As Egypt presses ahead with the prosecution of 19 American NGO workers, the Obama administration is hearing a bi-partisan plea from Capitol Hill to re-think the $1.4 billion in U.S. aid to Egypt. Chris Lawrence reports.
By Elise Labott
One telltale sign a country is on the verge of collapse is when the U.S. embassy shutters its doors and gets out of Dodge. That threshold has now been crossed in Syria.
After weeks of pleading with Syrian authorities to beef up protection of the U.S. Embassy to no avail, the State Department was forced to pull out its skeleton staff and close the embassy. Most of the staff members were evacuated earlier in the year, and the diplomatic team was further reduced last month.
The decision to close the embassy is a big one, one not made easily. U.S. officials insist the move does not mean Washington is severing relations with Damascus.
But even though the United States isn't ending diplomatic ties, it will be sure to look that way on the surface - especially given the very public calls by everyone in the Obama administration, from the president and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on down - for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down. FULL POST
By Elise Labott
The U.S. State Department shuttered its embassy in Syria and pulled out its remaining staff Monday after the government refused to address its security concerns, senior State Department officials tell CNN.
The officials said 17 employees, including Ambassador Robert Ford, left the country. Two employees flew out of the Syria last week by commercial air, with the rest of them, including Ford, traveling by convoy Monday morning to Jordan. Most of the staff were evacuated earlier in the year, and the diplomatic team was further reduced in December.
The Syrians were notified about the decision to pull the staff and shutter the embassy after the employees were out of the country, the officials said.
The officials said the deterioration of the situation in the country made it impossible for the embassy to continue operations and for the staff to remain.
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