[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
Death Toll of North Sinai Mosque Attack Rises to 311 The death toll of the attack on a mosque in North Sinai on 24 November has risen to 311 after a number of the wounded succumbed to their injuries.
‘I was waiting for my bullet’: Accounts of the Rawda mosque attack Survivors from Rawda village recount what they saw during the Friday attack.
Al-Azhar grand imam leads Friday prayers at Al-Rawda mosque in North Sinai, praises community's resolve after massacre Al-Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed Al-Tayyeb led a delegation of Azhar leaders and youth at Friday prayers at North Sinai's Al-Rawda Mosque, which was the site of the deadliest terror attack in recent Egyptian history last Friday, bringing a message of condolences and support from the country's highest religious institution to the families of the victims of the attack.
MENA journalist reporter missing in suspected case of forced disappearance A reporter at Egypt’s official Middle East News Agency was reported missing Thursday in a suspected case of forced disappearance. Omar Sayed Taha Ibrahim was arrested from his home by security forces at dawn on 9 November.
AFTE: Journalist still detained despite expiration of pretrial detention limit Journalist Ismail Iskandarani completed on Wednesday two years in pretrial detention since his arrest in November 2015 from Hurghada International Airport, surpassing the limit for pretrial detention, according to the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression.
Journalist Khaled al-Balshy wins Nelson Mandela – Graca Machel Innovation Award Chief editor of the privately owned Al-Bedaiah news website and former board member of the Journalists Syndicate Khaled al-Balshy won the 2017 Individual Activist award of the Nelson Mandela – Graca Machel Innovation Awards on Monday.
A Third Candidate Announces Intention to Run For the 2018 Presidential Elections Colonel Ahmed Konswa announced that he is running for the 2018 presidential elections making him the third candidate who announces his intentions.
Wife of Armed Forces officer and presidential hopeful Konsowa says he is being ‘treated well’ in detention Egypt’s military prosecutor has issued a fifteen-day detention order to Armed Forces Colonel Ahmed Konsowa, who announced his intention to run in Egypt’s 2018 presidential elections on 29 November in an online video.
Former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq Intends to Run For the 2018 Presidential Elections: Reuters Egypt’s former prime minister Ahmed Shafiq told Reuters that he intends to run for president in the upcoming presidential elections scheduled for April 2018.
Lawyer sentenced to 3 years in prison for inciting rape, after remarks about women wearing ripped jeans Lawyer Nabih al-Wahsh was sentenced in absentia to three years in prison and a 20,000 LE fine by an emergency court in Azbakeya for inciting rape, following televised remarks in which he claimed it is a “national duty” to rape women wearing ripped jeans.
Ousted President Hosni Mubarak denies accepting to relocate Palestinians to Sinai Ousted President Hosni Mubarak denied showing willingness to relocate Palestinians to Sinai during a 1983 meeting with former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, he said in a Wednesday statement.
Cairo University dismisses five professors due to placement on country's terror list Cairo University announced in an official statement that it had dismissed five faculty members because their names had been added to the country's terror list for belonging to the banned and terrorist-designated Muslim Brotherhood organization.
Media spotlight: Meddling with the Nile is a red line With or without the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, a high-stakes hydroelectric project that has fueled mistrust between officials in Egypt and fellow Nile Basin countries since its inception seven years ago, Egypt faces issues related to water scarcity. But instead of assessing the country’s water consumption, thinking of ways to limit waste and securing alternative sources of clean water, Egyptian officials have been busy pushing for further studies on the dam, which is already sixty-three percent complete.
Why was the presumed censorship of The Nile Hilton Incident met with silence from Egypt’s filmmakers? On Friday, police forces prevented a screening of The Nile Hilton Incident at Balcon Heliopolis, an alternative cultural venue, checking attendees’ identification and asking them to leave.
Economy
Egypt Wins MENA Effie Awards For ‘This is Egypt’ Tourism Promotional Campaign Following its colossal success to promote Egyptian tourism globally, the advertising agency of J. Walter Thompson has continued to conquer and won two awards – Gold and Silver awards– for their “This is Egypt” promotional campaign.
16 New Solar Power Plants to Enrich Egypt’s Renewable Energy Sources As part of its 500 million USD framework to support Egypt’s renewable energy development, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development announced on Wednesday that it is financing sixteen new solar power plants in the country with a capacity of 750 megawatts.
Egypt's CBE lifts foreign currency caps on importers of non-essential goods The Central Bank of Egypt lifted on Tuesday the monthly cap on foreign currency deposits and withdrawals imposed on importers of non-essential goods, state-run news agency MENA reported.
Foreign Relations
Egypt's Sisi discusses Palestine, Jerusalem developments with President Abbas Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi spoke by telephone on Wednesday with his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas, discussing the latest developments in Palestine, the revival of the stalled peace process, and the status of the disputed city of Jerusalem, according to official media statements.
Russian Defence Minister Shoigu arrives in Cairo for cooperation talks Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu arrived in Cairo Wednesday for talks with his Egyptian counterpart Sedki Sobhi and other Egyptian officials.
Cairo condemns Baghdad bombing that killed 17 people Egypt condemned on Tuesday "in the strongest terms" a bombing that took place on Monday southeast of Baghdad, which left at least seventeen people dead and over two dozens injured.
