8745 Articles
CAIRO: The People’s Assembly (PA) approved Monday a draft law to increase compensation for the families of the martyrs who died during the January uprising and subsequent clashes with security from LE 30,000 to LE 100,000 each. The draft law will be reviewed by the constitutional and legislative affairs committee before its final approval. Saad …
CAIRO: Members of parliament Monday slammed the preliminary report issued by the fact-finding committee probing the Feb. 1 Port Said football massacre that left 71 dead, describing it as "vague" and "insufficient." Hussein Ibrahim, head of the Freedom and Justice Party’s (FJP) parliamentary bloc, demanded that the Homeland Security chief in Port Said and General …
ALEXANDRIA/CAIRO: The Human Rights Committee of the People’s Assembly rejected, in an emergency meeting Sunday night, the forced eviction of eight Coptic families from their homes in Alexandria, stressing the importance of combating sectarian tension. The PA had commissioned the committee to hold the meeting at the request of a number of MPs to investigate …
CAIRO: Prosecutor General Abdel Meguid Mahmoud overturned Monday a case against an Egyptian translator, an Australian journalist and American student, detained on allegations of inciting citizens to participate in a nationwide strike in Mahalla. "After meeting with representatives from Australian and American embassies, Mahmoud decided to drop all the charges against the detainees," member of …
CAIRO: Relative calm returned to the southern province of Qena Monday following clashes between two tribes that left 13 injured and terrorized residents, as Central Security Forces (CFS) struggled to end the violence. "I haven’t heard the sound of gun shots since 7 am, but tensions are still high and people are too scared to …
CAIRO: Human Rights defender Negad Al-Borai slammed what he described as maneuverings by the government to propose a bill regulating civil society organizations, adding that several parties were also in favor of such a proposal and not just the current Cabinet. “This discussion isn’t new,” said Al-Borai, remarking that it went as far back as …
SAN FRANCISCO: The US government is seeking software that can mine social media to predict everything from future terrorist attacks to foreign uprisings, according to requests posted online by federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies. Hundreds of intelligence analysts already sift overseas Twitter and Facebook posts to track events such as the Arab Spring. But …
KHARTOUM: Sudan’s central bank is increasing dollar supplies to local banks to stop a slide of the Sudanese pound after it generated more than $300 million from gold sales, a central bank official said on Sunday. The African country is undergoing a severe economic crisis after losing three-quarters of its oil production when South Sudan …
DUBAI: Shuaa Capital’s net loss narrowed in the fourth quarter as the investment bank cut costs and quit unprofitable businesses to offset the impact of slumping global markets and Arab political unrest. But provisions and one-time charges related to the moves weighed on full-year results. Dubai-listed Shuaa said it had a net loss of 111.8 …
Adele, who captured the world’s heart with an album about a broken romance, emerged as the top winner at the Grammy Awards, winning six trophies including the prestigious trifecta of record, song and album of the year. The British singer, who also made a triumphant comeback from vocal cord surgery on the Grammy stage Sunday, …
SINGAPORE: State-owned Egyptian General Petroleum Corp (EGPC) is seeking two more cargoes of gasoil in the spot market, after already buying four cargoes late last month, industry sources said on Monday. A natural gas pipeline that runs from Egypt to Israel was hit earlier this month, hitting supplies to Jordan. This has in turn increased …
CAIRO: Egypt’s benchmark index surged 4.2 percent to its highest since July 27, spurred by perceptions that economic growth has begun to accelerate after a year of economic and political turmoil, traders said. The market was also spurred by an announcement that France Telecom had agreed to buy most of Orascom Telecom Media and …
Silent movie "The Artist" had a night to shout about Sunday, winning seven prizes including best picture at the British Academy Film Awards. Britain’s equivalent of the Oscars rewarded the French homage to old Hollywood over a homegrown favorite, espionage thriller "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy." "The Artist," a black-and-white picture that has charmed audiences around …
CAIRO: Beltone Financial Holding is looking to sell its brokerage unit, according to the firm’s statement to Egypt’s stock exchange, as well as its office in Smart Village. The firm said it is giving board director Aladdin Saba, one of Beltone’s founders, the mandate to negotiate and receive external offers from potential buyers. “The director …
CAIRO: Eight Coptic Christian families have been evicted from a village in northern Egypt following clashes sparked by rumors of an illicit affair between a Coptic man and a Muslim woman, a rights group said on Sunday. The decision to evict the families came after a meeting of village elders — a traditional form of …
