A year of conspiracies
 
 

Since the January 25 revolution, talk about conspiracies aiming at state collapse and Egypt’s general demise have become commonplace. The revolution or uprising was itself, of course, seen as a conspiracy from the start – protesters were apparently being bribed by powers as diverse as Israel and Iran with promises of free KFC meals.

But following the ouster of Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated President Mohamed Morsi in 2013, conspiracy talk has become an essential part of the official narrative. In his speeches, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi himself has referenced several times the plots that Egypt faces from the Muslim Brotherhood and their allies, namely Qatar and Turkey.

This year, however, has had its unique share of the conspiracy talk, so here we share 2015’s most interesting conspiracies against Egypt.

The Supreme Council of the World

This is by far this year’s best conspiracy. Hurricanes, sandstorms and earthquakes are no longer the acts of nature. Actually they are the work of the Supreme Council of the World, which is a secret evil organization composed of international intelligence bodies that plot against countries like Egypt. This organization, as described by the former head of the Armed Forces Center for Strategic Studies General Hossam Sweilam, has sophisticated weapons such as the Alaska-based HAARP system that can used to cause crustal deformations in the earth that could lead to earthquakes and other natural disasters. Mind-controlling radio waves are used to keep populations submissive and compliant.

The Mecca crane accident and the geophysical weapon

This year several deaths can be directly attributed to the Supreme Council of the World. A crane collapse in Mecca Grand Mosque during the pilgrimage season that left over 107 people dead was, Sweilam claimed, not an accident brought about by negligence or strong winds. It was rather caused by the use of a special geophysical weapon, which affects the weather and causes rains and storms ultimately leading to the collapse of the crane. The weapon makes up part of the arsenal of fourth-generation warfare.

Fourth-generation warfare

President Sisi himself has been key at bringing the terms fourth-generation warfare – a term first coined by American analysts in the late 1980s – into Egyptian political discourse. In a speech at the Military Academy, Sisi told students that this warfare is a “science,” saying they need to be prepared and on high alert for “exploitation,” so “no one conducts information warfare on you.”

He went on: “This was never lost on me. I don’t want it to be lost on you.”

Sisi’s speeches have often alluded to the possibility that modern communication channels, psychology and advanced technology are being deployed to create divisions and harm Egypt from within.

Proponents of the theory such as Amr Ammar, who describes the uprisings of 2011 as the “Hebrew Spring,” has been hosted on several talk shows.

The Muslim Brotherhood is a masonic group

Since its ouster from power, the Muslim Brotherhood has been widely demonized. This process reached new levels of implausibility, however, when a National Security officer who investigated Mohamed Morsi’s espionage case testified that the Brotherhood is a masonic group that aims to bring a “new religion” to Egypt. Adel Azab, head of the National Security Agencies’s extremist activity investigations department, supported his allegations by saying that Hassan al-Banna is not the real name of the group’s founder and that his father was a Moroccan Jew who relocated to Egypt.

Alexandria floods were caused by the Muslim Brotherhood

If the Muslim Brotherhood is a masonic group, causing floods wouldn’t be such a difficult task – especially with the help of the Supreme Council of the World. Floods sweeping the coastal city in Alexandria and elsewhere in the Delta, which killed dozens of people this year, were not due to deteriorating infrastructure or an ailing sewage system. Rather, they were the result of a plot by the Brotherhood, according to an official statement by the Interior Ministry.

The statement announced the arrest of a terrorist cell of 17 people who blocked the city’s drains with cement, according to the ministry, causing severe drainage issues. One suspect was photographed by the ministry sitting next to a drain holding a stick. The suspects were also accused of destroying electricity generators and burning garbage with the aim of “causing a crisis in the governorate and creating a state of public exasperation with the current regime.”

Dollar crisis is also the work of the Muslim Brotherhood, unsurprisingly

If the Muslim Brotherhood is a masonic organization that with the help of the Supreme Council of the World was able to cause the Alexandria floods, it should come as no surprise that it is also behind the dollar crisis. Authorities arrested Brotherhood tycoon Hassan Malek alongside four other leaders in October on suspicion of plotting to destroy the Egyptian economy by destabilizing the pound. As owners of exchange outlets, Malek and other leaders were in possession of documents outlining plans to destroy the economy, and a set of instructions explaining how to drive down the price of the Egyptian pound. Everyone can relax now; the crisis was not the result of the decline in foreign reserves or increasing imports, as economic analysts say.

The Russian plane crash and the international conspiracy against Egypt

The last three months of the year saw greater talk of international conspiracies against Egypt in the wake of the tragic Russian plane crash in October, which killed 224 Russian nationals. The Sinai-based militant group Province of Sinai claimed responsibility, and UK, US and Russian intelligence reports later confirmed these claims and deduced that an explosive device planted on board was the most likely reason for the crash.

Media personalities slammed the reports and used conspiracy rhetoric to divert attention from any failings on the part of Egyptian security. In order to manage the contradiction of Russia, one of Egypt’s strongest allies plotting with Western powers who are Egypt’s traditional enemies, the local media blamed the UK and US for plotting to destroy the relationship between Egypt and Russia.

After all, we could be the conspiracy ourselves

Outraged by the brief arrest of journalist Hossam Bahgat and business tycoon Salah Diab, television Lamis al-Hadidi made what might be considered the most insightful observation on Egyptian television. Hadidi believes that Egypt keeps on doing things that put it on the defensive and the country is paying an economic and political price for this.

“We don’t need anyone to conspire against us, we are the conspiracy itself,” she said. “We shoot ourselves with bullets.”

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Mai Shams El-Din 
 
 

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