Authorities in Egypt arrested three men after one of them was allegedly filmed singing and dancing in a mosque, according to the AFP news agency. The clip later went viral. In the video, the accused man is singing along to what locals call a mahraganat song. It is a type …
Read More »Egypt: former presidential candidate sentenced to 15 years in prison
An Egyptian criminal court has sentenced Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh, a former presidential candidate, to 15 years in prison with hard labor for spreading false news and joining a terrorist group. The politician was convicted along with an interim leader of the proscribed Muslim Brotherhood group, Mahmoud Ezzat. He is …
Read More »Egyptian delegation to visit India to discuss wheat imports
An Egyptian delegation will travel to India the first week of April to facilitate wheat imports as part of efforts to secure supplies and alleviate shortages at one of the world’s largest importers of the staple, Reuters reports, citing Indian government sources. Egypt, often the world’s biggest wheat importer, is …
Read More »US strikes $2 billion arms deal with Egypt amid rights issues
The US State Department has approved the sale of 12 military transport planes to Egypt, in a deal worth more than $2 billion, the BBC reports. Air defence radar systems and other related equipment are also being sold for another $300m. The arms sales come despite recent criticism from the …
Read More »Egypt: two dead and several missing after fatal accident
Two people died and eight others are missing after a truck plunged into River Nile in Egypt. The accident happened outside the capital Cairo when the truck was on board an unlicensed ferry. 14 survivors have so far been rescued, as rescue operations have continued at the river. The truck …
Read More »Egypt: Abdel Fattah sentenced to five years in jail
Prominent Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel Fattah was sentenced to five years in prison on Monday, after being tried on charges of spreading fake news, Reuters agency reports. Two other persons including blogger Mohamed Ibrahim and lawyer Mohamed El-Baqer, who faced the same charges, were sentenced to four years. Abdel Fattah’s …
Read More »Egypt: bill to dismiss drug addicted officials comes into force
Govenment in Egypt has set a law on drugs in the workplace, which means that civil servants can be dismissed if proven to be drug users. On May 23, the Egyptian House of Representatives approved a bill dismissing drug addicts state servants from their job. The parliament said at the …
Read More »Egypt: 3 people killed and hundreds injured by scorpions
Three people were killed in Egypt and 450 others injured by scorpion stings in the southern city of Aswan. It was caused by hail and thunderstorms in the area near the Nile which were particularly violent. Scorpions are regularly washed into the streets by heavy rains. Additional doses of the …
Read More »Egypt: Abdul Fattah al-Sisi lifts state of emergency after four years
Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi has announced that the state of emergency which has been in force since April 2017 in the country is now lifted. In a Facebook post, President Sisi announced that he would not be extending the state of emergency because Egypt had become “an oasis of …
Read More »Egypt: cases against activist Mozn Hassan closed
The Egyptian activist Mozn Hassan who had been accused of receiving foreign funding to harm national security says the authorities have closed the case against her, after more than five years of an asset freeze and travel ban. A judge ruled that there was insufficient evidence to press charges against …
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