The Iron Way

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Sep 3, 2014 Egypt
[Cairo`s train station, built in 1853, is the most important station in Egypt. Photo by Ahmed Ashraf.] [Cairo`s train station, built in 1853, is the most important station in Egypt. Photo by Ahmed Ashraf.]

The Iron Way

By : Ahmed Ashraf

Two years ago, I took a ride on the train in Egypt. After experiencing this unique world, all I wanted to do was find the human inside the train — not the one who takes the train every now and again but the one who constantly uses it and has made it an enduring part of their life. These are the forlorn people who spend a quarter of every day just to go back and forth from work. They come from villages, cities, and small towns.

The crowded third-class train, the cheapest one, is packed with three to four times the number of passengers it should carry. It is unbelievably jammed.

Taking photos in third-class trains with so many eyes gazing anxiously at my camera wasn’t easy. These pictures are my attempt to tell a story about the Train Man.
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May 30, 2014 Lebanon
Jonathan Rashad By :
Jonathan Rashad

Sisi Mania in Photos

Expressions of support for former army chief and the presumed presidential election winner Abdel Fattah al-Sisi have reached new heights during the lead-up to the 26-28 May 2014 vote. His name and image can be found on billboards all over the buildings, posters plastered on the walls coffee shops, and photos on display at street vendors’ stands.

As I covered the elections over the course of the past week in Cairo, I encountered pro-military songs everywhere—coffee shops, driving cars, public transportation, television, outside of polling stations, and even inside of them. Most notably, one could hear the loud tunes of "tislam al-ayyadi" (blessed be the hands), a song that glorifies Sisi`s ouster of President Mohamed Morsi on 3 July 2013.

Meanwhile, there were no signs of posters or billboards of Sisi’s challenger Hamdeen Sabahi. Official election results are due on 5 June 2014, but unofficial vote counts indicate that Sisi is the clear winner.