The Islamic Party (formerly known as the Peace and Development Party[6] or Safety and Development Party) is an Islamistpolitical party in Egypt.[4] The name of the party was changed in approximately December 2012.[7] The main leaders of the group are Mohamed Abu Samra[6] and Kamal Habib.[8] The party is backed by the Egyptian Islamic Jihad group.[9] Most of the founders of the party are former members of the organization.[10] Many members of the party have court rulings that bar them from running for elected office.[11]
The party and Egyptian Islamic Jihad withdrew from the Anti-Coup Alliance in January 2014.[12] One of the reasons for the withdrawal was the rejection by the pro-Morsi coalition of the initiative[13] put forth by the Islamic Party that sought to end the crisis by appointing a presidential council composed of a civilian, an Islamist and a member of the army.[14] The party called for a "negotiated" solution on 8 February 2014.[15] The party rejoined the alliance around March 2014,[16] though there are indications that it has withdrawn again.[17]
The secretary general of the party, Mohamed Abu Samra, stated that it would vigorously oppose returning Egyptian Jews of Israeli descent to Egypt in response to a comment made by Essam el-Erian, a member of the Freedom and Justice Party and an adviser to President Morsi; he also stated that according to Sharia law, Jews deserve to be killed.[18]
