[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
Doctors face smear campaign in lead-up to nationwide protests The Egyptian Doctors Syndicate notified the Ministry of Interior of a nationwide protest by doctors on Saturday inside public hospitals "against repeated attacks against medical staff,” according to a statement by the syndicate.
Amid doctor strikes, officials intervene to end spat between doctor, policeman An argument between a doctor and a policeman received unusual attention from state bodies, as officials from the Giza Governorate, the Health Ministry and the Interior Ministry stepped in to mediate a reconciliation, the Doctors Syndicate reported.
Doctors hold silent nationwide protests in hospitals against police violence Doctors held silent stands across the country on Saturday against police assaults in Egypt’s public hospitals.
Rights groups decry treatment of doctor imprisoned for protesting A group of sixteen local rights organizations spoke out against the treatment of incarcerated doctor Ahmed Saeed in a joint statement released Thursday after he was reportedly sent to solitary confinement on Wednesday.
After attempted closure, uncertain fate for NGO that aids torture victims Al-Nadeem Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence was nearly shut down on Wednesday by an interagency task force, reportedly at the orders of the Health Ministry’s Department for Private Medical Treatment.
Al-Nadeem responds to Health Ministry claims that shutdown due to license violations The Health Ministry ordered the closure of Al-Nadeem Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence on Wednesday because it violated its license, according to ministry spokesperson Khaled Megahed.
Al-Nadeem: Closure order is political and came from Egypt`s Cabinet The decision to close Al-Nadeem Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence came directly from the Cabinet not just the Health Ministry, the center announced in a press conference on Sunday.
Anti-torture NGO closure ‘unconscionable’: HRW Human Rights Watch has slammed Egyptian authorities for deciding to close down an NGO assisting victims of torture.
Case of young man arrested for anti-torture shirt sent to State Security Prosecution Mahmoud Mohamed — the twenty-year-old held in pretrial detention for more than two years for wearing an anti-torture T-shirt — has been referred to the State Security Prosecution.
Social media campaign fails to get jailed minor released for parents` funeral A hashtag campaign on Monday night failed to obtain the release of jailed teenager Ahmed Qasem for his parents` funeral.
Father of 4-year old sentenced to life in prison speaks out The father of a four-year-old sentenced to life in prison on violence-related charges, including murder, spoke out on television, and recounted the story of how his child’s name was mistakenly added to the case.
Sisi forces 4 judges into retirement for alleged Brotherhood ties President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi issued an official decree on Thursday forcing four judges in the State Litigation Authority into early retirement for their alleged links to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group.
Sisi promises legal changes to tackle ‘individual’ police violations Unlawful actions by some individuals in the police force will be dealt with according to the law, with perpetrators held accountable, presidential spokesperson Alaa Youssef said in an official statement on Friday, following a meeting between President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Interior Minister Magdy Abdel Ghaffar.
Egypt MPs ask parliament to discuss recent police abuse incidents More than 100 Egyptian MPs said on Saturday that they requested that parliament speaker Ali Abdel-Al devote a part of Sunday`s plenary session to review the performance of the interior ministry in the wake of several incidents involving police abuse.
Officer accused of torturing suspect to death in 2011 acquitted The last former State Security Investigations Service officer accused of torturing to death a suspect in the Two Saints Church bombing case in Alexandria in January 2011 was acquitted by the Alexandria Criminal Court on Tuesday.
Update: Policeman beaten, hospitalized after shooting driver dead in Darb al-Ahmar A policeman who killed a young man in the Cairo suburb of Darb al-Ahmar has been referred to hospital under police custody, an Interior Ministry statement said early on Friday.
Police officer implicated in Darb al-Ahmar shooting referred to criminal court A police sergeant accused of shooting and killing a young man in the Cairo suburb of Darb al-Ahmar on Friday has been referred to criminal court on charges of premeditated murder.
Seven Egyptian policemen face charges of `incitement against police` Seven policemen were arrested at the Egyptian Media Production City on the outskirts of Cairo as they were on their way to participate in the TV talk show "10 PM" Saturday night on Dream TV. They were due to to speak about the latest controversies involving alleged police violence in Egypt.
Aya Hegazy trial postponed for 5th time after court unable to turn on laptop The trial of Egyptian-American Aya Hegazy, her husband Mohamed Hassanein and six others facing sex trafficking and child abuse charges was postponed to 23 March on Wednesday after a court-appointed technician was unable to turn on a laptop that contained key evidence in the case.
Appeals court sentences novelist Ahmed Naji to 2 years prison A North Cairo court sentenced novelist Ahmed Naji to two years in prison for public indecency in relation to the publication of excerpts from his novel Istakhdem al-Haya in Akhbar al-Adab newspaper last year.
Campaigns demand suspension of prison sentence handed to novelist Ahmed Naji Several groups and organizations have appealed to Prosecutor General Nabil Sadek on Sunday to suspend the two-year prison sentence handed to novelist Ahmed Naji for harming public morality.
