Al Nour says it will seek to change peace treaty

Egypt’s Islamic Al Nour party, which came in second in recent parliamentary elections, has announced its official stance on the peace treaty with Israel. The Salafi party stressed it will not work to revoke the agreement but will try to amend “its exploitative clauses” using all legitimate means.A statement issued by the party said it would do anything which would cause damage to Egypt and its citizens. It said it views with great severity a situation where Egypt unilaterally violates the international agreement, despite the fact it was signed by a dictatorship. Al Nour said it will honor the treaty but will seek to revise certain clauses.The statement noted that the party’s stance does not contradict Egypt’s obligations towards the Arab and Islamist nation. “The party strongly objects normalisation and dialogue attempts and establishing relations with an entity which wants to wipe off our identity, occupies our lands, imposes a siege on our brothers and strongly supports our hangers.”It was further noted that the statement was issued in the backdrop of recent speculation as to Al Nor’s stance towards Israel, the peace treaty and talks with Israeli media.Last week, the party’s spokesman said that there was nothing that was preventing the party from engaging in dialogue with Israel, but party leaders clarified that his comments do not reflect the movement’s position and that the matter is being examined. Spokesman Yousri Hamad told a Kuwaiti newspaper that any talks with Israel would be held “under the supervision of the Foreign Ministry. We will not allow any secret negotiations.”Elections for Egypt’s parliament are set to close in early 2012, but current rounds show the Salafi party reaching second place.The Muslim Brotherhood says it won around 86 of estimated 180 seats up for grabs in the round, or 47 percent. Al Nour won around 20 per cent of the vote. The secular and liberal forces that largely drove Egypt’s uprising against former leader Hosni Mubarak were trounced, failing to turn their achievement into a victory at the polls.The secular alliance of Egyptian Bloc and youth Revolution Continues won less than 10 pe rcent of the seats.