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Muslim Brotherhood Wants To Sack Military-Appointed Government In Egypt

In the aftermath of a deadly soccer riot, the most organized political group in Egypt called for the sacking of the interim government appointed by the military.

The Muslim Brotherhood said today that the military had failed to lead the country and provide security and economic stability.

The AP reports:

"The Islamic fundamentalist Brotherhood controls nearly 50 percent of the seats in the new parliament, by far the single largest bloc to emerge from Egypt's freest and fairest elections in decades. Brotherhood spokesman Mahmoud Ghozlan said the military should appoint a Brotherhood representative as prime minister, who would then form a new government. ...

"We call on the military council to sack this government that has failed to handle this big event and to form another government," said Ghozlan. "If there is a government in place that is really backed by the choice of the people, it will act without regard for any pressure from anyone. It will seek to reassure the people and provide it with security," he added.

As the AFP puts it, this is an about-face for the Brotherhood, which had said it would work with the military-appointed cabinet.

But Ghozlan told the AFP that the soccer riots, which left about 70 dead, "proved that the cabinet has failed in administering the country."

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.