Cairo criticises US Congress meeting on human rights in Egypt

Cairo yesterday criticised US Congress for holding a meeting to discuss the human rights situation in Egypt, saying the discussion lacked neutrality, the Anadolu Agency reported.

Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission was scheduled to hold a hearing on the current human rights situation in Egypt after seven years on January 25 Revolution that ousted Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak.

In a statement, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said that “it expects it will not be neutral”.

“Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission is a nonofficial Congress committee and its scheduled hearing is expected to be a new series of intentional defamation of the situation in Egypt,” the statement said.

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In addition, Egypt accused the commission of inviting only a list of witnesses from American activists and analysts who have been known for their opposition to the Egyptian government.

Cairo has always expressed its anger with any organisation that criticises the human rights situation in Egypt. It claims that the government is operating under a difficult economic and security situation.

The US administration decided in August to continue the cut of $100 million of its annual aid to Egypt. It also continued suspension of an addition $195 million pending an improvement in the human rights situation in the African country.

Rights groups have regularly accusing Egypt of carrying out flagrant human rights violations after the military coup against the first freely elected President Mohamed Morsi in 2013.