[This is a roundup of news articles and other materials circulating on Egypt and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of the Egypt Page Editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each week's roundup to egypt@jadaliyya.com by Sunday night of every week.]
Political Rights
23 July Revolution: A quick history in pictures Egypt commemorates on Monday the sixty-second anniversary of the 23 July Revolution, which turned the country from a hereditary monarchy into a republic, sending waves of change across the Middle East and Africa.
Wave of detention renewals in Case 441/2018 amid growing security crackdown Amid an ongoing security crackdown, prosecutors continue to detain and interrogate people in relation to Case 441/2018, which involves a number of prominent figures. On Wednesday, the Supreme State Security Prosecution handed detention renewal orders to several bloggers and journalists, including Wael Abbas, Moataz Wadnan, Shorouk Amgad, Mohamed Abu Zeid, and Momen Hassan.
Egypt's Sisi warns that rumours, discontent undermine country's stability Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi warned on Sunday that attempts to provoke chaos and instability in Egypt by fuelling discontent is the most serious threat the country has faced in recent years.
Egypt's presidency invites students to 'Ask the President' The social media accounts of Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi announced on Tuesday there would be a new round of the "Ask the President" initiative, whereby young people can send their inquiries about the country to the president.
Activist Mohamed Adel handed 15-day detention order 1 day after ending hunger strike April 6 Youth Movement co-founder Mohamed Adel was handed a fifteen-day detention order on Monday, one day after ending a hunger strike in protest against his holding conditions, according to lawyer Amr al-Kadi.
Detained former military Chief of Staff Sami Anan transferred to ICU in critical condition Detained former Armed Forces Chief of Staff Sami Anan was transferred to the intensive care unit at the Armed Forces Medical Complex on Saturday following a deterioration in his medical condition, according to his lawyer Dina Adly Hussein.
From prison: Trying to live in the present Twenty-two-year-old student Abdelrahman al-Gendy, who was sentenced to fifteen years in prison and is currently enrolled at Ain Shams University and studying from Tora Prison, discusses his struggle to concentrate on the present.
Egyptian Military Court sentences 16 defendants to life in Muslim Brotherhood Qualitative Committee case An Egyptian military court sentenced sixteen defendants to life imprisonment, handing out fifteen-year sentences for two others in the case commonly known in the media as the "Muslim Brotherhood Qualitative Committee."
Parliament passes new legislation regulating senior government officials’ pensions Legislation regulating the pensions of senior government officials was passed by parliament on Tuesday with more than a two-thirds majority. The law reduces the pensions of some officials while empowering the president to decide on the pensions owed to Administrative Control Authority employees.
Egypt’s new media laws: Rearranging legislative building blocks to maximize control Amid backlash from various stakeholders, parliament passed three highly contested laws regulating Egypt’s media landscape by a two-thirds majority on Monday.
Egypt’s 3 controversial press and media laws finally approved by Parliament After three weeks of hot debate, Egypt members of parliament voted in favor of approving three controversial press and media laws on Monday. The approval of the three laws–the National Press Authority law, the National Media Law, and the Law Regulating the Press and Media and the Higher Council on Media Regulation, came after parliament amended a number of controversial articles at the request of the Press Syndicate and the State Council.
Egyptian MPs renew demand that social media platforms be taxed on ad revenues Egyptian members of parliament have renewed demands to impose taxes on foreign social media companies.
Egypt's parliament approves amendments to citizenship law Egypt’s House of Representatives approved on Monday amendments to the law on citizenship.
Thousands sign petition to drink mysterious liquid from newly discovered Egyptian sarcophagus An international petition demanding that the Egyptian government let people drink from a mysterious red liquid found inside a newly discovered black granite sarcophagus in the coastal city of Alexandria has garnered eleven thousand signatures since it was launched two days ago.
Economy
Government increases prices for household and commercial gas by up to 75% Egypt’s households and commercial premises will see higher gas bills starting August of this year, according to a statement released by Cabinet announcing an increase to gas tariffs in the 21 July edition of the state’s Official Gazette.
What remains of the Maspero Triangle: Residents of 13 properties attempt to stay It took two and a half months to demolish most of the buildings within the Maspero Triangle. Only thirteen properties, most of which overlook the 26th of July Street, are still standing.
Emergency plan is imperative to maintain safety of Egypt's railway Sixty-one people were injured when three carriages of a passenger train heading from Cairo to Qena derailed on Friday 13 July in Marazik village, close to Badrashin station.
Egypt names five public sector companies to be publicly listed Egypt announced on Tuesday the names of the first five public sector companies to be publicly listed on the Egyptian stock exchange this year, the Egyptian government said.
Egyptian ministers discuss development projects worth $1.2 billion with deputy secretary-general of UN Egypt's ministers of investment, planning, and environment discussed on Tuesday with Amina Mohammed, the deputy secretary-general of the United Nations, future developmental projects in Egypt worth 1.2 billion US dollars.
