[AP] -- Reactions on Friday
around the world to developments in Egypt following clashes in which
hundreds of people were killed and thousands injured:
EUROPEAN UNION
European
leaders spoke Friday about the need for a coordinated EU response to
the violence in Egypt and agreed there should be a meeting of the
European Union's foreign ministers next week. French President Francois
Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for an end to
violence and a resumption of dialogue in Egypt. The German government
statement said Merkel told Hollande that Germany, one of Egypt's biggest
trading partners, would "re-evaluate" its relations with Cairo in light
of this week's bloodshed. Hollande also discussed the violence with
Italian Premier Enrico Letta and British Prime Minister David Cameron.
French
Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on French television that no
options would be off the table at the foreign ministers' meeting,
including a possible suspension of aid. EU foreign policy chief
Catherine Ashton called the deaths in Egypt "shocking."
---
SAUDI ARABIA
Saudi
Arabia's King Abdullah voiced support for Egypt's military-backed
interim government, saying the kingdom stands by the country in its
fight against "terrorism and strife" - an apparent reference to deposed
Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood movement. In a
televised statement, Abdullah called for honest people and intellectuals
"to stand firmly against all those who try to shake the stability of a
country that has always led the Arab and Islamic worlds."
--
TURKEY
Turkish
officials kept up their criticism of the military government's
crackdown, with President Abdullah Gul saying that "all that happened in
Egypt is a shame for Islam and the Arab world." Turkey and Egypt
recalled their ambassadors for consultations late Thursday as their
relationship worsened.
--
TUNISIA
About
1,500 people flooded the main avenue in central Tunis, many of them
pouring out of the capital's most important mosque. They gathered in a
large square in front of the municipal theater, shouting support for the
Egyptian people, especially supporters of Morsi, and condemning the
Egyptian military and the U.S. The hour-long protest was peaceful.
--
GERMANY
The
Foreign Ministry urged its citizens to refrain from traveling to Egypt,
extending a previous warning to include Red Sea beach resorts around
Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheik. Germans who are already in beach resorts
were advised to be vigilant and stay in close touch with hotel
management and travel agents. The German Travel Association said most
Germany travel companies have cancelled all bookings to Egypt until
Sept. 15.
The German government also announced
it was suspending 25 million euros in aid to Egypt for climate and
environmental protection projects. Funding for new development projects
will not be approved for the time being, Development Minister Dirk
Niebel said.
--
FRANCE
Fabius,
the foreign minister, said he raised its alert level for Egypt on
Friday, "formally discouraging" French people from traveling to the
country. He said that meant, for example, that tour operators would no
longer bring tourists to the country. He also encouraged French people
already in Egypt to avoid big cities. He said the country wasn't far off
from civil war: "It's in chaos."
--
ITALY
Italy's
Foreign Ministry expanded its travel advisory to discourage citizens
from traveling to all of Egypt, including the Red Sea and northern sea
resorts. Foreign Minister Emma Bonino said the "brutal and unacceptable"
use of force by Egypt's interim authorities presents a "worrying
picture of violation of human rights." Bonino also said the Muslim
Brotherhood must act firmly to stop "the extremist and sectarian drifts
and to calm down the use of violence."
-
SWITZERLAND
The
Foreign Ministry warned against all travel to Egypt, saying there was a
risk that the violent clashes between government forces and protesters
"will spread throughout the country." The ministry advised Swiss
citizens already in Egypt to keep informed, obey curfews and stay away
from crowds or "events of all kinds."
---
SPAIN
Spain's
Foreign Ministry said it summoned the Egyptian Embassy's charge
d'affaires, because the ambassador was absent, to urge Egypt to revoke
the state of emergency and rein in its security forces. The priorities
of the transitional government in Cairo should be to avoid more
bloodshed and respect human rights, the ministry said in a statement. It
said all sides should be included in "a broad national and inclusive
dialogue" to restore institutional normality.
---
NORWAY
Norwegian
Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide condemned the disproportionate
violence against demonstrators in a telephone conversation with Egypt's
interim Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi. "My message was that
everything must be done to prevent a bloodbath, that the security forces
must comply with international human rights obligations, and that all
parties must show restraint," the online Norway Post quoted Eide as
saying.
---
FINLAND, SWEDEN, NORWAY AND DENMARK
The
Nordic countries changed their advice to citizens, warning against all
non-essential travel to Egypt. Several tour operators canceled trips to
Egypt and began returning tourists early from holiday resorts.
---
POLAND
The
Foreign Ministry is advising Poles against traveling to Egypt. However,
the ministry said on its website that it considers Red Sea resorts
safe. It also says Polish citizens in Egypt should avoid big cities,
bazaars, shopping malls and museums.
Polish
tourists returning from the beach resort of Hurghada told TVN24 in
Warsaw that all tours were canceled, except visits to the town of
Hurghada, and that armed guards were stationed at the town's airport.
---
AUSTRIA
About
500 demonstrators, most of them Egyptian, gathered in Vienna's downtown
on St. Stephens Square, chanting the name of the deposed Egyptian
president. Organizer Ali Ibrahim of the Egyptian Community in Austria
said the protest was not in support of Morsi but "for democracy and the
protection of freedom."
---
INDONESIA
Thousands
of protesters took to the streets after Friday prayers, in several
cities across Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country,
calling for the bloodshed in Egypt to end. President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono said in his annual state-of-the-nation address that the
excessive force used to disperse demonstrations in Egypt was against
democratic values and humanity. He called on all parties to "build
compromise and seek a win-win solution."
--
TALIBAN
The
Taliban condemned the violence and called for the restoration of Morsi
as president. In a statement signed by The Islamic Emirate of
Afghanistan, the name under which the Taliban ruled Afghanistan until
ousted by a U.S. invasion, they also called on international
organizations to take practical steps to stop the violence and "not be
satisfied with only condemning this barbaric incident."
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