Egyptian Crisis (2011–2014)
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The Egyptian Crisis () was a period that started with the
Egyptian revolution of 2011 The 2011 Egyptian revolution, also known as the 25 January Revolution (;), began on 25 January 2011 and spread across Egypt. The date was set by various youth groups to coincide with the annual Egyptian "Police holiday" as a statement against ...
and ended with the beginning of the presidency of
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has been serving as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. After the 2011 Egyptian revolution and 201 ...
in 2014. It was a tumultuous three years of political and social unrest, characterized by mass protests, a series of popular elections, deadly clashes, and military reinforcement. The events have had a lasting effect on the country's current course, its political system and its society. In 2011, hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets in an ideologically and socially diverse mass protest movement that ultimately ousted longtime president
Hosni Mubarak Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011 and the 41st Prime Minister of Egypt, prime minister from 1981 to ...
. A protracted political crisis ensued, with the
Supreme Council of the Armed Forces The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF; , ', also Higher Council of the Armed Forces) is a Statutory authority, statutory body of between 20 and 25 Senior officer, senior Officer (armed forces), officers of the Egyptian Armed Forces, and ...
taking control of the country until the
2012 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January: ...
brought
Mohamed Morsi Mohamed Mohamed Morsi Eissa Al-AyyatThe spellings of his first and last names vary. survey of 14 news organizations plus Wikipedia in July 2012Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
leader, into power as the first democratically elected
President of Egypt The president of the Arab Republic of Egypt () is the executive head of state of Egypt and the de facto appointer of the official head of government under the Egyptian Constitution of 2014. Under the various iterations of the History of the Egypt ...
. However, ongoing disputes between the Muslim Brotherhood and secularists led to anti-government protests and ultimately culminated in the 3 July 2013
coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...
against Morsi, led by chief General
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has been serving as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. After the 2011 Egyptian revolution and 201 ...
. The military move deepened the political schism and led to a crackdown by security forces, resulting in the killing of over a thousand of Morsi's supporters. In 2014, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi eventually won the
presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The p ...
in a landslide victory, criticized by international observers as lacking democratic standards. During these years of political turmoil, the authority of the state had been threatened, but never collapsed. The demands of the protesters, including, but not limited to: bread,
freedom Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws". In one definition, something is "free" i ...
,
dignity Dignity is a human's contentment attained by satisfying physiological needs and a need in development. The content of contemporary dignity is derived in the new natural law theory as a distinct human good. As an extension of the Enlightenment- ...
, and
democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...
, have not been met. The military became further anchored in Egypt's politics and a maximal repression of revolutionary practices took place under Sisi's regime.


Background

During his presidency,
Hosni Mubarak Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011 and the 41st Prime Minister of Egypt, prime minister from 1981 to ...
pursued policies similar to those of his predecessor
Anwar Sadat Muhammad Anwar es-Sadat (25 December 1918 – 6 October 1981) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the third president of Egypt, from 15 October 1970 until Assassination of Anwar Sadat, his assassination by fundame ...
, including the adoption of a neoliberal model corrupted by
cronyism Cronyism is a specific form of in-group favoritism, the spoils system practice of partiality in awarding jobs and other advantages to friends or trusted colleagues, especially in politics and between politicians and supportive organizations. ...
, and a commitment to the
Camp David Accords The Camp David Accords were a pair of political agreements signed by Egyptian president Anwar Sadat and Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin on 17 September 1978, following twelve days of secret negotiations at Camp David, the country retre ...
. He also continued the reduction of the military's influence in Egyptian politics by gradually clearing the ministries from military elites. The Mubarak regime increasingly relied on the
police forces The police are a constituted body of people empowered by a state with the aim of enforcing the law and protecting the public order as well as the public itself. This commonly includes ensuring the safety, health, and possessions of citize ...
, administered by the
Ministry of Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, th ...
, to manage public dissent.
Economic liberalization Economic liberalization, or economic liberalisation, is the lessening of government regulations and restrictions in an economy in exchange for greater participation by private entities. In politics, the doctrine is associated with classical liber ...
programs reduced both the state's and the military's role in the economy, leading to a drastic decrease in defense expenditures by 2010. Moreover, Mubarak positioned his son,
Gamal Mubarak Gamal Al Din Muhammad Hosni Sayed Mubarak (, ; born 27 December 1963) is the younger of the two sons of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and former First Lady Suzanne Mubarak. In contrast to his older brother Alaa, Gamal had pursued an ...
, as his successor instead of a military officer. Although this gradual reshuffling of power led to tensions between Mubarak's government and the military, his regime was considered stable by experts and its collapse had not been anticipated. Mubarak's authoritarian rule was characterized by the tight control and repression of sociopolitical opposition. Civil society groups constantly clashed and bargained with the state over their place in public politics. Although being rigorously monitored, political parties,
elections An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...
, local democratic reforms, protests, administrative courts, and associations were increasingly tolerated as forms of political activity since the 2000s. The ever-increasing discontent among Egyptian citizens with the authoritarian regime originated in various concerns, ranging from the regime's brutal policing and its use of violence and torture, to corruption and election fraud. Increasing poverty and high unemployment compounded the resentment against Mubarak. After being nearly three decades in power, Mubarak was ousted following 18 days of demonstrations across the country during the
Egyptian revolution of 2011 The 2011 Egyptian revolution, also known as the 25 January Revolution (;), began on 25 January 2011 and spread across Egypt. The date was set by various youth groups to coincide with the annual Egyptian "Police holiday" as a statement against ...
.


