Three chief players dominated the political scene in Egypt during the battle over the Constitution last month; two of them were playing visibly. The third was managing the bone-breaking battle invisibly. The first party was represented by President Mohamed Morsi, his Muslim Brotherhood (MB); a motley of Islamists, who were chiefly led by the Salafist Jamaa Islmaiyya and a freak Islamic group Hazemoun, which is named after its shepherd Hazem Abu-Ismail. The second party was represented by the National Salvation Front (NSF), which is comprised of the newly founded liberal parties, classic parties, individual activists; and politicians loyal to the ousted regime of the ex-president Hosni Mubarak. The invisible player was none other than the military, which, as it has been revealed strongly, has been pulling the strings of affairs in the country since the army was deployed in the streets across the country at 5.00pm on January 28, 2011. The two visible opponents would have bled themselves to death unless the military had intervened softly and cleverly. Both visible adversaries sought independently the help of 51 million voters to rally behind them to silence the other camp. However, less than 17 million people were interested in taking part physically in the decisive war over the constitution; the President's appeal for help was appreciated by about 11 million voters; the NSF managed to ignite anti-Islamists sentiment among hardly more than five million people. The majority of the Egyptians preferred to scramble the fence and carelessly watch the ongoing battle. The fence sitters resumed their long-standing role as expected in such situations. The presidential palace came under the threat of imminent collapse when the NSF moved its forces unscathed from Tahrir Square downtown to its gates in Heliopolis (the presidential palace). The President left his office safely through a door in the backyard of the palace. The battle reached its climax when Islamists rushed hysterically into Egypt's ruling seat to rescue it from falling in the hands of the enemy. A bloody clash took place; nine people from both camps were killed and hundreds were seriously injured. The army decided to intervene before the violence at the gates of the presidential palace would take more tragic dimensions. It was surprising that the pathetic call for the military intervention was made by none other than the NSF's leaders, including Mohamed ElBaradie, the Chairman of Al-Dostour Party. Weeks after president Hosni Mubarak was ousted, on February 11 last year, ElBaradie, April 6 Movement and the Liberals denounced the army's alleged plans to extend its stay in power to steer Egypt safely out of its chaotic situation. Appreciating the call for help, Minister of Defence, Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, invited the President and his opponents to lunch to settle their differences in a Cairo military club. Gen. el-Sissi's invitation prompted immediate appreciation from the NSF's bleeding leaders. On the other hand, suspecting that the host (the Minister of Defence) would traditionally sit at the head of the dining table, the MB declined el-Sissi's invitation – otherwise the prestige of the President would be injured. The Minister of Defence scored more goals by issuing a military decree, which bans the ownership of property, businesses or investment projects by non-Egyptians in particular areas in Sinai and the Red Sea province. The military decree dispelled worries that parts of Sinai would witness a Palestinian diaspora from Gaza. The Minister of Defence was also hailed as a national hero by giving a series of statements, in which he confirmed to the nation that its army would not let them down under any circumstances or allow the recurrence of the violent aftermath of the revolution. The army led the adversaries and their supporters safely to cast their votes in the referendum. A state of euphoria generated in society by el-Sissi's decree has underlined the fact that despite its physical withdrawal from the political scene on June 30, the military remains the skipper of the ship of post-Revolution Egypt.
