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Secretary of State Marco Rubio has waived human rights conditions on roughly $320 million in US military aid to Egypt, citing Cairo’s “helpful role” since the start of the war with Iran.
Getting into it: In a letter to congressional committees, Rubio said he was waiving the requirement that Egypt meet certain human rights and democracy standards before receiving the money, which is part of the roughly $1.3 billion in military aid the US gives Egypt every year. The funds are used to buy American-made weapons.
An accompanying memo said the aid was “necessary for counterterrorism, border security, or nonproliferation programs” or otherwise served US security interests, but didn’t explain what Egypt’s “helpful role” in the Iran war was. The State Department confirmed the waiver Thursday and said it would keep raising human rights concerns with Cairo.
This all comes after lawmakers tied the aid to human rights conditions because of Egypt’s record under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and the State Department’s own reports have flagged torture, arbitrary detention and limits on free expression in the country.
Still, administrations of both parties have regularly signed off on these waivers. Biden held back some of the money several times over rights abuses, but in 2024 he set the conditions aside and released the full $1.3 billion.
