[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
Egypt blacklisted again by International Labor Organization Egypt is back on the blacklist of the UN-affiliated International Labor Organization over the nation’s failure to issue a new trade union law in keeping with ILO Convention Eighty-Seven concerning the right to organize.
AFTE: Number of websites blocked in Egypt reaches 46 Access to seven more websites has been blocked in Egypt according to the Cairo-based Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression, bringing the total number of blocked websites to forty-six.
Will Egypt’s Supreme Media Regulatory Council become a new censorship body? Parties airing content on satellite TV channels and radio programs in Egypt could now face substantial fines if they are found to broadcast “offensive” material, after the Supreme Media Regulatory Council imposed new regulations on advertisers and programmers in a Wednesday decision.
6 people sentenced to death for killing policeman in Mansoura in 2014 The Court of Cassation sentenced six people to death and three others to life in prison on Wednesday for killing an enlisted police officer in Egypt’s northern city of Mansoura in February 2014. The ruling is final and cannot be appealed.
Egypt commemorates World Environment Day, announces cleanup efforts The Environment Ministry marked this year’s World Environment Day on 5 June by taking part in the official campaign named I’m With Nature. However, some have questioned whether the ministry’s efforts are sufficient.
Government prepares to hand over Tiran and Sanafir through Parliament Egypt has taken several steps toward handing over Tiran and Sanafir islands to Saudi Arabia. The next major step is putting the agreement up for a vote in Parliament soon.
Egypt parliament to start discussing Red Sea island deal on Sunday The Egyptian parliament`s Legislative and Constitutional Affairs Committee will begin discussing a maritime border demarcation deal between Egypt and Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
The Egyptian Association to Protect the Constitution calls on parliament to `reconsider` debate on Red Sea islands deal An Egyptian association led by several authors of the nation`s 2014 constitution has called upon parliament to "reconsider" its decision to debate and vote on the planned transfer of two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia, citing legal and constitutional objections.
`Committee found no legal foundation for Egypt`s possession of Red Sea islands`: Sameh Shoukry tells MPs Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told Egypt MPs on Sunday that the government approved signing a maritime border demarcation deal with Saudi Arabia in 2016 only after a national committee working on the issue reached the conclusion that there was no legal foundation for Egypt`s possession of the islands of Tiran and Sanafir.
Report: 50 years on from the June 1967 War Today marks the fiftieth anniversary of the 1967 War, which ended with a defeat that changed the shape of the Arab region. This war had and still has implications on the shape of power in our countries, its political choices, our cultural production and even our understanding of ourselves. This is why, after fifty years, we find ourselves needing to re-read the war and its consequences, as well as critiquing its analysis and our perceptions of it.
We are still in the dark: A conversation with Khaled Fahmy Fifty years after 5 June, 1967, the Egyptian government continues to deny access to information about what happened during the Six-Day War, disallowing citizens an understanding of both why defeat was so swift and why red tape continues to be festoon the archive. Historian Khaled Fahmy suggest that the gaps in the archive would force a depiction of the war beyond terms of Israeli aggression, rooting defeat also in a failure of leadership and inter-state feuding.
Historiographical frustrations: Writing the history of the 1967 defeat The absence of official Egyptian archival documents is particularly felt in history writing about the 1967 War, one of the most crucial stages in the country’s modern history. For such a short war, well-researched accounts are plentiful, though most of them are written by non-Egyptians, and many by Israelis.
Economy
Egypt’s annual headline inflation decreases slightly to 30.9% from April to May: CAPMAS Egypt`s annual headline inflation rate declined slightly to 30.9 percent in May, down from 32.9 percent in April and up from 12.2 percent in May 2016, state statistics body CAPMAS announced on Thursday.
Egypt attracts $8.4 bln foreign investment in domestic debt since flotation Egypt attracted 8.4 billion USD of foreign investment in domestic debt instruments since the flotation of the pound in November up the end of May, Deputy Finance Minister Ahmed Kojak told Reuters on Thursday.
Foreign Relations
US Embassy warns its citizens against visiting Christian sites outside Cairo The US Embassy in Egypt warned American citizens against visiting religious sites outside the greater Cairo area in a statement on Monday.
Egyptian parliamentary delegation heads to Washington Saturday for talks with US officials An Egyptian delegation including twelve MPs affiliated with five parliamentary committees is due to arrive in Washington Saturday to exchange views with American politicians and congress people, and discuss relations between Egypt and the US.
Cutting ties with Qatar: Things to know Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed diplomatic ties with Qatar on Monday over what they say is Doha`s support of terrorist groups, widening the rift between some of the most powerful Arab countries.
Cairo has evidence of Doha undermining Egyptian security in Libya, Sudan, Gaza: Sources The crisis between Cairo and Doha continues to deepen, with the former accusing the latter of regional meddling and supporting terrorist organizations.
Egypt to ban flights to and from Qatar as of Tuesday: Civil aviation ministry Egypt will begin its ban on flights to and from Qatar on Tuesday at six Cairo local time, the Egyptian Civil Aviation Ministry declared on Monday following the decision of the Egyptian government to cut relations with the Gulf State.
Egypt gives Qatari ambassador 48 hours to leave following severing of diplomatic ties Egypt announced on Monday that Qatar`s ambassador to Cairo had forty-eight hours to leave the country following a decision earlier in the day to sever ties with the Gulf state.
Egypt and Arab nations cut ties with Qatar, but what’s next? This week saw regional tensions with Qatar escalate when Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and the government of East Libya announced the severing of diplomatic relations with the small Gulf nation on Monday.
