The Muslim Brotherhood and Egypt's Succession Crisis

Book excerpt: Framing economic and political reform in the Middle East, this book explores the interplay between the Egyptian state, the Muslim Brotherhood and the politics of succession. Egypt has in recent years experienced a rise in political activism driven by increasing internal demands for reform and change, impacting upon its economic and political strategy. Two key issues have been central to this: the Muslim Brotherhood, in its evolution from a spiritual to a political movement, and the politics of succession, which has seen the grooming of Gamal Mubarak, son of President Hosni Mubarak, to usher forward the inheritance of power in Egypt. This book enables a greater understanding of the dynamics of authoritarianism and democratisation, and the challenges and dilemmas which any future Egyptian reform process will face in the context of succession to Hosni Mubarak.