The U.S. is drastically scaling back its military aid to Egypt, the State Department said Wednesday, just as an Egyptian court announced that ousted President Mohammed Morsi — Egypt's first democratically elected leader — would face trial on charges of inciting violence. "We're talking hundreds of millions of dollars in military assistance," an official said. The U.S. had earlier been hesitant to weigh in on the future of its significant aid to the country, and on whether Morsi's ouster by the military qualified as a coup. "We will continue to provide parts for U.S.-origin military equipment as well as military training and education," the U.S. said Wednesday. "We will, however, continue to hold the delivery of certain large-scale military systems and cash assistance to the government pending credible progress toward an inclusive, democratically elected civilian government through free and fair elections." Meanwhile, Morsi's trial is set to begin Nov. 4 on charges stemming from violence late last year outside the presidential palace. His ousted predecessor Hosni Mubarak faces a retrial over the deaths of protesters.