Egypt`s Al-Azhar supports Arab states in cutting ties with Qatar Egypt’s Al-Azhar Institute – considered the highest seat of Sunni Islamic learning – said on Tuesday that it endorses and supports all decisions taken by Arab leaders to “guarantee the unity of the Arab nation,” one day after a number of Arab states announced severing diplomatic ties with Qatar.
Egypt calls for UN inquiry into accusation of Qatar ransom payment Egypt on Thursday called for the United Nations Security Council to launch an investigation into accusations that Qatar paid a ransom of up to one billion USD to "to a terrorist group active in Iraq" to release kidnapped members of its royal family.
German intelligence detected `suspicious behavior` by the Muslim Brotherhood: Egyptian ambassador German intelligence officials have detected "suspicious behavior" by the Muslim Brotherhood in eastern Berlin, according to Egypt’s ambassador to Germany Badr Abdelatty.
Sisi`s trip to Berlin will give `fresh boost` to bilateral relations: Egypt envoy Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will fly to Germany on Monday for a visit intended to give a "fresh boost" to Egypt-German relations, according to Badr Abdel Atty, Egypt`s ambassador to Berlin.
Egypt’s defence minister meets French foreign minister in Cairo Egyptian Minister of Defense Sedky Sobhi met French Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian in Cairo on Thursday, where they discussed the latest developments in the region.
Domestic Security
Egypt`s interior ministry raises security alert level: MENA Egypt’s interior ministry has raised the security alert level in light of the current situation in the region.
From Jadaliyya Egypt
أيام بلا تاريخ Ibrahim Mahfouz examines the repetitive Egyptian history of defeat, buried archival records, and murky political prospects.
The 1967 Defeat and the Conditions of the Now: A Roundtable A group of Jadaliyya editors has come together here to think, not about the war itself but about its historical, territorial, temporal, epistemological, and affective legacies and registers.
Arabic
مصر تقطع علاقاتها مع قطر... و7 استفهامات عالقة Egypt’s severing of diplomatic relations with Qatar hold important repercussions for both countries.
وقف الرحلات الجوية بين مصر وقطر حتى إشعار آخر The Ministry of Civil Aviation has issued a decision to suspend flights between Egypt and Qatar until further notice.
انتقام جماعي البصارطة في قبضة الحصار الأمني El Nadeem Center calls for lifting the siege on Basarta village and ending arbitrary arrests of its residents.
تدوينة عن النكسة والثورة والجراح الممتدة: معنى الغمر بالماء Nael al-Toukhy writes about 1967 Naksa and revolution.
رحلة الكشف عن «أسرى تيران» عام 1967.. القصة الكاملة لـ «الشاهد الوحيد» على ما حدث فوق الجزيرة The report narrates the story of Tiran prisoners in 1967.
دفاع مرسي يُقدم بلاغا للتحقيق في حالته الصحية المتراجعة Ousted president Mohamed Morsi’s defense filed a complaint to the court to investigate his deteriorating health condition and lack of adequate medical care.
الإشراف القضائي على الانتخابات يثير فتنة داخل البرلمان Article 34 of the National Electoral Commission bill raised a wide dispute between the legislative committee and Parliament Speaker Ali Abdel Aal over the duration of judicial oversight.
بـ11 زلة لسان.. علي عبد العال رئيس برلمان بدرجة صانع أزمات Ali Abdel Aal statements spark controversy within and outside of Parliament, observers explain.
أحزاب و3 حركات: ننسق معا لمواجهة الحملة الأمنية ضد الشباب6 Six parties and three youth movements issued a joint statement denouncing the regime’s frenzied security campaign against activists and political opponents.
لهذه الأسباب تقدمت مصر للمركز الـ11 في تصنيف الجيوش الأقوى Egyptian military power was ranked eleventh worldwide in the 2017 Global Fire Power.
»في الذكري السابعة لوفاته ..الثورات لاتمنع ظاهرة «خالدسعيد More Egyptians have died at the hands of police over the past seven years.
حالة ملاحقة وقبض على نشطاء ومستخدمي الفيس بوك 44 A detailed report published by HRDO Center to Support the Digital Expression recorded forty-four detentions of internet users during last April and May, amid the state’s increased censorship measures.
»منظمة العمل الدولية تضع مصر على «القائمة السوداء The International Labor Organization included Egypt on the black list of countries that violate workers` rights, President of the Federation of Egyptian Democratic Workers Saad Shaaban said.
»مصر | خالد علي... معركة جديدة ضد «تسليم الجزيرتين A lawsuit filed by lawyer Khaled Ali demands the dissolution of parliament after scheduling the discussion of controversial maritime demarcation agreement with Saudi Arabia on 11 June.
الموقف المصري ... سيّد نفسه؟ Analysis examines why Egypt cut ties with Qatar.
"خمسون عامًا على الهزيمة | عدى النهار وحان وقت "أم حسن The report highlights the evolution of politically engaged Egyptian songs after 1967 defeat.
»مصريًا على قوائم الإرهاب في قطر.. أبرزهم «القرضاوي 27 Twenty-seven Egyptians were included in the Qatar-sponsored terrorism list.
بالوثائق .. تيران وصنافير مصريتان في مناقشات الأمم المتحدة: مداخلة لسفير مصر عام 1954 وتقرير للأمين العام 1956 UN documents from 1954 and 1956 show evidence that Tiran and Sanafir islands belong to Egypt.
قبل تأسيس السعودية بربع قرن .. «منجم العمران» الصادر عام 1907: «تيران وصنافير» مصرية Al-Emran Encyclopedia published in 1907 indicates Egypt’s sovereignty over Tiran and Sanafir islands.