The European Parliament adopted a resolution on Thursday condemning the human rights situation and the recent government crackdown in Egypt, calling for European Union member states to review their relations with Egypt. The resolution notes that the ongoing restrictions “undermine the fundamental freedoms of expression, association and assembly, which are all enshrined in the Egyptian Constitution, as well as international human rights law” referring to the “arrest of more than 4,300 people since the anti-government protests on September 20”. It also urged EU Member States to halt exports to Egypt “of arms, surveillance technology and other security equipment that can facilitate attacks on human rights defenders and civil society activists,” and for “the EU to implement in full its export controls vis-à-vis Egypt with regard to goods that could be used for repression, torture or capital punishment.” In response, the speaker of Egypt’s House of Representatives Dr. Ali Abdel-Aal released a statement condemning the European Parliament’s resolution on Egypt’s human rights track record, considering it an irrelevant third-party intervention that does “not hold the right comment on the issue” and a continuation of an unacceptable approach, in line with similar…
European Parliament Calls for Member States to ‘Halt Exports’ of Arms to Egypt
October 26, 2019