History


Events


2011 Egyptian uprising

The public resentment against the autocratic leadership of President
Hosni Mubarak Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011 and the 41st Prime Minister of Egypt, prime minister from 1981 to ...
erupted into mass protests in late January 2011, following the Tunisian revolution that overthrew President Ben Ali in mid-January. Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians occupied several public places across Egypt, with Cairo's
Tahrir Square Tahrir Square (, ; ), also known as Martyr Square, is a public town square in downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for political demonstrations. The 2011 Egyptian revolution and the resignation of President of Egypt, ...
as the hub of the anti-government protests. Their demands were diverse but typically included dignity, bread, freedom, democracy, and social justice. The
police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...
and demonstrators clashed violently, and the killing of three protestors remarkably deviated from the harsh but non-lethal repression the police usually deployed. Initially, the government took a hard line by using riot-control tactics and by shutting down the internet and telecom networks, which in turn intensified the protests. On 28 January 2011, Mubarak ordered the deployment of the
army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
as the embattled police forces collapsed, leading to "the largest policing failure in Egypt's history". In a bid to accommodate the public, Mubarak appointed Omar Suleiman to the long-vacant office of
vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
on 29 January, and soon after dissolved his cabinet. Later, he announced that he would not seek re-election and promised constitutional reforms, but he refused to step down. As none of these concessions satisfied protesters, the masses on the streets grew and the international pressure on Mubarak increased. The army did not intervene in the protests as they no longer supported Mubarak's rule. On 11 February 2011, Mubarak resigned as president and handed over power to the
Supreme Council of the Armed Forces The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF; , ', also Higher Council of the Armed Forces) is a Statutory authority, statutory body of between 20 and 25 Senior officer, senior Officer (armed forces), officers of the Egyptian Armed Forces, and ...
that had "to manage the affairs of the country". Besides eradicating his nearly 30-year authoritarian rule, the nationwide protests marked an unprecedented event in Egypt's history, as it successfully mobilized people from different socioeconomic backgrounds and merged them into one coalition against the government. The 18-day uprising left at least 846 civilians killed and more than 6,400 injured, according to a report commissioned by the Morsi-regime. Human rights activists have been calling for a serious investigation of the real number of revolution victims, as "the total number of casualties could be far higher".


