Muslim Brotherhood (MB) Supreme Guide Mohamed Badie said on Wednesday that presidential hopefuls Ayman Nour and Hamdeen Sabbahi had both asked for the Brotherhood's support in upcoming elections. The remarks came during a conference organized by the Brotherhood in Fayoum Governorate to celebrate the opening of its new headquarters “We don't play politics," said Badie. "The Brotherhood supported Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour when he ran in his district, and it placed Gamal Assad on the top of its list in Assiut [Governorate]. "It also expelled Abdel Moneim Abouel Fotouh when he announced he would be running for the presidency, as he didn't follow our instructions,” he said. The MB leader also commented more generally on his own approach to supporting political figures, suggesting that he was swayed more by questions of good character than by sectarian loyalties. “One time… journalists asked me, how can you let the tourism minister, a Christian, arrange Hajj and Umrah trips?” said Badie. “I told them he was better than former Muslim ministers who took from LE2000 to LE4000 for each pilgrim.” Badie added: “We welcome him into the ministry because he will not oppress anyone.” At the same conference, Badie lambasted Greece for not permiting the "Freedom Flotilla 2" humanitarian convoy to sail to Gaza from Greek ports. Badie called on the Greek government “to buy the love of the people, rather than the love of the Zionists.” He pointed out that citizens of 44 free countries were participating in the convoy. He added that the United States and Israel used ousted President Hosni Mubarak and his regime to oppress his own people and impose the blockade on Palestine, the first line of defense for Egypt's national security. Translated from the Arabic Edition
