Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit has labeled Washington's reaction to the parliament's approval of the extension of the state of emergency as "overly politicized" in a press statement from the ministry yesterday. Abul Gheit's statement commented on remarks by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the Egyptian government's move. "I believe the comments were off the mark as they failed to see the positive side of the major step adopted by the parliament. Scaling down the procedures included in the law is something positive and important. In fact, the decision by the government to diminish them is decisive in the people's stance on that issue," the minister said. Abul Gheit argued that Clinton's comments were aimed at pleasing US public opinion, research centers, and activists, without taking into consideration American-Egyptian relations, and the conditions of Egyptian society. He added that the remarks ignored the sensitivity Egypt has always demonstrated towards comments on its domestic affairs. On the other hand, Ahmed Kamal Abul Magd, member of the Islamic Research Academy, said that in all respects, the recent extension of the law and its limitation to drugs and terrorism are a step towards lifting of the state of emergency and returning to normal laws and procedures that balance freedom with security considerations. In a similar vein, Mukhlis Qutb, former secretary general for the semi-governmental National Council for Human Rights, described the move as a correct formula required for progress and prosperity of the country. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
