Iranian lawmaker says Egypt's toppled president failed to exert influence over military

July 5, 2013 at 1:48PM

TEHRAN, Iran — A prominent Iranian parliament member says Egypt's now-toppled Islamist president made a tactical blunder by not exerting stronger influence over the country's security and intelligence services after taking office last year.

The comments Thursday by Alaeddin Boroujerdi reflect the disappointment among Tehran's leaders over the fall of Mohammed Morsi, whose Muslim Brotherhood-led government had rebuilt ties with Iran.

Boroujerdi, head of parliament's Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy, said Morsi "mistakenly" failed to reshape Egypt's powerful military and other security agencies, who did not come to his aid during massive protests this week that led to his ouster.

The two countries severed relations after Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. Relations further deteriorated after Egypt's peace treaty with Israel.

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