LOS ANGELES and CAIRO: A joint Egyptian-American organization announced on Monday that it plans to head to Washington in order to lobby the US Congress to end financial assistance to the Egyptian military. The move, announced by the inter-faith American Egyptian Strategic Alliance, comes as the Egyptian military crackdown on protesters in Cairo, which has left at least 14 dead and over 700 wounded in five days of clashes in the Egyptian capital. The group said it would call for Congress to end the annual $1.3 billion in aid it delivers to the Egyptian military, which it argues is being used to kill Egyptian pro-democracy activists and stifle dissent in the country. “I'm angry and I'm going to Egypt next week to meet with the revolutionary leadership,” alliance leader Kais Menoufy of Sacramento told The Sacramento Bee. “We are not asking Congress. We are telling them to stop supporting the bad guys right now,” Menoufy said. “The old and traditional Egypt is trying to kill the modern and new. Totalitarianism in its ugliest form is doing its best to stifle Democratic aspirations of the young and healthy in Egypt,” he added. The United States Congress late last week said it may restrict aid to Egypt, as part of a $53.3 billion bill set to restructure US foreign aid. As a state of political chaos unravels through Egypt's post-Mubarak transition to democratic rule, Congress has moved to reconsider the $1.3 billion in security service funding it gives to the Egyptian military annually. Under the terms of the bill, $250 million in US economic assistance for Egypt would also be blocked for review. The funds would be released when the secretary of state assures Congress that Egypt is obeying the 1979 Camp David Peace Accords with Israel, and supporting a transition to a civilian-led government in Egypt by “implementing policies to protect freedom of expression, association and religion and due process of law.” “In a difficult economic and political climate, this bill meets our national security needs and global responsibilities while implementing tough restrictions and requirements on recipients of US assistance,” said Rep. Nita Lowey. The Republican-backed bill was passed in the House of Representatives on Friday, and will be up for a Senate vote this weekend. It comes amid efforts to cut the United State's budget deficit, as Republicans push to reduce overseas spending. The United States government has given Egypt an average of $2 billion in aid since 1979, the majority of which goes to the Egyptian military. In 2010, $1.3 billion went to the Egyptian forces. Another $1.9 million was allocated to help train the Egyptian military and bolster long-term cooperation between the United States and Egypt. The Obama administration requested the same amount of assistance for the 2011 fiscal year. The bill under debate devotes $3.1 billion in security assistance for United State's ally Israel. It also restructures US foreign aid for Pakistan and the Palestinian Authority. ** Sarah Sheffer contributed to this report. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/kWjlk Tags: Congress, featured, Military aid, Protests, SCAF, US Section: Egypt, Latest News, North America
