Sunday, January 08, 2012

Muslim Brotherhood Denies Obama Administration's Claim That Egypt Will Honor Peace Treaty

Just Kidding
Muslim Brotherhood Denies Obama Administration's
Claim That Egypt Will Honor Peace Treaty

http://www.worldjewishdaily.com/just-kidding.php#.TwhpH9fiI9Q.facebook



In another blow to the Obama administration's attempt to reassure its allies that the rise of Islamic parties throughout the Arab world is not a threat, Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, the victors in recent elections, has denied the administration's claim that it had agreed to honor Egypt's 1978 peace treaty with Israel.

The Brotherhood's deputy leader Essam al-Erian,stated on Saturday that the accords "are under the responsibility of the people and state institutions, and it would not be right for anyone to speak on behalf of the Egyptian people... We are not in a position to give assurances."

This would appear to be a confirmation of the Brotherhood's intention to put the treaty up for a national referendum, which the treaty would almost certainly lose, meaning that it would have to be renegotiated and/or a state of war would exist between Egypt and the Jewish state. The statement is also a brutal slap in the face of the Obama administration, which had claimed on Thursday that private reassurances had been given by the Brotherhood to the effect that they would honor the treaty.

Reaction on the part of the administration to the Arab Spring in general has been haphazard and inconsistent, with Washington trapped between its desire to promote democracy and the increasing sense that the wave of uprisings will not bring democracy but rather Islamic theocracy to power throughout the Middle East.

At the moment, however, the most pressing concern is maintaining the Egyptian-Israeli peace, which has been the cornerstone of the peace process and regional stability for over thirty years.

At the moment, the prospects are not looking good. As YNet reports,

Rashad al-Bayoumi, the Brotherhood's second in command, told Al-Hayat last week that "the Muslim Brotherhood will not recognize Israel under any circumstances and might put the peace treaty with the Jewish state up to a referendum."

The Brotherhood, he added, "did not sign the peace accords… We are allowed to ask the people or the elected parliament to express their opinion on the treaty, and [to find out] whether it compromised the people's freedom and sovereignty. We will take the proper legal steps in dealing with the peace deal. To me, it isn't binding at all. The people will express their opinion on the matter."

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