Foreign Relations
UPDATED: Syrian armed opposition factions sign ceasefire agreement in Cairo under Egypt sponsorship, Russian guarantees A number of armed Syrian opposition factions in the coastal region of Syria have signed on Monday evening a cease-fire agreement in Cairo under the sponsorship of the Egyptian General Intelligence, guaranteed by the Federal Republic of Russia, and by Sheikh Ahmed al-Jarba, the head of the Syrian Tayyar al-Al-Ghad current.
Hamas accepts Egyptian proposal for Palestinian reconciliation Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas’ political bureau, officially accepted Egypt’s proposal for Palestinian reconciliation on Thursday.
Egypt to close Rafah Crossing on Monday Egyptian authorities are going to close Rafah crossing on the border with Gaza on Monday for twenty-four hours.
Egypt denounces Israel’s Jewish state law Egypt has announced that it rejects a newly passed Israeli law that defines Israel as "the nation-state of the Jewish people" and states that only Jews have the right of self-determination in the country.
Egypt's Sisi concludes Sudan visit Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi concluded on Friday afternoon his two-day visit to Khartoum, following meetings with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and other officials where he discussed pushing forward bilateral relations.
Arrest of 131 Egyptian migrants in east Libya points to migration network funneling into militant groups One-hundred and thirty-one Egyptian irregular migrants have been arrested in the east Libyan city of Baydan over the last three weeks, according to the director of the city’s police station.
'Keeping Egypt safe means keeping Britain safe,' says UK's senior defence advisor Senior British defense official John Lorimer said Egypt's safety is key for Britain's security during his visit to Cairo on Wednesday, the British embassy said in a statement.
Domestic Security
Egypt's new defence minister meets with army special forces for first time Egypt's defense minister and commander-in-chief of the armed forces, Mohamed Zaki, met on Monday with a number of soldiers from the army’s special forces, including commandos and paratroopers, for the first time since he was sworn into office last month.
From Jadaliyya Egypt
CAF Letter to Egypt on the Detention of University of Washington Ph.D. student Walid Salem This letter was published on the Committee for Academic Freedom's MESA page on 6 July 2018.
Regime-Security Urbanism: Cairo 2050 & Beyond in al-Sisi’s Cairo Regime-security urbanism in Cairo is the reorganization of space to limit the potential for mass mobilization. The al-Sisi regime leverages flashy renderings by world-renowned firms and shores up greater economic and diplomatic support from China in the transformation of urban space in Cairo. This essay not only highlights the power the al-Sisi administration wields in the reorganization of Greater Cairo, but in the utter fear, insecurity, and anxiety that motivates this regime-security urbanism.
Arabic
صعود وانهيار الأرز المصري.. ما بين أزمات متكررة وفرص مهدرة The Ministry of Irrigation has drawn up water management plan to reduce the amount of water allotted to rice cultivation areas.
سيادة «صندوق مصر»: يشكله الرئيس.. لا يخضع لرقابة البرلمان.. يمكنه بيع أصول الدولة The parliament approved a bill on the establishment of a fund to finance state investment.
محدَّث: «أمن الدولة» تجدّد حبس وائل عباس و3 آخرين 15 يومًا في القضية 441 The Supreme State Security renewed on Wednesday the detention of four activists for fifteen days over charges related to joining a terrorist group and publishing fake news.
لماذا يستحيل على المعارضة حكم مصر؟ The article examines why opposition forces always fail to provide a governing alternative.
قانون منح الجنسية يثير الجدل في الأوساط السياسية The parliament's approval of the bill on granting nationality to foreigners for payment of seven million Egyptian pounds was met with heavy criticism.
عن الجيش وحكم مصر The article discusses the problems of military rule in Egypt.
أحكام ابتدائية ونهائية متفرقة بالإعدام في أول أسبوعين من شهر يوليو 2018 The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights issued a statement calling for the suspension of the death penalty in Egypt while opening up a debate for the civil society to determine the urgent need to abolish such penalty.
التقرير ربع السنوي الثاني لحالة حرية التعبير في مصر أبريل-يونيو2018 The Association for the Freedom of Thought and Expression published its second quarterly report on the deteriorating situation of the freedom of expression in Egypt.
عمال «بسكو مصر» يشكون الفصل التعسفي بسبب مطالبتهم بحقهم في الأرباح Bisco workers complained about arbitrary dismissal for demanding their right to profits.
صندوق مصر السيادي.. واجهة السيسي الاقتصادية لممارسات سياسية The granting of wide powers to monitor the Egypt fund without oversight for President Sisi comes within the continued state control over economic policy.
عودة شبح مبارك.. هل تنجح خصخصة السيسي في علاج أمراض الاقتصاد المصري؟ Under the IMF pressure, Egypt embarks on privatization plan over a number of national companies and banks, raising controversy over to the risks it may cause to the Egyptian economy.