WASHINGTON — Purse-string holders in the US House released a foreign aid bill June 2 that removes human rights restrictions on assistance to Egypt, the latest sign that the United States is casting its lot with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi despite lingering concerns.
The proposed appropriations bill eliminates previous requirements that Egypt hold "free and fair" parliamentary elections and take steps to foster democracy and protect human rights before $1.3 billion in military aid can be released. Doing so would in effect revert US bilateral assistance to the way it was under strongman Hosni Mubarak, with Egypt only required to sustain its strategic relationship with the United States and uphold its peace treaty with Israel.