CAIRO: A minister seen as the driving force behind impending trials of democracy activists, including 19 Americans, had told investigators that Washington funded their groups to create a state of prolonged chaos in Egypt, official media reported Monday. International cooperation minister Fayza Aboul Naga, believed to be the instigator of a judicial probe into foreign-funded …
PARIS: France Telecom said it had reached a preliminary accord to buy out most of Egyptian tycoon Naguib Sawiris’ stake in their jointly owned telecom operator Mobinil, in a deal that will see the French group pay out about €1.5 billion, according to Reuters calculations. France Telecom was already the biggest shareholder in Mobinil, and …
CAIRO: A protester died of his wounds on Sunday after he was injured in clashes with police last week, the official MENA news agency said. His death at a Cairo hospital brings to 16 the death toll from five days of clashes in Cairo and the canal city of Suez. The unrest began on February …
CAIRO: A United Nations freelance consultant was fatally shot in the head while driving through an upscale Cairo neighborhood on Sunday, Egyptian security officials said, as concerns persist over a security vacuum blamed on lax policing since the uprising that overthrew President Hosni Mubarak last year. The Egyptian capital’s wealthier districts have seen a rise …
CAIRO: Veteran labor unionist Kamal El-Fayoumi was arrested in the industrial city of Mahalla along with an Australian journalist, an American student, a translator and a driver on allegations of inciting Mahalla residents to join a nationwide call for civil disobedience Saturday. Translator Aliya Alwi tweeted that she, along with journalist Austin Mackell and American …
CAIRO: The preliminary report by a parliamentary fact-finding committee probing the Feb. 1 Port Said football massacre that left 71 dead placed the political responsibility for the events on security forces, the Egyptian Football Federation, Al Masry Club and then Port Said Stadium Authority, the committee announced Sunday during a general PA session. “The security …
CAIRO: Marking a year since ousted President Hosni Mubarak handed over power to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) on Feb. 11, 2011, university students have called for a general strike to end military rule, but their calls have yet to mobilize the masses. Osama Ahmed, spokesman of the students of the Revolutionary …
CAIRO: Arabs will end their observer mission to Syria and will ask the UN Security Council to send an international peacekeeping force to end the bloodshed there, according to a draft resolution obtained by Reuters on Sunday. Arab ministers met in Cairo to revive diplomatic efforts after Russia and China vetoed a UN resolution that …
LIBREVILLE, Gabon: The Confederation of African Football says it will give $150,000 to families of the victims of violence at a football match in Egypt. CAF’s donation for those affected by the clashes after a league game in Port Said on Feb. 1, when over 70 people were killed, was approved at a meeting late …
CAIRO: Kuwait Energy unveiled a new oil well in the Western Sahara, its fifteenth discovery in Egypt, the company said. This is the third discovery for the company in the Abu Sennan exploration area where Kuwait Energy is the operator, holding a 50 percent working interest. The remaining working interest in Abu Sennan belongs to …
CAIRO: The People’s Assembly (PA) referred the bread and wheat crisis to the economic committee to prepare a report on the solution to the crisis and put it up to a vote, the result of which will be binding to the government, said PA Speaker Saad El-Katatny. The Minister of Supply and Domestic Trade Gouda …
CAIRO: The yield on Egyptian treasury bills rose at an auction on Sunday, and the central bank sold the entire LE 3.5 billion ($549.5 million) worth it had asked for, the Finance Ministry said. The average yield on the 266-day treasury bills rose to 15.923 percent from 15.802 percent at the last issue on Jan …
DUBAI: Orascom Telecom Media and Technology said on Sunday it is in talks with France Telecom over the future of their Egyptian joint venture Mobinil. The Egyptian firm said a decision was expected to come after a Feb. 13 meeting between the companies. France Telecom is the biggest shareholder in Mobinil and the second biggest …
CAIRO: Amid calls for a general strike, Egypt’s benchmark index, EGX 30 was up 2.93 percent on Sunday, its highest in six months. The streets of Cairo are also busy and bustling as usual, unfazed by revolutionary youth groups who were calling for civil disobedience. Egypt’s main index closed with a value of 4,892.92 points …
CAIRO: Arab foreign ministers gathered in Cairo on Sunday to consider new moves in the Syrian crisis with the bloodshed showing no signs of abating, even spilling over into Lebanon. The Syrian National Council said Arab recognition of the opposition umbrella group was imminent after Syrian authorities moved against protest flashpoints and a general was …
