On Wednesday evening, the Egyptian
military deposed democratically elected Islamist President
Mohamed Morsi after millions of Egyptians demonstrated for his
removal, "claiming he had arrogated power, neglected the
economy, and worsened divisions in society." [NYTimes] While anti-Morsi demonstrators rejoiced
in the streets, reaction from world leaders was mixed and uneasy. BBC News reported British foreign secretary William Hague as saying the UK
"will work with the people in authority in Egypt" but
condemned the ousting of its president as "a dangerous thing"
and US President Barack Obama saying he was "deeply
concerned" by the latest turn of events and called for a swift
return to civilian rule.[BBC News] [Photo: Dallas Morning News]Al Jazeera summarized the reactions of other world leaders in a post on Thursday: the EU called for a "rapid return to democracy"; German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the military intervention was "a major setback for democracy in Egypt" and called for "dialogue and political compromise"; Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Syria supported the new government - with Syria's President Assad stating that the military intervention means the end of "political Islam" and that this is the "fate of anyone in the world who tries to use religion for political or factional interests."; Iran, Tunisia, and Turkey spoke in support of ousted President Morsi and expressed disappointment at the intervention.
The Guardian reported on Thursday that supporters of the ousted president would take "to
the streets after Friday prayers following a series of raids and
arrests that decimated the Muslim Brotherhood's senior ranks and
consolidated the miltary's hold on the country." The widespread
crackdown was launched by Egypt's interim president Adly Mansour even
as he reached out to the Brotherhood, calling them "part of the
fabric of Egyptian society." On Friday Al Jazeera reported
that "at least three supporters of deposed Egyptian President
Mohamed Morsi were killed by gunfire as a crowd of several hundred
tried to march towards the military barracks in Cairo where he is
believed to be held." Al Jazeera also reported in the same post that
Egyptian state television said that Mansour had dissolved parliament
by decree. On Friday Haaretz covered a Reuters and DPA report
: "Egypt has indefinitely closed the Rafah border crossing
with the Gaza Strip following attacks on security forces in northern
Sinai, a security official said Friday...The crossing was opened in
2011 following the ouster of Egyptian president Hosny Mubarak, whose
administration opposed the Hamas rulers in Gaza, and helped Israel to
enforce a blockade on the enclave."
Saturday morning Al Jazeera reported on the aftermath of widespread clashes in Egypt as supporters of the deposed president demonstrated in the streets Friday night: "A tense calm has descended on Egypt following a night of fierce clashes between supporters and opponents of the ousted president Mohamed Morsi. At least 30 people were killed and more than 1,000 wounded in the violence that erupted on Friday and continued through the night. A coalition of conservative groups led by Muslim Brotherhood has vowed further demonstrations on Saturday, raising fears of renewed violence."
New
elections have been pledged by the military and Western leaders are
hoping that this occurs as quickly as possible. However, as of this
writing, no specific date has been set for these elections. This is a test for democracy in the Middle East. Can a
government move from authoritarian rule to democracy seamlessly in
one election? Is the Egyptian experience unique - in that Morsi, in
the words of US Senator Patrick Leahy, had "squandered
an historic opportunity, preferring to govern by fiat rather than
work with other political parties." [reported in The Atlantic website] - or is it indicative of
things to come in other Arab
Spring countries?
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