Jama’a al-Islamiya member details reconciliation initiative

Jama’a al-Islamiya leader Aboud al-Zomor stated on Thursday that the group is working on a reconciliation initiative to put an end to the political crisis and stop acts of violence and bloodshed, Al-Masry Al-Youm reported.

According to the Islamist figure, all sit-ins and protests in support of ousted President Mohamed Morsi need to be peaceful and attacks on public facilities need to end, while the media campaign against the Muslim Brotherhood must also cease, the privately owned publication reported. 

Zomor’s call comes in the wake of widespread violence since the ouster of Brotherhood-affiliated Morsi on July 3, the forcible dispersal of sit-ins set up by his supporters on August 14 and the imprisonment of various Brotherhood figures.

The initiative will consist of a media pact of honor to halt what he called a smear campaign against the Brotherhood. Zomor also said that the state of emergency must be stopped and all prisoners and detainees released, in addition to finding a practical solution for the coming parliamentary and presidential elections. He said once these steps are executed, peaceful negotiations may commence.

He added that discussions with the Brotherhood and several other parties in the National Alliance to Support Legitimacy about the initiative have already started, and that the Armed Forces and police have already declared willingness to meet with any party for the sake of the country’s wellbeing. “The door for negotiations is not closed,” he said.

Zomor was jailed for involvement in assassinating former President Anwar Sadat 30 years ago, but has since renounced violence. He was released from prison following the January 25 uprising.

Abdel Rahman al-Barr, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood Guidance Bureau, directed a message at what he called “coup supporters,” saying that they have forgotten God’s words on killing innocent souls. Barr attacked former Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa and his recent statements about the current events, saying that coup supporters use public figures to justify their actions.

Gomaa issued a statement last week saying that those who carry out violent attacks against the military should be killed. Gomaa called them outsiders to Islam.

Barr concluded that those who oppose their ruler and use their power to instigate a coup are outsiders to Islam, insinuating that Minister of Defense Abdel Fattah al-Sisi deserves the title.