el-Sissi’s speech

You can read one account HERE. The gist of it is as follows:

“Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, addressing a graduation ceremony for a class of military cadets, urged Egyptians to take to the streets Friday, saying a massive turnout would give him a ‘mandate’ and an ‘order’ to do what is ‘necessary’ to stop bloodshed.”

Some have compared this to the rhetoric surrounding the infamous massacre of Coptic protestors in the Maspero district of Cairo (on the east side of the Nile, a bit north of Tahrir, site of television offices). On that occasion, the Army asked the great people of Egypt to come out on the streets and help them against the marauding Copts. Cynical indeed.

But therein lies the difference from the current case. El-Sissi is not asking the great people of Egypt to go out and protect the Army against the Islamists, which could be a recipe for instant civil war. Instead, he’s asking for large marches this Friday in support of a severe Army crackdown on the Islamists.

But that’s actually bad enough. It’s an invitation to travel down Mubarak Highway. There’s no question that there will be some violence from disaffected Morsi supporters, and that the Army will have to fight some of that (though I would certainly hope they not do it the way they did on July 8). But calling for a show of mass popular support for the Army to do “whatever is necessary” veers toward the political darkness.