Egypt’s military council indicated that it won’t oppose President Mohamed Mursi’s decision to sideline the country’s two top generals as he seeks to cement his authority amid a power struggle with the army.
In a statement on a Facebook page affiliated with the council, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and armed forces chief of staff Sami Enan were praised for proving their commitment to Egypt’s transition to a democracy. The statement came a day after Mursi, who has been locked in a tug-of-war with the council since he took office in late June, said he had ordered the two generals to retire.
Mursi’s decision also to claim legislative powers by voiding a constitutional decree enacted by the military on June 17 required him to move quickly in a nation whose population is growing increasingly disgruntled about power cuts, security lapses and a weak economy.
“It’s too much power, definitely, in the hands of one man,” said Omar Ashour, director of Middle East studies at the University of Exeter in the U.K. and a visiting fellow at Brooking Doha Center.
While Mursi wasn’t trying to challenge the military establishment, his push to bolster civilian rule may backfire if he tries to retain the new powers indefinitely, Ashour said by telephone. “One thing is for sure: if he heads for authoritarianism, he’ll be opposed.”
[h=2]New Appointments[/h]Mursi’s decision drew thousands into Cairo’s Tahrir Square, with supporters celebrating what they said was another step toward the fulfillment of the January 2011 uprising. The president also appointed a new defense minister and heads of the various branches of the armed forces. He named Mahmoud Mekki, a judge who had criticized the transparency of the 2005 elections under ousted President Hosni Mubarak, as his vice president.
Yasser Ali, Mursi’s spokesman, told reporters the president had notified Tantawi and Enan of the decisions in advance and had coordinated with the military council. He also denied reports the two men had been placed under house arrest, stressing they had been given two of the nation’s highest honors and appointed military advisers to the president.
Mursi told the new defense minister, General Abdelfatah al- Seesi, to improve the living conditions of the military, which has officially remained silent about the changes. The Facebook statement called the leadership change “natural” and said it was time for the “knight to rest after a long and harsh journey.” Responsibility has shifted “to a new generation of Egypt’s sons to begin a new journey” to protect the nation, according to the statement.
[h=2]Working Together[/h]The U.S. wasn’t surprised by Mursi’s decision to remove Tantawi and Enan, said George Little, a Pentagon spokesman.
“We did expect at some point there to be changes in the military leadership,” he told reporters today in Washington. “We believe we’ll be able to maintain strong defense relations with Egypt. It’s important for the military and political leadership in Egypt to continue to work together to address both the economic and security challenges facing that country.”
Mursi capitalized on the military’s loss of face after militants killed 16 soldiers in Sinai on Aug. 5 by initiating a shake-up in the top security posts that was capped by the removal of Tantawi as defense minister. The field marshal held the post under Mubarak for 20 years and was re-appointed in Prime Minister Hisham Qandil’s government.
[h=2]‘Unconstitutional, Illegal’[/h]Tantawi and the military council came under fire throughout the transition period, particularly after the generals stripped the presidency of some of its power and gave themselves legislative rights. Mursi reversed that decree, giving himself the same authority in a step that may prompt legal challenges.
Tahani el-Gebali, a judge with the constitutional court, the country’s highest judicial body, called the move “unconstitutional and illegal.”
“The new declaration gives Mursi absolute powers,” she said by phone. With the president now holding legislative and executive authority, it was tantamount to him saying that “I am the state” Gebali said.
Mursi tried to soften the blow, saying in a televised speech yesterday that he wasn’t trying to “marginalize anyone.”
The benchmark EGX 30 Index (EGX30) of stocks climbed 1.5 percent today, making it the best performing gauge in the Middle East. The Egyptian pound, subject to a managed float, strengthened 0.2 percent, the most in almost eight months, to 6.0748 a dollar.
“If the move is part of a deal, and does not lead to further internal turmoil, then it marks a significant step forward in Egypt’s troubled political transition,” Simon Williams and Elizabeth Martins, economists at HSBC, wrote in an e-mailed report today.
