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| Central Bank of Egypt |
Libya's transitional government is finalizing an agreement with Egypt to deposit $ 2 billion in the Central Bank of Egypt, an official said on Sunday talks.
The time suggested a possible quid pro quo, arriving five days after Egypt complied with the request of Libya months, to round up for possible extradition at least three prominent supporters of Colonel Muammar el-Qaddafi, who had been living openly in Cairo.
The deposit of $ 2 billion was first reported by the Anatolia news agency in Turkey on Sunday, citing information from the Libyan ambassador to Cairo, Mohamed Fayez Jibril.
The Libyan government had pleaded for months for the extradition of dozens of former allies of Colonel Gaddafi who are wanted for trial in Tripoli. But Egypt was willing to allow free stay in Cairo. It has become a meeting point for Gaddafi loyalists who fled the revolution in Libya.
Egypt, however, is now extremely short currency. Tourism revenue and new foreign investments have collapsed during the turmoil that followed the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak two years ago.
Egypt bookings are down to less than $ 14 billion, about $ 36 billion before the revolution, depressing the value of the Egyptian pound and raising questions about the government's ability to import essential goods such as fuel and wheat. Egypt is in talks with the International Monetary Fund on a loan package of $ 4.8 billion that could reassure other potential lenders about the solvency of Egypt. But negotiations have stalled over the amount of Egypt must raise taxes and cut subsidies.
Libya tank is equivalent to the open-ended loan for Egypt. In a similar system, the depositor retains the right to withdraw the money, allowing Egypt to temporarily use it to spice up their source of income.
In Libya, reports of the arrests seem to be reinforcing the popularity of Prime Minister Ali Zeidan, who is fighting to retain the support of wayward Libyan transitional parliament. Many Libyans resent Gaddafi's allies for abuses and corruption during the previous administration, and some suspect of working from Cairo to try to destabilize the new government.
Those arrested include Qaddaf Ahmed al-Dam, a cousin of Colonel Gaddafi, Ali Maria, former Libyan ambassador in Cairo, and Mohamed Ibrahim, the brother of a Gaddafi spokesman, Moussa Ibrahim.
Quoting an Egyptian security official, The Associated Press reported that the Libyan government has asked Egypt to stop last year to about 40 suspects, and sent a delegation to Cairo on Thursday to arrange the extradition had brought a list of 88 more.
Mr. Dam is challenging his extradition on the grounds that it has an Egyptian passport because his mother was Egyptian, from an area near the border with Libya, according to press reports. But it also faces charges related Egyptian illegal weapons police say were discovered in his home in Cairo.
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