Trump deals blow to Sisi, cuts aid to Egypt

Trump has decided to cut aid to Egypt by $95.7 million and delay a further $195 million because of the failure of its regime to make progress on human rights.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab

22 August, 2017

Sisi has led a brutal crackdown on political dissidents since the 2013 coup. [Getty]

The Trump administration has decided to cut aid to Egypt by $95.7 million and delay a further $195 million because of the failure of its regime to make progress on human rights and respect for democratic norms.

The report came from Reuters, quoting two sources familiar with the matter on Tuesday.

The decision reflects a US desire to continue security cooperation as well as frustration with Cairo's stance on civil liberties, notably a new law that regulates non-governmental organizations that is widely seen as part of a growing crackdown on dissent, the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

Spokespeople for the White House and the State Department were not immediately available for comment, said the agency.

US officials were especially unhappy that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in May allowed the NGO law to go into effect.

Human rights groups and activists have said that it effectively bans their work and makes it harder for charities to operate.

Egyptian officials had assured US officials earlier this year that the law, which restricts NGO activity to developmental and social work and introduces jail terms of up to five years for non-compliance, would not go through, the sources told Reuters.

Brutal crackdown

The news will come as a major blow for the regime of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who first rose to power after staging a military coup against the country's first democratically elected president, Mohammed Morsi.

Morsi is an Islamist affiliated with the now-outlawed group the Muslim Brotherhood.

Sisi was the first Arab leader to congratulate Donald Trump for his election victory, and has courted the controversial US president to forge a special relationship.

Despite this and Trump praising Sisi repeatedly, Egypt has still been targeted for aid cuts, a major promise made by Trump over the course of his campaign.

A month after the 2013 coup, Egyptian security forces killed over 1,000 people who had gathered in support of Morsi in Rabaa al-Adawiya Square.

It was the largest killing of demonstrators in a single day in recent history.

Sisi has since led a brutal crackdown on political dissidents, with as many as 60,000 political prisoners languishing in Egyptian jails.