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| The African Union. Map by Evan Centanni, from this blank map by Eric Gaba. License: CC BY-SA |
 Country Name: • Egypt (English) • Miṣr (Arabic) Official Name: • Arab Republic of Egypt (English) • Ǧumhūriyyat Miṣr al-ʿArabiyyah (Arabic) Capital: Cairo |
Article by Evan Centanni
African Union Suspends Egypt
Egypt, the third most populous country in Africa, was suspended last weekend from that continent’s regional organization, the African Union (AU). The suspension comes after months of unrest in the country, in which massive popular protests led to the military overthrow of the government last week. The suspension is being taken very seriously by the parties involved.
The AU’s Peace and Security Council typically suspends member countries when they experience coups or other breakdowns of constitutional rule. Egypt joins three other African countries which are also currently suspended for similar incidents: Madagascar, Guinea-Bissau, and the Central African Republic (CAR) (see the links for information on each country’s constitutional crisis).
See Also: Rebel Takeover of Central African Republic (map)
What is the African Union?
 Organization Name: • African Union (English) • al-Āthḥād al-’Āfrīqī (Arabic) • Union africaine (French) • União Africana (Portuguese) • Unión Africana (Spanish) • Umoja wa Afrika (Swahili) Launched: 2002 in Durban, South Africa Headquarters: Addis Ababba, Ethiopia Website: www.au.int |
Formed in 1999-2002 to replace the earlier Organization of African Unity (OAU), the AU is an intergovernmental organization which works on increasing cooperation, stability, and development within the continent of Africa. It has a secretariat based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, though many of its most important decisions are made during annual summits of the continent’s national leaders.
Every UN-recognized country in Africa is a member of the African Union except for Morocco, which withdrew from the OAU in 1984 after the organization chose to admit the partially recognized state of Western Sahara, a disputed territory which Morocco claims and largely occupies. The only other parts of Africa not represented in the AU are a few groups of offshore islands controlled by European countries, as well the small Spanish enclaves in North Africa. The breakaway Republic of Somaliland is not a member, but is considered by the AU to be part of Somalia.
Low-resolution graphic of the African Union flag is displayed under fair use principles (source).
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MapBlade map of Eqypt
Why Morocco is not a part of the African Union?
It's explained in the last paragraph. It withdrew in protest of the AU's predecessor admitting Western Sahara as an independent member country.
It is interesting how the AU is dealing with Egypt (which was an early promoter and founding member of OAU) after the current regime-shift and how it didn't regarding the very same reason in February 2011.