[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
Where is Massouny? Search continues for man taken by national security in June
The 26-year-old was abducted by security forces on June 26. It was only when his coworkers contacted his sister that his family found out he was being investigated by National Security Agency (NSA) officers at their headquarters in Lazoghly Square.
Amnesty warns global community not to be fooled by Sisi`s pardons
Human rights organization Amnesty International advised the international community not to be fooled by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s “veneer of reform and empty promises”.
Seven Al Jazeera journalists sentenced in absentia request presidential intervention
Seven Al Jazeera journalists who have been sentenced in absentia in Egypt have formally requested the intervention of President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi in their case.
Pope urges Coptic candidates on religious party lists to ‘reconsider`
Pope Tawadros has requested that Coptic candidates running in the upcoming elections on religious party lists reconsider their positions.
Cairo University bans professors from wearing niqab
Cairo University President Gaber Nassar has prohibited female professors from wearing niqab, due to complaints that women wearing a full face veil couldn’t effectively communicate with their students.
Who speaks for the Brotherhood?
A flurry of conflicting statements reveals deep divisions within the outlawed group.
Parents protest across Egypt for better school conditions
Parents across Egypt are protesting poor school conditions as their kids return to the classroom. Some parents blocked roads, while others are threatening hunger strikes if the government does not intervene to improve the situation.
Yasmine al-Narsh sentenced to four years in prison for airport altercation
A Cairo court handed Yasmine al-Narsh a four-year prison sentence on Saturday for drug possession and assaulting a police officer, despite her claim that she was framed during a confrontation at Cairo airport in May.
Psychiatry, politics and propaganda
Mostafa Hussein write: “Psychiatrists should refrain from involvement in ad hominem attacks on politicians. Becoming embroiled in such propaganda erodes public respect for the profession.”
Sisi and the youth
Youth programs are a sign of state investment in an alienated group, but how successful are they?
Egypt`s Sisi to CNN: Egypt enjoys unprecedented freedom of expression
Egypt`s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said on Monday that Egypt enjoys unprecedented freedom of expression and that no one in Egypt was prosecuted for expressing his views during his presidency.
Three Brotherhood members sentenced to death in Alexandria on murder charges
Alexandria Criminal Court sentenced on Monday three Muslim Brotherhood members to death for involvement in the murder of an officer and a conscript near the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in the aftermath of the violent dispersals of Rabaa and Al-Nahda sit-ins in August 2013.
Son of senior Brotherhood figure El-Beltagy sentenced to five years jail
Anas El-Beltagy, along with two other men -- all students -- were arrested in December 2013 and accused of rioting and violent acts in universities.
Salafist Call slams culture minister after `secular state` comments
The Salafist Call (Al-Daawa Al-Salafiya), an Egyptian salafi organisation, slammed newly appointed culture minister Helmy El-Namnam on Sunday after he said on TV that Egypt is "by instinct a secular state".
Movement against new Civil Service law to escalate protests
The Tadamon movement`s coordinating committee, which is opposed to the new Civil Service law, announced Sunday it will escalate its protest efforts after the Eid al-Adha holiday.
Pardoned activist Salwa Mehrez expresses solidarity with Esraa Tawil
Salawa Mehrez, a recently pardoned activist, expressed solidarity with detained photojournalist Esraa al-Tawil through her Facebook account on Monday, saying she will continue to support Tawil since she is now free.
In third incident in three months, four `terrorists` killed in Alexandria raid
Four alleged Muslim Brotherhood terrorists were killed in a shoot-out with police forces in Alexandria, according to the Interior Ministry.
Textile workers continue strike over bonuses
Hundreds of workers at the Misr El-Amria Spinning and Weaving Company in Alexandria continued their open-ended strike on Tuesday to protest their employers’ failure to respond to their demands for bonuses.
Muslim Brotherhood absent from Lawyers` Syndicate candidacies
Muslim Brotherhood members were markedly absent from the nomination process as the Lawyers` Syndicate continued to receive applications, on Tuesday, by nominees for the syndicate’s board elections slated for 8 November.
