59 Articles
CAIRO: A group of student activists and alumni from the American University in Cairo (AUC) brought the solidarity campaign to campus yesterday in the form of t-shirts and a message. The group is expected to distribute approximately 100 t-shirts to students with the insignia of “Free Droubi printed on the front. “I want people to …
CAIRO: On Saturday, two groups of detainees from earlier demonstrations saw their time in prison extended. A group of activists detained in April and another group detained two weeks ago both had another 15 days slapped on them. The acclaimed blogger, Alaa, was amongst the second group. “I don’t expect him to get out on …
CAIRO: The court of appeals on Monday upheld the government’s ban on recognizing the rights of Bahais to have their religion listed on identification cards and passports. “I am disappointed that they haven’t given us the rights due to us as Egyptian citizens, a Bahai in Cairo tells The Daily Star Egypt. “I had just …
CAIRO: The Australian Embassy has a new flower bouquet to display, following yesterday’s present from sheep across the region. Jason Baker, director of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) for Asia Pacific, donned a sheep suit while presenting the flowers in commemoration of Australia’s temporary ban on live animal exports to the Middle …
CAIRO: Demonstrations and protests in Egypt often bring arrests and detentions to the demonstrators. From there they are sent to prisons and detention centers across the nation for 15 days before seeing a court. For many, the idea of going to demonstrate is a difficult concept to accept, knowing that it could be you picked …
CAIRO: With the arrest of Alaa Seif al-Islam on Sunday, Egyptian bloggers are feeling the heat. No longer are they under the radar of security personnel reading what they write on their Web sites. Al-Islam was arrested along with 10 other activists on Sunday during a demonstration in solidarity with judges Mahmoud Mekki and Hisham …
CAIRO: As the detainees exited the courtroom Monday, they were heading toward a further 15 days in prison, when their cases will again be reviewed. The eleven activists had been arrested two weeks ago in the early morning at one of the demonstrations in support for the beleaguered judges. Over the past few days they …
CAIRO: After years of oppression, the Bahai community in Egypt struck gold a few weeks ago after a court decision was handed down granting them full citizenship rights in the country. However, last week saw the Egyptian government say that they were appealing the case. “We were ecstatic about the case that allowed our community …
CAIRO: Considering the recent upheaval in Egypt between Muslim and Coptic communities it is not surprising that the Coptic language is experiencing a resurgence throughout the globe. In the United States and Europe, people of Egyptian origin are beginning to move toward implementing a strategy to reclaim their native tongue. Sally Bishai, editor-in-chief at X …
CAIRO: Hundreds of riot police once again converged on downtown Cairo, Monday, in order to stem another demonstration, this time organized by the Nasserite Party in connection with Labor Day and labor laws in the country. However, it was also used as a follow up in support of a previous demonstration showing solidarity for two …
CAIRO: Shisha first found its way into the land of the Nile with the Ottoman conquest in the early 19th Century. It is the modern shisha, however, that is uniquely Egyptian. With the addition of molasses into the tobacco first taking place in the early days of the 20th Century in order to move away …
I was sitting in a café just yesterday, listening to a group of Egyptian youth discuss the role of education in the region. Their argument went something like this: because Egypt now uses the American system of education, no longer do Egyptians have the mathematical knowledge to succeed in the world. While they are probably …
The Alexandria riots are something that Egypt needs to figure out; what is causing all this hate? We have heard that this is an anomaly and it doesn’t happen often, simply a few ‘fanatics’ that are ruining the good name of Muslims and Copts across the nation. It is hard to digest. Within the past …
CAIRO: In a world of hyper-globalization and the idea of a clash of civilizations taking hold in the west and the Islamic world, it is difficult to find those individuals that truly transcend borders. Ahdaf Soueif is one of those few people that are able to capture the entire world through her writing. She is …
The past few weeks saw the error in foreign news coverage of the Middle East come to life as an international group promoting peace journeyed throughout the region. The Breaking the Ice peace mission began their journey overland in Tel Aviv early March and has just recently ended the trek by planting an olive tree …
CAIRO: A new form of information is storming through Egypt and the Arab world. It may be a few years away from dominating the industry, but Arabic e-book publishing is starting to make a direct impact in the world of literature and culture. Ramy Habeeb, managing director of Kotob Arabia, an e-book publishing house, has …
CAIRO: One of Egypt’s most renowned writers, Ahdaf Soueif, spoke at the American University in Cairo (AUC) Thursday night. The famed writer discussed the importance of understanding how the west portrays Arabs in fiction, and her discussion was met with enthusiasm in a packed auditorium on campus. “The portrayal of Arabs in the west is …
CAIRO: After almost a month of trekking through the desert, the Breaking the Ice expedition is heading home. Despite the bumps experienced along the way, the team members say the mission was a success in building peace throughout the troubled Middle East region. “It was defiantly worth it, says Latif Yahia via telephone. “If it …
CAIRO: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Egypt needs to raise public awareness of bird flu, its causes and prevention. However, despite this claim, there is little information coming out of the WHO regional office in Cairo regarding methods to accomplish this. At least two Egyptians have died as a result of the H5N1 …
CAIRO: As the 25 year-old emergency laws are planning to be lifted by the government, opposition groups, especially Kefaya, have expressed their hesitancy in support such an action. They argue that when the emergency laws are gone, the new anti-terrorism bill proposed by the government will be even worse. “The emergency law should be repealed, …
SALUM: The journey to reclaim peace in the Middle East found a rejuvenated spirit late Tuesday night at the Libyan border, despite their biggest setback to date. As the participants in the Breaking the Ice (BTI) campaign to promote peace in the Middle East returned to the Egyptian side of the border, tensions were high, …
CAIRO: Coptic women are increasingly fearful of being kidnapped and forced to convert to Islam. It is becoming more apparent that women are being taken forcefully from their families and held against their will by Muslim men in order to be forced into conversion and, while most of the women are released soon after their …
CAIRO: With the recent annulment of Al-Masry Al-Youm journalist Abdel-Nasser Al Zoheiry’s sentence, this piece was almost unnecessary; but then, less than a week after his release, Amira Malash, a reporter with Al Fajr newspaper, was imprisoned. Egyptian media have been at the forefront of international and national news, and it’s not been good for …
CAIRO: Egyptians have until March 9 to register tand receive a voting card, which allows the holder to vote in any future presidential elections or national referendums. The lack of publicity of the registration process has come under pressure from opposition groups. Many, including the Kefaya movement, believe that this is due to the National …
CAIRO: Being an Islamist is an already assuming task, even in a country that has turned toward Islam in recent years. However, for some, there is a middle road between modernist and Islamist. That path is the chosen route of Walid Ramadan, a Cairo businessman, who expressed his desire to see Egypt become a moderate …
CAIRO: At approximately 9:00 pm Friday night, Mohamed Aboutrika sent his penalty shot into the back of the net, bringing Egypt the African Cup of Nations title. Egyptian goalkeeper Essam Al Hadari raced after Aboutrika immediately following the goal, and the celebrations began. At the stadium, across Cairo and throughout Egypt, people came together in …
CAIRO: For thousands of years, art has held an honored place in Egypt, being rich with both artists and patrons.While art continues to have an influence on the people of this country, many feel it is no longer held in high esteem by the government. The sad state of many of the buildings provided for …
CAIRO: Considered an extinct language, the Coptic language is believed to exist only in the liturgical language of the Coptic Church in Egypt. The ancient language that lost in prominence thanks largely to the Arab incursion into Egypt over 1300 years ago remains the spoken language of the church and only two families in Egypt. …
Activism in Egypt has never before reached the level it is currently enjoying.