Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood splits opinion

They have been hailed as "friends of the poor" but also branded "fanatics loyal to Iran". Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood --

Liked or feared for their zeal

Egypt's largest opposition force seen as 'friends of the poor' by some, 'fanatics loyal to Iran' by others.

By Rana Moussaoui - CAIRO

long considered the regime's nemesis -- divides public opinion.

Despite being the country's largest and most organised opposition force, the Brotherhood has kept a low profile during anti-government protests that have rocked the Arab world's most populous nation for more than two weeks.

Observers in Western capitals have expressed fear that Egypt could turn into an Islamist state should the Muslim Brotherhood take power after the departure of President Hosni Mubarak, who has ruled for 30 years.

Residents of the Manial al-Roda neighbourhood in central Cairo, where the Brotherhood's office is located, are divided over what it would mean to see the Islamist movement in power.

"Their charities help the poor, the orphans and the destitute, they are good people, infallible," said Ahmed Mustafa, a telecommunications employee.

The 55-year-old bearded man hopes to see the group clinch more parliamentary seats, after they pulled out of the second round of legislative elections in December, citing fraud.

"There is no reason to be scared of them, they will not be able to run the state the way they want. There is them, there are the Christians, we are all one," he said.

Egypt's Christian minority makes up around 10 percent of the 80-million population, and have often spoken out of their fear of that the Muslim-majority country would officially become an Islamic state.

Raghb, a doorman who earns 200 Egyptian pounds (around 33 dollars) a month, said the Brothers would do a better job than the current "rotten government", because of their piety.

"They follow the voice of God, they swear by him and by Islam," said the man, dressed in a traditional galabeya robe.

But for others, it is precisely the movement's zeal which worries them.

"We don't like them, they have their own system, their own rules," said 35-year-old Abdel Nasser, who works for mobile phone operator Mobinil. "It's worrying, they are fanatics. This is not how we view Islam."

The group has been officially banned since the 1950s but it counts hundreds of thousands of members and operates a vast network of social and religious outreach programmes across the country.

Founded by schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928 as a grass-roots movement opposed to colonialism and Zionism, the group has largely succeeded in its main goal of encouraging Egyptians to embrace Islam in public life.

There are those who support the government-driven campaign against Brotherhood. The group in turn accuses the government of scaremongering.

"They have no experience. If the state falls into their hands, it will become like Lebanon or Iraq. There will be gangs everywhere and the country will be divided," said Sobhi Dalal Mohammed, a 47-year-old government employee.

"Have you seen what has happened between Fatah and Hamas? We don't need this here. At least with Mubarak, we haven't had any wars in 30 years," he said, in reference to the power struggle between rival Palestinian factions.

Mohammed accused the Brotherhood of riding the wave of nationwide protests that erupted just over two weeks ago.

"They did not appear on January 25. Where were they before? They came very late," he said.

Others accuse them of being hypocritical.

"They are not at all popular. They help people under the banner of religion, but it's to serve their own interests," said one Cairo driver, who stopped to quickly offer his views.

"You should certainly not believe them," said his veiled wife from the passenger seat.

Another resident, Gamal, sees the group as isolated, with far less influence than advertised. "It's the foreign governments and media that give them any importance," he snorted.

The Brotherhood itself has never clearly spelled out its vision for the country, with divisions among the group on what shape an Islamic state would take. But reformers within the movement have said they would like to see a civil state guided by Islamic mores.