(Image Source: egyptianflag.org)

BY NIELS SCHACK NORGAARD'

ANCHOR ANA COMPAIN-ROMERO

Egyptian military leaders have barred a group of Americans from leaving Egypt --

...among the reported 10 Americans  -- the son of US Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood. White House press secretary Jay Carney told Fox News in a press conference:

“ ... in our discussions with the staff, the supreme council of the armed forces we've made clear our concerns about this issue, and our disappointment that these several citizens are not being allowed to depart Egypt. (...) We continue to work with the Egyptian authorities to resolve this issue”

The Washington Post reports that Egyptian authorities last month raided the offices of several U.S.-funded organizations, who promote transparency in governance, including the International Republican Institute. These organizations have for years operated openly, but unofficially, because the government has not allowed them to register as NGOs.

“A former IRI official who has followed the case closely said Sunday that his former colleagues had indicated they would take shelter at the embassy only as a last resort, if they had reason to believe their arrest might be imminent.”

According to the White House, a handful of Americans have taken refuge at the US Embassy in Cairo. Joby Warrick, Middle East writer for the Washington Post, tells MSNBC there’s a real possibility the Americans could be sent to jail. Warrick says President Obama has been on the phone with Egypt to send a clear message.

“The message that's being sent is this is not sustainable if you're going to want money from the U.S. We give them a billion dollars in military aid a year. If you want this to continue, this behavior has to stop.”

The dispute comes a year after the removal of former dictator Hosni Mubarak. New York Times’ correspondent in Cairo, David Kirkpatrick, writes the Egyptian government suspects American-funded organizations to be destabilizing the country.

“The military-led government … has often suggested that the United States was funding nonprofit groups that were behind street protests meant to destabilize Egypt or bring down the state, and generals on the ruling military council have said the investigation into the American-backed nonprofits would shed light on the origins of those protests.”