Are recent assaults on presidential candidates as politically unmotivated as the Ministry of Interior would have us believe, asks Jailan Halawi Was it an armed robbery or an assassination attempt? The question has dogged reporting of the carjacking of presidential candidate Abdel-Moneim Abul- Fotouh last Thursday. Car robberies have proliferated in the security breakdown that followed the 25 January Revolution. When public figures are the victims a Pandora's Box of speculation is opened. And in the case of Abul-Fotouh, the victim was not only a public figure but a leading presidential candidate. The saga began as the candidate was on his way back from a presidential campaign meeting in Shebeen Al-Kom, 80 kilometres northwest of Cairo. Three masked gunmen stopped Abul-Fotouh's car on the ring road, forcing the driver out of the car and beating him severely. When Abul-Fotouh interfered to protect the driver one of the assailants hit him with the butt of his gun. The gang then fled the scene with the car. Abul-Fotouh is reported not to have lost consciousness. Both he and his driver were kept in hospital for 24 hours and then released. The stolen vehicle was a Land Cruiser belonging to one of Abul-Fotouh's friends. The candidate's mobile, and that of his driver, were also stolen. Forty-eight hours after the attack the Ministry of Interior announced that it was being treated as an armed car theft. Two suspects are already in custody, and the ministry said it expected to apprehend the rest of the gang "within hours". The Land Cruiser was also recovered within two days though in earlier statements Abul-Fotouh's driver said the suspects had asked for LE30,000 in return for the car after he spoke to them using his stolen mobile number. Car theft is now so commonplace that a ransom price structure has emerged for cars, depending on model and age. While Abul-Fotouh has remained silent about the attack, waiting for the result of investigations, the assault was the subject of angry commentary by political activists and fellow presidential candidates. The Muslim Brotherhood, of which Abul-Fotouh was once a leading member before being expelled after breaking ranks and nominating himself as a presidential candidate, condemned the attack and urged all security agencies "to do their job" and ensure stability. Mohamed Morsi, head of the Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) said the attack reflects the perilous state of domestic security which, unless it is contained, "threatens a vicious circle of violence". Morsi used the occasion to demand the Ministry of Interior reform its structure, "form and content". Meanwhile, the Ministry of Interior was busy with a statement announcing the imminent arrest of scores of suspects belonging to the gang that carried out the attack. The statement denied the attack was politically motivated, saying those already detained had long criminal records including armed robbery. This was not, however, the first time a political figure or presidential candidate has been attacked, though earlier cases did not attract as much media attention. Prominent Muslim Brotherhood figure and FJP deputy leader Essam El-Erian noted that repeated incidents of assault on political figures could be construed as attempt to obstruct real change and delay the transfer of power. Mohamed El-Baradei, no longer a presidential candidate after withdrawing from the race, used his Twitter account to criticise the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and the government for failing to protect candidates. Fellow candidate and former prime minister Ahmed Shafik also issued a statement condemning the attack, noting that it was a manifestation of a deteriorating security condition that requires immediate action before it spins out of control completely. Shafik urged the Ministry of Interior to take urgent action to end insecurity on Egypt's streets. Both Shafik and El-Baradei have been assaulted in the past. With so many public figures and presidential candidates the subject of physical assaults many believe the attacks might be pre-planned. The Nour Party head Emad Abdel-Ghafour sees the attacks as part and parcel of some mysterious scheme to destroy Egypt. He called on the authorities to either "shoulder their responsibilities or resign". His is not the only finger to point accusingly at members of the ousted regime seeking to sabotage the revolution. Abul-Fotouh has said that the attack will make no difference to his candidacy. In a statement issued on Saturday he called on all citizens to persevere until the goals of the revolution are accomplished and Egypt is transformed from "a land of corruption and injustice into one of justice and security". On Monday former secretary-general of the Arab League, presidential candidate Amr Moussa, was attacked during the course of campaigning when a fight erupted between his supporters and a group Moussa describes as thugs and says were armed with knives, batons and Molotov cocktails. Abul-Fotouh remains one of the front runners in the presidential race.
