Stories about Egypt from May, 2007
Egyptian Blogger Monem to Be Freed
Jailed Egyptian blogger Abdulmonem Mahmood is being released on Saturday - but Egyptian bloggers are holding their breath and are full of apprehension on their future in a country which has so far conducted a witch hunt on bloggers, reports Freedom For Egyptians.
Egypt: Monem will be freed and Amr Gharbeia interrogated
Blogger Abdel-Monem Mahmoud appeared today before the Public Prosecutor who ordered to release him after 45 days in custody. “Monem and his group are expected to be release on Saturday after completing paperwork.” said his lawyer. Hossam el-Hamalawy reported that the Egyptian blogger Amr Gharbeia has been interrogated today on...
Iran:What is going wrong between Iran and Egypt
Mohammad Ali Abtahi,former vice president,says “the issue of relationship between Iran and Egypt has developed several times but every time it has stopped for different reasons. One of the main reasons Egypt disagrees with such idea is the issue of Khalid Islambouli.”Istambouli arranged and carried out the assassination of the...
Egypt: From Here and There
Egypt-based blogger Issandr El Amrani selects a few essential readings here, where he links to articles of interest to his readers including one about how some Iraqi refugees are turning to the sex trade in Syria and the uproar an agreement to send 120,000 Egyptian housemaids to Saudi Arabia has...
Egypt: Blogger being Watched
From Egypt, Issandr El Amrani links to an article by Egyptian blogger Wael Abbas, who is back from a visit to the US and is worried about his safety back home. “Last Thursday, I returned to my country, Egypt, after several weeks in the United States on a Freedom House...
Egypt: New Syria Opposition Website Launched
“On the occasion of the re-election (surprise!) of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a new clearinghouse for Syrian opposition news has just been launched. Check out OpenSyria.org,” writes Issandr El Amrani from Egypt.
Egypt: Live Snakes to Saudi
Egyptian blogger Mostafa Hussein links to an AP story which says that police detained a man at Cairo's airport – bound for Saudi Arabia – who was trying to smuggle 700 live snakes on a plane!
Arabeyes: Unlicensed Bahrainis; Silent Algerians; Kidneyless Egyptians and More
What is banned and allowed in Bahrain? How did the government and politicians react to the low turn out at the Algerian elections last week? Why did an Egyptian man sell his kidney? And finally - why do you need Wasta in Jordan? These are the main questions the following translation of Arabic blogs shed light on this week.
Arabeyes: Breast-Feeding Dilemma
Imagine having to breast feed your colleague at work - five times - to ensure that your relationship remains professional! This is the fatwa (religious edict) that had Arab and Muslim bloggers buzzing with excitement and anger this week. Read the rest of the article to see how some of the region's bloggers reacted to the ruling, which has since been withdrawn.
Egypt: Human Rights Council
Egypt's bloggers held their own online protest on the eve of the election of Egypt to the UN Human Rights Council. Bloggers Nora Younis and the Free Kareem and the Free Monem blogs all posted a video stating why the country shouldn't be on the council. Kareem was jailed for...
Egypt: Update on Ayman Nour's Trial
“The case on releasing Ayman Nour based on medical grounds were up in court today. The judge of the administrative tribunal postponed it until a new medical committee from the justice ministry could examine him further. The next court date is set for 12 June,” writes Ibn Al Dunya from...
Egypt: On Israeli-Palestinian Relations
‘Another, other, other, depressing slide downward in the Middle East: “Hamas declared open war on Israel yesterday, pledging to renew suicide bombings after Israeli leaders vowed to kill senior politicians from the militant movement, including Ismail Haniya, the Palestinian Prime Minister” (The Times) Is it just me, or wouldn't a...
Egypt: Bahma Update
“Here is the latest! Bahma victims torn between agony and hope, resort to boycotting Muslim neighbors,” writes Egyptian blogger Nora Younis, who continues to update us about the standoff between Muslims and their Coptic neighbours in the village of Bahma.
EgyptL Bahma Update
Egyptian blogger Nora Younis continues to update us on the developments in the village of Bahma, which witnessed sectarian strife between Muslims and Copts last week. “I received the following message today saying Egypt’s State Security asked Christian victims of Bamha to change their official testimonies and on-record complaints to...
Egypt: Breast-feeding Adults
Palestinian blogger Amal A is in stitches over the latest Egyptian Islamic university Al Azhar fatwa, which stipulates that a woman can nurse or breast-feed a grown up man, if they are to work together in an office without a male chaperon. Bahraini Mahmood Al Yousif warns us not to...
Egypt: It's all in the beard
Sporting a beard could land you into trouble with the authorities in Egypt, reports Nora Younis, who translates a post by Asad. “This is a hilarious post by Egyptian blogger Asad. Although it is a very short real life experience he went through at a main road checkpoint, it clearly...
Jordan: Arab Media Watchdog
Jordanian blogger Lina links to a news article which says that journalists from five Arab countries are to launch a media watchdog group in reaction to what they call increased restrictions on press workers in the region. According to the article, 20 reporters from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Morocco and...
Egypt: Citizens and Residents
Egyptian blogger Nora Younis focuses on the meanings of being a citizen as opposed to being a resident in Egypt in the aftermath of an attack on Coptic homes in the village of Bahma. “I tell you if we let the discriminative and politicised security apparatus grib all our causes...
Monem: first blog-post from prison
The Egyptian blogger Abdel-Monem Mahmoud managed to smuggle his first blog-post from his prison cell in Torah Mahkoum where he is being detained for a renewable term of fifteen days: “Despite all what happened from prison, torture, corruption and poverty; I am still in love with you Egypt. I might...
Egypt must release bloggers before UN Rights Council elections
Egypt must release jailed bloggers before Thursday's elections for the UN Human Rights Council, said UN Watch, a human rights organization based in Geneva in a statement issued today. Among other conditions, UN Watch requires that Egypt “must release journalist Huwaida Taha Mitwalli, who is currently imprisoned for attempting to...
Arabeyes: Muslim-Coptic Clashes in Egypt
Sectarian strife rocked the quiet Egyptian village of Bahma in Giza on Friday over alleged plans to open a new church. Blogger Nora Younis (Ar) tells us what happened and why. She also criticises the deafening silence of authorities in the civil war which saw the burning of five shops, 25 homes and an undisclosed number of casualties and provides a solution to the crisis.
