Iran, Iraq React Differently to Morsi's Fall
A comparison of the Iraqi and Iranian reactions to the situation in Egypt shows a profound difference in their perspectives on democracy.
News about the downfall of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt is reverberating in the streets of Iraq and Iran. Both societies are preoccupied with concerns about democracy and building a civil state. However, reactions took two different directions among Iranian and Iraqi intellectual elite circles.
In Iraq, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki sent a congratulatory telegram to Egypt's interim president, Adly Mansour, expressing his support for the Egypt’s popular choice. Salman al-Moussawi, an MP in Maliki’s coalition, said, "The reason behind the downfall of Morsi is that he became subject to the control of the Salafists. This proves that the Arab street rejects extremist religious rule.”
