US to place conditions on fraction of aid to Egypt: US media

The US to withhold $130m, less than half of $300m targeted by Congress and a fraction of $1.3bn in overall security aid.

The United States will withhold $130m in security assistance to Egypt this year, releasing the funds only if the government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi ends the prosecution of rights and civil society organisations. Washington also demanded the release of 16 American prisoners in return for the aid, US media reported on Monday. The decision by the US State Department is an apparent compromise amid calls from Democratic legislators and rights observers for the administration of President Joe Biden to make good on its promise to have a human rights-leading foreign policy, and to curtail a portion of the $1.3bn in security aid the US annually provides to Egypt, a country it considers a key ally in the Middle East and North Africa.