[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
Police arrested 10 Warraq Island residents, demolished 30 buildings on Sunday Police forces arrested ten Warraq Island residents on Sunday in connection to clashes that took place earlier the same day when security forces attempted to implement 700 demolition orders for buildings that “encroach on state lands,” according to an Interior Ministry statement.
Hundreds of Dahab Island residents protest in solidarity with Warraq Hundreds of Dahab Island residents staged a two-hour-long protest on Friday in solidarity with the Warraq Island residents, whose homes were set to be demolished by the government earlier this week.
Island v megacity: the Cairo islanders fighting violent state evictions Warraq has become a battleground as Egyptian authorities demolish houses in what locals fear will be a glossy transformation of their island.
Court confirms death sentence for 28 defendants in general prosecutor assassination case On Saturday, the Cairo Criminal Court issued death sentences for twenty-eight out of the fifty-six defendants accused of involvement in the 2015 assassination of former General Prosecutor Hesham Barakat. Preliminary death sentences were handed to thirty defendants on 17 June, at the time pending review by Egypt’s grand mufti.
Egyptian court sentences 4 to life in prison for judge assassination attempt A Cairo Criminal Court sentenced Wednesday four individuals to life in prison for attempting to assassinate a judge by detonating improvised explosive devices near his home two years ago.
Meet Yehia Dakroury, the sidelined State Council judge The president has appointed Ahmed Aboul Azm as head of the State Council, overlooking their sole nominee Yehia Dakroury who has a history of presenting judicial challenges to the executive authority.
Education department employees referred to court in Egypt for illicit gains Egypt’s Illicit Gains Authority has referred a financial director in the 6 October education department and six other employees to the criminal court over accusations of illicitly acquiring 331 million LE.
AUC cleaners strike against nonrenewal of contracts A cleaners’ strike at the American University in Cairo entered its fourth day on Wednesday after the university administration announced it would not renew contracts for 170 cleaners, preferring to lease the services to two cleaning companies.
Economy
Egypt to start oil and gas exploration in Red Sea following island deal with Saudi Arabia: Oil minister Egypt`s oil minister Tarek al-Mullah said on Thursday that the recently implemented Egyptian-Saudi maritime border demarcation deal will allow Egypt to start oil and gas exploration in the area for the first time.
Moody says IMF review is `credit positive` for Egypt Global credit rating agency Moody said in a statement on Thursday that the International Monetary Fund’s review of Egypt’s economic reform program is “credit positive for Egypt,” giving the country a B3 rating.
Egypt agricultural exports up 12.1 pct in first half 2017 Egypt`s agricultural exports rose 12.1 percent during the first half of 2017, reaching 3.5 million tons compared to 3.1 million last year, agriculture ministry spokesman Hamid Abdel Dayim said on Wednesday.
Cairo has the cheapest taxis in the world: Study Cairo has the cheapest taxi service in the world, a study by online used car dealership Carspring revealed on Tuesday.
Foreign Relations
Looking for friends in the west: The Cairo-Misrata talks in the shadow of the Gulf crisis Three years into the latest chapter of political and military division that has plagued Libya, Egypt has reached out to another player in the conflict, looking to take advantage of recent fragmentation to build out new political blocs to support its ally Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army.
Qataris no longer eligible for Egyptian visas on arrival at Cairo airport Qatari nationals will no longer be able to obtain Egyptian visas on arrival at Cairo airport from Thursday.
Bin Zayed visits Egypt, attends opening of new military base amid Gulf crisis Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces has arrived in Egypt Saturday to discuss with Egypt’s Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ‘ways to strengthen fraternal cooperation and strategic relations between the two countries’ as well as a number of regional and international issues.
Egypt’s FM to visit Baghdad, congratulating Iraq on Mosul victory Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is set to visit Baghdad on Wednesday to congratulate the Iraqi government on its victory over Daesh forces in Mosul, Egypt’s foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu-Zeid said on Tuesday.
Egypt ready to help Iraq after recent victories over Daesh, FM Shoukry tells Iraqi PM Egypt is ready to help Iraq restore its security and stability as well as reconstruct Iraqi cities after the country`s recent victories over the militant group Daesh, Egypt`s foreign minister Sameh Shoukry told Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi during Shoukry`s first visit to Mosul following its liberation from Daesh.
Egypt calls on Israel to prevent escalation at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem Egypt warned Israel on Wednesday of the dangerous repercussions that could result from Tel Aviv`s escalating security measures at Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, which have left many Palestinians injured and endangered the life of the mosque`s Imam Ekrima Sabria, a foreign ministry statement read.
Egyptian, Turkish foreign ministers discuss Israeli-Palestinian clashes in phone call Egyptian Foreign Minster Sameh Shoukry received a phone call on Sunday from his Turkish counterpart in which the pair discussed the recent outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian violence in occupied east Jerusalem, Egypt`s foreign ministry said.
Egypt, Jordan discuss adopting measures over Israeli actions at Al-Aqsa Mosque Cairo and Amman discussed on Saturday possible measures that could be taken after the recent Israeli escalation against Palestinians at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque, according to a statement by Egypt’s foreign ministry.
Egypt, Sweden, France request UN Security Council meeting on Israeli-Palestinian violence Egypt, Sweden and France have called for an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council to discuss ways to address one of the deadliest outbreaks of Israeli-Palestinian violence in two years left five Palestinians killed and tens injured, Egyptian and Swedish diplomats said on Saturday.