Egypt's Sisi, US defence minister Mattis discuss military cooperation, counterterrorism Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi met with US Secretary of Defense James Mattis in Cairo on Saturday to discuss consolidating bilateral cooperation, countering terrorism, and restoring stability in the Middle East, a statement by presidency spokesperson Bassam Rady read.
Egypt's defence minister Sobhy discusses regional developments with US counterpart Mattis in Cairo Egypt's defence minister Sedky Sobhi discussed on Saturday in Cairo the latest regional and international developments and common challenges in the region with his US counterpart James Mattis at the headquarters of the Ministry of Defense, Egypt’s Armed Forces said in a statement.
‘Shocked, Outraged’ to Read The Guardian’s Opinion Piece: Spokesperson of the MFA The Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Egypt, Ahmed Abu Zeid, has commented on an opinion article published by The Guardian saying that he is “shocked and outraged”.
9 Egyptian Startups Participate in the 2017 Global Entrepreneurship Summit in India Under the theme of “Women First, Prosperity for All”, the 2017 Global Entrepreneurship Summit is co-hosted in India and the United States bringing entrepreneurs, investors, decision makers from all over the world under one umbrella.
Egypt’s Safarni Wins Second Place in UN Award On Thursday, the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and BMW Group for the Intercultural Innovation Award announced the ten awardees for 2017, ranking Egypt’s Safarni project second.
Domestic Security
Al-Sisi Orders the Military to Use ‘Brute Force’ to Secure Sinai Within 3 Months Egypt’s president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has ordered the military on Wednesday to thoroughly restore security in Sinai in a period of three months, entitling the military and the Ministry of Interior to use “brute force” to regain control.
The tales of Palestinian fighters in Sinai A harshly worded warning, placing Hamas and Egyptian security forces in the same sentence, took up most of the terse statement released by the Islamic State-affiliate Province of Sinai on 12 September.
Egypt's army destroys militant hideouts, seizes weapon caches in central Sinai The Egyptian military has destroyed three hideouts and seized a weapons depot used by militants in the central part of the border Sinai Peninsula, a spokesman said Thursday.
Arabic
ناجون من «الروضة»: هكذا وقعت المذبحة في 45 دقيقة The survivors of Al-Rawdah mosque attack tell their stories of survival.
مصر تلعب عكس حلفائها الإقليميين.. ماذا تعرف عن علاقاتها الدافئة مع حزب الله؟ The article investigates Egypt relations with Hezbollah under Sisi rule, in comparison with Mubarak era.
أسئلة تجيب عن «لوغاريتمات» ترشح شفيق وموقف الإمارات والسيسي والجزيرة The article sheds light on Shafiq's candidacy for the 2018 presidential elections and its implications in determining the next president of Egypt.
من الإسكندرية إلى الأقصر ومن سيناء إلى أسيوط.. أبشع الهجمات في تاريخ مصر Almanassa recounts the deadliest attacks led by Islamic militants in Egypt over the past forty years.
حرائق "سيارات النقل" تشتعل في سيناء Drivers of transport vehicles were systematically targeted by militants in Sinai.
توطين الفلسطينيين في سيناء.. هل بدأت ملامح «صفقة القرن» تتكشف؟ Egyptian authorities denounced the Israeli Social Equality Minister comments on the resettlement of Palestinians in Sinai and called on the Israeli government to apologize.
رغم مرور 5 أيام على المذبحة ..أين اختفى المجلس الأعلى لمكافحة للإرهاب؟ The Supreme Council to Combat Terrorism has been silent over Al-Rawdah mosque attack, failing to set effective strategies to protect the country from terrorist acts.
سياسيون: منع «شفيق» من السفر إهانة للدولة المصرية Egyptian politicians denounce UAE's detention of former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq and preventing him from travel after announcing his presidential candidacy.
أشهر لاستعادة الأمن في سيناء.. آليات غائبة 3 The President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi granted the armed forces the authority to use force to combat terrorism within the coming three months.
بعد إغلاق سويسرا القضية.. هل يمكن استرداد «أموال مبارك»؟ Swiss authorities announced the suspension of judicial cooperation with Egypt on the money smuggled by former President Hosni Mubarak and his family and several members of his regime due to lack of evidence over the link between the crimes under investigation in Egypt and the funds in Switzerland.
عرض 100 قطعة في مزاد لندن.. نزيف الآثار المصرية مستمر More than hundred Egyptian ancient artifacts were auctioned off in London on 28 November, amid continued relics trafficking.
مجلس النواب» يبدأ الأحد جلسات «محاسبة الحكومة» عن إهدار المال العام والبطالة» The parliament discusses on Sunday forty-seven briefings on the government's policy over public money waste.
«بيان شديد اللهجة من قبائل سيناء: «ساعة الصفر اقتربت The union of Sinai tribes issued a strong statement announcing full support of the armed forces in its war against terrorism in Sinai.
منظمات حقوقية تطالب بإلغاء قانون الجمعيات: لا طائل من تعديله Nine human rights organizations renewed in a joint statement their rejection to the controversial NGOs law N70 of 2017.
بالفيديو.. شيخ الأزهر: القضاء هو الجهة الوحيدة التي لها سلطة الحكم بالتكفير The Sheikh of Al-Azhar announced that the Judiciary — and not Al-Azhar — has the authority to judge infidels.