Transition under the SCAF regime

Following
Hosni Mubarak Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011 and the 41st Prime Minister of Egypt, prime minister from 1981 to ...
's resignation on 11 February 2011, the
Supreme Council of the Armed Forces The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF; , ', also Higher Council of the Armed Forces) is a Statutory authority, statutory body of between 20 and 25 Senior officer, senior Officer (armed forces), officers of the Egyptian Armed Forces, and ...
(SCAF) under Field Marshal
Mohamed Hussein Tantawi Muhammad Hussein Tantawi Soliman (; 31 October 1935 – 21 September 2021) was an Egyptian field marshal and politician. He was the commander-in-chief of the Egyptian Armed Forces and, as chairman of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, was ...
assumed control of the country. The SCAF suspended the 1971 constitution and dissolved the
parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
, tightening its grip over both legislative and executive power. Free elections were to be organized within six months. The interim military rule was fully backed internationally, and, at least initially, well received by the public as a caretaker government, guaranteeing a rapid transition toward democracy. The public support for the military regime appeared from the
constitutional referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or advis ...
on 19 March 2011, in which 77.2% of voters approved the constitutional reforms proposed by the SCAF. The constitutional amendments, although objected by many liberal revolutionaries, included the
judicial The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
supervision of
elections An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...
, limited the presidential powers, and required the newly elected parliament to write a new constitution. However, the popular support for the military started to crumble and different civilian groups called for the end of military rule during renewed mass protests.
Legislative elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...
were held from November 2011 to January 2012 and led to a victory of Islamist parties, with the
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
's Freedom and Justice Party occupying the majority of parliamentary seats and the Salafist's
al-Nour Party The al‑Nour Party (), or "Party of The Light", was one of the political parties created in Egypt after the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. It has an ultra-conservative, Islamist ideology, which believes in implementing strict Sharia law. It has be ...
winning another quarter of the seats. Subsequently, the
presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The p ...
was held in May and June 2012, and has been considered by many as the first free presidential election in Egypt's history. A ruling by the Supreme Constitutional Court, declaring the legislative election unconstitutional, led to the dissolution of the newly elected parliament in June 2012, just before the final round of the presidential election. Moreover, on 17 June 2012, the last day of the presidential election, the SCAF released a constitutional declaration that significantly limited the power of the next president and considerably extended the political power of the military officials. These actions were a blow to the Muslim Brotherhood, which denounced it as a coup, and further consolidated the military's role as powerbroker in the post-Mubarak period.


Presidency of Mohamed Morsi

In June 2012,
Mohamed Morsi Mohamed Mohamed Morsi Eissa Al-AyyatThe spellings of his first and last names vary. survey of 14 news organizations plus Wikipedia in July 2012presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The p ...
with 51.7% of the vote in a run-off against army-backed candidate
Ahmed Shafik Air Marshal Ahmed Mohamed Shafik ZakiAlso spelled: ''Shafiq''. (, ; born 25 November 1941) is an Egyptian politician and former presidential candidate. He was a senior commander in the Egyptian Air Force and later served as Prime Minister of ...
, who served under Mubarak as prime minister. Morsi, a leading member of the
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
and the Freedom and Justice Party, resigned from both organizations and was sworn in as Egypt's first civilian president on 30 June 2012. However, Morsi's presidency was brief and short-lived, facing massive protests for and against his rule, only to be ousted in a
military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
in July 2013.In August 2012, Morsi replaced Hussein Tantawi as
Minister of Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...
by
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has been serving as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. After the 2011 Egyptian revolution and 201 ...
, then chief of the
military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...
. The drafting of a new constitution, considered as a central element in the country's transition toward democracy, was criticized for the Islamists' dominance in the process and deeply divided the involved political factions. The withdrawal of some main stakeholders, such as the
secularists Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...
and the
Coptic Christians Copts (; ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group native to Northeast Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt since antiquity. They are, like the broader Egyptian population, descended from the ancient Egyptians. Copts p ...
, resulted in a draft constitution almost entirely written by Islamist parties. On 22 November 2012, Morsi granted himself the power to protect the constitutional process from dissolution by the
court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...
, and the power to legislate without judicial oversight, until a new parliament would be elected. While these unilateral actions led to massive protests and violent action throughout the country, Morsi submitted the draft constitution to a
referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...
in which 63.8% voted in favor, despite a low turnout of 32.9% of the electorate. The new constitution was then signed into law, which made it legally binding. Morsi's regime was contested by a constellation of forces comprising the
military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
, the
security forces Security forces are statutory organizations with internal security mandates. In the legal context of several countries, the term has variously denoted police and military units working in concert, or the role of irregular military and paramilitar ...
, the
judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
, and secularists, in what has been described as a "not-so-secret" parallel government aiming at its overthrow. Disagreement over the constitutional process, Morsi's perceived incompetence, internal problems within the Brotherhood, and the failure to deal with some of the country's main issues, such as shortages of basic necessities, further challenged his rule. In February 2013, the Salafists also withdrew their support from the president and soon after, the public resentment erupted into a campaign calling for his resignation and nation-wide demonstrations.


