Brotherhood needs continued sacrifice to win support

The militant allies of the Muslim Brotherhood are likely to intensify their attacks on the Egyptian police and on government buildings.

At the same time the Brotherhood itself will encourage its supporters and members to continue street demonstrations, regardless of the great risk.

It is now portraying itself not as a party in a conflict, but as a persecuted party - the victim of a military dictatorship that all Egyptians should fear.

The Brotherhood needs continued persecution and sacrifice to try to peel away support for the generals.

For their part, the generals are trying to deny them the oxygen of street demonstrations. They have introduced a state of emergency, which means curfews and powers to arrest people and apparently to shoot them without much accountability.