The United States sent four more top-of-the-line F-16 fighter jets to Egypt on Thursday, as part of a foreign aid promise that critics blast as aid for an anti-Israel entity.
A senior State Department official raised concern Monday that "freedom of expression is being stifled" in Egypt, where recent days saw authorities detain and question a popular television comedian on charges of insulting Islam and the nation's former Muslim Brotherhood president.
Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated government recently allowed members of the Brotherhood and hardline jihadists to join Egypt's military academy for the first time as part of what U.S. officials say is a covert effort to impose Islamist rule in the key Middle East state.
Egyptian protesters burned two Freedom and Justice Party offices Sunday to protest the killing of an opposition activist. Thousands attended a funeral service for Mohamed al-Shafie who was found dead for unknown reasons. Protesters then headed to the FJP headquarters in Kafr Saad village and set them on fire.
The optimism surrounding the Arab Spring is giving way to fears of the next revolution. Daily, people around the world watch the triumph of bringing down Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak descend into pitched battles between secular protesters and an increasingly alienated government run by elements of the Muslim Brotherhood.
One hardline Muslim cleric on an Egyptian TV station justified sexual assaults on women protesters. Others issued religious edicts saying opposition leaders must be killed.
Drawing a contrast between himself and Capitol Hill Republicans whom he tied to a longtime "war caucus," Sen. Rand Paul called Wednesday for a "saner, more balanced" approach to foreign policy that strikes a balance between neoconservative and isolationist thinking.
Egypt's Coptic Christian pope is coming out in strong opposition to the nation's Islamist leadership, calling the new constitution discriminatory, especially toward Christians, and openly criticizing President Mohammed Morsi for religious remarks.
Egypt's Islamist president turned aside repeated criticism of his past comments referring to Jews as "the descendants of apes and pigs" as he visited Germany on Wednesday, insisting that the remarks were taken out of context and were aimed at criticizing Israeli attacks on Palestinians.
