The Muslim Brotherhood on Wednesday toughened its stance toward protesters.
The group issued a statement calling on the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and the Interior Ministry to protect the People's Assembly and other state institutions. The statement comes a day after a standoff between Brotherhood youth and protesters. At least 75 people were injured in the confrontation.
“Some groups are seeking to destroy [state institutions] under the theory that all state institutions must be dismantled, including the military establishment, before the state can be re-built,” said the statement issued by the Brotherhood's Guidance Bureau.
“We demand that the SCAF and the Justice Minister take the necessary legislative measures and for them to release the information collected during their lengthy investigations on individuals and groups that received funding and training in foreign countries,” the statement added.
In December, the SCAF warned of a secret plot to destroy the state on 25 January. The allegation was largely dismissed as an attempt to scare demonstrators demanding an end to military rule, especially when the council failed to release details about the alleged plot.
The statement went on to say that these groups and individuals “continue to be used to finance disorder, aggression, and vandalism” and that they “obviously coordinate with each other.” The statement said that “hiding this information “encourages the continuation of these destructive actions.”
The statement stressed that “the current Parliament is the true representative of the Egyptian people” and that it “held several good sessions that embrace the revolution’s demands.” It pointed out that some individuals and groups had “claimed the invalidity of the People's Assembly” and that the “legitimacy of Tahrir Square overrides the legitimacy of Parliament.”
“We have read and heard them calling to prevent MPs from entering and some of have threatened attacks [on MPs]."
The statement added that some Egyptians demand the SCAF's departure. However, some demand an “immediate departure while the Brotherhood and others are calling for its departure following the establishment of all constitutional institutions so that power can be handed over to legitimate institutions," it said.
The statement argued that “the immediate departure of the SCAF would leave a security vacuum that would lead to chaos in the country, especially in the absence of an effective police force and cleansing of the Interior Ministry.”
“We support shortening the remainder of the transitional period as much as possible, provided the proceedings correspond with the Constitutional Declaration, which was accepted by a referendum in March 2011.”
The statement said that "those demanding the SCAF’s immediate departure are the ones who were begging them to remain [in power] for two or three years, as they were not prepared for elections and the Brotherhood were the only ones prepared."
