Understanding the "New" Egypt

Mohamed Morsi, who is no moderate, will have to wrestle with Egypt's military in order to implement his radical Islamist policies.  However, Hamas is already emboldened, firing rockets into Israel and, uncharacteristically, taking direct credit for shooting them.  They usually blame other terror groups. 

Named Egypt's Winner, Islamist Makes History -David D. Kirkpatrick

Egypt's military rulers officially recognized Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood as the winner of Egypt's first competitive presidential election. Morsi, 60, is the first Islamist elected as head of an Arab state. Morsi has always campaigned not as an individual with a vision of his own but rather as an executor of the Brotherhood's platform. He was the group's second-choice nominee, put forward after the disqualification of its leading strategist and most influential leader, Khairat el-Shater.

Morsi, a close friend and protege of Shater's, has vowed to carry out the "renaissance" program that Shater devised to overhaul Egypt's ministries. The two did little to dispel the assertions of critics that Shater and the Brotherhood's board would wield the true power in a Morsi government.
(New York Times)


Egyptian President-Elect Morsi Wants to Expand Iran Ties

Egypt's President-elect Mohamed Morsi told Iran's Fars news agency that he was looking to expand ties with Tehran to create a strategic "balance" in the region.
(Al Arabiya)


Secular Condemn U.S. Support for Muslim Brotherhood

Egyptian secular and liberal parties sounded dissatisfaction over the reported support of the U.S. for the Muslim Brotherhood's presidential candidate, Mohamed Morsi, but affirmed they would accept the results of the elections. Morsi's victory was hailed by Iran as a "splendid vision of democracy" that marked the final phase of an "Islamic Awakening."
(Al Ahram-Egypt)


Will Egypt's New Leader Islamize Largest Arab State? -Joanna Paraszczuk

Former Israeli ambassador to Egypt Zvi Mazel, a fellow of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, said Morsi's election victory meant that Egypt's 2011 revolution had failed. Morsi had said many times that his plans were to conquer Jerusalem, Mazel noted, adding that the Brotherhood would likely work to gradually create an Islamic state in Egypt.

He said it was likely Morsi would move to overturn a recent order by the military to disband Egypt's Brotherhood-dominated parliament, and could also move to retire high-ranking generals and replace them with his own men.
(Jerusalem Post)


Despite Win, Egypt's New President Will Have His Hands Tied -Zvi Bar'el

Morsi's slim margin of victory - just over three percentage points - shows that the Muslim Brotherhood is not all-powerful. He and his movement will have to tread lightly in their political and diplomatic conduct.

Morsi will not be able to ignore the army's strong standing or the need to have a good relationship with Washington - not just because of the financial aid Egypt gets but also because any Egyptian president who wants to improve his country's geopolitical standing needs American - and Saudi - assistance. Even if there is a hidden plan to reexamine or change the Camp David Accords, it won't be discussed any time soon.
(Ha'aretz)


Israel's Missile Defense System Intercepts Five Rockets -Avi Issacharoff

As rocket fire toward Israel from Gaza continued on Saturday, Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted five rockets fired toward the Ashkelon area. More than 20 rockets were fired from Gaza on Friday night and Saturday. An Israeli man was wounded when a Kassam rocket directly hit a factory in the Sderot industrial zone. One rocket hit a school in Sderot, which was empty at the time.
(Ha'aretz)
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