Egypt: The Muslim Brotherhood has formed a new political party

Egypt's largest religiously-inspired political organisation, the Muslim Brotherhood, has formed a political party for the first time since it was founded in the 1920s. Over the past 80 odd years it was variously suppressed by the State or forced to live in the shadows. The Freedom and Justice Party (hizb il-hurriya w'il-adala) will be the vehicle by which it contests parliamentary elections, due in the autumn. The Muslim Brotherhood has already said it will contest up to half the seats, though it will not field a candidate for the presidential elections due later in the year.

It is not clear how different the party will be ideologically and organisationally from the Muslim Brotherhood . Secretary General of the Brotherhood Mahmoud Hussein declared that "this party will be independent from the Brotherhood but will co-ordinate with it."

Parties which are based on religion continue to be banned, although few will distinguish between the Freedom and Justice Party and its progenitor.

Some of the younger members of the Muslim Brotherhood have already raised objections to the way in which the leadership of the party was chosen. The decision was taken by the Shura Council of the Brotherhood rather than by an election of the founding members of the party.

The Shura Council named Mohamed Morsy as the chairman of the party, Dr Essam El-Erian as his deputy and Dr Mohamed Saad El-Ketatney as the party's secretary general. The three were obliged to renounce their positions on the Guidance Council of the Muslim Brotherhood , in an attempt to show a distinction between the Brotherhood and the party it has spawned.

El-Erian defended the decision to make appointments directly rather than through elections, saying time was pressing if the party was actively to contest parliamentary elections in the autumn.

El-Ketatny said El-Ketatny said they are finalising all the paperwork. "We will wait for a month as scheduled by the committee then we will start the activities of our party."

For more news and expert analysis about Egypt, please see Egypt Politics & Security.

© 2011 Menas Associates

Mubarak reshuffles cabinet amid demonstrations

The ongoing protests and mounting pressure from the angry protesters have prompted Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak to reshuffle his cabinet. The country's Interior Minister Habib al-Adly, and Finance Minister Youssef Boutros-Ghali , both reviled by the protestors, have been replaced. It is unlikely, however, that the protests will subside unless Mubarak is ousted.

The protestors, on the streets in Cairo in their tens of thousands, have called a large-scale strike on Tuesday 1st February. In a bid to appease the angry crowds Mubarak has ordered the new Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq to put in place democratic reforms and create employment opportunities.

Adly has been replaced by an army general, Mahmud Wagdi, and Samir Mohammad Radwan becomes finance minister. Radwan said he had a "national mission at a very critical time". Several businessmen holding economic posts have also been removed, evidently to appease the Egyptian people who have resented the influence of the tycoons.

It is generally thought, however, that the reshuffle is not enough to placate the Egyptian people, as the new line-up is not radical enough with both with Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit and Defence Minister Gen Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, who is also the new deputy PM, both keeping their jobs.

Egypt has been in turmoil for over a week; with demonstrators clearly united as they remain on Tahrir Square, while military helicopters circle overhead. The army is heavily present on the streets and at military checkpoints. The country's opposition is calling on the Egyptian people to take to the streets in their millions to maintain the pressure on Mubarak's administration. There seems to have been some discord, however, amid the opposition, with the largest group, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB), appearing to go back on its endorsement of leading figure Mohamed El Baradei as a negotiator with Mubarak.

A spokesman for the MB, Mohamed Morsy, told the BBC: "The Muslim Brotherhood is much stronger than Mohamed El Baradei as a person. And we do not agree on he himself to become representing [sic] this movement, the movement is represented by itself, and it will come up with a committee... to make delegations with any government."

Sources: Ha'aretz, FT, WSJ, BBC News

For more news and expert analysis about Egypt, please see Egypt Politics & Security.