The Great Revival of the Islamists

Article written by guest writer Rin Mitchell

What’s the Latest Development?

After a meeting between Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and the new Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, it was reportedly declared that Egypt is committed to “putting into place a democratic government.” Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood have been “drafting a constitution to elevate Islamists over all other Egyptians.” In other Muslim countries, Islamist parties are taking political power. “The U.S. could have robustly supported the Iranian democrats who asked for American help; allied with Arab liberals instead of courting Arab dictators; funneled weapons and money to parties that we’d have come to know; and tied foreign aid and trade to regimes’ human rights policies.” It is the short-sightedness that opened the door to make way for the Islamist comeback, which is “accomplished by one side but always facilitated by the other. In the gap between American rhetoric and American action Islamists staged a revival.”

What’s the Big Idea?

The United States options to counter the Islamist comeback reportedly were limited, but they weren’t nonexistent. “Let us acknowledge the enormity now unfolding and also pay heed to historical context. This is not merely a regional rise in Islamist power. It is the dawn of a great Islamist comeback.”