Brotherhood rejects Islamist proposals for reconciliation with authorities

"The [Brotherhood] affirms to the Egyptian people, and the revolutionaries, that it stands by its principles and will not compromise. We assert that we shall not recognise the military coup and that all its consequences are void," the group said on Monday via its official website.

 

The government has not proposed any reconciliation efforts with the group since the ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi last year.

 

In September, Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab said there was "no way for reconciliation with terrorism," in reference to the Brotherhood, which the government has banned and declared a terrorist organisation.

 

The group has said it remains committed to peaceful protests.

 

The government and the Brotherhood have locked horns since the ouster of Morsi, who hails from the group, in July 2013 when the army, along with several political forces, announced his removal from power amid mass protests against his rule.

 

Several reconciliation initiatives have been proposed, including attempts by Islamist political parties Nour and Wasat, and by political figure Hassan Nafai. However, none of them were successful.

 

Most recently, Ali Fath El-Bab, ex-MP for the Brotherhood's now-dissolved Freedom and Justice Party, told Youm Sabea on Sunday he thought there was "no shame" for a number of public figures, agreed upon by both group, to start reconciliation talks. He added that there has to be guarantees to enforce any agreement.

 

Similarly, Gamal Nassar, another leading Brotherhood-affiliated figure, wrote an article on the International Union of Muslim Scholars website calling on the two parties to start a reconciliation process in which both would have to make concessions. He said there were vital political and economic considerations to keep in mind.

 

Some Egyptian political forces opposed to the Brotherhood have also rejected these initiatives over the past few days.