The Salafi Al-Nour Party has resolved an intense internal dispute among its senior members after a lengthy 10-hour meeting on Friday that ran into early Saturday morning, according to the party’s spokesman.
“Al-Nour Party Chairman Emad Abdel Ghafour met with all members of the Supreme Committee, those supporting him and those opposing him, on 5 October 2012,” read a statement released by the party on Saturday. “It was agreed to resolve all problems and El-Sayyed Mostafa Khalifa waived the party presidency, which had been assigned to him by the High Commission.
The Supreme Committee commissioned Dr Emad Abdel Ghafour to be president of the party,” the statement continued. The party also noted that the Board of Trustees for the Salafi Calling played a significant role in mediation and the resolution between the two parties.
Internal party elections were also confirmed to continue as previously scheduled.
The party’s general assembly is set to convene on Thursday 11 October.
Tensions within Al-Nour Party reached a peak on Wednesday when party president Abdel Ghafour suspended internal elections. The Supreme Committee, insisting that elections continue as scheduled, withdrew confidence from its leader and appointed Khalifa as interim leader.
Abdel Ghafour, supported by a group of fellow members within the party, responded to his dismissal by attempting to suspend some senior members including Ashraf Thabet and party spokesman Nader Bakar. After Friday’s agreement, it was decided that Bakar would maintain his role Al-Nour Party’s spokesman.
On Wednesday, Bakar held a press conference and told reporters that an overwhelming majority of the group favoured coming to an internal solution to the crisis.
