Trial of U.S. Nonprofit Workers in Egypt Is Abruptly Put Off
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CAIRO -- The politically charged trial here of employees of four American-backed nonprofit groups was adjourned Sunday less than two hours after it began, amid signs that the case was growing into a broader indictment of Egypt's alliance with the United States.
Until the last minute, United States diplomats made a high-level push to settle the case before the trial opened. American officials said later on Sunday that they still held out hope for a swift resolution of the case, perhaps through an early decision by the presiding judge.
Tensions over the case have already escalated into threats from Washington to cut off $1.55 billion in annual aid to Egypt, and from Cairo to review its Camp David peace treaty with Israel. It could thus upend the three-way alliance that has helped maintain regional stability for 30 years.
The adjournment of the case, until April 26, adds another wrinkle: Congress recently passed a law requiring that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton certify that Cairo is making progress toward democracy before American aid can be delivered to Egypt. State Department officials have said that the deadline for the certification is in April and that Mrs. Clinton would not make the certification while Egypt continued to restrict the American groups and other nonprofit groups.
The scenes of chaos that unfolded on the trial's opening day underscored the difficulty of unwinding the case. The trial has prompted an outpouring of pent-up resentment against the United States. Egyptians regularly cite America's support for former President Hosni Mubarak, as well as its steadfast backing of Israel and its invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.
"State media has pushed this whole case as Egyptian sovereignty against 'U.S. interference,'Â " said Nancy Okail, the Egypt director at Freedom House, a federally financed American nonprofit organization that is one of the targets in the case. "And it was obvious a huge part of what was going on today was a political show for public consumption."
Ms. Okail, a 34-year-old Egyptian citizen, is a defendant in the case, one of 43. Only 14 of them, including Ms. Okail, appeared in court on Sunday afternoon, remaining in the large metal cage in which defendants are kept in Egyptian courtrooms, just as Mr. Mubarak has been at his trial.
First Published February 27, 2012 12:01 am
