By POMED –
In the Friday press briefing, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer addressed U.S. President Donald Trump’s role in freeing Egyptian-American NGO founder Aya Hijazi. According to Spicer, “The President directly engaged behind the scenes on her behalf and made it clear to the Egyptian government how important it was to him that this American be released and returned … Early in the administration, the President was briefed on the situation and directed his national security team to figure out ways to address this situation through diplomatic channels. The President discussed the issue privately with [Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi] when he visited the White House a short time ago … The team and he, in particular, brought this up privately with al-Sisi when he was here during the visit, and the team has worked extensively behind the scenes over the last couple months, [at] least, to make this a priority and bring her home.”
Hijazi visited the White House with her brother on Friday. During her meeting with President Trump in the Oval Office, the President said, “We are very happy to have Aya back home and it’s a great honor to have her in the Oval Office with her brother.”
Meanwhile, lawyer Tareq Mahmoud filed a lawsuit with Egypt’s Administrative Court to strip Hijazi of her Egyptian citizenship. Mahmoud claims that, when she applied for U.S. citizenship, Hijazi violated Article 10 of 1957’s Law No. 26, which states that Egyptian nationals who seek to obtain another citizenship while retaining their Egyptian citizenship must submit an official request to the government. The lawyer also expressed suspicion about Hijazi’s relationship with the U.S. government, citing the fact that she was accompanied by senior White House officials on a private plane from Egypt to the United States after she was acquitted and met with President Trump soon after her arrival. “She is of great importance to the U.S. administration as she offered services to the [United States],” Mahmoud stated.
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