CAIRO
Egypt's Foreign Ministry on Saturday lashed out at the United States Department of State spokeswoman Marie Harf for saying on Friday that Egypt used American military aid against its own people.
The Foreign Ministry described Harf's comments as both "ignorant" and "lacking".
"These statements express ignorance of the realities in Egypt," Foreign Ministry spokesman Badr Abdel-Ati said in a statement.
"They lack the simplest measure of objectivity and credibility," he added.
On Friday, Harf was asked about why the U.S. did not suspend its military aid to Israel against the background of its war on the Palestinians of Gaza as it did Egypt in 2013.
She said, however, there is a big difference between Israel and Egypt, noting that Israel is using U.S. military aid to fight a "terrorist" organization, namely the Gaza-based Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, while Egypt uses this military aid against its own people.
Abdel-Ati said the comparison between Egypt and Israel was unacceptable and unjustified.
He said the presumption by the Department of State spokeswoman that Egypt uses American military aid against its own people is "sheer fantasy".
Abdel-Ati added that Harf also overlooked the fact that Egypt dealt decisively only with people who carried arms and intended to strike terror in to the hearts of innocent Egyptians.
He said the U.S. Department of State spokeswoman needs to mention the specific situation when Egypt used American F-16s against its own people.
"Egypt needs F-16s to counter terrorism that has claimed the lives of several policemen and army personnel," Abdel-Ati said in the statement.
Relations between Egypt and the U.S. administration worsened soon after the Egyptian military moved to oust elected president Mohamed Morsi in July 2013.
The U.S. then withheld part of its military and financial aid to Egypt, including the delivery of some important arms for the Egyptian army.
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