White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Friday she was unable to immediately condemn legislation in Egypt that would criminalize homosexuality and impose a five-year prison sentence.
“I’m not aware of the specifics of that, so I would have to look into that before I could make a response, but we will certainly be happy to check into it,” Sanders said during the daily White House press briefing.
Egypt currently is led by a secular autocrat, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who in 2013 led a coup that overthrew the elected Islamist president, Mohamed Morsi. Sisi since was elected in his own right.
Although homosexual conduct is not a specific crime in Egypt, catchall offenses such as “debauchery” currently are used for prosecutions.
The group Human Rights First said in a Thursday press release the Egyptian legislation is likely to pass the nation’s legislature, and called for U.S. condemnation.