2013 protests and military coup

In April 2013, a grassroots movement known as
Tamarod Tamarod (, "rebellion") was an Egyptian movement funded by the General Intelligence Service (Mukhabarat) and UAE to overthrow the 1st democratically elected Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi. The nominal aim was to register opposition to and fo ...
, or "rebellion", claimed to have collected 20 million signatures on a petition calling for new presidential elections and the suspension of the new constitution. The independence of Tamarod has been questioned, as its campaign was allegedly supported and funded by the SCAF and the
security forces Security forces are statutory organizations with internal security mandates. In the legal context of several countries, the term has variously denoted police and military units working in concert, or the role of irregular military and paramilitar ...
. On 30 June 2013, the first anniversary of Morsi's inauguration was marked by mass demonstrations for, but mostly against Morsi, in which thousands of protesters surrounded the Heliopolis presidential palace demanding the resignation of Morsi. The military drew on the public resentment by issuing a 48-hour ultimatum that forced Morsi to reach a compromise with his opponents, but the president did not give in and insisted that he was the legitimate leader. The military has been accused of exaggerating the size of the anti-Morsi protests, claiming figures of 15 and 17 million of protesters, up to 30 million. Independent observers have set the crowd scale at 1 to 2 million. On 3 July 2013, the
Egyptian Armed Forces The Egyptian Armed Forces () are the military forces of the Egypt, Arab Republic of Egypt. The Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces directs (a) Egyptian Army forces, (b) the Egyptian Navy, (c) Egyptian Air Force and (d) Egyptian Air Defense Forces. ...
, headed by
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has been serving as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. After the 2011 Egyptian revolution and 201 ...
, acted on its 48-hour ultimatum by carrying out a popularly supported
coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...
ousting President
Mohamed Morsi Mohamed Mohamed Morsi Eissa Al-AyyatThe spellings of his first and last names vary. survey of 14 news organizations plus Wikipedia in July 2012 In one day, the generals subsequently removed Morsi from office and imprisoned him, suspended the constitution, appointed
Adly Mansour Adly Mahmoud Mansour (, ; born 23 December 1945) is an Egyptian judge and politician who served as the president (or chief justice) of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt. He also served as interim president of Egypt from 4 July 2013 to 8 ...
, chief justice of the Supreme Constitutional Court, as interim president, and called for early elections.


Post-coup unrest

The
military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
triggered violent clashes between the military and Morsi supporters. Pro-Morsi protesters amassed near the Rabia Al-Adawiya Mosque, originally to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Morsi's presidency, but in the wake of his removal, they called for his return to power and condemned the military. Following the coup, security forces violently suppressed pro-Morsi demonstrations, culminating in five separate incidents of mass killings, including the killing of 61 protestors at the
Republican Guard A republican guard, sometimes called a national guard, is a state organization of a country (often a republic, hence the name ''Republican'') which typically serves to protect the head of state and the government, and thus is often synonymous wit ...
headquarters on 8 July 2013. On 14 August 2013, security forces raided the pro-Morsi sit-ins at al-Nahda Square and Rabaa al-Adawiya Square, resulting in a
massacre A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians Glossary of French words and expressions in English#En masse, en masse by an armed ...
of at least 900 protesters.
Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...
denounced the aggressive crackdown on mostly peaceful protesters as "serious violations of international human rights" and are most likely
crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are certain serious crimes committed as part of a large-scale attack against civilians. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity can be committed during both peace and war and against a state's own nationals as well as ...
. Subsequent violence led to the death of hundreds more people. The interim military government declared the
state of emergency A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, o ...
and a
curfew A curfew is an order that imposes certain regulations during specified hours. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to remain indoors during the evening and nighttime hours. Such an order is most often issued by public authorit ...
, that ultimately lasted three months. On 24 March 2014, an Egyptian court sentenced 529 suspected members of the Muslim Brotherhood to death, accused of attacking a police station. Since the coup, approximately 60,000 people have been arrested or charged by the Egyptian authorities, which mainly targeted the Muslim Brotherhood.


