In Egypt, the Government's Quarrel with the Courts Continues

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood is facing pressure on several fronts, including ongoing opposition protests, its tenuous relationship with the courts and continued delays of parliamentary elections. The March 27 ruling by the Egyptian appeals court invalidating Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi's pick for prosecutor general further complicates matters. The decision worsens tensions between the Muslim Brotherhood-led government and the judiciary, and it could create opportunities for the secular opposition.

Egyptian opposition groups are hoping to take advantage of the ruling by galvanizing enough popular anti-Muslim Brotherhood sentiment to provoke an intervention by the military — a development that would likely allow the opposition to assert itself. However, with the military wary of reinserting itself into the political arena and the opposition still lacking the critical mass of support needed to achieve its goals, the government can continue working with the military to manage socio-economic discontent and Egypt's evolving security challenges for the foreseeable future. And though competition between the Islamist government and the judiciary could exacerbate instability, for now the situation is more of a manageable reality of Egyptian politics than an existential challenge to Morsi's presidency.