Seven Americans charged with illegal activities relating to their non-profit groups, including the son of transportation secretary Ray LaHood, have been cleared to leave Egypt. New York Times: A chartered plane was waiting at the airport in Cairo for the Americans, who include the son of the secretary of transportation, to carry them out of the country and beyond the reach of the Egyptian authorities. The group had sought refuge in the United States Embassy, where they remained hostages of a prosecution that threatened them with prison, and their departure is expected to cool the sense of crisis. The United States had threatened to cut off the $1.3 billion in annual aid to Egypt's military, and the Egyptians had retaliated by warning that they would reconsider the United States-brokered treaty with Israel. But in order for the defendants to leave the country, they will be required to pay large sums as bail - as high as $300,000 each, according to defense lawyers - and...(Read Full Post)