Brotherhood to launch party for post-Assad era

DHAKA: Syria’s Muslim Brotherhood, a key opponent of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, announced plans to launch an Islamist political party, saying it was ready for the post-al-Assad era.

‘The decision has been taken to create an Islamic party,’ the head of the Brotherhood’s political wing, Ali Beyanouni, told journalists after the group completed a four-day conference in Istanbul.

The new party would be ‘open to all Syrians’ and will promote a ‘democratic and pluralist’ vision of the state based on the equality of all citizens, Beyanouni said, reports daily Hurriyet.

‘We are ready for the post-Assad era, we have plans for the economy, the courts, politics,’ said Mulhem al-Droubi, the Brotherhood’s spokesman.

The Muslim Brotherhood is an Islamist political movement founded in Egypt in 1928 and has branches and affiliates around the world.

The Brotherhood plays a key role in the Syrian National Council, the opposition coalition opposing al-Assad.

BDST: 1756 HRS, JUL 21, 2012

Edited by Robab Rosan, Cultural Affairs Editor