US agrees to sell new missiles to Egypt

The United States on Tuesday approved the sale of $740 million in Stinger missiles to Egypt, which has become an increasingly close partner over the Gaza crisis despite concerns on rights.

The State Department informed Congress that it was approving the sale of 720 Stinger missiles for use on existing systems.

The sale will help "improve the security of a friendly country that continues to be an important force for political stability and economic growth in the Middle East," a State Department statement said.

Congress can still block the sale, but such attempts are usually unsuccessful.

The deal is likely to add to a backlog of military supplies by the United States, which has received orders from Taiwan and NATO allies and has been ramping up arms both to Ukraine and Israel in their respective wars.

President Joe Biden took office in 2021 vowing a harder line on Egypt over human rights concerns under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, but his administration has repeatedly gone ahead with arms deals with Egypt, one of the largest recipients of US security aid since its peace treaty with Israel in 1979.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Cairo last week and hailed the partnership with Egypt, which along with Qatar has been working with Washington to broker a ceasefire in the nearly year-old Gaza war.

Amid international criticism, Cairo has in the last two years pardoned hundreds of political prisoners.

However, rights groups say that at least three times as many have been arrested over the same time period.