President Donald Trump spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Sunday about the Syrian war and a “range of security and economic issues,” a report that comes hours after State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said the U.S. was concerned about reports of two journalists being detained in Egypt.
The White House said Trump and el-Sisi “agreed to work together on ending the humanitarian crisis in Syria and achieving Arab unity and security in the region,” and that the two also discussed "Russia and Iran’s irresponsible support of the Assad regime’s brutal attacks against innocent civilians" in Syria.
The phone call came on the same day the Trump administration slammed Russia’s involvement in a deadly ongoing military operation in Eastern Ghouta, which has been under siege and daily bombardment for months with more than 600 civilians killed in the last two weeks.
“After repeatedly delaying the passage of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2401, which demanded a 30-day cessation of hostilities across Syria, Russia has gone on to ignore its terms and to kill innocent civilians under the false auspices of counterterrorism operations. This is the same combination of lies and indiscriminate force that Russia and the Syrian regime used to isolate and destroy Aleppo in 2016, where thousands of civilians were killed,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement.
Nauert's tweet about Egypt came after reports surfaced that two journalists were arrested for their intent to "spread false news."
The Egyptian presidency said Trump in the call reiterated his support for Egypt's war on anti-terrorism.
"The two leaders also discussed a number of regional issues and relevant developments, particularly in the light of the deteriorating regional situation, to reach political settlements for the current crises," Egyptian presidential spokesman Bassam Rady said in a statement.
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