Posted on 06/23/2014 11:35:58 AM PDT by mojito
Egypt's military-dominated government has delivered a humiliating, public slap in the face to John Kerry, the US secretary of state, by sentencing three al-Jazeera journalists to long prison terms only hours after Kerry personally expressed his deep concern about the case in high-level meetings in Cairo. The snub represents a disastrous beginning to Kerry's already fraught Middle East tour, which took him to Baghdad on Monday for crisis talks about the Islamist extremist uprising.
The verdict, by a court responsive to government wishes, will also be seen as a deliberate, crude signal to President Barack Obama, who criticised Egypt's deteriorating human rights record after the former general, Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, seized power in a coup last year. Sisi has since had himself voted president. His elected predecessor, Mohammed Morsi, and thousands of his Muslim Brotherhood supporters remain in jail while hundreds of others have been killed.
In what US officials said were "candid" talks with Sisi, Kerry "emphasised our strong support for upholding the universal rights and freedoms of all Egyptians, including freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association". He noted a number of promises by Egyptian leaders "are yet to be fulfilled", but added that "the United States remains deeply committed to seeing Egypt succeed".
The hollowness of all this careful diplomatic language was exposed for all to see by the court's verdict, which diplomats and observers said was reached without the complication of supporting evidence
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
Pretty smarmy writing, Simon, dripping with agenda. But even then you can’t make Kerry look good.
Fraught with what?
Things are not just "fraught". They must be fraught WITH something -- danger, peril, evil...
...stupidity...
Forgive me, but I was hoping that Kerry would be captured and made to beg for his life on tv,I usually reserve that for Obama and or Hillary etc
Yes I need prayer
Kerry’s the Rodney Dangerfield of Secretary’s of State.
Lurch does down in flames again!
America has become a laughingstock. Nobody has any repsect for us because they have no fear of us.
They did this just because Kerry told them not to. Had Kerry kept his trap shut they probably would have shown these guys some mercy.
Kerry arrived in Egypt once again bearing gifts. This time he promised some nice Apache attack helicopters. Wherever John the Dope goes the situation gets worse and each of his stops cost the American taxpayer an average $200-300,000,000.
When is someone from another country going to say “Your constitution isn’t followed in your own country. It sure won’t be followed in ours.”
A Stinging Slap in the Chops!
I am amazed. Did they not know that he served in Vietnam?
This is a partial payback for Zero’s open support for the Muslim Brotherhood.
But only partial payback. I’m sure there’s more to come.
“....after Kerry personally expressed his deep concern about the case in high-level meetings in Cairo.”
No deep concern for our Marine rotting in a Mexico Caliboose?
Running out of wrong sides to support?
Unbelievable! Lurch and the rest of the thug administration will do what they can to get the Al-Jazeera reporters freed, yet nary a word for the Marine who took a wrong turn in Mexico.
I think this is proof in the existence of God.
In their Liberal bubble, they have the slavish devotion of the left. But the rest of the world, the very people they intend to rule over, see them as completely incompetent and powerless frauds; And with increasing frequency are telling them to go to hell.
They are not getting the slavish devotion they engineered for themselves in 08. The conning plan is falling apart rapidly. And they know it. And they know the world knows it too. Their place in world history will not match their fake Nobels and Medals of Freedom. And they don’t like it a bit.
Oh darn...
Kerry is wearing a “kick me” sign in Arabic on his backside.
I wonder if SKerry used the IRS as an example of this administration's strong support for freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association with those who it may disagree with?
We have little juice left in the world.
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