Trump pursues the American tradition by pampering the strong man of Egypt

The Sissi regime has not only raged against Islamists but also on a large part of Egyptian civil society, including journalists, opposition politicians, aid agencies and organizations. non-governmental. The mbad trial, say rights groups, is another gloomy illustration of Sissi's willingness to go far. "This can only be described as a travesty of justice," said Naija Bounaim, Amnesty International, in a statement. "This casts a shadow over the integrity of Egypt's entire justice system and makes a mockery of due process."

The Trump administration seems less disturbed. Last week, he released $ 195 million in military aid to Egypt, money that had been retained by the State Department on specific concerns regarding the human rights record of Egypt under Sissi. Cairo continues to detain thousands of people for dubious motives, to demolish the homes of innocent villagers in Sinai as part of a muscular counter-insurgency, and to silence even moderate critics. The United States has provided Egypt with more than $ 47 billion in military aid and $ 24 billion in economic aid over the last four decades – a period largely defined by the US government . authoritarian presidency of Hosni Mubarak. His latest move only reinforces the message that Washington appreciates the stifling of Sissi's Islamist politics and growing cooperation with Israel over the democratic ideals championed by generations of US presidents. "It's a signal: do not pay attention to everything we say in the future," said Michele Dunne, a former state department official at the Carnegie Foundation for International Peace in Washington, at the Wall Street Journal

. that the scales came off under President Trump, who did not hide his admiration for the strong, iron-fisted men who brutally hold Islamists and dissidents. But he is barely alone. A bipartisan panoply of Washington officials and politicians has viewed with skepticism the democratic and gloomy progress of Egypt, considering the Muslim Brotherhood elected by universal suffrage as a menacing threat. Their fears were picked up and amplified by the allies of the Persian Gulf countries, who see political Islam not only the seed of jihadist extremism, but also a threat to their own monarchical power.

A book by David Kirkpatrick, former Cairo bureau chief of the New York Times, highlights the role of the Obama administration in the tactics authorizing the taking of Sissi and the reaffirmation of an authoritarian regime. "This coup d'état marked a turning point in the region, stifling the dreams of democracy while encouraging autocrats and jihadists," wrote Kirkpatrick in an excerpt from The Times. "And American politics has also evolved, giving more power to those in the administration," said Andrew Miller, who oversaw Egypt for the National Security Council under the direction of Mr. Obama … Some of the most vocal blows American defenders have taken the lead in the Trump administration, including Defense Secretary James Mattis and Michael Flynn, Trump's first national security advisor. "

Kirkpatrick points to internal disagreements between the Obama White House – brimming with liberal idealists inclined to embrace the pro-democracy upheavals of the Arab Spring – and senior officials from the State Department and the US Department of Justice. Pentagon, who were more cautious.According to him and other recent accounts, former Secretary of State John F. Kerry and former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel have been working to standardize the new status quo under Sissi

Even the mbadacre of hundreds of supporters of Morsi and the elected government The protest camp of August 2013 could not derail these efforts for a long time

The mbadacre Rabaa, as it is called, is considered the most bloody crackdown since Tiananmen Square in 1989. It resulted in the stoppage of sales of some US military equipment to Egypt and a brief suspension of help. "We can not go back to business as usual," Obama told his advisers after Rabaa, according to an article by Michael Crowley of Politico in 2016. "We have to be very careful about what we consider as accomplices our values ​​and our ideals. "