Egypt Supports Trump’s Jerusalem Declaration?
by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org – Home – Stephen Lendman)
Egypt’s ruling junta is an illegitimate coup d’etat fascist dictatorship.
It’s led by strongman General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (a US War College graduate), a flagrant human rights abuser since seizing power in July 2013, a year later rigging an election to become president.
He rules by violence and intimidation, tolerating no opposition tolerated. Tens of thousands of political prisoners languish in gulag hell.
Many others were disappeared, murdered or sentenced to death by hanging judges.
Many die in police custody. Others are tortured to death in prison. No justice whatever exists.
Anyone challenging junta human rights abuses or governance by diktat risks arrest and imprisonment on trumped up charges.
Egypt depends on US foreign aid, receiving about $1.5 billion annually. Since the 1940s, the country got tens of billions of dollars of largely military assistance.
High unemployment and inflation created enormous hardships for its people. Despite police state laws prohibiting public protests, unrest has been increasing – for economic and harsh governance reasons.
The region’s largest country represses its people, focusing heavily on militarism and police state control, the way all fascist regimes operate.
On Saturday, a NYT report said an “Egyptian intelligence officer quietly placed phone calls to the hosts of several influential talk shows” – following Trump’s controversial Jerusalem declaration.
“ ‘Like all our Arab brothers,’ ” Egypt would denounce the decision in public, the officer, Capt. Ashraf al-Kholi, told the hosts,” said the Times.
Privately el-Sisi’s regime supports it, telling hosts to “persuade their viewers to accept it,” according to the Times, adding:
“Palestinians, he suggested, should content themselves with the dreary West Bank town that currently houses the Palestinian Authority, Ramallah.”
“ ‘How is Jerusalem different from Ramallah, really,’ Captain Kholi asked repeatedly in four audio recordings of his telephone calls obtained by The New York Times.”
“ ‘Exactly that,’ ” agreed one host, Azmi Megahed, who confirmed the authenticity of the recordings.”
Palestinians have been betrayed since the 1917 Balfour Declaration. A previous article explained Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman’s meeting with Abbas – demanding he settle for Palestinian statehood without sovereignty, abandoning the idea of East Jerusalem as a future Palestinian capital.
The UAE, Bahrain and other Gulf dictatorships share the same view, Egypt likely as well. Arab states are noticeably quiet on the issue after what appears to have been initial disingenuous opposition to Trump’s declaration.
It’s rhetorical only, privately backing it, failing to challenge ruthless Israel persecution of Palestinians, supporting it quietly.
Syria, Iran, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah strongly back Palestinian self-determination, including East Jerusalem as its exclusive capital, along with the powerless Arab street.
Egypt rejected the Times’ report. What else would its rogue leadership say?
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