An Angry Mob Is Not A Basic Part Of Freedom

Today’s New York Times reported that an angry mob has attacked the Israeli Embassy in Cairo and that Israel sent military jets to evacuate the Embassy staff.

The Times reports:

In Washington, the White House said in a statement that Mr. Obama had “expressed his great concern” about the embassy situation in his conversation with Mr. Netanyahu. The statement said Mr. Obama called on the government of Egypt “to honor its international obligations to safeguard the security of the Israeli Embassy.”

Israeli officials said the six trapped embassy staff members were rescued by Egyptian commandos early Saturday morning, after hours when Egyptian military and security forces had appeared to stand idle on the sidelines for fear of confronting the mob.

“This went on for 13 hours and there was real concern for the safety and lives of our people,” an Israeli official said. “The mob penetrated the embassy and at the end there was only one wall separating it from six of our people.”  

This is not a comforting move by the newly free people of Egypt. The Times further reports:

For Egypt’s interim military rulers, allowing the invasion of a foreign embassy is an extraordinary breach of Egypt’s international commitments that is raising security concerns at other embassies as well. 

Does anyone remember that in the Iranian revolution in 1979, the American Embassy was attacked and hostages taken? This does not sound like the actions of a democracy in the making.

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