France attempted to hide award ceremony featuring Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi speaks during a joint news conference with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace on December 7. Mr Sisi is paying a state visit to France for talks on fighting terrorism, the conflict in Libya and other regional issues

Credit: Michel Euler/REUTERS

France attempted to conceal from the national press an award ceremony where Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was given the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, the country’s highest award, a French TV investigation has claimed.

Le Quotidien said the French media were not allowed to attend a ceremony where Mr Sisi was given the accolade, despite concerns about human rights abuses in Egypt.

Instead, Le Quotidien reported, only Egyptian media outlets were invited.

The programme also said the event was not listed on the Elysée palace’s website, in an apparent attempt to conceal it from French media and citizens.

Though France routinely gives the Legion of Honour to foreign leaders due to a policy of ‘diplomatic reciprocity’, the decision not to inform the French public has angered French commentators.

"Why did the Elysée want to hide these images?" asked Quotidien presenter Yann Barthès during the programme.

The Telegraph approached the Elysée palace for comment but did not immediately receive a response.  

French President Emmanuel Macron (R) welcomes Abdel Fattah al-Sisi at the Elysee presidential palace for a meeting as part of al-Sisi's a three-day controversial state visit to France, with activists warning Paris not to turn a blind eye to Cairo's rights record

Credit: BERTRAND GUAY/AFP via Getty Images

It comes after three Egyptian human rights defenders from the group EIPR were arrested in Cairo on terrorism charges for holding a meeting with Western diplomats, including UK Deputy Ambassador Neerav Patel.

Among those arrested was Karim Ennarah, whose British wife has campaigned for all EIPR members to be released and for their charges to be dropped.

Mr Ennarah and his two colleagues were released from prison last week but another colleague, Patrick Zaki, who has been detained for the past 10 months on dubious terroism charges, remains behind bars.

During the state visit to Paris, President Emmanuel Macron referred to Mr Sisi as his "friend" and said he would not link weapons trade with Egypt on Cairo improving its human rights record. 

"I will not condition matters of defence and economic cooperation on these disagreements," Mr Macron said.

"It is more effective to have a policy of demanding dialogue than a boycott which would only reduce the effectiveness of one our partners in the fight against terrorism," he added.

The warm welcome by Mr Macron was even criticised by some of his own officials, with one anonymous French diplomat telling Reuters news agency: "I don’t know what we gain from this visit. It’s business as usual."

Amnesty International claims Egypt under Mr Sisi, who came to power after a military coup in 2013, has effectively outlawed criticism of the government and a free press. 

In a report earlier this year, the human rights group said at least 39 journalists had been arrested on charges such as "spreading false news" and "misusing social media". 

Earlier this month, Amnesty also condemned what it described as an "execution spree" in Egypt, where at least 57 people were put to death in October and November alone, nearly double the figure recorded for the whole of 2019.