The Brotherhood's morning after

Following Egypt army statement and mass celebrations in the street, Muslim Brotherhood reactions point to a different course of action

After a night of conflicting news about clashes between pro-Morsi protestors and security forces, Thursday morning witnessed a subdued tone from the Muslim Brotherhood, due, in part, to the closure of televised Islamist channels, but also possibly signaling a new course of action.
The first reaction came afew hours following the army's statementin an allegedly pre-recorded message from Mohamed Morsi. The message, which first appeared on YouTube and was later broadcasted by Al-Jazeera television, urged Islamists to hold on to legitimacy.
The Freedom and Justice Party's official newspaper, Freedom and Justice, spoke of masses in the street supporting "legitimacy" and labeled the roadmap offered by yesterday's army statement "a coup" to overthrow their rule. It also called on supporters to continue their protests in order to reverse yesterday's decision.
With expanded coverage of the Cairo University clashes and photos of the wounded, Freedom and Justice has focused primarily on asserting Morsi as the legitimate president and labeling anyone in opposition as a "traitor." According to Khaled El-Balshy, a member of the Journalist Syndicate board, the second print of the newspaper was confiscated, an act which the Syndicate severely condemns as repression of freedom of speech.
Meanwhile, the resigned investment minister Yahia Hamed shared a message from ex-president Mohamed Morsi with Rabaa Al-Adawiya protestors early Thursday in which Morsi asked them for patience in this difficult hour and quoted religious texts urging patience for believers to enter paradise. He also passed along Morsi's request for continued demonstrations and sit-ins throughout the country rejecting the coup and confirmed four dead in the city of Marsa Matrouh. Hamed concluded by stating "We would not be considered men if we gave up on our president."
The Muslim Brotherhood's website and Facebook pages carried two major claims. The first is that the world is weary of the military coup's use of statements from the US. The second is that the Brotherhood is under attack as individuals and that their protests are being violently dispersed. The online sites also mention the television blackout on Egypt 25, Al-Hafez Al-Nas, and on other Islamist channels. Tweets in English by Gehad El-Haddad are filling the page's timeline, stating that the Brotherhood is under attack throughout the country.
News of the arrest orders placed on Muslim Brotherhood leaders Essam El-Erian and Saad El-Katatny were among the headlines.
The 'ground leadership' of the National Alliance to Support Legitimacy – the Islamist front led by the Muslim Brotherhood in support of Morsi – shared a statement early Thursday thanking the army for protecting the sit-in and asking them to continue to ensure peaceful demonstrations, assuring the army of their full cooperation to this end.
"The renaissance path is not an easy one, especially in a country the size of Egypt; in couple of years those who tried to sabotage reforms will pay the price," wrote Khairat El-Shater, the Muslim Brotherhood's deputy chairman, on his official Twitter account Wednesday. This is considered the first reaction from Khairat El-Shater, who is believed to be in Hurghada.
El-Shater's hopeful message was not mirrored in that of Essam El-Erian, the Freedom and Justice Party's deputy chairman and leading member of the Muslim Brotherhood. On his official Facebook page, El-Erian presented 10 points foreshadowing dark consequences of the military coup against Egypt's first democratically-elected president.
"The security apparatus will return once again to take vengeance on those who exposed their scandals and the army will not be able to stop the abuses that the Muslim Brotherhood will face" El-Erian began, later predicting that the youth will rise again against the SCAF, who will continue to rule the country from behind the scenes. He also stated that corruption will spread in Egypt, leading to a possible hunger revolution.
The deputy chairman suggested that the army will not stop the clashes and revolts that will take place and that this will be the biggest threat on army's unity as a national security institution. He also predicted that there will be no presidential or parliamentary elections.
Despite the dark scenario outlined by El-Erian, he closed by predicting that Islamists will eventually be seen as victims in the public eye thanks to the "arrogance of atheists and secularists."
Sentiments of anger and defiance were reflected in Muslim Brotherhood tweets and Facebook pages, in which they vowed to fight the "coup" to the death.
"No coup has ever succeeded in overthrowing an elected president's legitimacy, especially if that president had public support. The fate of traitor El-Sisi's coup is failure and El-Sisi's own fate is unknown especially as there is a big spilt inside the army and refusal for that barbaric stupid coup" said the campaign 'We are the MB youth, know us right,' one of the biggest pro-Brotherhood Facebook pages with more than 300,000 likes.
"El-Sisi will go and President Morsi will return as Egypt's leader no matter how long it takes, the battle is now in all of Egypt's governorates" the page continues.
Calling Minister of Defence El-Sisi a "traitor" was a common theme in pro-Brotherhood tweets and Facebook posts, as related Facebook pages, namely the Freedom and Justice Party's official page, began to share claims that there have been defections in the Egyptian army.
"El-Sisi's treason is not complete and army commanders are still studying the consequences of his statement following the revolt that erupted in Egypt's governorates like Alexandria, Marsa Matrouh and Minya," Abdel Rahman Ezz, pro-Brotherhood Islamist activist and TV host, claimed on his Facebook page.
Facebook pages and Twitter accounts are calling on Morsi supporters to remain steadfast and to join protesters at Rabaa Al-Adawiya and in other squares. Facebook pages have also announced that a civil disobedience campaign will start on Friday.
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