Urgent Arab League meeting after Al-Aqsa crisis The League of Arab States is to hold an urgent meeting for its counsel in the level of prime ministers on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the Israeli violations and measures in Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
Egypt FM Shoukry to head to Brussels for EU-Egypt cooperation meeting Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is set to head to Brussels to participate in the seventh EU-Egypt Association Council on Monday, which is being held for the first time since April 2010.
3,000 irregular migrants detained during first half of 2017: Egyptian army Egyptian authorities have thwarted attempts at irregular migration from Egypt`s borders by some 3,000 people of diffrent nationalities in the first half of 2017, a statement by the Armed Forces said on Wednesday.
Domestic Security
Police kill 2 members of militant group Hassm in east Cairo The Interior Ministry announced the killing of two members of armed militant group Hassm in Cairo’s Fifth Settlement on Tuesday, one day after the group published a statement marking a year since it became active.
Hassm claims responsibility for Fayoum shooting that killed 1 CSF conscript, injured 3 others On Friday, armed militant group Hassm claimed responsibility for the shooting that killed one Central Security Forces conscript and injured three others on Thursday night in the Fayoum governorate south of the capital.
Security campaign targeting Hassm intensifies as 8 alleged members killed in Fayoum Police killed eight alleged members of the militant group Hassm on Sunday during a security operation at a suspected training camp in Fayoum, according to an Interior Ministry statement.
30 militants killed in a military operation in North Sinai Thirty militants were killed and five apprehended in North Sinai, the Armed Forces spokesperson said in a press release on Friday, claiming that they also destroyed twelve of the militants’ vehicles and four weaponry warehouses.
Arabic
ماذا وراء «معركة الوراق»؟ Clashes erupted between police and al-Warraq residents following the state campaign to demolish illegal houses on the island.
الوراق بين تويتر وجوجل.. هل نحن مهتمون حقًا؟ al-Warraq clashes become the most searched key words on the internet on 16 July according to Google’s list on trending searches in Egypt.
الوراق| البرلمان على خط الأزمة.. ورجال أعمال اشتروا مساحات واسعة بالجزيرة Angry residents of al-Warraq island say that the government’s goal behind the demolition campaign is to invest in new projects in the island.
مصر | الحكومة تتراجع «مؤقتاً» عن مخطط هدم الوراق Following angry protests, the government backtracks on demolition of al-Warraq houses.
السيسي يذبح «الأقدمية» بسكين «الهيئات القضائية» ..والدكروري يتجه للتصعيد Seniority in appointments is no more valid in the judiciary as president Sisi approved the law on appointing heads of judicial bodies.
أحمد أبو العزم.. سيرة أول رئيس لمجلس الدولة لم يختره المجلس President Sisi appointed Ahmed Abo al-Azm as the head of the State Council on 20 July to serve until his retirement in 14 September 2019.
"السجن لـ 5 مصريين تظاهروا احتجاجًا على “تيران وصنافير Five people handed five-year prison sentences over breaching protest law in Alexandria, a judicial source said.
برلمان السيسي يناقش محاكمة معارضين سرا وإلغاء الاستئناف Political opponents and activists voice their rejection of the parliament’s bill on criminal procedures, stressing that it would endanger opponents rights to a fair trial.
الري»: انخفاض حصة الفرد من المياه بحلول عام 2050« Egypt’s water supply per capita will decrease by 2050, head of water distribution department revealed.
خبراء: 4 أسباب وراء التطرف الديني في مصر.. وفتح المجال السياسي هو الحل Analysts discuss the drivers of religious extremism in Egypt and how to counter it.
خبراء: لهذه الأسباب اعتزل النشطاء الحياة السياسية بعد 30 يونيو Analysts suggest that the regime crackdown on civil society repressed political activism.
بعد 3 سنوات.. «الطوارئ» تفشل في مواجهة الإرهاب The state of emergency fails to combat terrorism, questioning the validity of imposing the law across Egypt.
هاش_ديسك| كشك الفتوى.. الدين لله والمترو للجميع# The Egyptian Metro Company and Islamic Research Compound launched a Fatwa booth in Egypt’s subway to provide religious guidance to citizens from a Fatwa committee, sparking satiric comments on social media.
الاغتيالات الغامضة في مصر: ابحثوا عن الاستخبارات والسياسة Egypt has long witnessed a number of mysterious assassinations in the last decades, a topic that remains a red line casting a suspicion on intelligence agency and political authorities.
تعويم وبطالة وتقشف.. وداعًا طموحات الطبقة الوسطى The middle class in Egypt suffers the most from economy stagnation, struggling to meet their basic needs.
"رفع أسعار السلع المُدعّمة يبتلع "هديّة الرئيس The latest price increase to subsidized goods sparked a groundswell of discontent among citizens.
خداع الأرقام.. كيف ينمو اقتصاد مصر دون أن يشعر المصريون The government’s official figures of economic recovery are completely at odds with the realities on the ground.
تصريحات وزيرة التضامن عن الحد من الفقر يكشفها الواقع The Ministry of Solidarity has recently implemented harsh measures that exacerbated the suffering of Egyptians, making them more impoverished and vulnerable.
بعد زيادة تحويلات المغتربين.. الديون حجرًا عثرة أمام تعافي الجنيه The Egyptian pound struggles to recover as it remains unchanged against the dollar.
القاهرة تدرس «مقترحات» جديدة لتحريك ملف الأسرى According to official sources, Cairo is helping to broker a deal between Hamas and Israel over prisoner exchange.
الإعدام لـ 28 شخصاً في قضية اغتيال النائب العام المصري Cairo Criminal Court handed death sentences to twenty-eight defendants convicted of assassinating the General Prosecutor Hisham Barakat.