With human rights organizations reporting a spike in defamation charges, concerns are piling up over the effect of such charges on freedoms of belief and expression. And while the social and political environment may be conducive to more defamation cases, the laws governing them, as well as judicial reasoning, tell of legal exacerbations of the problem.

At one of Cairo's luxurious Nile side hotels, in a lavish ballroom, around a hundred Egyptian Salafists, including some of their top religious scholars, gathered to launch their Salafist movement's first business association.

With prayers and blessings in the name of Jesus Christ, spiritual leaders on Sunday anointed Tawadros II as pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church at St. Mark's Cathedral in the heart of Cairo.

"Down with military rule!" chanted Copts, interrupting last January's Christmas mass at Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral. The protesters were reacting to Pope Shenouda’s decision to invite members of the then-ruling military council to attend the celebration, despite the role of state security forces in the Maspero massacre which led to the death of more than 25 Coptic demonstrators in October 2011.

At the Hanging Church in Old Cairo, wishes and prayers are made by Christians and non-Christians alike. The story of Mar Girgis, or St. George, a Roman soldier who died a martyr in around 303 AD, is an outstanding tale of self-sacrifice.

On Sunday, Ahmed Omar, a bearded Muslim resident of Queen Suzanne Street in Shubra al-Kheima, walked past a patch of land, bare except for several long concrete pillars.

The Muslim Brotherhood called for protests before major mosques nationwide on Thursday afternoon to demand that the Egyptian government sever diplomatic and trade ties with Israel.

The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) has issued a statement condemning the Israeli attack on Gaza Wednesday that resulted in the death of at least seven Palestinians, including Hamas leading figure Ahmed Al-Jaabari.

An Egyptian belly dancer performed a song with anti-Muslim Brotherhood innuendos in a home-made video that has spread across different websites and social networks on Wednesday.

Kamal El-Helbawi, formerly a senior member of the Muslim Brotherhood, speaks to Ahram Online reporter Ahmad Mahmoud about his career and differences with the Brotherhood. The interview was conducted in Bali, Indonesia, on the sidelines of a workshop on constitutional reform. El-Helbawi starts out with some memories about his childhood in Menoufiya, one of the most populated cities in Egypt's Nile Delta, also historically known for churning out most of Egypt's political figures.

Students belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood at Alexandria University inaugurated a campaign Wednesday to spread ‘chastity’ and promote a return to Islamic values such as modesty, as well as to discourage pornography.

Shura Council Speaker Ahmed Fahmy demanded that the Interior Ministry amend its regulations to allow police officers to grow beards, calling on the ministry not to violate the Sunnah of Prophet Mohamed.

Bishop Tawadros II, who will become the 118th pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church on 18 November, said that the rise of Islamist movements is not a source of concern for him.

President Mohamed Morsi is expected to attend a summit of the Developing Eight (D-8) countries in Islamabad on 21-22 November.

Tarek El-Sehri, deputy head of the Shura Council (the upper, consultative house of Egypt's parliament) and a spokesman for the Salafist Nour Party, called on President Mohamed Morsi on Wednesday to sack the recently-appointed Cabinet of Prime Minister Hisham Qandil, which he accused of incompetence.

Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Mahmoud Ghozlan on Tuesday denied media claims that the Muslim Sisters, the Brotherhood's female wing, were demanding leading positions within the prominent Islamist organisation.

The Salafist Nour Party Chairman and presidential advisor Emad Abdel-Ghafour starts negotiations with Sinai-based Islamist groups under the orders of President Mohamed Morsi as part of initiatives to tackle growing violence in the Egyptian peninsula that borders Israel.

Political students' movements have called for a protest at Cairo University on Tuesday evening against the new ‘Brotherhood’ university charter, the IMF loan, the proposed draft constitution and the Israeli attacks on Gaza.

Under Mubarak, Egypt enjoyed a relatively lenient life due to that government's open interpretation of Muslim law

Egyptian tycoon Naguib Sawiris has offered to buy a stake in Telecom Italia

Ten political parties and movements are calling for a demonstration in solidarity with Gaza