3 yıl önce

US approves nearly $200M in arms sales to Egypt despite rights concerns

President Biden has vowed a tougher stance on human rights in Egypt after his predecessor Trump courted Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sisi, reportedly calling him “my favourite dictator” in part for his cooperation with Israel.

Reuters Archive

Egyptian's Abdel Fattah el Sisi Egypt's Defence Minister Sedki Sobhi during a presentation of combat efficiency and equipment of the armed forces in Suez, Egypt, October 29, 2017.

US President Joe Biden’s administration has approved a nearly $200 million arms sale to Egypt while vowing to press human rights issues after an American activist reported harassment of his family.

The Biden administration, which has vowed to end support for Saudi Arabia's offensive operations in Yemen's devastating war and is reviewing a major jet sale to the United Arab Emirates, said it approved the sale of 168 tactical missiles to Egypt.

Weapons for 'favourite dictator'

The $197 million sale of the Raytheon-made Rolling Airframe Missiles was requested by the Egyptian navy to improve defense in coastal areas and around the Red Sea, the State Department said.

The State Department said in a statement that it approved the sale, subject to congressional review, as Egypt "continues to be an important strategic partner in the Middle East".

Biden has vowed a tougher stance on human rights after his predecessor Donald Trump courted Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al Sisi, whom he reportedly called "my favourite dictator" in part for his cooperation with Israel.

“The US approved an arms sale worth nearly $200m to Egypt but vowed to press human rights issues after an American activist reported his family had been harassed.”

Here’s some missiles. Please stop abusing human rights, please?
— Rania Khalek (@RaniaKhalek) February 17, 2021

US citizen in Egypt prison

A lawyer for Mohamed Soltan, a US citizen who has filed a lawsuit alleging torture in Egyptian custody, said that plain-clothes officers raided the homes of six family members Sunday, detaining two cousins.

State Department spokesman Ned Price said that the United States was aware and "looking into" the account.

"We take seriously all allegations of arbitrary arrest or detention," Price told reporters.

"We will bring our values with us into every relationship that we have across the globe. That includes with our close security partners. That includes with Egypt."

In Egypt, pro-Sisi television hosts greeted the statement about the arrests with disdain, neither confirming nor denying their veracity, with some such as Nashaat al Deehy bluntly calling Soltan "a terrorist".

Soltan's case

Soltan, the son of a leading member of the now-outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, was arrested in August 2013 after Sisi led the military ouster of elected president Mohamed Morsi.

In 2015, Soltan was released and deported to the United States after renouncing his Egyptian citizenship.

He filed the lawsuit in a US court in June and last month worked with members of Congress to form a caucus devoted to promoting human rights in Egypt.

"Now the Egyptian regime is arresting his relatives to try to intimidate him into silence.
Such tactics have no place in the international community," said Eric Lewis, a lawyer for Soltan.

SOURCE: AFP