US Attempts to Resolve Egypt Crisis Fall Flat

Representatives of William Burns, the US under-secretary of state, contacted the Freedom and Justice party, the brotherhood’s political wing, asking for a meeting during his visit to Cairo.

The attempt failed however after each side deemed it too dangerous to meet in a venue of the other’s choosing.

Gehad Addad, a party spokesman, said the proposal foundered after Mr Burns declined to visit the Brotherhood’s protest camp at Rabba al-Adawiya mosque in north-east Cairo.

“His people said it was too dangerous for him to come here,” Mr Addad said.

“If he had, he would have found all sectors of Egyptian society protesting, not just the Muslim Brotherhood. Since there are arrest warrants out for most senior Brotherhood members, there is no way we could arrange to leave here to meet them otherwise we would have been arrested.”

Mr Burns is the first senior US official to visit Egypt since Mohammed Morsi, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, was deposed as president by the army on July 3 following mass protests against his rule.

The Brotherhood – which on Monday staged yet another day of protest – has called his overthrow a military coup. Its members have become increasingly strident in accusing the US of rubber-stamped the event.

“I wouldn’t think [the US] orchestrated a coup but I think it showed a green light to it,” said Mr Addad, pointing to the £860 million of military aid Washington gives the Egyptian army annually.

Egypt’s public prosecutor issued arrest warrant against seven senior Brotherhood and Islamist figures on Monday over violence between the movement’s supporters and opponents in the days before and after Mr Morsi’s removal from office.

Arrest warrants were issued for nine leading Brotherhood figures last week. On Sunday, the assets of several of its leaders were frozen.

Meanwhile, Enas Abdel Dayem, the former head of the Cairo opera, sacked by Mr Morsi’s government in May, has been named the country’s new culture minister in the military-backed interim government.

Source: The Telegraph