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Sunday, June 24, 2012

It will be Interesting to See How much Power the New Egyptian President Gets

The results of the presidential race were just announced in Egypt. The candidate of the Muslim Brotherhood won by a very narrow margin. Having an Islamist as Egypt's head of state is truly a bad thing, but we do not yet know just how bad. After the recent decision by the Egyptian Supreme Court that invalidated the earlier elections for Parliament, the military ruling council took back power and it is that council that will determine the extent of the powers of the president. Hopefully, the military will keep the new president in check. It would be sad to see Egypt move towards a harsh Islamic rule. Millions of Christians live in Egypt and their fates are dependent on just how much power the president gets. Peace between Israel and Egypt is also hanging in the balance. Perhaps one good thing is that for the new president to get major power, he will have to take down the military. If he does this, then Egypt will not be in any position to take on the Israeli military for many years to come.

On the other hand, it is always possible that the new president will moderate his positions and actually act in a responsible manner once he takes office. Possible, but not likely, to say the least.

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