[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
Under siege: To be a journalist in Egypt Nine years ago, twenty-nine-year-old Ahmed Khalaf started working as a culture journalist for the news website of a state-owned newspaper. His salary, however, did not cover the fare for his son’s school bus.
Egypt Celebrates Press Freedom Day With Hundreds Of Blocked Websites On 3 May, the world celebrates the Press Freedom Day. This year, nonetheless, Egypt celebrates it with dozens of journalists behind bars and a plethora of blocked websites.
‘Surprise’: Shawkan from prison, after winning UNESCO 2018 press freedom prize Detained photojournalist Mahmoud Abu Zeid (Shawkan) wrote the letter below from prison, after he was awarded the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 2018 press freedom prize on 3 May, which marks World Press Freedom day.
Why does Mada take World Press Freedom day off? Some thoughts on why Mada Masr does what they do, on a day they have decided to take off.
Regulators without regulations On 14 December 2016, Parliament passed legislation to create three media regulators by a two-thirds majority. The plan was to pass another bill to regulate media practice within a month after the formation of these new regulatory bodies.
Chief editor of Al-Tahrir website accused of insulting judiciary, released on bail The chief editor of the privately owned Al-Tahrir news website, Mohamed Fawzy, was questioned by the prosecution on Saturday concerning an article Al-Tahrir published about alleged crimes by members of the judiciary.
Lawyer: Satirical blogger Shady Abu Zeid arrested during dawn raid, whereabouts remain unknown Plainclothes security personnel arrested satirical blogger Shady Abu Zeid on Sunday, according to his lawyer Azza Soliman, who told Mada Masr that his whereabouts and the charges leveled against him are unknown.
Sisi’s charm offensive Following a turbulent election season that saw President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi secure a second term in a heavily disputed election, the discussion has now shifted to what we might expect to see from him in the near future.
Court adds 1,529 to terrorist list opening door to possible asset seizures One thousand, five hundred and twenty-nine people were added to Egypt’s terrorist list one day after legislation regarding the seizure of terrorist individuals and organizations’ assets was ratified, according to the Monday edition of the Official Gazette.
'Almost impossible' to ban Blue Whale game linked to teen deaths: Egyptian telecoms regulator A complete ban on “suicidal games” such as the recently reported Blue Whale is "almost impossible," Hossam Abdel Mawla, a representative of the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, said on Friday, Al-Ahram reported.
Silk Road concert promoting cultural dialogue comes to Egypt's Luxor Temple The second annual Silk Road concert, organized by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and Spain’s Fundación Onuart and with the collaboration of the Egyptian government, will take place in Egypt's Luxor Temple on Friday.
Egypt's experimental schools will not be scrapped until current students graduate: Minister Egypt's Education Minister Tarek Shawky said on Saturday that the country’s experimental schools will continue to operate until all currently enrolled students graduate.
Leftist Egyptian icon Khaled Mohieldin dies at 95 in Cairo Leftist Egyptian icon and the last surviving member of the 1952 revolution council Khaled Mohieldin passed away on Sunday in Cairo at the age of 95 after a long struggle with illness.
4,500 Eco-friendly Bags Distributed by Ministry of Environment In line with the activities of the “Enough Plastic Bags” initiative by the Ministry of Environment, 4,500 eco-friendly bags were distributed on Friday, according to news sources.
Economy
Cairo cabs: Neither black nor white In light of a recent, contested court ruling ordering that ride-hailing services like Uber and Careem halt operations, we profile an Uber driver, a white taxi driver and a black-and-white taxi driver, in order to better understand the dynamics and tensions between them.
Egypt parliament gives Uber, Careem six months to adhere to new law on ride-hailing services Egypt's parliament has given ride-hailing services Uber and Careem six months to adhere to the new law regulating ride-hailing services in the country, which was approved by MPs on Sunday.
IMF delegation arrives in Cairo to review economic reform progress A delegation from the International Monetary Fund arrived late Friday in Cairo on a visit that aims to review Egypt's progress on economic reform, Al-Ahram reported.
Egypt plans to cut deficit by 2020: Minister of finance Egypt’s Ministry of Finance is working on a plan to reduce the deficit from 107-108 percent of GDP during the previous fiscal year to eighty percent by 2020, Egypt's finance minister Amr al-Garhi said in a speech at the opening ceremony of a conference co-hosted by the International Monetary Fund, the Central Bank of Egypt and the Egyptian government to promote higher economic growth and job creation in Egypt.
Foreign Relations
Syria cooperation highlights progress in Egypt-Russia relations as hurdles remain Phone calls between high-ranking Egyptian and Russian officials have brought the two countries into accord on the Syrian crisis, according to an Egyptian government source, in what is one of several breakthroughs in ongoing Cairo-Moscow diplomatic discussions.
