Putting the Islamist genie back in the bottle

Two and half years ago, millions of Egyptians let the Islamic genie out of the bottle.

They took to the streets to topple Hosni Mubarak, and the vacuum created by his ouster was quickly filled by the Muslim Brotherhood. While the Muslim Brotherhood took advantage of the wide popular support that it had at the time, the group's rise to power was mainly aided by the paralysis of the Egyptian establishment, military and security forces. In June 2012, the Muslim Brotherhood's representative, Mohammed Morsi, was elected president.

Today, in what appears to be atonement for their original sin of letting the Muslim Brothers take control of their revolution, the Tahrir youths are remaining in their homes, thus backing the military's war on the Muslim Brotherhood. The goal of the war is to put the Islamic genie back in the bottle.

A lot has changed over the past two and a half years. The Muslim Brotherhood misread the Egyptian political map and committed the sin of arrogance by truly believing it had been chosen by Allah to lead the country. More importantly, Egypt's establishment recovered from the nasty blow it had been dealt by Mubarak's downfall. This was particularly true of the military, led by the energetic defense secretary, Col. Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.

The die was cast in early July, with the ousting of Morsi from power. The Egyptian military returned to the scene and made clear that it planned to rule, rather than continue to serve as a mediator for national reconciliation. And more significantly, the military also showed that it did not intend to hold a dialogue with the Muslim Brotherhood. Rather, it would hit the Muslim Brotherhood with an iron fist to return the group to the status it had during the Mubarak era, when the group faced persecution.

It seems that Western and Israeli media outlets still don't get it. Newspaper headlines are promising civil war or at least ongoing chaos in Egypt. But in reality, it looks as if the Egyptian military has nearly completed its takeover of the country. Unlike during the revolution that brought down Mubarak, Egypt's security forces currently have the initiative and are able to impose their authority over all parts of the country (although Sinai is still up for grabs). Also, the Muslim Brotherhood is not able to send millions into the streets. The demonstrations being reported on in the media include just a few thousand people and the Egyptian regime is not having much difficulty handling them.

Egypt's interior minister explained simply that the regime's goal is to return the level of security back to what it was before Jan. 25, 2011. In other words, a return to the Mubarak era, but without Mubarak. As long as Sissi is around, there is no need for Mubarak.

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