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The Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sameh Shoukry compared the violence in Mexico with his nation's struggle against terror in an open letter to the Mexican people.
Shoukry expressed that terror in Egypt has been directed at tourists while in Mexico the criminal organizations are guilty of the death of thousands of innocents.
"Mexico, like Egypt, has suffered from large-scale violence, albeit for different motives. The drug war in Mexico has killed tens of thousands of innocent people, a large portion of them law enforcement officials. Organized crime groups have ruthlessly assassinated political figures and state officials.
"If anything, this shows that Egypt and Mexico face similar challenges. We are all together in the same boat, sailing in a stormy ocean. We hope this will drive us to maintain the mutual appreciation, solidarity, affection and friendship that have always existed between our two nations, governments and people. At no point has this been as important as it is now," wrote the Minister.
In regard to the reports placing the blame of the attack on the Egyptian army, Shoukry wrote that "I am deeply troubled that some people have chosen to exploit this tragic event to allege that Egyptian law enforcement officials have no strict rules of engagement, act indiscriminately, or do not take the necessary precautions during their operations.
"They have intimated that more lives have been lost at the hands of Egypt’s law enforcement agents than at the hands of terrorists. This could not be farther from the truth.
"These people forget that terrorism in Egypt has targeted tourists in the most despicable of ways. Controlling this huge threat in order to make the country safe for its citizens and visitors has cost Egypt the blood of many of its sons and daughters. It would defy reason to think that Egypt’s law enforcement authorities could ever deliberately harm innocent tourists.
"In fact, Egypt’s prosperity and the very livelihood of its citizens depend enormously on the tourism sector, which once employed 12% of our workforce and contributed more than 10% of GDP. More importantly, I assure you that Egypt’s law enforcement agents operate under a strict moral, ethical and legal code that seeks to avoid civilian casualties. This is a hallmark of our humanity and compassion. We have nothing to gain from the tragic incident of 13 September, and everything to lose," he said.
The full text of the letter is available at the Facebook page of the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign affairs, both in Spanish and English.
