Two tourists, an Israeli man and a Norwegian woman, have been kidnapped by armed men in the Sinai peninsula in Egypt, security officials said.

Jordan's King Abdullah II has said Egypt's president has "no depth" of understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In interviews with The Atlantic magazine, the king said Mohamed Morsi was fixated on the Israelis, rather than looking at "the mess" on the Palestinian side.

Egypt has provided Britain with confidential information about eight local businessmen who have accounts in the UK, in the hopes that Britain would freeze their funds, said a judicial source.

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE)'s monetary policy committee raised its key lending rate and deposit rate by 50 points each to stand at 10.75 percent and 9.75 percent respectively, the committee reported following a Thursday meeting.

Minister of Justice Ahmed Mekki asked to be relieved of his duties during a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, citing the lack of respect for the judiciary and its rulings.

The European Union warned Egypt on Wednesday it could lose funds from its 5 billion euro ($6.5 billion) aid package if democratic reforms fail to satisfy Brussels, and said Cairo has already lost some additional funding.

Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood has described calls to hold demonstrations in front of its Muqattam headquarters on Friday as a continuation of aggression, stressing on its right to defend itself.

Shura Council MPs slammed Prime Minister Hesham Qandil and his Cabinet over diesel fuel shortages and lackluster Sinai development during Tuesday’s session.

Members of the Police Officers Coalition in Alexandria launched a sit-in Tuesday, protesting the Interior Ministry’s decision to suspend a coalition spokesperson.

Mohamed Sayed, 22, has baked bread at his family's bakery in west Cairo for the past decade, but he fears this year may be his last. "We're going bankrupt," he said. "In fact, we're already at that stage."

Prime Minister Hisham Qandil inaugurated on Tuesday 19/3/2013 the 46th round of the Cairo International Fair.

President Mohamed Morsi arrived in India on Tuesday for a two-day visit, where he held talks with Indian leaders on enhancing bilateral cooperation between the two countries and discussed regional developments in Syria and Palestine.

WASHINGTON, March 18 (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers have seized upon a domestic spending bill as a chance to tighten controls on how Egypt's Islamist government can use well over $1 billion in military and other aid that Washington sends to Cairo each year.

Against the backdrop of Cairo's lavish Nile City Towers along the banks of the Nile, dozens of residents of the low-income Ramlet Boulaq stood amid their makeshift homes to give a press conference about the injustices that they say they continue to face.

Nobel Laureate and prominent opposition figure Mohamed ElBaradei denounced on Monday the murder of the two men who were accused of violent crime by villagers in Gharbiya.

CAIRO, March 18 (Reuters) - Egyptian bakers will face legal action if they carry out a threat to strike, Minister of Supply and Internal Trade Bassem Ouda said, raising the stakes in a dispute linked to state bread subsidies.

The Grand Mufti of Egypt, Dr Shawky Allam, met with Katalin Bogyay, head of the UNESCO General Assembly, and Dr Peter Kveck, the Hungarian ambassador, in Egypt.

President Morsi must be held accountable for his failure to manage the country during this period of crisis and he should call early presidential elections, Strong Egypt Party founder Abdel-Moneim Abul-Fotouh has said.

Following a legislative committee meeting Sunday, the Shura Council is inclined to approve a proposal submitted to it by Ihab al-Kharrat, chairperson of the human rights committee, to divide electoral constituencies according to the number of voters, not population.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation arrived in Cairo late on Saturday to resume talks on a $4.8 billion loan to Egypt, reports state-owned news agency MENA.

Hundreds of Egyptian bakery owners on Saturday blocked Cairo's Qasr Al-Aini Street near the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade to protest government plans to reduce flour subsidies.