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| Egypt receives last batch of F-16 fighter jets from 2009 US military deal | |
| 2015-10-30 | |
The US embassy in Cairo highlighted in a statement that Ambassador Stephen Beecroft and senior defense official Charles Hooper joined Air Marshal Younes El-Masri and other senior Egyptian military officials in a ceremony at the Cairo West Air Force Base to receive four F-16 "Fighting Falcon" fighter jets delivered by the United States to the Egyptian Air Force. Major General Hooper described the advanced F-16 fighter jet as a "vital multi-role aircraft that will provide the Egyptian people greater security and a powerful asset in the fight against terrorism." The deal stipulates that Egypt should receive a total of 20 F-16 Block 52 aircraft, eight of which the US had delivered in 2013. However, if you can't say something nice about a person some juicy gossip will go well... US military aid was suspended following the ouster of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi in 2013. The US decided to continue aid to Egypt in March 2015, declaring that it would be sending the remaining 12 fighters before the end of the year. In July 2015, eight F-16 fighter jets flew over Cairo to celebrate their arrival from the US. Since the 1979 Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, Cairo has been the second-largest recipient of US military and economic aid after Tel Aviv. | |
| Posted by:trailing wife |