Egypt’s Interior Minister Fired in Move to Appease Radicals

President Hosni Mubarak moved to appease Muslim radicals Sunday by firing his interior minister, whose harsh campaign failed to staunch anti-government violence and raised accusations of rights abuses.

The new minister has firsthand experience with the militants and is a known crusader against corruption. The radicals have complained about government corruption in their war to replace Egypt’s secular government with strict Islamic rule.

Also, the new minister, Police Maj. Gen. Hassan Alfi, 57, is not a member of Mubarak’s political party, a credential sure to win favor with militants.

It was uncertain how widely Gen. Alfi’s policies may differ from those of his predecessor, Mohammed Abdel-Halim Moussa. But analysts expect the militants to suspend attacks on tourist sites and other areas as they await his first move.

A senior leader of the militant Gamaa al Islamiya in the trouble spot of Asyut, 200 miles south of Cairo, welcomed the appointment.

“The Gamaa al Islamiya has received with happiness the news that (Alfi) has been appointed,” said Mahmoud Sayed Selim, leader of the group’s military branch, in a statement to reporters.

“We know that he is honest and against corruption,” he said. “He knows a lot about us. His appointment could decrease the confrontation between us and the security authorities.”

As governor of Asyut for the last two years, Alfi has dealt directly with the extremists.

Gamaa al Islamiya has about 200,000 supporters, many of them men in their 20s, and about 10,000 are believed to be armed. After targeting security forces and members of the Coptic Christian community, they turned on foreign tourists last year and have already caused a 50% drop in tourism.

The leader of the group is said to be radical Sheik Omar Abdul Rahman, who faces deportation from the United States. At least four of the suspects in the Feb. 26 World Trade Center bombing in New York that killed six people and wounded more than 1,000 attended the blind cleric’s sermons at a mosque in New Jersey.

After Mubarak swore him in, Alfi told reporters of the need to establish “safety and security for everyone in Egypt and a decisive and effective confrontation with extremists and terrorists.”

Since the beginning of 1992, 139 people have been killed in clashes, most of them militants. Critics have accused the government of abusing human rights and fostering violence with violence.