CAIRO: The judge in the trial of Ayman Nour, runner-up in this year’s presidential elections, stormed out of Monday’s court session after lawyers of both Nour and other co-defendants exchanged insults and shouted at each other. Judge Abdel Salam Gomaa stood up from his chair saying “I am leaving while security and police tried to …

CAIRO: Alongside the grassy park which lies in front of the Moustafa Mahmoud Mosque in Mohandaseen, children ages five through 10 stood shoulder to shoulder, each holding up a photo of a dead toddler – underneath the photos were messages calling him a martyr. Deng Kual, 4, is the latest person to die as the …

CAIRO: Just one quarter of registered voters cast ballots in the month-long parliamentary elections that ended this week,Egypt’s justice minister said Saturday. The three-stage elections were among Egypt’s most violent, resulting in at least 10 deaths and scores of injures since polling opened Nov.9 and ended Wednesday. Rights groups said the violence was triggered by …

  CAIRO: The violence that marred Egypt’s parliamentary election has called into question the sincerity of President Hosni Mubarak’s vow, under U.S. pressure, to open up the country’s political system. Police crackdowns on voters not only brought sharp criticism from Washington, they also failed to blunt gains by the banned Muslim Brotherhood, which won at …

EL-ARISH, Egypt: Security authoritieson Thursday released40 Egyptians who had been detainedseveral months ago inthe investigation into deadlybombings at tourist resorts inthe Sinai Peninsula. Hundreds of cheering family members greeted the freed detainees, while others stood by disappointed that their sons were not among those freed. The detainees were brought from prison to the State Security …

CAIRO: The arrest of the editor of a local news website this week has raised fresh concerns among defenders of freedom of expression. “Such practices reflect the government’s lack of tolerance for freedom of expression and opinion, said Mahmoud Aly of the Egyptian Association for the Support of Democracy. Ahmed Mohammed Mahmoud, the editor of …

CAIRO: In a highly charged conclusion to an already dramatic month of parliamentary elections, the run-offs for the third and final round of voting were marked by violent clashes between voters and security forces, charges of widespread election fraud and the arrest of an opposition party chief. “The actions of all those who partook in …

CAIRO: Islamists across the Arab world have taken heart from the Muslim Brotherhood’s strongest ever showing in the Egyptian elections, saying this could weaken the appeal of violent ideologies. Islamists from Tunisia to Syria see the gains in the elections as a victory for the Brotherhood’s strategy of gradual and peaceful steps toward their view …

CAIRO: Preliminary results from Wednesday’s third-round run-off election for the People’s Assembly will bring the banned Muslim Brotherhood an additional 12 seats, according to estimates released by the group, earning them a total 88 places in the 454-member parliament. President Hosni Mubarak’s National Democratic Party (NDP) walked away with a total 333 seats, or 73 …

CAIRO: The decision by the presiding judge to jail the Egyptian opposition party leader Ayman Nour and other defendants during their trial on Monday underscores the highly politicized conduct of the case, Human Rights Watch said Wednesday. Nour, a member of parliament who ran against President Hosni Mubarak in September’s presidential election, faces criminal charges …

CAIRO: It was one of the most detailed pieces of legislation ever proposed by the Muslim Brotherhood: A ban on alcohol in Egypt, setting down a punishment of 30 lashes and tough fines for importers or producers and 20 lashes for those who operate drinking establishments. The bill, put forward by Brotherhood lawmaker Hussein Mohammed …

CAIRO: An Egyptian engineer on trial in London was brought to court again on allegations of plotting to kill a minister in the current cabinet, as well as top political leaders in Egypt in a bid to rebuild his career at home. Mamdouh Hamza, 58, a renowned Egyptian engineer and the man behind important national …

BADAWAY, Egypt: Tear gas filled the air and the sound of gun shots echoed throughout a number of normally subdued Delta villages as the third round run-offs for the people’s assembly took place, concluding a month of parliamentary elections. Riot police formed human barricades outside polling stations and angry would-be voters, many of them Muslim …

CAIRO: Voters in eight Egyptian governorates are set to head back to the polls one final time for run-offs in the third round of the People’s Assembly elections. Those candidates elected today will finalize the remaining 136 of the parliament’s 444 elected seats. The National Democratic Party has secured 222 seats and analysts say the …

CAIRO: With the outcry resulting from the extent of violence and violations taking place during the parliamentary elections, and the inability to secure a free and fair atmosphere, a civil society and elections monitor group has called for the Egyptian government to resign The National Campaign for Monitoring the Elections, a coalition of four civil …

CAIRO: Egypt’s leading opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, accused the government Monday of detaining more than 1,250 supporters during ongoing legislative elections, while a press watchdog claimed police stopped film crews – including a U.S.-funded TV station – covering the polls. The criticisms are the latest in a series of complaints against Egypt’s government for …

CAIRO: Egypt said the number of visitors to the country fell 15 percent in August compared to the same time last year, a drop analysts said was short-term following bombings at the resort of Sharm El-Sheikh in July. The central bank said 743,000 people visited Egypt in August 2005, compared to 877,000 in August 2004.The …

CAIRO: A U.S.-based human rights organization criticized the United States government for its claims that the Egyptian government was dedicated to having free and fair elections, and accuses it of ignoring reports of violence on polling days. Human Rights Watch sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Dec. 2, in response …

CAIRO: In an effort to combat the acute shortages of economy housing units, the government has launched a number of initiatives aimed at dealing with the situation. President Hosni Mubarak, Minister of Housing, Utilities and Urban Communities, Mohamed Ibrahim Suleiman and the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) have proposed a six year plan for 2005-2011 …

CAIRO: While the Muslim Brotherhood, which has enjoyed unprecedented success during Egypt’s parliamentary elections, gained no seats outright in the Dec. 1 vote, some 30 of their 49 candidates running in the third stage will take part in the run-offs. The Brotherhood candidates, who are running as independents given that their organization is currently outlawed, …

CAIRO: “She reached for the highest professional standards in her work,earned the respect and affection of her colleagues and took profound pleasure in life. Her throaty laughter fills this room still, are the words inscribed by Nadia Younes’ former colleagues on the wall of the United Nations Spokesman’s Office in New York. In her tragically …

CAIRO: The third and final round of Egypt s parliamentary elections was overshadowed by mass arrests, violence and at least one death. Eyewitnesses in the governorates of Mansoura and Sharqiya reported human blockades in the early hours of voting. Scuffles broke out frequently in front of polling stations, with opposition supporters alleging the fights were …