SCAF in alleged deal with Egypt's FJP

Egypt is rife with rumours about an expected deal between the ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF), and the political face of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB), the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP). The FJP owns majority seats in the Egyptian parliament. Egyptian newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm on Wednesday reported that SCAF was aiming to soothe tensions between interim prime minister Kamal Ganzouri's government and the parliament on the back of the decision to lift the travel ban on foreign defendants in the NGO case. The newspaper quoted "high level sources" that  SCAF has suggested a settlement that includes the sacking of a maximum of two ministers, while the current government will be enabled to remain untill the end of the presidential elections. Sources however said that  the FJP rejected the idea as they were keen to hold a confidence vote in parliament to sack the current order and establish a new coalition government. However, sources expect both sides to agree on the deal, so that Ganzouri can continue as PM by sacrificing two of his ministers, mostly minister of justice Adel Abd Al-Hamid and minister of social insurance Nagwa Khalil. The report said that some military council members will hold meetings with Brotherhood leaders and ask them to stop parliamentary opposition towards the government as SCAF was eager to retain it until the end of the transition period. The Egyptian Al-Ahram newspaper also reported that the negotiations resulted in an agreement to delay the confidence vote. The report said that the parliament's administration board held a session with the technical committees to discuss the situation. The vote procedures are to supposedly take its maximum legal time of three months at the end of which the transition period will have been finished.