CAIRO: Thousands of Egyptians will fill Tahrir Square today to protest military rule and the disqualification of Islamist Presidential candidates. The dominant Muslim Brotherhood and ultra-conservative Salafists were unexpectedly striped from their respective candidates Khairat Shater and Salah Abu Ismail earlier this week, straining tensions even further in a turbulent race for the presidency. “There is a brutal war being waged against the Muslim Brotherhood and all Islamists in Egypt, seeking to exclude them from executive positions … and writing the constitution, although the popular mood in Egypt is generally mostly Islamic,” claims a joint statement by the Muslim Brotherhood and its political arm the Freedom and Justice Party. Today's Muslim Brotherhood-dubbed “million-man march” will likely eclipse the April 6 Youth Movement's call for “self-determination Friday,” reflecting a growing divide in the nation's democratic transition. “The SCAF does not want to move from its position. It doesn't want to hand power to the people. All the demands we fought for one year ago have been completely ignored. The Muslim Brotherhood sold the revolution, they made a deal with Suleiman, with the SCAF. They need to leave the revolution alone. No collaboration with the Muslim Brotherhood anymore!” said a revolutionary activist.
