Readout of the President’s Call with President Mubarak of Egypt

The President spoke with Egyptian President Mubarak this morning on a broad range of issues, to include the New Year’s Day attack on a Coptic Christian church in Alexandria, developments in Tunisia and Lebanon, and how best to advance Middle East peace.  The President extended his personal condolences to President Mubarak and the Egyptian people for the heinous bombing targeting Christians that occurred on New Year’s Day, and urged all sides to ease tensions and work toward improved relations among all religions.  The President raised the latest developments in Tunisia, and shared with President Mubarak that the United States is calling for calm and an end to violence, and for the interim government of Tunisia to uphold universal human rights and hold free and fair elections in order to meet the aspirations of the Tunisian people.  The President thanked President Mubarak for Egypt’s support for Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, which is attempting to end the era of impunity for political assassination in Lebanon, and achieve justice for the Lebanese people.  The President and President Mubarak also discussed ways to advance efforts on Middle East peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.