, had held over the past few weeks with other Islamist forces. The source added that the group said three to five percent of the candidates it will field in upcoming elections are women whose names would appear among the first five names on the lists, as recommended by the National Dialogue Committee. [Egypt Independent, 1/3/2013]
NSF to attend national dialogue if conditions met
Presidential aide Pakinam El-Sharkawy contacted members of the opposition group the National Salvation Front and asked them to join the seventh national dialogue meeting with the presidency, a source from the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) told Ahram Online. The NSF is expected to release a statement Thursday evening with four conditions for joining the president’s dialogue, Abdel Ghaffar Shukr, the head of the Socialist Popular Alliance and member of the NSF told Ahram Online. The first condition is that the presidency announce all members participating in the dialogue before it begins. Second, that a clear list be made of all the points to be discussed in the meeting. Third, that all executive branches confirm that they are committed to everything agreed upon in the meetings. Finally, that the presidency offer guarantees that all recommendations will be applied. [Ahram Online, 1/3/2013]
Committee urges investigation of Brotherhood group accused of killing protesters
President Mohamed Morsy’s fact finding committee have said in a report that the president should open investigations into the existence of "Brotherhood group 95" and whether or not it has been involved in acts of violence against anti-Hosni Mubarak protesters during the revolution. Various complaints to the committee accuse Youth Minister Osama Yassin of leading the group and killing protesters, saying that an interview he gave on Al-Jazeera is evidence against him. [Egypt Independent, Shorouk (Arabic) 1/2/2013]
Also of Interest
- Egypt to form supreme commission on fighting corruption | Ahram Online
- Islamists and opposition differ on proposed elections law | Ahram Online
- Mekki: A Draft Law to Regulate Protests is Currently Being Studied | EGYNews, Shorouk, (Arabic)
COURTS & CONSTITUTION
Lawyers to strike as top prosecutor digs in
Prosecutors are planning a three-day strike next week in protest against Prosecutor General Talaat Abdallah’s reversal of his earlier resignation. The lawyers agreed on several resolutions during a meeting at the Judges Club Wednesday, including suspending work from 8-10 January and filing a complaint with the Supreme Judicial Council against Abdallah on accusations he interfered with investigations into presidential palace protest violence last month. [Egypt Independent, SIS, 1/2/2013]
Brotherhood leader: Calls to drop Constitution punishable by law
Muslim Brotherhood Secretary General Mahmoud Hussein denounced opposition calls to shelve the new constitution, warning that such calls were illegal. "Such talk is punishable by law because the Constitution has been approved in a fair process," Hussein said. In an interview on Al-Arabiya news channel Wednesday, Hussein rejected questions on the legitimacy of President Mohamed Morsy’s rule, hinting that authorities should take legal actions against those who raise them. [Egypt Independent, Ahram Online, 1/3/2013]
Also of Interest:
- MP files lawsuit demanding liquor stores, nightclubs be shuttered | Egypt Independent
ECONOMY
Central Bank auction temporarily stabilizes dollar-pound exchange rates
Dollar exchange rates in Egyptian banks have stabilized at the amount of LE6.42 for buying and LE6.39 for selling, with banking experts pointing to the Central Banks foreign currency auction as the reason. [Egypt Independent, 1/3/2012]
Shura Council rejects Islamic bonds
The Shura Council’s financial and economic affairs committee has endorsed the Islamic Research Academy’s rejection of the Finance Ministry’s proposal for Islamic bonds. Al-Azhar’s body had rejected the bill during an urgent meeting late Tuesday held by Al-Azhar Grand Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayyeb, on the grounds that it "violates Islamic Sharia and endangers the state’s sovereignty. [Egypt Independent, SIS, 1/2/2013]
SECURITY & SINAI
Sources: Presidency consulted Iran intelligence chief over security
Iran’s intelligence chief recently visited Cairo and met with a presidential aide regarding Egyptian security services, high-level security sources have said. President Mohamed Morsy’s deputy for foreign relations Essam al-Haddad met with Iran’s Major General Qassim Suleimani to discuss the latter’s expertise on tightening control over state security, the anonymous sources said. Suleimani was in Cairo between 26 and 30 December, said the sources, adding that the meeting took place inside a well-known hotel that was cordoned off during the talks. [Egypt Independent, 1/3/2013]
Lawyer held for allegedly possessing classified military information
The Armed Forces has arrested a lawyer who also owns a computer shop for allegedly possessing classified information on an army unit, a military source said Wednesday. The suspect, Sherif Mostafa al-Housary, will face a military trial, the source added. “Housary was interrogated on Wednesday by military prosecution for possessing a computer that has information on military units in an important division,” the source said. [Egypt Independent, 1/2/2013]
Also of Interest
SOCIETY & MEDIA
Newspaper editor latest target of defamation complaints
Prosecutors on Wednesday opened an investigation into allegations newspaper editor Abdel Halim Qandil defamed President Mohamed Morsy. Mahmoud Abdel Rahman filed the complaint with the prosecution accusing Qandil, the editor-in-chief of privately owned weekly newspaper Sawt al-Umma, of inciting hatred against the president in October. The complaint referred to a story that ran in the paper with a photo of Morsy and a caption that read, "100 days of lies. Morsy sells air to Egyptians and implements Obama’s orders." [Egypt Independent, 1/3/2013]
Protests in Aswan after man dies in custody
Hundreds of people from the Ababda and Bashaira tribes staged protests in Aswan after a man from the Bashaira tribe died in the Aswan police station detention room. The man was arrested with six others and charged with illegally digging for gold. However, he was injured when the police van that was taking him to the station crashed, and later died while being detained for 15 days pending investigation. [Egypt Independent, 1/2/2013]
Also of Interest:
REGIONAL & INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Israel completes bulk of Egypt border fence
Israel completed the main segment of a razor-wire fence along its border with Egypt on Wednesday, a barrier against illegal migrants and Islamist militants hiding out in the lawless Sinai region. The five-meter high fence, bolstered by military surveillance equipment, is touted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as proof of his commitment to the Jewish state’s security as he campaigns for a national election on 22 January . [Egypt Independent/Reuters, 1/2/2013]
Iran’s Foreign Minister to Visit Egypt on Thursday
According to reports from the Middle East News Agency, Iranian Foreign Minister, Ali Akbar Salehi, will be paying a visit to Egypt on Thursday. Salehi is expected to hold talks with Egyptian officials on ways to promote bilateral relations, as well as discussing regional and international issues of common interest. [Shorouk (Arabic), 1/3/2013]
Photo: Egypt/Israel Border (AP)
Image: la-fg-israel-africa-immigration-20130103-001.jpg
