Israel Matzav

Egyptian army chief al-Sisi refused calls from Obama and Hagel

A column in Israel Hayom claims that Egyptian army chief Abdel Fateh al-Sisi refused phone calls from US President Barack Obama and US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel.

Egypt is bleeding and angry. While the army and Muslim Brotherhood clash in the streets, at a high cost of hundreds of casualties in just one weekend, many Egyptians -- especially the military -- are furious at Washington. The United States, Egypt's number one ally in the world with an annual aid package of $1.3 billion, has all of a sudden become irrelevant. One can assume that this is not what the American president had in mind when he delivered his famous Cairo speech in 2009. In Egypt, Obama is seen not as the person who did not prevent Mubarak's downfall, rather as the person who supported the Muslim Brotherhood. At the same time, Obama could be perceived at home as breaking the law due to his refusal to recognize a military coup in Egypt, which would prohibit him from transferring aid funds. This is without doubt an awkward situation for the president.

Obama is humiliated. After he refused to answer U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel's calls, Col. Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, currently the strongest person in Egypt, also refused to answer a call from Obama. The Egyptian defense minister is waging a military campaign against the Muslim Brotherhood while simultaneously opening a diplomatic front against the United States. The cancellation of a joint military exercise with the U.S. is not much of a concern for Sissi. On the contrary, the cancellation is more of a concern for Jerusalem, which needs a friendly, professional and strong Egyptian army along its southern border.

Sissi can afford to maintain his aggressive stance against Washington. He currently still enjoys the backing of the Egyptian street, a large portion of the country's liberals. Mostly, he has found an alternative to American aid for his country, as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have pledged $12 billion to re-stabilize the country and rehabilitate the economy.

Read the whole thing.  The problem isn't just that Obama bet on the wrong horse in Egypt. It's that he continues to back that horse in the face of all the evidence to the contrary, and the Europeans, who are suddenly incapable of an independent thought, are trying to outdo him.

Labels: Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Barack Hussein Obama, Chuck Hagel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 2:57 PM