Qatar, Germany, Algeria, and a mix of reactions to violence in Egypt

Qatar has sent Egypt a second shipment of free liquefied gas that it had pledged months ago during the reign of deposed President Mohamed Morsi, AFP reported.

This comes amid harsh criticism from Doha of the crackdown on Muslim Brotherhood protesters and supporters of Morsi. The dispersal of two pro-Morsi sit-ins on August 14 by security forces left more than 600 dead and ensuing bloody clashes nationwide has resulted in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries.

Along with Turkey, Qatar was a staunch ally and source of financial support for Egypt during Morsi’s time in office. Relations with both have strained since mass protests prompted the army to depose Morsi, and especially so after the bloody crackdown on protesters.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE, however, have taken the position of financial and political support.

The shipments aim to ease the shortage of energy resources in Egypt during the summer.

"Concerned parties are finalizing measures to provide the remaining shipments promised as a gift to the brotherly Egyptian people," an unnamed foreign ministry official told Qatar News Agency.

In June, Qatar pledged five shipments of liquefied natural gas as a grant to Egypt as part of a package of more than US$5 billion in grants and deposits at the Central Bank to boost Egypt’s depleted foreign reserves.

Qatar's foreign minister Khaled al-Attiyah said Sunday that his country had never given aid to the Muslim Brotherhood and that its assistance was always pledged to Egypt as a whole, AFP reported.

France called on Saudi Arabia and Qatar to work together toward a resolution to the Egypt crisis, the news agency reported Sunday.

French President Francois Hollande invoked the "duty" of countries that have "a relationship of trust and friendship (with Egypt) to end the violence" so that political dialogue can begin.

"It is unacceptable that there is violence of this level in a great country like Egypt," said Hollande.

On Tuesday, state media reported that Cairo’s Eastern Military Airport received two cargo planes of about 100 tons in medical aid from Saudi Arabia to set up three field hospitals and other security and technical equipment needed in Egypt’s “fight against terrorism.”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel described the situation in Egypt as “very worrying,” adding that “we will not withdraw our diplomatic support to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict,” DPA reported.

Merkel told a German newspaper Tuesday that the government will review its cooperation with Egypt in light of recent developments, stressing that Egypt plays a central role in regional stability.

Media advisor to the Iraqi prime minister, Ali al-Moussawi, said his country supports Egypt on all levels, adding that Iraq needs Egypt more than Egypt needs Iraq, reported Egyptian state media portal Egynews.net.

Speaking to CBC’s morning show, he said the Arab world has been shaken since the crisis began in Egypt.

Egypt on Tuesday summoned Argentina’s chargé d'affaires in Cairo after its foreign ministry statement read out at the Security Council meeting condemned the crackdown on peaceful protesters, Egynews reported.

Assistant foreign minister Taher Farahat said Argentina’s statement does not reflect the facts on the ground in Egypt, stressing that the protesters whom security forces are confronting are not peaceful. Farahat said armed groups are terrorizing citizens and burning police stations and places of worship, killing dozens of security personnel in the process.

He called for balanced positions on the situation in Egypt and for other countries to refrain from intervening in its internal affairs.

Egyptian billionaire and telecom tycoon Naguib Sawiris told CBC’s morning show that the West has a skewed image of events in Egypt, which is why he headed to Brussels to rectify this image with documented evidence.

An Egyptian delegation is currently in Brussels to explain the facts on the ground in Egypt to European partners, state media reported. They are due to meet the EU’s Catherine Ashton.

Commenting on the death of 25 conscripts in Rafah on Monday, Algeria’s Al-Watan newspaper said that the bloody attacks Sinai is witnessing confirm that terrorism has taken root in the area. The paper made a reference to the attack which killed 16 border guards in August 2012 just a week after Morsi was sworn in as president, along with a number of other incidents involving attacks on security forces.

Meanwhile, in an article titled “Egypt on the brink” on Monday’s unprecedented attack, Algeria’s Liberté newspaper said that Sinai has become a favored site for carrying out terrorist acts since Morsi was deposed. It added that extremist Islamist groups have created a base in Sinai, and the violence is likely to escalate.

Le Soir d'Algerie likened the spark of violence to Algeria’s experience in the 1990s with organized violence carried out by armed jihadi and Islamist groups.