Local real estate firm Arabia Group for Development and Urban Progress plans to invest in a 1m square metre project to include a hotel and 2,000 touristic and residential units in Sinai, according to the group’s chairman, Tarek Shoukry.
As demonstrated on Thursday, when some protesters held a rally downtown demonstrating against the Protest Law and demanding the release of prominent activists, we are looking at a country which is becoming starkly different from what it was in 2011. Of course, while I am not here to bury the 25 January Revolution nor to praise it, it is prudent to say that current Egypt rulers are well on their way to making Egypt revolution proof – at least for a while. Through some deft moves and legislations, the successive transitional governments are attempting to navigate the country back to pre-25 January demarcation lines. Here is a look at some of these game changers:
The most pessimistic Arab could never imagine the day would come when a US official would say, if “he covered the faces of top officials he met during the recent trip to Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv, and listened to their perceptions on the issues and future of the Middle East, he would not be able to differentiate between the Saudi, Emirati and Israeli. Their views are the same on these issues.”
Egyptian football is adding salt to the run-up to presidential elections that are certain to be won by the country’s strongman, newly retired general Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, with the announcement of the controversial chairman of one of Egypt’s foremost clubs that he too was a presidential candidate.
Minister of Foreign Trade, Industry and Investment Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour announced earlier this week that the US Congress has recently approved a $120m initiative to support investment in Egypt. The minister’s statement marked the latest announcement made by the government regarding the efforts of international organisations and countries to support the Egyptian economy.
May God bless the souls of our martyr soldiers and innocent citizens, and may God curse all killers and funders of killers and saboteurs. Every day, we Egyptians become more convinced that we are in a war plot managed by major powers and executed by agents and traitors inside and outside the country who are targeting the country and people for destruction and bloodshed. It is an all-out battle where all vile and despicable means are being used.
Last month we spoke about the challenges facing the new Egyptian government. At the time of his appointment, Mr Mehleb proclaimed that his two main objectives were to wipe out militant violence and improve the economy. In the weeks that have followed his appointment, the prime minster has been very active, clearly adopting a management by wandering around (MBWA) technique, which seems to bode well with both the crowd as well as the media. There is no doubt that the man is displaying some visible efforts; Mehleb has paid numerous surprise visits to government offices throughout the country, displaying authority and at times sacking government employees who were caught sleeping at the wheel. The prime minister notoriously held cabinet meetings at 7 am and even took the time to meet with youths and party heads. However, notwithstanding the ongoing media propaganda, there are no signs of materials changes. In fact, Mehleb’s two main objectives remain as elusive as ever.
The military has sent mixed messages about its miracle cure that allegedly cures both AIDS and hepatitis C. On the one hand, news published by Al-Watan highlights that former defence minister Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi ordered the formation of a committee to investigate the validity of the cure, but in recent days despite the committee’s scepticism, there are more signs that the military is standing behind the invention with members of the research team adamant that the cure works.
Nine months ago, last July, when the army backed the people who took to the streets on 30 June and Al Sisi came out in all his glory reading the armed forces statement which included almost everything protesting Egyptians demanded at the time. A specific roadmap was announced and a temporary civilian president was instated. Al Sisi’s speech promised early presidential elections, amending the constitution, freedom of the media, and empowerment of the youth…among other things. And to curb our fears, the statement emphasised the armed forces’ desire to remain “aloof from politics”.
Time and again, since 30 June last year, I’ve come up against the commitment to democracy that I’m supposed to have betrayed by appearing to endorse the army’s intervention in the outcome of Egypt’s second revolution.
It is a shame to lose the opportunity resolve issues like Egyptian-Qatari relations and the Syrian crisis in light of the diplomatic efforts by the prince of Kuwait. The division between Qatar and Egypt was clear in the speeches of both the prince of Qatar and the Egyptian president. While the first accused some countries of failing to achieve their national unity and those countries blamed others for "supporting terrorism," on the other side the Egyptian president called on those countries to stop supporting people who have been carrying weapons against their own people. It is a huge gap between the two sides and it does not look to be bridgeable soon.
When incitement to violence becomes a staunch media campaign, managed from abroad and being persistent on people's minds night and day. When this incitement is backed up by aberrant Fatwas that confer religious legitimacy on burning, sabotaging and violating the sanctity of money and honour and portray the inter-fighting between sons of the same country as Jihad in the name of Allah. When arbitrariness increases in order to arrest innocent people, unsubstantiated accusations are leveled randomly on those who have nothing to do with anything and the most basic human rights of those detained are violated. When the blood of dozens is spilled recklessly, what will prevent a teenager or even a youth in his twenties from dipping himself into the quagmire of declaring Muslims as unbelievers (Takfir)?
Some friends and relatives are surprised at those who question the integrity of the coming elections and wonder why they keep raising doubts concerning their democracy. And if so, what is the available evidence that the elections will be conducted in an undemocratic atmosphere? The truth is, there is serious doubt-raising evidence concerning the coming presidential elections.
A number of families of people in detention, as well as former detainees will file a collective lawsuit to the Attorney General on Thursday regarding the torture that prisoners are allegedly subjected to by police forces while in custody.
In celebration of mothers everywhere, Mother’s Day is upon us, just in time for spring on Friday. Mother’s Day is a widely held celebration in Egypt, and despite not being a public holiday, finds a place in Egyptian pop culture with songs like Soad Hosny and Salah Jaheen’s famous Sabah Al-Kheir Ya Mawlaty. The origin of Mother’s Day in Egypt is attributed to brothers Mostafa and Ali Amin, who founded the Akhbar Al-Youm newspaper, and thus began a long tradition of Arab women making us all feel extra guilty for one day of the year.
An incident of sexual harassment has provoked widespread outrage and sparked a broad public debate. Sadly, this is not because sexual harassment is a rare event. In fact, it has reached epidemic proportions in recent years. Despite the undoubted fear and distress it caused the victim, this was also not Egypt’s ugliest assault in recent times.
There is optimism in Kuwait about the positive results of the Arab summit which will be held in Kuwait on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.
Nobody is satisfied with the performance of the Egyptian media, although we follow it and discuss its impact on society. We wonder about the sources of media financing, its mechanisms, ways of dominating it and using it in distorting people's awareness and manipulating their emotions.
‘Politics is a dirty game!’ is a phrase often used to justify the behavior of politicians. If you are a believer in this maxim, please vote for the most corrupt politicians you know and bring them into government or parliament. This will ensure that, ultimately, Egypt’s governing authority and legislative council will be led by a group of well-established lawbreakers, best qualified to play the aforementioned dirty game.
Others
An Arabic language teacher from the Qabaa school in the Nozha district flogged a Coptic pupil ten years old named Bibawi Faragallah 40 times with an electric wire last week.
Cairo pupil receives 40 lashes from teacher
