Carter Center closes Egyptian office

After nearly three years, the Carter Center said it has closed its field office in Egypt and that it will not send an observation mission to assess that nation’s parliamentary elections expected later this year.

Those moves are based on the Carter Center’s determination that the political situation is extremely divided and that political space has narrowed for Egyptian political parties, civil society, and the media, according to a press statement.

The release said the upcoming election are “unlikely to advance a genuine democratic transition in Egypt. Both Egyptian civil society and international organizations face an increasingly restrictive environment that hinders their ability to conduct credible election observation.”