To contact the reporter on this story: Tarek El-Tablawy in Cairo at [email protected]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Louis Meixler at [email protected]
In a statement on a Facebook page affiliated with the council, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and armed forces chief of staff Sami Enan were praised for proving their commitment to Egypt’s transition to a democracy. The statement came a day after Mursi, who has been locked in a tug-of-war with the council since he took office in late June, said he had ordered the two generals to retire.
Mursi’s decision also to claim legislative powers by voiding a constitutional decree enacted by the military on June 17 required him to move quickly in a nation whose population is growing increasingly disgruntled about power cuts, security lapses and a weak economy.
“It’s too much power, definitely, in the hands of one man,” said Omar Ashour, director of Middle East studies at the University of Exeter in the U.K. and a visiting fellow at Brooking Doha Center.
While Mursi wasn’t trying to challenge the military establishment, his push to bolster civilian rule may backfire if he tries to retain the new powers indefinitely, Ashour said by telephone. “One thing is for sure: if he heads for authoritarianism, he’ll be opposed.”
[h=2]New Appointments[/h]Mursi’s decision drew thousands into Cairo’s Tahrir Square, with supporters celebrating what they said was another step toward the fulfillment of the January 2011 uprising. The president also appointed a new defense minister and heads of the various branches of the armed forces. He named Mahmoud Mekki, a judge who had criticized the transparency of the 2005 elections under ousted President Hosni Mubarak, as his vice president.
Yasser Ali, Mursi’s spokesman, told reporters the president had notified Tantawi and Enan of the decisions in advance and had coordinated with the military council. He also denied reports the two men had been placed under house arrest, stressing they had been given two of the nation’s highest honors and appointed military advisers to the president.
Mursi told the new defense minister, General Abdelfatah al- Seesi, to improve the living conditions of the military, which has officially remained silent about the changes. The Facebook statement called the leadership change “natural” and said it was time for the “knight to rest after a long and harsh journey.” Responsibility has shifted “to a new generation of Egypt’s sons to begin a new journey” to protect the nation, according to the statement.
[h=2]Working Together[/h]The U.S. wasn’t surprised by Mursi’s decision to remove Tantawi and Enan, said George Little, a Pentagon spokesman.
“We did expect at some point there to be changes in the military leadership,” he told reporters today in Washington. “We believe we’ll be able to maintain strong defense relations with Egypt. It’s important for the military and political leadership in Egypt to continue to work together to address both the economic and security challenges facing that country.”
Mursi capitalized on the military’s loss of face after militants killed 16 soldiers in Sinai on Aug. 5 by initiating a shake-up in the top security posts that was capped by the removal of Tantawi as defense minister. The field marshal held the post under Mubarak for 20 years and was re-appointed in Prime Minister Hisham Qandil’s government.
[h=2]‘Unconstitutional, Illegal’[/h]Tantawi and the military council came under fire throughout the transition period, particularly after the generals stripped the presidency of some of its power and gave themselves legislative rights. Mursi reversed that decree, giving himself the same authority in a step that may prompt legal challenges.
Tahani el-Gebali, a judge with the constitutional court, the country’s highest judicial body, called the move “unconstitutional and illegal.”
“The new declaration gives Mursi absolute powers,” she said by phone. With the president now holding legislative and executive authority, it was tantamount to him saying that “I am the state” Gebali said.
Mursi tried to soften the blow, saying in a televised speech yesterday that he wasn’t trying to “marginalize anyone.”
The benchmark EGX 30 Index (EGX30) of stocks climbed 1.5 percent today, making it the best performing gauge in the Middle East. The Egyptian pound, subject to a managed float, strengthened 0.2 percent, the most in almost eight months, to 6.0748 a dollar.
“If the move is part of a deal, and does not lead to further internal turmoil, then it marks a significant step forward in Egypt’s troubled political transition,” Simon Williams and Elizabeth Martins, economists at HSBC, wrote in an e-mailed report today.
To contact the reporter on this story: Tarek El-Tablawy in Cairo at [email protected]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Louis Meixler at [email protected]