Egypt's Military Delivers Ultimatum to Muslim Brotherhood

Egypt's Supreme Constitutional Court ruled June 14 that a third of the seats in parliament were illegitimate. As a result, the entire parliament is deemed unconstitutional and may be dissolved. Reports from Cairo also said Egypt's Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) had assumed control of the parliament's legislative powers and the Constituent Assembly, which will draft the country's constitution. Immediately after these reports, a military source told Al Masryoon news that the military had not issued any statement from the SCAF and that there was no truth to claims that the military had assumed control of the government. 

The fate of the parliament is unclear — the SCAF is reportedly in a meeting discussing the high court's rulings — and the rumors and denials may well be part of the military's strategy to intimidate its main opponent, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB). The SCAF and the Supreme Constitutional Court (in which the military has significant leverage) appear to be working in concert to ensure that the MB is contained and that the military retains its authority in the post-Mubarak political system.