Democratic senator blames Egypt press crackdown on Trump military aid decision
Summary
Senator Chris Murphy accused the Trump administration of contributing to Egypt’s crackdown on independent journalism by waiving human rights conditions on $320 million in military aid. The State Department said it granted the waiver in September because of Egypt’s national security importance and security cooperation with the United States.Key Facts
- Murphy serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and spoke at the Middle East Institute in Washington.
- He said the release of the aid and the arrests of journalists were linked.
- Egyptian authorities arrested six journalists from the independent fact-checking platform Matsda2sh earlier this month and charged them with belonging to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.
- A Cairo court ordered the closure of the news website Madr Masa and fined its editor-in-chief, Lina Attalah.
- The State Department said Secretary of State Marco Rubio waived human rights conditions on $320 million in aid on national security grounds.
- A September 4 memo cited Egypt’s role in negotiations between the United States and Iran and its assistance following Operation Epic Fury.
- The United States provides Egypt about $1.73 billion in military assistance each year, according to the article.
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