FM Shoukry's comments on sending Arab troops to Syria do not pertain to Egypt: Ministry The Egyptian foreign ministry spokesman said on Friday that the foreign minister’s recent statements about the possibility of deploying Arab troops to Syria “did not pertain to Egypt.”
Ukrainian FM stresses support for Egypt's fight against terror Ukranian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin has expressed his nation's support for Egypt's fight against terrorism, promising Ukraine's continued cooperation on security issues during a press conference in Cairo on Monday.
Greece and Cyprus presidents visit Greek Orthodox Church in Alexandria Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos and Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades visited on Tuesday the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and all Africa in Alexandria.
Egypt's Sisi discusses bilateral cooperation, counter-terrorism and regional issues with Cypriot counterpart in Cairo Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi discussed in Cairo on Tuesday a number of issues with his Cypriot counterpart Nicos Anastasiades, including means to boost bilateral relations, Egypt's fight against terrorism, as well as the Palestinian cause among other topics, a statement by the Egyptian presidency read.
Comprehensive solution to Palestinian crisis will create new reality in region, Egypt's Sisi tells JINSA delegation in Cairo Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi said in a meeting with a delegation from the Jewish Institute for National Security of America that a fair and comprehensive solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict would strongly influence the security of the entire region, Egyptian presidency spokesperson Bassam Rady said in a statement on Tuesday.
Egypt inspects own Red Sea airports ahead of Russian delegation visit on resumption of flights A committee comprising officials of the Egyptian Holding Company for Airports and Air Navigation and Egypt's Ministry of Civil Aviation are inspecting security procedures in Red Sea resort airports ahead of a visit of a Russian security delegation to discuss the resumption of flights to the resorts from Russia.
Cairo supports justice, peace in South Sudan: Egypt's FM tells SPLM meeting in Juba Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on Thursday stressed Egypt's support for a resolution to the political crisis in South Sudan while attending the opening session of the South Sudan Liberation Movement's National Liberation Council in Juba, according to Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid.
Egypt hopes 'good feelings' with Sudan, Ethiopia translate to progress in Ethiopian dam talks Egyptian Water Resources and Irrigation Minister Mohamed Abdel-Ati said on Sunday that Egypt hopes that the current “good feelings” between Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia are reflected on the ground through agreements and consensuses over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
From Jadaliyya Egypt
Martyn Frampton, The Muslim Brotherhood and the West: A History of Enmity and Engagement (New Texts Out Now) An interview with Martyn Frampton on his new book, The Muslim Brotherhood and the West: A History of Enmity and Engagement.
Arabic
32 يومًا على أزمة مصر العربية.. فهل تنتهي في يوم حرية الصحافة؟ The article provides a timeline of the thirty-two-day closure of Masr Al-Arabiya website and the imprisonment of its chief editor.
نقابة الصحفيين .. عامان على الاقتحام The article discusses the status of journalism in Egypt, two years after the press syndicate raids.
توفيق أوضاع النقابات.. صراع من أجل الوجود Bel Ahmar examines the struggle for workers rights, amid the state's harsh crackdown on dissent.
الحكومة توافق على مشروع قانون إنشاء أفرع للجامعات الأجنبية في مصر The Cabinet approved on Wednesday a bill on the regulation of academic institutions and the establishment of branches of foreign universities in Egypt.
نمو متوقع لإيرادات قناة السويس العام الحالى The revenues of Canal Suez are expected to reach twelve percent increase this year compared with the past year, the Head of Suez Canal Authority said.
أمركة القاهرة وغرق التجمع الخامس The article discusses how applying the American model of urban planning in Egypt has negative impacts on the living conditions and infrastructure.
تعريب «التجريبي».. أهالٍ غاضبون وخبراء يحذرون ووزير يخدم المدارس الخاصة The Minister of Education's decision to Arabize the curriculum of pilot schools was met with outrage, leading parents to protest in front of the Education Ministry.
البيئة": مصر تستهلك أكياس بلاستيكية سنويا بـ2 مليار جنيه" Egypt uses around twelve billion tons of plastic bags, one of the main environmental issues facing Egypt.
مصر قد تنشر قوات «في إطار آلية عربية» Al-Akhbar reflects on the statement of the Egyptian Foreign Minister regarding the possibility of the deployment of Egyptian forces in eastern Syria to back US-led coalition.
«ألستوم» الفرنسية: من التهويد إلى «عاصمة السيسي» The article investigates the controversy on the French Alstom company's involvement in the Egyptian economy.
«مصر: الفضائيات في قبضة «المخابرات The article discusses Egypt's Intelligence Service control over TV channels and the impacts it has on the Egyptian media landscape.