Reader Submission: The PR Jihad

 Article from Scatbug:

The PR Jihad

The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt won an historic victory in last month’s presidential election, but now faces a new battle: image sabotage. Reuters reports today about efforts afoot in Egypt to tarnish the organization, which since the 1920s has worked tirelessly to advance Islam’s political influence by chopping the heads of infidels and apostates, ransacking Christian churches and spreading its 8th Century religious principles around the world.

On June 25, a young engaged couple was attacked while walking hand-in-hand down a public thoroughfare. The male companion was stabbed multiple times and subsequently died of his wounds. Three young men “identified as Islamists” have been arrested. While some point to the attack as evidence of Egypt’s move toward Islamic fundamentalism following the election, questions remain as to the attacker’s motive and true identity:

Yet in a country where public debate is rich with rumor and conspiracy theories, the stabbing has also reignited a debate about whether such incidents are what they seem, or rather part of a campaign by groups affiliated to the Mubarak administration and aimed at discrediting the mainstream Islamist groups.

The Muslim Brotherhood issued a statement last week saying people masquerading as its members had attacked women's hair salons on the grounds they were immoral, describing it as an attempt to spoil the group's image.

Muslim Brotherhood leaders feel confident that an effective public relations strategy can do much to combat the image saboteurs. However, as one commented:

"If you want to go for a stroll in some well-known areas of Cairo, you will see scandals…”

The story does not relate what happened to the victim’s fiancé because it’s irrelevant.