Egypt’s journalists union calls for general assembly to review new media laws Egypt`s journalists’ syndicate called last Sunday for a general assembly on 4 March to discuss several issues including press freedoms and the recently proposed media and press law.
Al-Masry Al-Youm owner Salah Diab sentenced to 6 months for insulting Mortada Mansour The Economic Appeals Court sentenced Salah Diab, owner of the daily newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm, to six months in prison and an 20,000 LE fine for harassing and insulting Mortada Mansour in a phone call that Mansour had recorded.
Student unions face major challenges ahead of new semester Mai Shams el-Din examines the problems accumulated since the 2013 overthrow of Morsi, from annulled elections to students` forced disappearances.
State Council stays neutral in Egyptian Student Union saga The State Council declined to offer its opinion on Wednesday concerning the Higher Education Ministry’s decision to void the results of the Egyptian Student Union elections that took place in December.
Cairo University reverses cancellation of professor’s sabbatical Cairo University has reversed its earlier decision to cancel faculty of arts Assistant Professor Kholoud Saber’s sabbatical, Saber reported on her Facebook page on Monday.
Interior Ministry denies arrest of Italian student Giulio Regeni before death The Interior Ministry has officially denied reports that police arrested Italian student Giulio Regeni before he was found dead in Cairo earlier this month.
Parliament stacked against labor interests? The new Parliament, which convened for the first time in January, is reviewing several pieces of legislation that could adversely affect the country’s workforce.
Egypt MPs warn harsh economic measures could spark street protests Many Egyptian members of parliament are warning the government against "any shocking measures" that might hit hard poor and limited-income classes.
How forced disappearance broke the silence barrier In less than a year, Egypt’s Ministry of Interior went from outright denial in the face of accusations that it increasingly carries out forced disappearances to addressing the issue in several statements and engaging with the National Council for Human Rights to locate those reported as victims.
Economy
Foreign reserves increase slightly, auto industry still feels the pinch Net foreign currency reserves increased slightly to 16.48 billion USD at the end of January, according to the Central Bank of Egypt website.
Cairo taxi drivers organise new protest against Uber and Careem Dozens of Cairo taxi drivers organised a protest at Mostafa Mahmoud Square in Mohandessin on Thursday evening against popular Taxi service operators Uber and Careem, repeating calls on the authorities to shut them down.
Egypt`s Central Bank signs $500mn trade facility agreement with Afreximbank The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) signed a 500 million USD trade finance facility agreement with the African Export-Import Bank to allow Egyptian importers to buy strategic and key industrial products.
Foreign Relations
Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan meeting did not address Renaissance Dam: Egypt FM Egypt`s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said that Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi`s recent meeting with his Sudanese counterpart and the Ethiopian Prime Minister did not address any issues concerning the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
Egyptian-Arab military exercises commence in Saudi Arabia Egypt`s army spokesperson said in a Facebook statement on Satuday that “Thunder of the North,” the “largest military exercise witnessed in the region” has started in Saudi Arabia.
Egypt won`t hesitate to send forces to Gulf if needed: Sisi President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi stressed during a press briefing with Kuwaiti journalists on Wednesday.that Egypt will not hesitate to send troops into the territories of its Arab Gulf allies if needed to repel any security threat posed to those countries.
Updated: Egypt’s Sisi opens African business forum, calls for joint action Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi opened a two-day forum on business investment in Africa in Sharm el-Sheikh on Saturday.
Egypt`s Sisi and Gabon`s Bongo sign cooperation agreements in Cairo Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi received his Gabonese counterpart Ali Bongo at the presidential palace in Cairo on Thursday to sign a number of protocols of bilateral cooperation.
Domestic Security
Egyptian IS group affiliate publishes photos of beheading of `army spies` The Egyptian affiliate of the Islamic State group claims it has beheaded two men in Sinai for "spying" for the Egyptian army, posting photos online of the killings.
From Jadaliyya Egypt
Hollow Words: Egypt, Italy, and Justice for Giulio Omar Robert Hamilton examines the prospect of justice amidst endemic state violence in Egypt and the active Italian participation in the economy of such violence.
New Texts Out Now: Cedric de Leon, Manali Desai, and Cihan Tugal, Building Blocs: How Parties Organize Society Jadaliyya interviews Cedric de Leon, Manali Desai, and Cihan Tuğal, editors of Building Blocs: How Parties Organize Society.
غياب الأدب المعاصر في النظام التعليمي المصري Mahmoud Mustafa examines the reasons for and impact of the lack of contemporary Egyptian literature being taught in the Egyptian educational system.
لماذا يتواصل المشروع النيوليبرالي في المنطقة العربية؟ Wael Gamal interrogates the reasons behind the neoliberal project`s continuity in the Arab region, particularly in the wake of revolutionary movements based on social justice ideologies.
بيان الاشتراكيين الثوريين: لم يعد الصمت ملاذ المقهورين The Socialist Revolutionaries provide a statement exploring why, within the current repressive political climate in Egypt, silence does not guarantee safety.