West should review Egypt relations - NYT (3)

(ANSA) - Rome, April 15 - The West must reconsider its relations with Egypt in light of the torture and murder of Italian student Giulio Regeni earlier this year, The New York Times said in an editorial out Friday. "A stalled investigation into the abduction and murder of (Regeni) has forced at least one of these countries, Italy, to reconsider its relationship," the paper wrote. "It is time for other Western democracies to reconsider theirs". The paper added that "Italy has asked other European governments to put pressure on Egypt. On Tuesday, the British government finally called for 'a full and transparent investigation' into Mr. Regeni's murder - but it did so only after a petition signed by more than 10,000 people forced it to respond. There has been shameful silence from France, whose president, François Hollande, travels to Cairo on Monday to sign a $1.1 billion weapons deal". "Human rights abuses in Egypt under President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi have reached new highs, yet the Western governments that trade with and arm Egypt have continued to pursue business as usual with the argument that regional security and economic interests trump all," The New York Times continued. "The brunt of Mr. Sisi's crackdown has, of course, fallen on Egyptians, thousands of whom have been arrested, and many tortured and killed. Regeni, 28, was abducted in Cairo on January 25 and his severely tortured body resurfaced in a ditch on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital on February 3.