2014 election of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi

General
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has been serving as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. After the 2011 Egyptian revolution and 201 ...
, who led the
military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
against President
Mohamed Morsi Mohamed Mohamed Morsi Eissa Al-AyyatThe spellings of his first and last names vary. survey of 14 news organizations plus Wikipedia in July 20122014 elections * 2014 United Nations Security Council election 16 October 2014 Africa * 2014 Algerian presidential election 17 April 2014 * 2014 Botswana general election 24 October 2014 * 2014 Comorian presidential election 21 February and 10 April 2014 * 2014 ...
. In late May 2014, el-Sisi won in a landslide victory with 96.9% of the vote. His only rival was
Hamdeen Sabahi Hamdeen Sabahi (, ; born 5 July 1954) is an Egyptian politician and journalist. He is a former presidential candidate and currently the leader of the Egyptian Popular Current and a co-leader of the National Salvation Front. An opposition act ...
in an election that was boycotted by Islamists and many political parties, including the
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
and many liberal and secular groups. The election saw a voter turnout of 47.5%, lower than the 52% turnout in the
2012 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January: ...
, prompting the interim government to extend the vote last-minute with a third day. The electoral process and the outcome was denounced by observers as violating democratic rules. Analysts compared the election outcome to the Mubarak era, in which similar numbers of support for Mubarak were reported during periodic elections and referendums. Nonetheless, el-Sisi's election was widely recognized internationally. Domestically, hundreds of his supporters celebrated the victory in Cairo's
Tahrir Square Tahrir Square (, ; ), also known as Martyr Square, is a public town square in downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for political demonstrations. The 2011 Egyptian revolution and the resignation of President of Egypt, ...
amid a deeply divided society.


Impact


Counterrevolution

In the period between 2011 and 2014, multiple power centers, including the
military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
, the
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
and secularists, emerged and competed for power. However, the military permanently played a key role throughout the different events that constituted this juncture. The army's generals carefully sought to manage each episode, and succeeded in maintaining power despite the country's political transitions. In fact, the military had always dominated Egypt's politics since the establishment of the first
republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...
in 1952. With the installation of President el-Sisi, who removed Morsi in a
military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
, the military's political and economic grip on the state has been fully consolidated in what has been called "a counterrevolutionary regime". Meanwhile, there has been a maximal repression of the
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
and other opposition groups. Any form of public dissent, including the
right to protest The right to protest may be a manifestation of the right to freedom of assembly, the right to freedom of association, and the right to freedom of speech. Additionally, protest and restrictions on protest have lasted as long as governments have. ...
and
freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic Media (communication), media, especially publication, published materials, shoul ...
, is strongly restricted by Sisi's repressive regime. Human rights organizations have accused Sisi's
authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...
regime of using torture and
enforced disappearance An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person with the support or acquiescence of a State (polity), state followed by a refusal to acknowledge the person's fate or whereabouts with the i ...
s to crush political opponents and criminal suspects. Sisi's regime is not simply a continuation of Mubarak's repressive rule, but a regime aiming at the eradication of all the revolutionary elements that developed during Mubarak's final years and have thrived since the 2011 uprisings. Sisi's policy of counterrevolution led many analysts to evaluate the Egyptian revolution as a "failed revolution". However, critics of this view have assessed the period between 2011 and 2014 from a different perspective. It is argued that this period began without clear revolutionary intentions and has been terminated without a revolutionary outcome. Therefore, this turbulent period has also been described as a "revolutionary situation", an "authoritarian breakdown", a "constitutional revolution", and, as a "revolutionary process" followed by "two waves of counterrevolution". The discussion relates to broader reflections on the
Arab Spring The Arab Spring () was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings, and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began Tunisian revolution, in Tunisia ...
, described by
Asef Bayat Asef Bayat is an Iranian-American professor of sociology. He currently holds the Catherine and Bruce Bastian Chair in Global and Transnational Studies in the Department of Sociology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Bayat's works focu ...
as "political upheavals that were both revolutionary and non-revolutionary".


