Egyptian Salafist party to join constitution amendment committee

Leaders of Egypt's Salafist al-Nour Party Egypt's Salafist al-Nour Party on Sunday announced it would join the 50-member committee responsible for amending the Egyptian constitution, despite initially objecting to the removal or an article about Islamic law.
Al-Nour Party had complained about Article 219 being left out of the constitution ammended by a 10-member committee last month.
However, in a press release, the Islamist party said: "Al-Nour party will sit with other political forces on the 50-member committee that will amend the constitution, in order to achieve the goals of January 25 Revolution, as well as defend the identity of the Egyptian people, which cannot be expressed by one force, according to al-Azhar."
The party explained that that constitution amended by the 10-member committee was only a proposal and the final decision would be taken by the 50-member committee.
"The party will be honoured to be one of the defenders of the revolution gains," the statement said, adding that "the party will ensure the nation identity in the constitution without prejudice to the principles of the modern state."
The Salafist party also called on all groups to cooperate, in order to reach consensus, emphasising that it will issue a detailed statement of its reservations about the 10-member committee's amendments.
Al-Nour party, which has publicly backed the army, said that removing Article 219 was a violation of the army’s roadmap, adding that the move would make people feel like the Islamic identity is being targeted.