Egyptian opposition group questions Obama’s intentions

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s most powerful opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, on Saturday called President Barack Obama’s upcoming trip to Egypt “useless” unless the U.S. shows dramatic change in its policies toward Arab and Islamic countries.

The White House announced Friday that Obama would deliver a speech in Egypt on U.S. relations with the Muslim world June 4 as he seeks to repair damaged ties between America and Islamic countries.

But the Brotherhood’s deputy leader, Mohammed Habib, said he was skeptical about Obama’s intentions, according to comments posted on the group’s Web site.

The trip will be “useless unless it is preceded by real change in the policies of the U.S. administration toward the Arab and Islamic world,” Habib said.

“The U.S. administration is attempting to recruit all the Arab states ... to implement its permanent agenda that favors the Zionist entity,” he added, referring to the United States’ close ties to Israel.

In recent years, Egypt has cracked down on the hard-line Islamic group, jailing hundreds of its members and prohibiting it from officially taking part in political activities.

Though the Brotherhood is banned in Egypt, its members continue to operate hospitals, schools and other charities and has considerable sway among many of the country’s 76 million people.