Egypt" ElBaradei may have an Ayatollah Khomenei Moment ...

ElBaradei Returns to Egypt, Riots Showing ‘Cohesion’

WORLD THREATS

Posted by Matthew Avitabile on January 27th, 2011

Mohammed ElBaradei may have an Ayatollah Khomenei moment as he returns to strife-riddled Egypt. The former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency is one of the top leaders of opposition to dictator Hosni Mubarak. Furthermore, as the Muslim Brotherhood is joining the protests, it appears that the protests are becoming more cohesive, as the Washington Post calls them.

ElBaradei

“The psychological barrier of fear has been broken,” said Shadi Hamid, director of research for the Brookings Doha Center. “Eighty million Egyptians saw [Tuesday's protests]. They saw that it’s okay to come out and that there is safety in numbers.”

ElBaradei would likely not be a better partner for peace than Mubarak. His anti-Western leanings are well-documented, but he may be the one candidate that could unite the secular forces of the country.