MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

It is still surprising to me the extent of support that an even more extreme Islamist party, Salafi al-Nour, is receiving at the polls in Egypt.  Then again, maybe I shouldn’t be surprised. Hamas and Hezbollah did pretty much the same thing …

By Elad Benari – “Egypt’s two leading Islamist parties said on Sunday their parties have secured about three-quarters of votes cast in the second round of a parliamentary election, Reuters reported.

A source from the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) told Reuters the party was on track to win about 40 percent of votes for party lists, based on results from most districts.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the ultra-conservative Salafi al-Nour Party told the news agency its list received about 35 percent of votes.

The second round of the voting in Egypt was held last Thursday in Giza, Luxor, Aswan and Ismaila.

In last month’s first poll, the Muslim Brotherhood claimed victory, winning about 40 percent of the ballots.

The once-outlawed Islamists’ Freedom and Justice party had won 34 seats in runoff elections, while Al Nour garnered another five seats, according to the group’s website.

While an official breakdown of results for the list vote has yet to be announced, Reuters noted that both parties’ predictions after the first round were broadly accurate.” Read more.

Egypt: New Islamist Fatwa Forbids Women From Wearing High Heels Outside Home, Forbids Muslims from Voting for Christians – “The recent emergence of the hardline Salafi trend in Egypt after the January 25 revolution has given way to a series of controversial fatwas that mainly focused on women, Copts, culture and democracy. Preacher Mustafa al-Adawi issued a fatwa prohibiting Muslim women from wearing high heels because they are a source of seduction for men. ‘A woman can only wear high heels for her husband but she is not to do so outside her house,’ he said. Another cleric, Sheikh Mahmoud Amer, had issued a fatwa prohibiting Muslims from voting for Coptic candidates or their Muslim counterparts who do not pray on regular basis. ‘It is forbidden by Islam to vote for them and whoever does that will be committing a grave sin,’ he said.” Read more.