Egypt’s ‘Culture of Harassment’ Must Stop
LUCY EMMERSON: If you fight back you’re advised to ‘calm down’. The daily harassment of half of Egypt’s population is, however, a serious problem.
‘No Government Support’ for Arabic Literature
M. LYNX-QUALEY: Unlike most Western governments there is little appetite among any Arab government for the translation and promotion of literature. It’s a great shame.
‘Arab Spring’ Is All About Sex, Apparently
DANIEL M. VARISCO: Here we go again. ‘Orientalist Historian Takes Warped Freudian View of Entire Arab population.’ Hmm, what about all those women who were in Tahrir Square?
Football Supporters Behind Attack on Israeli Embassy
JAMES DORSEY: The militant supporters of Al Ahly and Al Zemalek, who were prominent in the 25th January Revolution, were instrumental in the attack on the Israeli Embassy in Cairo.
Education is key to creating ‘culture of peace’ in Egypt
JOSEPH MAYTON, CGNEWS: Sectarian interpretation of the country’s history is a big problem in Egyptian education. An approach that recognises and celebrates the contribution of ‘the Other’ is long overdue.
Israel’s ‘Nice Little War’: Gaza, Egypt in Range of Fire
RAMZY BAROUD: Why is Israel bent on discrediting Egypt, exploiting the most sensitive period of its modern history, and destabilizing the border area?
TweetNadwa: 140 Seconds to Say It As You See It
MEHRUNISA QAYYUM, CGNEWS: Inspired by Twitter a grassroots Egyptian organisation has set up an online forum that limits participants to 140 seconds air time.
Ex Brotherhood Members Speak Out
MICHAEL J. TOTTEN: What exactly is the Muslim Brotherhood’s ‘game-plan’ for Egypt? One way of finding out is to talk to former loyalists…
The Struggle for Egypt’s Soul Has Only Begun
MICHAEL J. TOTTEN: I’ve spent a lot of time with the key players in Egypt’s developing democracy. It’s very clear that the real battle for the country’s – and the region’s – future has just begun.
Ramadan Reading: As Recommended by Mahfouz
M. LYNX-QUALEY: So what was on the Ramadan reading list of the great Naguib Mahfouz? A little of what you would expect and a few surprises.
Egypt’s Youth: Losing Touch With the People
JACO STOOP: Demonstrators need to develop a new strategy to achieve their goals. Without grassroots support, demonstrations will not be tolerated
A Summer Tonic: Mahfouz’s Belief in ‘the Power of Good’
M. LYNX-QUALEY: While conducting some ‘centenary research’ I came across the lecture Mahfouz delivered when accepting the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Promise of Arab Spring Failing to Deliver for Middle-Eastern Women
LUCY EMMERSON: Now is not the time to let “women’s issues” fall to the back of the agenda; they must not be deprived of the dignity that they have fought for.
Let’s Hear It for the Poet with the Weird Accent
M. LYNX-QUALEY: Son of an acclaimed literary family, Tamim al-Barghouti’s ‘weird accent and non-Egyptian features’ seem to be a problem for some in Egypt…
Saudi-Egyptian Causeway: A Bridge Too Far?
DAVID ROBERTS: The phrase ‘believe it when you see it’ applies with significant force to the Saudi-Egyptian causeway. Snow may be seen in Cairo or Jeddah before this particular project begins.
Egypt: Looking At It Like a ‘Crotchety, Old Man’
DAVID ROBERTS: It’s perhaps the cynicism of age but looking back at the early days of the Egyptian revolution there were quite a few of us who raised flags that all wouldn’t be ‘rosy in the garden’.
First Impressions Again: An American Re-visits Cairo
MICHAEL J. TOTTEN: It’s my first trip back to the ‘Capital of the Arab World’ for a while and though much remains as ever there have been striking changes since the revolution.
Egypt’s Artists: ‘Bunch of Headless Chickens’?
M. LYNX-QUALEY: Egypt’s intellectuals are coming under increasing fire from their own …
Jihadists’ ‘About-Face’ Sign of a New Egypt
SARAH GREBOWSKI: The extraordinary has become ordinary in Egypt these days. But the conversion of one organisation to democracy demonstrates the speed and scale of transformation.
The Living Nightmare That is the Rafah Crossing
RAMZY BAROUD: The process of leaving Gaza through the Rafah Crossing to Egypt can only be described as a ‘human lottery’. A deeply unpleasant, humiliating lottery.
