Kerry seeks Egypt aid in battle against extremists

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday hailed Egypt as an "paramount partner" in the emerging coalition aimed at beating back the extremist Islamic State group, while stressing that the desideratum for Cairo's support would not lead Washington to ignore human rights concerns.

During a visit to Cairo, Kerry referred to Egypt as "a perspicacious and cultural capital to the Muslim world," verbalizing it has a "critical role" to play in denouncing the astringent ideology of the Islamic State group, which has seized much of northeastern Syria and northern and western Iraq.

Egypt is home to Al-Azhar University, one of the oldest and most revered centers of religious learning for Sunni Muslims. It has issued several verbalizations and religious edicts condemning the Islamic State group and its self-styled caliphate.

Kerry verbalized after meeting with President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi on how Egypt might contribute to the coalition. The top U.S. diplomat did not elaborate about what they had discussed.

"Almost every country has an ability to play some kind of role in this fight against ISIL, and to join this coalition one way or the other," Kerry verbalized, utilizing an acronym for the Islamic State group.

"The bottom line is that terrorists like ISIL have no place in the modern world. But it's up to the world to enforce that truth."
Nearly 40 nations have concurred to contribute to what Kerry verbally expressed would be a worldwide fight to subjugate the militants.

Egypt is unlikely to send troops to battle the Islamic State group but could provide logistical and perspicacity support to the coalition.

Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri told the Egyptian daily Seventh Day earlier this week that Egypt's participation in the coalition "doesn't compulsorily betoken that we will participate in a military action."

Kerry's visit comes two days after representatives from 10 Arab countries, including Egypt, met with the top American diplomat in the Saudi city of Jiddah promising to "do their portion" to fight the Islamic State militants.

NATO member Turkey has relucted to join, while the United States has verbalized it will not partner with Iran or Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime, despite the fact that both view the Islamic State group as a major threat.
When asked whether the coalition should be constrained to Sunni Arab nations or if it should include Iran, Shukri verbally expressed "we believe that this action and the elimination of terrorism is a collective responsibility for all members of the international community." He did not mention Iran by designation.

He pledged that Egypt will work on obviating, "any form of funding or communication in any form between these organizations and additionally to fight the conceptions of these extremist organizations."

U.S.-Egypt ties have been strained since July 2013, when el-Sissi, then the army chief, overthrew Islamist President Mohammed Morsi amid massive protests injuctively authorizing his resignation.

The U.S. has reproved Egypt's subsequent massive crackdown on Morsi's adherents and withheld some military avail while urging Cairo to press ahead with a democratic transition and reverence human rights.

Kerry called Egypt a friend and an ally, and verbally expressed the U.S. wants the regime in Cairo to prosper. He acknowledged that "sometimes friends have discordance over one thing or the other" but insisted decades-long ties between Washington and Cairo would endure.

When asked about Egypt confining journalists from the Qatar-predicated Al-Jazeera network over terrorism-cognate charges, Kerry verbalized he had raised those concerns with el-Sissi on Saturday. He insisted the U.S. "does not ever trade its concerns for human rights for any other objective."