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WASHINGTON — Michigan Senate hopeful Abdul El-Sayed once signed a letter urging the then-newly crowned president of Egypt, a leader in the Muslim Brotherhood, to “purge” the media and police.
The controversial progressive signed the letter to Mohamed Morsi in 2012 — just before Morsi’s government embarked on a cruel crackdown on journalists in Egypt, targeting at least half a dozen for “insulting Islam” and “insulting the president,” ultimately culminating in backlash and a coup.
The Michigan hopeful now insists he disavows the Muslim Brotherhood, notorious for its radical offshoots, despite “Dr. Abdul Rahman El-Sayed” being the 33rd signature on the 2012 letter, first reported by the Washington Free Beacon.
“We, leaders of the Egyptian community, support the revolutionary decisions taken by the president, and we call on him to purge the media and the police as quickly as possible,” the letter said, per a translation from Arabic.
“We affirm, as Egyptian Americans, that we strongly reject those voices that are courting America and Europe to take a position against the Egyptian regime.”
Days before the letter, Morsi, who was Egypt’s first elected leader at the time, issued a decree to bestow sweeping new powers on himself as unrest rocked the country.
Egypt had been rocked by the Arab Spring the prior year, which culminated in strongman Hosni Mubarak’s resignation. Morsi used his power grab to order a retrial of Mubarak amid frustrations from supporters that the ousted strongman and his allies didn’t get a tougher punishment.
Amid fears that Morsi’s power grab would turn him into a strongman, which sparked mass protests across Egypt, then-general Abdel Fattah el-Sisi carried out a coup. El-Sisi remains in power to this day, though he recently announced plans to conclude his term in 2030.
The letter El-Sayed signed was published on Egyptian news site Al-Ahram Gate. El-Sayed’s parents were Egyptian immigrants.
In a 2011 article for the HuffPost, El-Sayed urged the US to back the protesters in Egypt before the overthrow of Mubarak and downplayed concerns about the Brotherhood.
He has faced scrutiny over his family’s ties to the Brotherhood, which is designated a terrorist organization by Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates — but not the US. The group is controversial in part because of its radical offshoots such as Hamas.
El-Sayed’s half-sister had touted their family’s ties to the Brotherhood in resurfaced tweets from 2012.
“The implication is that I somehow have dual loyalties and there is nothing about my history or record to imply that,” El-Sayed grumbled to a Newsmax reporter this week when asked about the Muslim Brotherhood. “I clearly disavow. If it’s not clear enough, I clearly disavow it.”
El-Sayed had also gone viral for hitting back at a question from a man named Tommy over whether he disavows the Muslim Brotherhood.
“You assume, Tommy, that because I am Muslim, that somehow, I would have allegiance to something that is not our Constitution,” El-Sayed shot back at the time. “That’s implicit in the question.”
During his debate, Republican hopeful Mike Rogers pummeled El-Sayed over the apparent family ties to the Brotherhood, chiding that he was “bought off” by the group.
The Post contacted El-Sayed’s campaign for comment.