The Guardian: Syrian exiled Islamist group ready to share power

The exiled leader of Syria's large, outlawed Islamist movement, the al-Jamaat al-Islamia (Muslim Brotherhood), has said his group is ready to share power in a future government with other opposition figures.

The Guardian reported that "Ali Bayanouni, who has political asylum in Britain and lives in north London, said the Muslim Brotherhood wants a peaceful change of government in Damascus and the establishment of a 'civil, democratic state', not an Islamic republic."

The Guardian reported him saying in an interview "We believe that after 40 years of this corrupt dictatorship it would be difficult for any one party to take responsibility for the country .. We definitely don't see ourselves as the alternative. We see ourselves as partners with others in the coming stage."

The Guardian said "His comments mark a shift in the party's thinking since the 1980s when it challenged the Baathist regime. The Brotherhood was involved in an armed uprising against the state in which more than 10,000 people were killed. Since then the movement, which is still thought to have large support in Syria, has been repressed. Membership of the party is punishable by death. The Brotherhood plays a leading role among opposition groups at a time when the Syrian regime faces a crisis."