Egypt justice minister rebuffs US envoy
The Egyptian justice minister has returned a letter from the US ambassador to Egypt asking him to re-examine the issue of Americans barred from leaving the country.
Adel Abdel-Hamid told the Egyptian parliament Tuesday that he called the embassy to say the letter should be addressed to the investigating judges and should come from those being investigated, not from the ambassador.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Mark Toner acknowledged the letter from Anne Patterson had been returned, adding that the US was still in talks with Egypt about the "onerous restrictions." (AP)
