The US should suspend foreign aid to Egypt.

Now, let's begin. FOREIGN AID TO EGYPT US and Israeli aid began being sent to Egypt soon after the Six Day's War, following a peace treaty between the warring states in 1979. The US gives aid to Egypt in quantity only behind Israel, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iraq. The money and military aid given by the US has increased since 1979, inflation adjusted, and is now 1.55-2 billion dollars, mostly used for military pursuit. (1) The Obama Administration has also recently given a gift of 250 million dollars, although some of that is being reduced in light of recent events. CIVIL UNREST IN EGYPT After the coup that took Mohammed Morsi out of power in early July, the stability of the recently founded peace in Egypt has rapidly degenerated into firing into unarmed crowds, leading to more deaths than were suffered under Mubarak. Many supporters of Morsi have been sentenced to life in prison simply for protesting, and over 1000 innocent civilians and protestors have died by the army's hand, after the suspension of the constitution. (2) For these reasons, it is necessary for the United States to stand for principle and refuse to pay, and in doing so support, the indiscriminate killings of innocent people. STANDING FOR PRINCIPLE America has always been considered, at least by itself and its allies, a beacon of freedom and democracy, a standard the world should rally to. Regardless of whether you believe that to be true, I think you will agree that condemning the actions of the Egyptian army is just and noble. With more injuries and death than under Mubarak, the current rulers of Egypt are violently cracking down on the (mostly) peaceful protests. I will not include them here, but many videos can be found on Youtube or Liveleaks of clearly unarmed protesters being gunned down at close range. It is the US's obligation, if we wish to live up to our name, to denounce these acts, or at the very least, stop our very direct assistance in them. SPHERE OF INFLUENCE One of the the most reiterated arguments from those who support continued aid to Egypt directs itself at the premise that a cut or elimination of aid would result in enmity from Egypt, which might take actions such as closing the Suez Canal, driving up the price of oil. They say the aid being sent causes the Egyptian people and Government to like us. So let's see how that's working out. A CNN poll finds that 79% of Egyptians have a dislike or hate of the United States, steadily rising since the treaty (3). On the topic of the treaty, 54% of Egyptians want the treaty cancelled, with just 36% supporting it. But even if Egyptians don't like the United States, surely they like our money? Nope. A Gallup Poll finds that 74% of Egyptians do not want US economic or military aid. (4) However odd it may seem, if we really desire Egypt's approval, then we will remain out of its internal working, and the polls support that. THE FOREIGN ASSISTANCE ACT Originally enacted in 1961 under President Kennedy, the Foreign Assistance Act lays out the fundamental rules for the US in supplying other countries with aid. I bring up this law because of its policy towards countries suffering, or having recently suffered, a coup. The law says aid must be cut if a "duly elected leader is deposed by military coup d'etat or decree or, after the date of enactment of this Act, a coup d'etat or decree in which the military plays a decisive role. "(5) Now, a coup is defined as "a sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from a government. " (6) The overthrow of Morsi in Egypt certainly fulfills all these requirements, making continued aid a violation of this law, a crime in itself and a bad precedent. In conclusion, Egyptians doesn't want aid, Americans don't want to give aid to them, and the US most stop, for legal, ethical, and traditional reasons the direct support of the bloodshed caused by the Egyptian Army. I have much more to say, but I will leave it for next round. Good luck to my opponent, and I look forward to his next entry. (1) . http://www.propublica.org... (2) . http://www.bbc.co.uk... (3) . http://www.nationaljournal.com... (4) . http://www.gallup.com... (5) . http://jurist.org... # (6) . http://dictionary.reference.com...