Shaykh Usāmah Hāfiz, deputy chairman of the al-Jamā'ah al-Islāmīyah Shūra (Consultative) Council, said that the Jamā'ah has played a part in containing the sectarian fitnah that followed the murder of an Assiut priest and the incidents that erupted in Abū Qurqās.

"The United States is capitalizing on the Coptic issue to serve its own interests. On the other hand, the expatriate Copts are igniting fitnah in favor of foreign interference," said Hāfiz in an interview with al-Ahrār newspaper.

He said that the Jamā'ah is not supporting a theocracy.

"We welcome a civil state that would respect the teachings of Allah and the values of the society," said Hāfiz, noting keenness on pleasing God and enhancing the nation's stability was behind the Jamā'ah's launching of a violence-ending initiative.