Trouble is brewing between the Muslim Brotherhood and Egypt's interim military rulers. The Islamist group, which is expected to dominate the country's next parliament, accuses the military of trying to undercut the new parliament's authority and interfere with the drafting of a new constitution, the New York Times reports. The Brotherhood has pulled out of an advisory council being formed by military leaders to oversee creation of the new constitution.
As the AP explains, the new parliament was to lead the process of creating a 100-member assembly to write the constitution. But the military council claims that election results show that the parliament is not representative of the Egyptian public, so they are appointing a constitutional oversight council to limit the Islamists' power. It "is determined to turn against the will of the people," a Brotherhood spokesman says. "To those who voice fear of Islamists, this is just blackmailing." The Brotherhood has refused to team up with a more extreme party to form an Islamist government. (More Muslim Brotherhood stories.)