U.S. officials differ on status of military aid to Egypt. And what of Bahrain?

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

U.S. officials differ on status of military aid to Egypt. And what of Bahrain?

Hmmmm, I wonder how much incentive.......umm, I mean aid goes to Bahrain?
A Wikileaks has provided via leaked cables the amounts spent on U.S. military aid to Bahrain. The U. S provided $3.9 million in 2008. $8 million in 2009, then $19 million in 2010. The request is for $19.45 million this year. Although relatively small in comparison to other military aid price tags one must keep in mind that Bahrain is a small country with a population of about 500,000.

Crime Saudi Arabia in Bahrain

And yet the money continues to flow , in spite of the human rights abuses and the Bahraini government's oppression of it's people.   But then Saudi Arabia approves of what is happening in Bahrain as they are complicit in their crimes. The   facts that George W Bush's Kissing   buddy and   Barack Obama's superior, having bowed down to the Saudi King in deference.   The Saudi King is very much a part of what is happening in the Middle East and The US is complicit.
                       Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz (file photo)
So then why Egypt?
It wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that having the Muslim Brotherhood in control in Egypt was a beneficial thing to TPTB , would it?
I would bet it does.
Let's not allow ourselves to be hoodwinked by some show of solidarity with the suffering of the people of Egypt. This   administration has   shown on more than one occasion that their agenda is devoid of what is right and just and all to do with garnering power and money at any cost.

A protester receives treatment at the Al-Fateh mosque in Cairo on August 16.
Methinks, they should remember who they are, where they are from and what this Nation once stood for. Rather than march on following the coattails of the pied piper in chief and do what is morally just.
Perhaps it is time they were reminded?

~Desert Rose ~
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By Jessica Yellin, CNN Chief White House Correspondent

August 20, 2013 -- Updated 1550 GMT (2350 HKT)

A soldier sets up barbed wire in anticipation of protesters outside the constitutional court in Cairo on Sunday, August 18. The protesters never showed up. Over the past week, about 900 people -- security forces as well as citizens -- have been killed. Deaths occurred when the military used force to clear supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsy from two sit-in sites in Cairo on Wednesday, and violence raged after Morsy supporters staged demonstrations Friday. Look back at Egypt's unrest.

Washington (CNN) -- The Obama administration is withholding some military aid to Egypt as it reviews how it wants to proceed, a U.S. official told CNN, but a Pentagon spokesman said he knew of no action to stop aid to Egypt.

The U.S. official said Monday the move is being described as a "reprogramming" of some funds to Egypt, but in effect, Washington is temporarily holding up some military aid to that country as it prepares for the possibility that future aid could be cut.

However, Pentagon spokesman George Little said Tuesday that no decisions had been made regarding military aid to Egypt.

"I'm not aware of any de facto suspension. I don't know where that came from," Little said, adding that "all aspects (of the aid) are under review."

But beyond the delay in shipping four F-16s, which had already been announced, Little said he knows of no other actions taken to stop aid to Egypt.

Wreckage and debris litter the area around the Al-Fateh mosque in Cairo, where hundreds of Islamist protesters had barricaded themselves on Saturday, August 17. Thousands defied an emergency order by taking to the streets the day before to mark a "Friday of anger" in support of ousted President Mohamed Morsy.

A spokesman for Sen. Patrick Leahy, David Carle, confirmed to CNN Monday that his office has been told the aid has been halted. Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, is chairman of the Appropriations State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee.

"As we noted yesterday, the State Department and Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee was told that the transfer of military aid was stopped, that this is current practice, not necessarily official policy, and there is no indication of how long it will last," an aide to Leahy reiterated in a statement Tuesday.

The United States gives about $1.23 billion in military aid to Egypt.

But the U.S. official emphasized no decision has been made to permanently halt the aid. These steps ultimately allow the administration to move forward on either scenario: pressing ahead with the aid or cutting it off.

Aid is not a continuous flow of funds, but a series of periodic bursts: a delivery of fighter jets; a military exercise. Both of those recent aid items for Egypt have already been halted.

Egyptians security forces escort a supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood out of the Al-Fateh mosque and through an angry crowd in Ramses Square on August 17.

The official said the latest moves to "reprogram" aid mean the United States has taken steps to get the remaining aid in U.S. accounts in line with legal requirements so the administration is positioned to cut off the aid, if it decides to do so, or continue it.

The official says once the review is complete, administration officials will go to Congress to decide how to move forward.

Reporter Josh Rogin with the Daily Beast first reported the United States has quietly suspended the aid.

A wounded boy is treated in the Taamin Sehi field hospital during clashes on August 16.

What it means

The move provides the administration with a quick "on/off" switch.

Under the law, if the United States were to designate the situation in Egypt a "coup," the United States couldn't restore aid until a democratic government is established. A coup determination would not be temporary.