Egypt ratifies Islamist-backed constitution
Source: Washington Post
Egypt ratifies Islamist-backed constitution
By Abigail Hauslohner and Ingy Hassieb, Tuesday, December 25, 2:56 PM
CAIRO Egypt announced the ratification of a new Islamist-backed constitution on Tuesday, a move that many here hope will end weeks of bitter political turmoil.
The countrys high electoral commission declared the charters official approval at a news conference Tuesday night in Cairo. Nearly 64 percent of the 17 million Egyptians who voted in a national referendum this month approved the document.
The new constitution officially replaces the countrys 1971 charter, which was written under the military regime of Anwar Sadat and remained in place until the aftermath of the popular uprising that ousted Sadats successor, Hosni Mubarak, in February 2011.
The charters adoption signifies a victory for Egypts elected president, Mohamed Morsi, and his Islamist backers, after months of political conflict that saw the Islamists square off against a broad but disparate opposition composed of liberals, secularists and old regime loyalists. Protests from both sides, over the balance of power in the new Egypt and the religious character of its guiding charter, occasionally devolved into violence.
[font size=1]
-snip-[/font]
Read more:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/egypt-ratifies-islamist-backed-constitution/2012/12/25/06625aa4-4ec0-11e2-950a-7863a013264b_story.html