WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th January, 2020) US Senators Chris Van Hollen and Patrick Leahy wrote to President Donald Trump urging him to sanction the Egyptian officials responsible for the detention of an American citizen Mustafa Kassem and his death in custody.
"We urge you to immediately impose the visa restrictions on Egyptian government officials involved in the detention - and now the death - of Mustafa Kassem," the senators wrote on Thursday. "We further request that you make a formal determination that the Egyptian government's treatment of Mr. Kassem constituted a gross violation of internationally recognized human rights and impose Global Magnitsky Act sanctions on the perpetrators."
Kassem reportedly died of a heart failure following his hunger strike. The American dual citizen was arrested in 2013 and sentenced to 15 years in prison on charges of trying to oust the government of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
"Egyptian officials never presented any evidence implicating Kassem - because there was none. These actions against a US citizen are particularly egregious, as the United States provides approximately $1.4 billion in foreign assistance to Egypt annually," Van Hollen and Leahy said.
Earlier this week, US Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker confirmed Kassem's death, calling it "needless, tragic, and avoidable." He said the State Department will continue to raise concerns about human rights and US citizens detained in Egypt. According to the senators' letter, at least six American citizens and two US permanent residents remain in Egyptian prisons.