Church to discuss draft divorce, marriage law in November
The Coptic Orthodox Church will organize an internal debate in November on a highly-divisive law that regulates rules for divorce and second marriages for Egypt’s Coptic Christians, a church source told Al-Masry Al-Youm.
University expulsion politicized: former Morsi aide
A former adviser to ousted president Mohamed Morsi has said that Cairo University’s decision to dismiss him after a month-long absence was “politicized”.
Trial of Irish national over involvement in Brotherhood violence postponed
The Cairo Criminal Court postponed the trial of an Irish teen accused of being involved in violence and riots on Sunday, to 15 December. The riots in question occurred following the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi in 2013.
Foreign Policy
Sisi calls for UN strategy against extremism
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi spoke of regional politics and terrorism before the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Monday, in almost the exact same format as his speech this time last year.
Egypt accuses media delegation harassers of violating US protest law
The Egyptian Consulate in New York sent a memorandum to the US State Department calling for the arrest of “Muslim Brotherhood elements” who assaulted members of the official media delegation accompanying President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on his visit to New York.
Sisi`s statements to AP about Israel-Arab peace agreement mistranslated: Presidency
In the AP interview on Saturday in New York, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi was quoted in English saying that "efforts should be renewed to solve the Palestinian issue and expand Egypt`s nearly 40-year-peace with Israel to include more Arab countries."
Egypt`s Sisi thanks Hollande in person for warship deal
The two presidents met in New York after a UN General Assembly and discussed regional issues and military deals.
Egypt objects to proposal at Human Rights Council for abolishing death sentence
Egypt is among thirty-seven countries in the UN System that still enforce the death penalty.
Elections
Five questions for a parliamentary candidate: Mohamed al-Oraby
Mada Masr interviews parliamentary elections candidate and former Foreign Minister Mohamed al-Oraby.
Egyptian Front and Independent Current Coalition excluded from Upper Egypt elections
A statement released by the HEC on Saturday explained they were eliminated for failing to complete the criteria for nomination.
Sisi and parliament: Friends or foes?
With voting in the first round slated for mid-October, Egypt will soon have an elected legislative body that could profoundly impact the prevailing power dynamics.
Campaigning to begin Tuesday for Egypt`s parliamentary elections
The Higher Election Committee (HEC) announced that campaigning for the first stage of the polls will be allowed between 29 September and 15 October.
2573 candidates, four party-based lists to run in first phase of Egypt`s parliamentary elections
The High Elections Committee announced the number of participants running in the elections as the first day of campaigning starts.
Elections Committee has lost credibility: Egypt`s Wafd Party
The Wafd Party deputy-chairman has complained about candidates campaigning over the Eid holidays.
Seven electoral lists run in first stage of Egypt`s parliamentary elections: HEC
The first stage of Egypt’s long-delayed parliamentary elections will begin on 18-19 October.
Meet Egypt`s Free Egyptians Party
Egypt`s liberal Free Egyptians targets forming parliamentary bloc of like-minded figures that endorse free market policies.
Egypt`s parliamentary elections: More seats, fewer candidates
Political analysts ponder why, given 120 seats were added to Egypt`s parliament, fewer candidates are running this year compared to 2011, and proportionally less than even before the 2011 revolution.
Leftist parties divided over election list boycott
Egyptian leftist political parties are fielding forty-three candidates for individually-sought seats at the House of Representatives` elections slated for 18 October, but some are considering whether or not to boycott voting for any electoral lists.
Government does not endorse “For the Love of Egypt” electoral list: spokesperson
Emad Gad, spokesperson for the “For the Love of Egypt” electoral list, said in an interview with Al-Masry Al-Youmthat the government does not endorse or support the list.
Social democrats to elect new chairman after parliamentary polls
The Egyptian Social Democratic Party will elect a new chairman three months after the end of the parliamentary elections scheduled between 18 October and 4 December, the party’s current chairman, Mohamed Abul-Ghar, said in statements to Al-Masry Al-Youm. He added that he will not run again.
Nour Party reveals electoral platform
The Salafi-led Nour Party has said that security is the priority for the party’s electoral platform, stressing that the parliamentary elections slated for 18 October come during one of “Egypt’s toughest stages”.