Egypt's security chief warns of scheme to incite chaos

Egypt's interior minister warned in comments published today that the country faced "unprecedented challenges" that require a decisive response by security forces, accusing the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood of inciting chaos.
The minister's comments was the latest sign of alarm by President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi's government over possible unrest in a backlash against rising prices and tough economic reforms Interior Minister Magdy Abdel-Ghaffar, who is in charge of the police, said the Brotherhood was seeking through "conspiratorial schemes to incite chaos and confusion with the aim of creating skepticism over the ability of the state and its institutions to satisfy popular expectations."

"The security forces will not, under any circumstances, tolerate any attempt to repeat the scenes of chaos and sabotage at a time when the country is moving forward with firm steps toward a promising future, God willing," he said in a ministry statement run in state newspapers today.
Abdel-Ghaffar did not elaborate, but appeared to be alluding to the 2011 popular uprising that toppled longtime ruler Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt's police force largely melted away on the fourth day of the 18-day uprising, when police stations were stormed and thousands of inmates broke out from a number of prisons.
His comments, however, are the latest warning by officials and pro-government media against what they say are calls by the Brotherhood for street demonstrations on Nov. 11 to protest against prices rises and other economic woes.

There has been no reliable evidence that the Brotherhood was specifically behind the call for protests next month, although the group has consistently encouraged anti-government protests by its supporters since senior Brotherhood official Mohammed Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected but divisive president, was ousted in July 2013, by the military, then led by el-Sissi.
In an Oct. 14 statement posted on its website, the Brotherhood urges Egyptians to rise up and topple el-Sissi's government, but gives no specific date for the demonstrations it is calling for.
El-Sissi appeared to refer to these planned protests when, in a meeting with government leaders Saturday, he urged authorities to be on high alert and beef up the defense of vital state installations. The meeting came just hours after a senior Egyptian army officer was gunned down outside his home in an eastern Cairo suburb.