[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
Over 200 prominent actors, filmmakers and writers call on Egyptian authorities to release Sanaa Seif
Hundreds of artists, human rights groups and film organizations have signed a public statement calling for the release of Sanaa Seif, an activist and film editor arrested in Cairo last month.
Egyptian TikToker sentenced to 3 years for 'inciting immorality and debauchery'
An Egyptian economic court sentenced on Wednesday TikTok influencer Manar Samy, who has an active account on the video-sharing platform, to three years in prison and fined her 300,000 Egyptian pounds (18,000 US dollars) for "inciting immorality and debauchery."
How ‘family values’ are used against women | Q&A with Lobna Darwish
Mada Masr spoke to Lobna Darwish, gender and human rights officer at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, about the judicial reasoning behind the verdict’s use of “family values” to target TikTok influencers.
Egypt's prosecution releases Masr Al-Arabiya editor Adel Sabry pending investigations
Egypt's supreme state security prosecution ordered on Monday the release of Adel Sabry, the editor-in-chief of the independent news website Masr Al-Arabiya, pending investigations after his two-year precautionary detention ended, head of the Egyptian Press Syndicate Diaa Rashwan announced.
Social media users reveal details of alleged gang rape incident at famous Cairo hotel
Testimonies about a gang rape that allegedly occurred in a hotel room at the Fairmont Nile City Hotel in Cairo in 2014 have been circulating on social media over the past few days, along with demands to arrest the suspects, all of whom belong to wealthy and influential families.
Anti-Harassment Egyptian Instagram Account Assault Police Forced Into Silence Due to Threats
According to sources speaking to Egyptian Streets who wish to remain anonymous, Assault Police went offline as its administrator had received a number of serious death threats following Assault Police’s posts about various alleged gang rapes, including an alleged gang rape at the Fairmont Nile City hotel in February 2014 which is known on social media as the ‘Fairmont incident’ and the ‘Fairmont crime’.
Complaint filed with National Council for Women over 2014 gang rape at Fairmont hotel
A survivor of an alleged gang rape at the Fairmont Nile City hotel in 2014 filed a complaint with the National Council for Women on Monday and also intends to file a complaint with the public prosecution, according to an informed legal source who spoke to Mada Masr on condition of anonymity.
Filmed confessions of Brotherhood members stir controversy
The Egyptian Ministry of Interior announced July 23 that it has “arrested a Muslim Brotherhood cell in Alexandria governorate, around two hundred kilometers (124 miles) to the north of Cairo. The cell was spreading lies and rumors about the Egyptian regime, with the Egyptian Senate elections just around the corner, in August.”
Egypt may hold "early" parliament elections in October: source
Egypt may hold an early election for the House of Representatives in October instead of November as previously scheduled, parliamentary sources told Akhbar Al-Youm newspaper on Friday.
Women wearing ‘burkinis’ not banned from pools, beaches in Egypt: Govt
Hotels and tourist resorts in Egypt have no right to ban women from wearing burkinis at pools and on beaches, so long as these suits are made of materials “compliant with health specifications,” the tourism and local development ministries said in separate statements on Friday.
Egypt’s Sisi approves ban on retired army officers standing for election
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi has approved legal amendments that restrict retired army officers from running in elections without permission from the military, according to an announcement in the official gazette on Wednesday.
Egypt's Mostaqbal Watan Party expected to dominate Senate elections
The final list of the Senate election candidates released by the National Elections Authority (NEA) on Sunday evening revealed that the National Unified List led by the Mostaqbal Watan Party will contest the 100 seats reserved for party lists in the 300-member chamber unopposed.
COVID-19 drive-thru testing rollout blurs lines between public, private sectors
The source says that Prime Speed took advantage of the contradiction between different ministerial policies. On the one hand, the Ministry of Higher Education has a laboratory that offers tests for a price without restrictions. On the other, the Health Ministry limits free testing to its hospitals and central laboratories and prohibits the private sector from conducting patient tests.
Foreign Policy
Egypt to withdraw from latest Nile dam talks for consultations
Egypt has decided to withdraw from the latest round of tripartite negotiations over Ethiopia's multibillion-dollar dam on the Blue Nile for internal consultations after Addis Ababa proposed a new draft of filling guidelines.
Egyptian foreign minister Sameh Shoukry reviewed with the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres the country's "patent" stance that supports the Libyan-Libyan political solution, away from external interference seeking to dominate the Libyan people's capabilities, according to a statement released by foreign ministry on Friday.
