/ 16 November 2013

Muslim Brotherhood up for talks to end post-Morsi crisis

Muslim Brotherhood Up For Talks To End Post Morsi Crisis

An Islamist coalition led by the Muslim Brotherhood on Saturday offered negotiations to end the deadly tumult since Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi's overthrow, without explicitly insisting on his reinstatement.

The coalition "calls on all revolutionary forces and political parties and patriotic figures to enter a deep dialogue on exiting the current crisis," it said in a statement.

The coalition, which has organised weekly protests despite a harsh police crackdown, insisted on keeping up "peaceful opposition" but said it wanted a "consensus for the public good of the country."

It proposed conditions to enter the dialogue, including the release of Islamist prisoners and the reopening of Islamist broadcasters shut down after Morsi's July 3 overthrow by the military.

Unlike previous proposals, which all hinged on the Islamist leader's return prior to negotiations, the Islamists were pointedly vague on their end goals.

They demanded "a return to constitutional legitimacy and the democratic process with the participation of all political groups, without one group monopolising the process or excluding any group."

Hundreds of people have been killed since clashes between supporters and opponents of Morsi erupted early this year. 

Morsi, who was arrested after his July 3 ouster, has been charged with inciting the murder of protesters outside the presidential palace in December 2012.

His trial, along with 14 other defendants, opened on November 4 and is set to resume in January. –Sapa-AFP