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| Egypt’s Islamists Vow to Expand Their Protests | Egypt’s Islamists Vow to Expand Their Protests |
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| CAIRO — Islamists on Sunday vowed to broaden their protests across Egypt until the generals who have detained President Mohamed Morsi reinstate him, while American diplomats sought to persuade his allies in the Muslim Brotherhood to accept his overthrow, its officials said. | CAIRO — Islamists on Sunday vowed to broaden their protests across Egypt until the generals who have detained President Mohamed Morsi reinstate him, while American diplomats sought to persuade his allies in the Muslim Brotherhood to accept his overthrow, its officials said. |
| Continuing a push for an accommodation that began before Mr. Morsi’s removal, the American diplomats contacted Brotherhood leaders to try to persuade them to accept the reality of Mr. Morsi’s removal from office and begin to re-enter the political process, an Islamist briefed on one of the conversations said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. | Continuing a push for an accommodation that began before Mr. Morsi’s removal, the American diplomats contacted Brotherhood leaders to try to persuade them to accept the reality of Mr. Morsi’s removal from office and begin to re-enter the political process, an Islamist briefed on one of the conversations said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. |
| “They are asking us to legitimate the coup,” the Islamist said, arguing that accepting the removal of an elected president would be the death of Egyptian democracy. | “They are asking us to legitimate the coup,” the Islamist said, arguing that accepting the removal of an elected president would be the death of Egyptian democracy. |
| The United States Embassy in Cairo did not immediately respond to a request for comment. | The United States Embassy in Cairo did not immediately respond to a request for comment. |
| Tens of thousands of Islamists gathered for a ninth day at their new base in Rabaa al-Adawiya Square and for a second day outside the officers’ club of the Republican Guard, where some believe Mr. Morsi is being held. Leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood, the long-outlawed Islamist group that nominated Mr. Morsi for president, sought to convince the world that his removal was both illegal and untenable. | |
| “What we are seeing is that we have massive demonstrations around the country requiring the reappointment of President Mohamed Morsi as the elected president of the republic,” Amr Darrag, a senior leader of the Brotherhood’s political party, said Sunday in an interview on CNN. Arguing that in a few months Mr. Morsi’s opponents could have competed in elections for a Parliament with the power to remove him, Mr. Darrag asked, “Why did they have to do that by a military coup?” | “What we are seeing is that we have massive demonstrations around the country requiring the reappointment of President Mohamed Morsi as the elected president of the republic,” Amr Darrag, a senior leader of the Brotherhood’s political party, said Sunday in an interview on CNN. Arguing that in a few months Mr. Morsi’s opponents could have competed in elections for a Parliament with the power to remove him, Mr. Darrag asked, “Why did they have to do that by a military coup?” |
| At their de facto headquarters in Rabaa Square, Brotherhood officials pledged that their growing protests would force the military to release Mr. Morsi, insisting that no one else would negotiate on their behalf. “I think the military has to yield; they won’t have any choice,” said Gehad el-Haddad, a Brotherhood spokesman whose father was a senior Morsi adviser detained by the military along with the president. | At their de facto headquarters in Rabaa Square, Brotherhood officials pledged that their growing protests would force the military to release Mr. Morsi, insisting that no one else would negotiate on their behalf. “I think the military has to yield; they won’t have any choice,” said Gehad el-Haddad, a Brotherhood spokesman whose father was a senior Morsi adviser detained by the military along with the president. |
| “We are stepping it up every few days, with protests around the country,” Mr. Haddad said. “We are logistically capable of carrying this on for months.” He said that the protests themselves would turn into gathering places for the observation of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan when it begins this week. | “We are stepping it up every few days, with protests around the country,” Mr. Haddad said. “We are logistically capable of carrying this on for months.” He said that the protests themselves would turn into gathering places for the observation of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan when it begins this week. |
| Like many Islamists here, Mr. Haddad invoked the 1956 crackdown by President Gamal Abdel Nasser that sent many Brotherhood members to prison and forced the group underground until the 2011 overthrow of Hosni Mubarak. “I can’t believe they are trying to run a replay of 1956,” he said. | Like many Islamists here, Mr. Haddad invoked the 1956 crackdown by President Gamal Abdel Nasser that sent many Brotherhood members to prison and forced the group underground until the 2011 overthrow of Hosni Mubarak. “I can’t believe they are trying to run a replay of 1956,” he said. |
| Supporters of the military takeover redoubled their efforts to gain international support for Mr. Morsi’s ouster. Several current and former Egyptian officials appeared on American talk shows on Sunday to argue that the military seizure of power did not constitute a military coup d'état, which under United States law would require an automatic cutoff of $1.5 billion in annual aid. | Supporters of the military takeover redoubled their efforts to gain international support for Mr. Morsi’s ouster. Several current and former Egyptian officials appeared on American talk shows on Sunday to argue that the military seizure of power did not constitute a military coup d'état, which under United States law would require an automatic cutoff of $1.5 billion in annual aid. |
| “The military had the choice between intervention and chaos, and they had to respond to that,” said Nabil Fahmy, a former Egyptian ambassador to the United States, who was described as a possible foreign minister in a new government. | “The military had the choice between intervention and chaos, and they had to respond to that,” said Nabil Fahmy, a former Egyptian ambassador to the United States, who was described as a possible foreign minister in a new government. |
| Appearing on the NBC News program “Meet the Press,” Mr. Fahmy said Mr. Morsi did not respond to popular demands. “So I think the military acted in response to the people, not on their own initiative,” he said. “They did oust the president, that’s true. But then they handed over government immediately to the interim president. The fact that they seized power or wanted to seize power is frankly incorrect.” | Appearing on the NBC News program “Meet the Press,” Mr. Fahmy said Mr. Morsi did not respond to popular demands. “So I think the military acted in response to the people, not on their own initiative,” he said. “They did oust the president, that’s true. But then they handed over government immediately to the interim president. The fact that they seized power or wanted to seize power is frankly incorrect.” |
| Mohamed Tawfik, the current ambassador to Washington, said the Muslim Brotherhood needed to understand where it went wrong and accept the results so that it could participate in the next stage of the country’s political evolution. | Mohamed Tawfik, the current ambassador to Washington, said the Muslim Brotherhood needed to understand where it went wrong and accept the results so that it could participate in the next stage of the country’s political evolution. |
| “We need national dialogue,” he said on “This Week” on ABC News. “We need everybody to be in the process. We will not repeat President Morsi’s mistakes. We want an inclusive process. This is what the Muslim Brotherhood need to understand. They need to look to the future with the rest of Egyptians. There’s room for everyone. We want a truly democratic, pluralistic society.” | “We need national dialogue,” he said on “This Week” on ABC News. “We need everybody to be in the process. We will not repeat President Morsi’s mistakes. We want an inclusive process. This is what the Muslim Brotherhood need to understand. They need to look to the future with the rest of Egyptians. There’s room for everyone. We want a truly democratic, pluralistic society.” |
Peter Baker contributed reporting from Washington. | Peter Baker contributed reporting from Washington. |