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Egypt's Islamists call for Friday rally 'to defend scholars and mosques'
 [Al Ahram] A number of Islamist groups are calling for a rally "to defend scholars and mosques" in front of the Qaed Ibrahim mosque in Alexandria on Friday.The protest comes after iconic Alexandria sheikh Ahmed El-Mahalawy was trapped inside the mosque for 14 hours on Friday, 14 December by worshippers angry at his sermon, which called for a 'Yes' vote in the national constitutional referendum. According to a statement released on the Moslem Brüderbunds Facebook page on Tuesday, the groups who plan to participate include the Brotherhood and its political arm the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the Salafist Calling and its political arm Nour Party, Asala Party, Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya, and Building and Development Party. The Islamist forces blamed the liberal Constitution Party, headed by Mohamed ElBaradei Egyptian law scholar and Iranian catspaw. He was head of the IAEA from December 1997 to November 2009. At some point during his tenure he was purchased by the Iranians. ElBaradei and the IAEA were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for something in 2005. After stepping down from his IAEA position ElBaradei attempted to horn in on the 2011 Egyptian protests which culminated in the collapse of the Mubarak regime. ElBaradei served on the Board of Trustees of the International Crisis Group, a lefty NGO that is bankrolled by the Carnegie Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, as well as George Sorosâ Open Society Institute. Soros himself serves as a member of the organizationâs Executive Committee. , and the opposition group Egyptian Popular Current, led by former presidential candidate Hamdeen Sabbahi, for spearheading the attacks on the mosque. The Brotherhood statement said that the rally will be in response to the attacks by the militias of the Popular Current and the Constitution Party on the Qaed Ibrahim mosque, siege of Sheikh El-Mahalawy for more than 14 hours inside the mosque, and attempt to assault more than 100 worshippers, including women and kiddies. Anas El-Kady, the official spokesperson of the Brotherhoods Alexandria branch, said the rally will be against the thuggery of the two opposition groups. It began with attacking the (Brotherhoods) headquarters, then with the assaulting of Brotherhood leaders' homes and houses of worship and Islamic preachers, El-Kady said. Several Brotherhood headquarters were torched by protesters, following President Mohamed Morsis controversial 22 November constitutional decree, in which he placed himself above judicial review. El-Kady added that the siege of El-Mahalawy showed the ugly face of Egypt's "secular groups" hostile to Islam. Yet, the Egyptian people are religious by nature. Egyptians are protective of Islam and will not accept this kind of behavior, he said. He also accused the leaders of Egypts opposition groups of forcing the Islamists to resort to violence. However, we can't all be heroes. Somebody has to sit on the curb and applaud when they go by... Islamist leaders were able to exercise self-control. They managed to maintain their non-violent ideology and their belief in dialogue and peaceful work, El-Kady said. This is different than the secular groups, who prefer violence than dialogue and democracy. The Preachers Syndicate has also released a statement on their official website, announcing their planned participation in Fridays rally after what they called a savage attack by seculars, liberals, and members of the old regime, which culminated in the attack on the Qaed Ibrahim mosque, an icon of the revolution, and the siege of El-Mahalawy, a revolutionary preacher. The syndicate accused these forces of trying to drag Egypt into a civil war after they failed attempt Curses! Foiled again! to destroy the legitimacy of the regime and obstruct the path of the revolution. The syndicate also urged the Egyptian people to protect places of worship. It asked the Ministry of Interior to protect houses of worship and arrest and punish all those responsible for this heinous act. Posted by: Fred 2012-12-21 |
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