Egypt’s foreign minister discusses GERD dispute, Libya crisis with US congressmen
Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry has conducted phone calls with a number of US congressmen recently to discuss the latest developments in the dispute between Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), as well as the crisis in Libya, according to a statement by the foreign ministry on Tuesday.
Head of Egypt’s General Intelligence Service meets with Sudan officials, discusses GERD
The head of Egypt's General Intelligence Service Abbas Kamel met with the head of Sudan's sovereign council Abdel-Fattah Al-Burhan in Khartoum on Tuesday, conveying a verbal message from Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on the ways to support and develop bilateral relations and enhance joint interests, according to Sudanese state news agency SUNA.
Economy
Egypt pumps more coins into market during Eid Al-daha holiday
Egypt's Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Friday it increased the amounts of small denomination coins pumped in the market by thirty percent during Eid Al-Adha's four-day holiday.
Egypt's overall deficit down by 7.8% despite coronavirus crisis: Finance minister
Egypt's overall deficit during the 2019/2020 fiscal year declined by 7.8 percent of the GDP, compared to 8.2 percent last year, according to initial estimations, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said on Wednesday at a cabinet press briefing held to discuss the initial estimations of the financial performance of the 2019/2020 fiscal year.
Egypt sees 36.2% decrease in May trade deficit: CAPMAS
Egypt saw a 36.2 percent decrease in its trade deficit during May, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics’ (CAPMAS) monthly bulletin of Foreign Trade Data.
Egypt’s Transport Ministry announces price increases for air-conditioned train tickets
Transport Minister Kamel al-Wazir announced that prices for new and air-conditioned trains would increase by twenty-five percent, such as the Cairo-Alexandria ticket rising to 125 Egyptian pounds from 100 Egyptian pounds.
Egypt's arrears to foreign oil companies fall to $850 mln at end of June: minister
Egypt’s arrears to foreign oil companies decreased to 850 million US dollars at the end of June from 900 million US dollars a year ago, the country’s petroleum minister said on Wednesday.
Domestic Security
Province of Sinai militants occupy North Sinai villages forcing mass displacement
In the wake of a fierce attack by militants on an Egyptian military camp in the village of Rabea in North Sinai last week, many residents in nearby villages on the outskirts of Bir al-Abd have fled their homes in recent days amid a rapidly deteriorating security situation. Armed militants with the Province of Sinai — the Islamic State affiliate in the peninsula — have occupied the villages of Qatiya, Iqtiya, Ganayen and Merih, forcing mass displacement from the area.
Zamalek building evacuated due to land subsidence related to Cairo metro construction
Egypt’s National Authority for Tunnels said on Sunday that slight land subsidence had occurred around a landmark building in the affluent Zamalek district, but denied that the nearby construction of a Cairo metro extension had caused the building to partially collapse.
Health Ministry denies conducting clinical trials without informed consent
Egypt’s Ministry of Health denied, on Tuesday, that clinical trials on patients with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) have been conducted without their prior permission.
Egypt's Sisi ratifies extension of state of emergency for three months
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has issued a decree ratifying the extension of a nationwide state of emergency for three months starting 27 July.
From Jadaliyya
Announcing Launch of "Al-Madaq: A Virtual Tour of Cairo’s History"
Al-Madaq is a public-history website on modern Cairo that presents historical research to a broad audience and creates free online tools for scholarship. It features an open access cartographic archive that contains some of the city’s most significant historical maps (from 1808 to 1920).
The book deals with institutional development and policy-making in autocracies and offers novel insights into Egypt’s modern history and contemporary politics, particularly in connecting political and socioeconomic developments.
Arabic
مدبولي: تنفيذ مدن جديدة بالساحل الشمالى على غرار “العلمين”
Egypt will expand building new cities in the northern coast, according to Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly.
علاج ما أفسده «كورونا».. «ما يغلاش عليك»
The article examines Egypt’s sources of financing to deliver support to citizens amid the COVID-19 crisis.
The Egyptian Initiative for personal Rights called on authorities to immediately release Menna Abdel Aziz, victim of rape who was ordered imprisonment over “incitement to immorality and debauchery” charges.
The Religion and Freedoms Forum discusses Al-Azhar role in public life regarding women’s issues.
قصة مدينة الأحياء والموتى: من أين جاء التتار الجدد؟
The article examines the systematic demolition of tombs in the City of the Dead to build a new highway, raising concerns about the cultural heritage of the area.