[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
Cairo court lifts travel ban on political activist Esraa Abdel-Fattah in foreign funding case
A Cairo criminal court lifted on Sunday a travel ban imposed on journalist and political activist Esraa Abdel-Fattah related to a case involving the foreign funding of civil society organisations.
The Arabic Network for Humans Rights Information will suspend all activities after eighteen years of producing work relating to rights and freedom of expression, the organization announced in a statement on Monday.
In Egypt, some are forced to trade citizenship for freedom
On January 8, Egyptian-Palestinian activist Ramy Shaath arrived in Paris after Egyptian authorities released him from prison and deported him after over 900 days in remand detention. He walked out of Charles de Gaulle Airport with his wife Celine Lebrun-Shaath to a cheering crowd of supporters. Yet the conditions of his release were no cause for celebration — Shaath was forced to renounce his Egyptian citizenship in exchange for his freedom.
Execution country: How the death penalty became rampant in Egypt
Authorities do not release any official data on executions, yet according to the limited data available, the number of executions carried out over the past decade amount to nearly half the total final death sentences issued by the Egyptian judiciary over the past century.
Nasr City residents sue govt over decision to expropriate 2 neighborhoods
Facing the pending eviction and demolition of their homes, a number of residents of the sixth and seventh neighborhoods of Nasr City, Cairo, filed a lawsuit on Saturday before the State Council to contest the prime minister’s decision to expropriate the two districts for “public benefit.”
State media employees protest working conditions, overdue payments
Thousands of state media workers joined a third consecutive day of demonstrations on Tuesday at the Maspero building, the headquarters of the Egyptian Radio and Television Union, to protest working conditions, low wages and years of overdue bonus payments.
The perils of conducting academic research in Sisi’s Egypt
This article charts the contours of protections of academic research in Egypt; asks how academic research changed after Sisi’s assumption of power in 2014 and examines how Regeni’s murder marks a turning point in the history of academic research in Egypt.
Foreign Policy
Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry and his Algerian counterpart, Ramtane Lamamra, affirmed the need for backing an internal solution to the Libyan crisis and stopping all forms of foreign interference in Libya’s affairs in a meeting held on Sunday in Cairo.
Sisi calls for formulating African strategy to eliminate terrorism, extremism in AU bureau meeting
Egypt calls for a clear African strategy to eliminate the danger of terrorism and extremism and dry up its funding sources, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said on behalf of President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi.
Egypt keen to reach 'comprehensive legally-binding agreement' on Ethiopia’s GERD: Sisi
Egypt is keen to reach "a comprehensive legally-binding agreement" on the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which would take into consideration Egypt’s concerns, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said on Wednesday.
Constructing huge dam on Nile without coordination with High Dam ‘unprecedented’: minister
The construction of a dam as large as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam without coordinating with the High Dam in Aswan is ‘unprecedented’, Egypt’s Minister of Irrigation Mohamed Abdel Aati said, adding that it requires the existence of a clear and binding coordination mechanism between the two dams that Ethiopia has rejected.
GERD dispute will not be solved within one year or even five: Egyptian negotiator
Alaa Al-Zawahiri, a member of Egypt’s negotiating committee regarding the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), said that the dispute on the dam will not be resolved within a year or even five, as this type of issue requires much time and effort.
Sisi, Abbas discuss efforts to reconstruct Gaza Strip in a meeting in Sharm El-Sheikh
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas discussed efforts to reconstruct the Gaza Strip during a meeting on Tuesday in the Egyptian Red Sea resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh.
Egypt urges Sudanese to select new PM, form gov't
Egypt urged all Sudanese parties to select a new transitional prime minister consensually and to form a government in the nearest time possible, a statement by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs read on Saturday.
Egypt conducts naval exercises with Saudi Arabia, US in Red Sea
Egyptian and Saudi Arabian armed forces are conducting a joint military training, dubbed Tabuk-5, which is expected to continue for several days in Saudi Arabia.
Egypt, UK ministers talk climate change agenda ahead of COP27
Egypt and the UK have committed to tackling climate change in a “critical decade” following a ministerial meeting.
Italian judge calls on govt to intervene to push Regeni case forward
An Italian judge asked the Italian government on Monday to intervene to move forward with the trial of four Egyptian security officers accused of the 2016 kidnap and murder of Italian doctoral student Giulio Regeni in 2016, after the trial met a setback in October, according to the Italian ANSA news agency.
