The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) welcomed the announcement that Egyption President Hosni Mubarak stepped down but said there are serious questions about what role the Muslim Brotherhood will play in the transition and beyond and how this will impact Egypt’s policies.
"The announcement that President Mubarak has left office is an extraordinary historic development for Egypt and the Middle East. We join with the Egyptian people and the international community in hoping this new era will unfold peacefully and smoothly,” Robert G. Sugarman, ADL’s national chairman and Abraham H. Foxman, national director said in a statement.
"The demonstrations by the people of Egypt against the regime’s authoritarianism and repression, and their demands for greater freedom, political accountability and transparency, have been inspiring to all who cherish democracy and liberty," they added.
But, they stressed, "there are many unknowns about who will lead Egypt in the short and long term, what their guiding ideology will be, and what kind of Egypt will emerge from this turmoil. It is uncertain what the new role of the military is and how they will govern."
"There are serious questions about what role the Muslim Brotherhood will play in the transition and beyond, and how this will impact Egypt’s policies, and its relations with the West and the State of Israel."
"It is essential for the United States government and the international community to support peaceful transition in Egypt, and urge that those who manage this transitional period commit to sustaining regional stability, including through maintaining and enhancing peaceful relations and security cooperation with Israel," the Jewish group fighting anti-Semitism in the world said.