Vol. 13, No. 13 21 May 2013
Is Egypt Heading toward a Military Regime?
Col. (ret.) Dr. Jacques Neriah
- After the jubilation that accompanied Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi's "victory" over the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) in August 2012, the Muslim Brotherhood and Morsi himself began signaling their intention to turn Egypt into an Islamic state, arousing the fears of liberals and religious minorities.
- The opposition turned hostile to the regime and began castigating it, exploiting the newly acquired freedom of the press. Never in Egypt's modern history had the press enjoyed such liberties, and Morsi became the target of satire and mockery. In addition, a new activist group emerged calling itself the Black Bloc. Its members, who dress in black with black masks, have declared open war against the Brotherhood.
- Today, Egypt is on the verge of chaos. Amid a sudden popular wave of affection and longing for the Mubarak days, there is renewed talk of the army retaking power. As Morsi's government fails to achieve true democracy, respect human rights, restore security, or improve economic welfare, an increasing number of people are calling on the army to return to the political scene as Morsi's only possible replacement. A recent poll found 82 percent supporting such a move.
- The question that remains is to what extent Morsi will allow Egypt to drift into anarchy and chaos before he asks the army to take the reins. The Muslim Brotherhood waited almost eight decades to become the rulers of Egypt. Certainly they are in no hurry to give back what the 2011 revolution gave them almost on a silver platter.
Col.
(ret.) Dr. Jacques Neriah, a special analyst for the Middle East at the
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, was formerly Foreign Policy
Advisor to Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Deputy Head for Assessment
of Israeli Military Intelligence.
