THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Egypt's influential Muslim Brotherhood agreed to join talks with President Hosni Mubarak's embattled regime Sunday, a historic turning point in relations between the state and the banned group.
The army stepped up pressure overnight on the protesters who have occupied central Cairo's Tahrir Square, tightening a cordon around the area, but on the political front new avenues of dialogue opened up.
Protesters celebrated a mass in the square - the epicentre and symbol of the revolt against the regime to remember the estimated 300 people who have been killed since demonstrations against Mubarak began.
"God bless the dead. God bless the dead," recited a Coptic priest wearing a crucifix. By his side, a Muslim sheikh stood holding a Koran, as the faithful chanted "A single hand. A single hand" in inter-faith solidarity. Senior Brotherhood leader Mohammed Mursi said the group is sticking to the protesters' main condition that President Hosni Mubarak step down.
These would be the first known discussions between the government and the Brotherhood, suggesting the banned fundamentalist group could be allowed an open political role in the post-Mubarak era. >>> Telegraph’s Foreign Staff | Sunday, February 06, 2011