Economy
Egypt raises asphalt production by 50% to meet the demand of the National Roads Project
Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek al-Molla announced Saturday, that local production of asphalt is being increased by fifty percent to meet the demand of the National Roads Project currently being implemented, and to reduce import quantities.
Salary increase and new minimum wage for Egypt’s private sector workers begin January
Egypt announced that January marks the beginning of increased salaries for private sector workers, with a minimum wage of 2,400 Egyptian pounds – a first for the nation’s private sector.
Egyptian banks' VRs under pressure if foreign assets drop: Fitch Ratings
Egyptian banks’ Viability Ratings (VRs) could come under pressure if the banks’ foreign assets continue to drop, Fitch Ratings said in its insights published on Thursday.
Egypt’s monthly inflation declines to 4.5%, annual rate rises to 6.5%: CAPMAS
Egypt’s monthly headline inflation continued its downturn trend in December 2021, declining by 0.2 percent to reach 5.4 percent, down from 5.6 percent in November and 6.3 percent in October, the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics (CAPMAS) stated on Monday.
Egypt’s external debt declined slightly in 1Q of FY2021/22: CBE
The second half (2H) of FY2020/2021 (January-June 2021) witnessed a considerable increase in Egypt’s external debt compared to 1H of the same fiscal year, as external debt inched up to 137.8 billion US dollars, up from the 129.1 billion US dollars reached by the end of the 1H.
Egypt’s international reserves inched up slightly to $40.93 bln in December: CBE
Egypt’s net international reserves (NIRs) rose slightly in December to reach 40.93 billion US dollars, up from the 40.90 billion US dollars recorded in November, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) announced on Wednesday.
Egypt’s parliament gives preliminary approval to new 'General Unified Economic Planning Law'
Egypt's parliament – the House of Representatives – provisionally approved Tuesday a new government-drafted "General Unified Planning" Law that aims to streamline the process of preparing the country's economic policies and engage the private sector in economic development projects.
Local currency non-governmental bank deposits grow to EGP 4.38trn in November 2021: CBE
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has revealed that the total banking deposits — in local currency —increased to 4.388 trillion Egyptian pounds in November 2021, compared to October’s 4.308 trillion Egyptian pounds.
Domestic Security
The Egyptian authorities have reportedly arrested a member of Hasm terrorist group who was on a plane heading from Khartoum to Istanbul. The arrestee was apprehended when the plane made an emergency landing in Upper Egypt's Luxor due to a "spurious" smoke alarm.
From Jadaliyya
“I was also trying to think about development issues beyond poverty, governance, human rights, & security. What stood out for me were accounts of exacerbating experiences of continuous belittling and humiliation in multiple sources.” El Bernoussi writes.
Arabic
بعد إغلاق الشبكة العربية: حوار مع جمال عيد عن مصاعب العمل في ظل "الثورة المضادة"
Almanasaa interviews Gamal Eid about the closure of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information after being systematically targeted by the authorities.
منظمات حقوقية تدين استدعاء النيابة العامة لرئيس تحرير موقع درب خالد البلشي
Human rights organizations express solidarity with journalist and editor-in-chief of the Darb news website Khaled Elbalshy who was summoned for investigation before the Public Prosecution over “spreading false news” charges.
تأجيل محاكمة أبو الفتوح والقصاص وآخرين لـ22 يناير.. وزوجة القصاص: الأولاد شافوه بعد سنة من عدم رؤيته
The Supreme State Security Prosecution adjourned the hearings of twenty-five defendants in Case No. 1059 of 2021 to January 22.
منظمات حقوقية: نرفض الحكم الصادر بحق الناشطة الحقوقية أمل فتحي ونطالب الرئيس المصري بعفو رئاسي
Human rights organizations condemn the by the one-year prison sentence of human rights defender Amal Fathy by Egypt’s Court of Cassation and call for immediate release.
تجديد حبس المدون القرآني رضا عبدالرحمن وتجاهل مناشدات خروجه لتلقى عزاء شقيقه الأكبر
The Zagazig Criminal Court ordered on Monday detention renewal of researcher and prisoner of conscience Reda Abdel-Rahman for another forty-five days pending investigation in Case No. 3418 of 2020.
أربعون شهرا من الغياب.. أيمن عبد المعطي حبس احتياطي ممتد وتدوير على قضيتين دون إحالته للمحاكمة
Ayman Abdel Moaty, the head of marketing and distribution at the Maraya Publishing House, is still in pretrial detention. He was arrested in October 2018 over “spreading false news” charges.