Egypt calls on US not to interfere in its affairs

Middle East Monitor (Link: Egypt calls on US not to interfere in its affairs)

Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri on 24 October 2018 [ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP/Getty Images]

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry yesterday called on the United States to respect the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of foreign countries, after a State Department reportcriticised the country’s human rights situation.

In a statement, the ministry criticised the section on Egypt in the State Department’s annual report on the human rights situation for 2018 and described it “as neither objective nor credible”.

“Egypt does not recognise the legitimacy of such reports, which rely on unverified data and reports provided by non-governmental organisations and movements driven by hostile political positions.”

On Wednesday, the US State Department’s annual report on human rights conditions in the world said: “the Egyptian government committed unlawful or politically motivated killings”.

According to the report, “violations in Egypt include extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture, life threats, harsh prison conditions and restrictions on press freedom and the internet.”

The ministry said the report “is not based on any proofs or evidence, and is not objective or credibility”, stressing on the importance of respecting the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other states.

Egypt faces criticism at the local and international levels over human rights abuses including enforced disappearance and torture in places of detention, but the Egyptian authorities have repeatedly denied committing “extra-judicial killings”.