Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri has urged Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood and its supporters to abandon democracy and try to govern through Islamic law.
In a 15-minute recording posted on Islamist websites on August 3, Zawahri criticized Islamists who had formed political parties in Egypt and supported the military in ousting President Muhammad Morsi.
Zawahri said that "legitimacy doesn't lie in elections and democracy but it lies in Shari'a," or Islamic law.
He also criticized the United States, saying it was behind the Egyptian military's plan to overthrown Morsi's government on July 3.
More than 300 people have been killed in Egypt since the army removed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood from power in response to mass protests against his rule.
The popular mood in Egypt had swung against Morsi after he was accused of trying to become a new dictator.
In a 15-minute recording posted on Islamist websites on August 3, Zawahri criticized Islamists who had formed political parties in Egypt and supported the military in ousting President Muhammad Morsi.
Zawahri said that "legitimacy doesn't lie in elections and democracy but it lies in Shari'a," or Islamic law.
He also criticized the United States, saying it was behind the Egyptian military's plan to overthrown Morsi's government on July 3.
More than 300 people have been killed in Egypt since the army removed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood from power in response to mass protests against his rule.
The popular mood in Egypt had swung against Morsi after he was accused of trying to become a new dictator.