Socio-economic impact

In the years since the 2011 revolution, the
Egyptian economy The economy of Egypt is a developing country, developing, mixed economy, combining private enterprise with centralized economic planning and government regulation. It is the second-largest economy in Africa, and List of countries by GDP (nominal ...
suffered from a severe downturn. The post-revolutionary governments faced numerous economic challenges while none of the government's met the demands of the people, such as high unemployment,
crony capitalism Crony capitalism, sometimes also called simply cronyism, is a pejorative term used in political discourse to describe a situation in which businesses profit from a close relationship with state power, either through an anti-competitive regul ...
, and widening income gaps. Political and institutional uncertainty, a perception of rising insecurity and sporadic unrest continued to negatively affect Egypt's economic situation.Egypt Overview
worldbank.org, April 2013
Since 2011, the
government deficit The government budget balance, also referred to as the general government balance, public budget balance, or public fiscal balance, is the difference between government revenues and spending. For a government that uses accrual accounting ( ...
was supplemented with an additional 10% every year, and the country's
domestic Domestic may refer to: In the home * Anything relating to the human home or family ** A domestic animal, one that has undergone domestication ** A domestic appliance, or home appliance ** A domestic partnership ** Domestic science, sometimes cal ...
and foreign debt stood well beyond 100% of the GDP in 2015.
Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...
, crucial to Egypt's economy as one of its main sources of revenue, sharply dropped between 2010 and 2015 by an estimated 50%. When
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has been serving as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. After the 2011 Egyptian revolution and 201 ...
took power in June 2014, reviving the economy was one of his main priorities. His government pushed through a range of economic reforms, such as cutting food and energy subsidies and raising taxes. One of his most important economic projects was the completion of a new Suez canal in 2015. However, economic decline only exacerbated Egypt's high rate of unemployment, most visibly in extreme
youth unemployment Youth unemployment refers to the proportion of the Workforce, labor force aged 15 – 24 who do not have a job but are seeking employment. Youth unemployment is different from unemployment in the general workforce in that youth unemployment rat ...
, which stood at more than 40% in 2016. Additionally, an important part of the population has been deployed in the
informal economy An informal economy (informal sector or grey economy) is the part of any economy that is neither Taxation, taxed nor monitored by any form of government. Although the informal sector makes up a significant portion of the economies in developin ...
, which complicates the provision of accurate data. By 2016,
inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of curre ...
and living costs heavily increased, pushing millions of people into poverty. Data from 2016 indicates that "an estimated twenty million Egyptians are living at or below the poverty level", including the lack of access to basic needs, health care and education.


Sinai insurgency

Since the 2011 collapse of the Mubarak regime, a security vacuum emerged in the
Sinai Peninsula The Sinai Peninsula, or simply Sinai ( ; ; ; ), is a peninsula in Egypt, and the only part of the country located in Asia. It is between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, and is a land bridge between Asia and Afri ...
which turned it into a site of violent
insurgency An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare against a larger authority. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric warfare, asymmetric nature: small irregular forces ...
. Initially, the insurgency involved mainly local
Bedouin The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu ( ; , singular ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia (Iraq). The Bedouin originated in the Sy ...
tribesmen who saw the revolution as an opportunity to oppose the regime's discrimination and to assert their authority in the region. Islamist militants, present in the Sinai with various setbacks since the mid-1970s, exploited the country's instable situation to launch several attacks on Egyptian security forces. Two military campaigns, Operation Eagle of the interim SCAF-regime in 2011, and Operation Sinai of the newly elected Morsi-regime in 2012, were not successful in eliminating the militant groups from the peninsula. The removal of Morsi and the brutal repression on pro-Morsi protesters in 2013 further intensified the militants' activities. A wave of attacks on Egyptian security personnel prompted the military to a harsh crackdown on the Islamist militant groups. In 2014, the most powerful militia in the Sinai, Ansar Bait al-Maqdis, pledged allegiance to the
Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...
and formed their own branch of Islamic State in the Sinai Province. They claimed responsibility over an attack in which more than 30 Egyptian soldiers were killed, being marked as the deadliest assault on security forces since 2011. Multiple major offensives by the
Egyptian army The Egyptian Army (), officially the Egyptian Ground Forces (), is the land warfare branch (and largest service branch) of the Egyptian Armed Forces. Until the declaration of the Republic and the abolishment of the monarchy on 18 June 1953, it w ...
since 2014 crushed neither the Bedouin militants nor the jihadi groups. As a reaction to the aggressive political and military measures, their insurgent actions became bolder, with waves of attacks in 2015, 2016, and 2017 on the army,
Coptic Christians Copts (; ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group native to Northeast Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt since antiquity. They are, like the broader Egyptian population, descended from the ancient Egyptians. Copts p ...
, and the
Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
community in the region. Their actions included the downing of a Russian passenger plane on 31 October 2015, killing all 224 aboard.


See also

*
Arab Spring The Arab Spring () was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings, and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began Tunisian revolution, in Tunisia ...
*
2011 Egyptian revolution The 2011 Egyptian revolution, also known as the 25 January Revolution (;), began on 25 January 2011 and spread across Egypt. The date was set by various youth groups to coincide with the annual Egyptian "Police holiday" as a statement against ...
* History of republican Egypt * History of Egypt under Hosni Mubarak *
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has been serving as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. After the 2011 Egyptian revolution and 201 ...


References


Further reading

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Egyptian Crisis (2011-2014) 2010s in Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Arab Winter in Egypt History of Egypt (1900–present) Political violence Arab Spring Riots and civil disorder in Egypt Politicides Government crises