Angry Egypt feels the squeeze from jihadis, US and Hamas

Al-Sisi

From the Times of Israel:

Officials in Cairo nonplussed as Washington stalls shipment of military aid for fight against Islamic State; Sissi present list of demands to Hamas for thaw 

There is one thing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can take comfort in regarding his relations with the US administration — he is not the only Middle Eastern leader struggling to understand American President Barack Obama. 

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi has also been at a loss in recent weeks amid the administration’s almost surreal conduct towards Cairo. 

On Monday Sissi was asked what he and the other Arab allies thought of US leadership in the region. It is hard to put his response in words, mainly due to his prolonged silence. 

“Difficult question,” he said after some moments, while his body language expressed contempt and disgust. 

“The suspending of US equipment and arms was an indicator for the public that the United States is not standing by the Egyptians.” 

It turns out that although the American administration recently agreed to provide the Egyptian Air Force with Apache attack helicopters, it has been making it increasingly difficult for Cairo to make additional military purchases. 

For example, the US is delaying the shipment of tanks, spare parts and other weapons that the army desperately needs in its war against Islamic State. 

Egypt is currently facing the extremist group on two fronts: in the Sinai Peninsula, where Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis militants swore allegiance to IS, and to the west in Libya, where jihadists sworn to the group have established substantial military bases, gaining hold over territory in the country while simultaneously sending terrorists into Egypt. 

The mass execution of 21 Coptic Egyptians, who were in Libya seeking employment, led Sissi to authorize an Egyptian air assault against Islamic State targets in Libya. 

Yet precisely during these difficult days for the Egyptians, Washington is delaying military assistance deliveries to Cairo, even as the White House and State Department preach in praise of the war against the Islamic State group, and go so far as to hint at plans to cooperate with Iran against the organization. 

Why? 

According to an Egyptian official, the formal explanation is that Cairo does not respect human rights. That is possible. But Egyptians cannot figure out how the Americans are prioritizing: 

Was the Muslim Brotherhood more respectful of human rights? Or the Iranian regime? Or the Islamic State and its friends? Why is Egypt, which has become a vital player in the war against Islamic extremism and Islamic State expansionism, being punished by the Americans?