Egypt not so welcoming these days. Illustrative. By Joshua Spurlock
While surprisingly few people died in the dramatic uprising and military coup that overthrew Islamist Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, that’s not the case any more. At least 42 were killed and more than 300 injured on just Monday morning after protesters supporting Morsi fought with the Egyptian military, according to Ahram Online.
Both sides have their own version of who started the violence, but the aftermath is that even opponents of Morsi are now withdrawing from the transition process of replacing him. In other words, the violence is leading to political chaos. That’s very bad for you.
As discussed previously, Egypt controls a vital trade route for ships—including those that transport oil to Europe and the US—known as the Suez Canal. Trouble in Egypt may have been the cause for oil prices to rise already last week. Ongoing anarchy in the country is likely to make that even worse.
The initial takeover by the military that ousted Morsi—who had been opposed by millions of protesters—had offered hope that the political change would be quick and relatively painless.
However, Morsi’s old movement, the Muslim Brotherhood, is a former terrorist organization with lots of power among Muslims in Egypt. And they aren’t letting the army depose their man without a response.
While removing Morsi may ultimately prove good for the West—he wasn’t a genuine friend to them and was making overtures with Hamas and Iran—the short-term conflict could prove very bad for the price of oil and gasoline. What will happen next? Be sure to stay tuned.
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, July 8, 2013)