Egyptian House Speaker Accuses Washington of Foolishness, Calls Bush another Niron

Dr. Fathi Sorour, the Egyptian People”s Assembly speaker, sharply attacked the US administration, the fiercest attack of such a kind against the United States from the second in command in the Egyptian leadership hierarchy. While attacking Egypt”s biggest ally, the House speaker unprecedentedly praised Islamic Republic of Iran.
 
Sorour confirmed, during his yesterday meeting with Iranian Majlis Speaker, Gholam Ali Haddad on the sidelines of the meeting of the Geneva-based Inter Parliamentary Union, that Iran has the upper hand in the nuclear issue, something that worried the United States.
 
He added that Egypt- as an Islamic state- backs Iran and declares its objection to any threat or aggression against it. The same was reiterated by Foreign Minister Ahmad Aboul Gheit in earlier statements in which he said Egypt rejects an possible attack against Iran.
 
Sorour said:” We are currently witnessing the era of the US political foolishness now”, stressing that Islamic states should close ranks and coordinate between them to confront this foolishness. He said also that Islamic countries should hold dialogues and shun disagreements and schism so that Bush does not turn to another Niron, in reference to the fifth and last Romanian emperor whose most famous crime was burning Rome in 64 AD.
 
Sorour criticized the superpowers” intervention in Iran”s internal affairs, pointing out that the U.S. has previously incited late Iraqi president Saddam Hussein to attack Iran ( as a war erupted between both countries in 1980 AD-1988 AD), and then it turned against him and this “traitor” met his fate at the hands of those who incited him, according to Dr. Sorour.
Sorour described the Islamic Republic of Iran as a powerful country, and said that this power is to the benefit of Muslims and the region. Sorour saw also that the invasion of Iraq plan targeted mainly Iran.
 
For his part, Iranian Majlis speaker, Gholam Ali Haddad, highlighted the cooperation between Egypt and Iran, pointing out that both countries- being eastern and western wings of the Islamic world, can contribute to an Islamic renaissance.
 
Haddad hoped that the latest visit of the Iranian deputy Foreign Minister to Cairo has contributed to increasing the cooperation between both countries because this will be reflected in Muslims unity.
Haddad said that the US danger threatens all parts of the Islamic world, accusing US President George Bush”s administration of trying to carry out the same scheme implemented by Britain in the early 20th century after the First World War when it divided and fragmented the Middle East.
 
However, Hadded concluded his meeting with Sorour confirming that the United States will not execute its plan for redrawing the Middle East map or divide this region again, because conditions are different from those at the beginning of the 20th century and because an awakening is continuously spreading all over the Islamic world.
 
It is worth mentioning that Dr. Sorour delivered a speech on Wednesday marking the tenth anniversary of the international declaration for democracy in front of 117th assembly of the Inter Parliamentary Union, in which he warned that democracy is in danger due to several reasons, foremost among which are: The several continuous regional conflicts, the international collective security system can”t end such conflicts, in addition to support that economic and social institutions need in their structures to support people”s abilities to exercise freedom and so that they have the ability to lead and be held accountable.
 
Sorour said that there are obstacles that face the path of democracy because democratic states in the Western world have lost their credibility on the international level after they thought that democracy is only domestically exercised not extending to relations between countries.
 
He urged the Inter Parliamentary Union to overcome these obstacles at the national and international levels through a full international reconsideration in the human rights system and establish a voluntary financing fund to help developing countries in carrying out the recommendations of the international review system, specially that the international declaration for democracy has contributed to turning the image of democracy from being a western invention to an international principle and a joint human heritage. This is because it is principle and target upon which are based the common values of the international community as a whole, regardless of the cultural, political, social and economic differences.