The Obama administration's plan to keep military aid flowing to Egypt ran into significant opposition on Tuesday as a key senator blocked the next batch of shipments and other legislators criticised the White House for not responding more forcefully to the military-led government's crackdown on opposition groups.
Patrick Leahy, the senior US senator for Vermont, a Democrat and the head of the panel that appropriates foreign aid, called the administration's intended release of $US650 million ($702 million) of military aid unconscionable in light of a recent wave of death sentences handed down by courts in Egypt after hasty mass trials.
"It is an appalling abuse of the justice system," Senator Leahy said from the Senate floor on Tuesday morning. "It shows a dictatorship run amok."
His move set the stage for the first clash between the executive and legislative branches over the future of the annual $US1.5 billion aid package that Cairo has counted on for decades. If Senator Leahy does not release it, the Obama administration would face a series of legal and contractual quandaries as a result of the complex way the aid is administered.
"I think this is an important moment," said Stephen McInerney, the executive director of the Project on Middle East Democracy, which has advocated for an overhaul of the Egyptian aid package. "It highlights just how troublesome events in Egypt have been as viewed from Washington."
Senator Leahy's announcement coincided with a visit by Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy to Washington and a hearing before a House foreign affairs panel during which members of Congress took the administration to task for attempting to keep the aid flowing.
Virginia congressman Gerald Connolly, also a Democrat, criticised the administration's recent decision to move forward with the delivery of 10 Apache attack helicopters to Egypt. Mr Connolly and other legislators noted the killing of hundreds of demonstrators and the death sentences imposed on 700 Egyptians since a military coup last year.
"How in the world do we continue to justify decisions, such as that made recently by Secretary Kerry nonetheless to go forward with the delivery of Apache helicopters to that military?" he demanded.
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