Egypt’s president-elect Mohammed Morsi will take legal action against Iran’s Fars news agency for allegedly concocting an interview with the Muslim Brotherhood leader in which he apparently committed to reviewing Egypt’s peace accord with Israel.
Fars News, which has links to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, published the comments it claims it recorded in the run-up to the official presidential results being revealed on Sunday, in which Morsi is said to have promised to renew his country’s ties to the Iranian regime.
Yasser Ali, spokesman for the successful Islamist candidate insisted no such discussions had taken place. “President Morsi was never interviewed by Iran’s Fars agency. The interview was fabricated and his presidential office has begun taking legal action against the news agency,” he announced on Wednesday.
Morsi was quoted as having said he would “reconsider the Camp David Accord” which heralded peace between Egypt and Israel in 1979, as well as presiding over “the development of ties between Iran and Egypt that will create a strategic balance in the region”.
The published interview appeared in sharp contrast to Morsi’s post-election rhetoric, in which he has strongly committed to “preserve all national and international agreements”. He went on to promise peace for all Egyptians, using his Sunday night acceptance speech to pledge a united government: “Egypt is all Egyptians, all of us equal in our rights and in our responsibilities to this nation.”
Israel did not rush to make a swift response to the Iranian allegations, instead issuing congratulations to Morsi on his win in Egypt’s first democratic election, following last year’s popular uprisings which overthrew long-time authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak.
Speaking on Monday, during a joint press conference with visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin, Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu heralded “the democratic process in Egypt and respects its results”, committing “to working together with the new administration on the basis of the peace agreement between us. I believe that peace is important to Israel. I believe that peace is important to Egypt”.
President Shimon Peres seconded the prime minister’s words, saying Israel would “honour and respect the peace treaty between us, because peace is the real victory for both of us”.
The Islamist Iranian regime had responded with optimism to the Muslim Brotherhood’s victory over Mubarak’s secular former prime minister Ahmed Ahfiq, describing the party’s win as a “splendid vision of democracy” and an “Islamic Awakening” for religiously divided Egypt.
Morsi has, however, been keen to present an inclusive vision of his first government, bringing myriad different groups into the fold to fully represent Egypt’s Coptic Christian minority, as well as the country’s secular contingent. Speaking from Helsinki, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for pluralism to be affected, stressing that “one election does not a democracy make”.
"That's just the beginning of the hard work and the hard work requires pluralism, respecting the rights of minorities, independent judiciary (and) independent media,” she continued, adding “"We've heard some very positive statements thus far including about respecting international obligations, which would in our view cover the peace treaty with Israel, but we have to wait and judge by what is actually done".
Morsi appeared to begin exacting his election pledges on Wednesday, as he met with popular protesters and Coptic Christian leader, Bishop Bakhamous. He has also reportedly committed to appointing an independent Prime Minister to his government.
However, Egypt’s Supreme Council of the Armed Forced refused to revoke its constitutional amendment it made in the run-up to election results granting it governing powers, after Egypt’s Supreme Court suspended parliament.
A spokesman indicated on Wednesday the organisation’s head Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi would assume power in the next cabinet as Defence Minister.

EJP