The White House denied Tuesday that the Untied States has temporarily halted aid to Egypt amid widening strife in the country.
Yahoo’s Olivier Knox tweeted the White House’s denial:
White House: “The report that we have suspended assistance to Egypt is incorrect.”
— Olivier Knox (@OKnox) August 20, 2013
A report published late Monday by The Daily Beast’s Josh Rogin cited a spokesman for Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the head of the appropriations state and foreign-operations subcommittee, who indicated that the U.S. had privately decided to treat the military takeover in Egypt as a coup.
Such a distinction, which the Obama administration has avoided articulating publicly, would legally require U.S. aid to the Egyptian military to be suspended.