PARIS: World envoys to the United Nations cultural organization UNESCO gave 22 out of 57 votes to Culture Minister Farouk Hosni Thursday in his bid to be elected the new director general, despite widespread charges of anti-Semitism against him. Hosni, who has been in office for 22 years, is seen as best placed among nine …

CAIRO: Marking Lailat Al Qadr – the night it is believed the first verses of the Quran were revealed to Prophet Mohamed – President Hosni Mubarak gave a speech at Al Azhar University highlighting the need to show the true picture of Islam. “It’s time to work on civilizing the nation of Islam and to …

CAIRO: Fifty-seven-year old brigadier-general Ahmed Ghanem resigned from his position at the ministry of interior to join opposition party Al-Ghad, pledging to run for parliamentary elections scheduled for next year. “I applied for early retirement to join Al-Ghad and to have enough time to pursue a political career, Ghanem told Daily News Egypt, who until …

CAIRO: Egypt has defended its role on Lebanese politics against accusations that it is partially responsible for hindering the formation of a new government. The MENA news agency quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki as saying, “To find some voices inside Lebanon holding Egypt responsible for the impediment that happened betrays a misunderstanding of the …

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama is arriving at a crossroads in his bold bid to revive Arab-Israeli peace talks as he prepares to make his debut at the UN General Assembly next week. Obama, now eight months in office, risks losing credibility as a new type of peacemaker in the White House if he fails …

BEIRUT: Saad Hariri was reappointed Lebanon s prime minister on Wednesday after he stepped down from the post last week over rising tension with his opponents, a presidential statement said. Hariri was called on by President Michel Sleiman to form a government after 73 out of a possible 128 lawmakers nominated him to the post. …

CAIRO: Today is the third and last day of the scheduled two-way opening of the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza but an extension might be sought if needed. The crossing opened Tuesday to allow some 5,000 Gazans seeking medical treatment, studying abroad or holding foreign passports to cross the border over the three-day …

CAIRO: The Rafah crossing will remain open for an extra day Friday to extend the opening to its fourth day for Palestinians with the requisite permits in Gaza to travel to and fro. Gazans seeking medical treatment, studying abroad or holding foreign passports are the ones being allowed to enter Egypt, 1,900 of them having …

MOGADISHU: Egypt on Monday handed over to Somalia s Puntland authorities eight suspected pirates who had seized two Egyptian fishing vessels before being overpowered by the crew, officials said. We have received the eight pirates from Egyptian officials. They are now in the hands of the police for questioning and will be awaiting trial, the …

BAGHDAD: The Iraqi television reporter jailed for throwing his shoes at former US president George W. Bush was freed on Tuesday and said he was tortured by electric shocks and simulated drowning while in custody. Muntazer Al-Zaidi had been behind bars ever since he shouted it is the farewell kiss, you dog, at Bush last …

CAIRO: Hany Anan, one of the founders of the Kefaya Political Movement for Change, said that he is not opposed to Gamal Mubarak succeeding his father in the 2011 presidential elections on condition that Article 77, concerning the number of terms each president is allowed to have in office, be changed. On the talk show …

CAIRO: The Foreign Ministry has released a statement defending the shooting of African migrants attempting to cross the border into Israel, claiming that national security takes precedence. Ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki said in the statement that primary objectives in these situations “are the Egyptian borders security, national security protection, guaranteeing the safety and security of …

CAIRO: The meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Hosni Mubarak was ostensibly about the peace process – with comments released afterwards indicating as such – but it is believed that captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was the main topic on the agenda. Netanyahu was in Cairo Sunday to meet with Mubarak privately …

BAGHDAD: Hopes that Muntazer Al-Zaidi, the television reporter jailed for throwing his shoes at former US president George W. Bush, would be freed were dashed on Monday by legal red tape, his family told AFP. Zaidi s brother, Durgham, and his sisters were in tears as he told reporters that the necessary paperwork had not …

CAIRO: Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden described President Barack Obama as powerless to stop the war in Afghanistan, and Americans inability to grasp why the Sept. 11 attacks occurred has cost you a lot without any result whatsoever. The remarks by the terrorist leader were released two days after the eighth anniversary of the Sept. …

GAZA CITY: Two tunnels used for smuggling goods from Egypt into Gaza collapsed on Saturday, killing two people and highlighting the risks Gazans take to defy an Israeli-led blockade of their territory. The two victims were 18 and 20 years old, said Dr. Moawiya Hassanain, a Palestinian health official. Gaza smugglers operate dozens of underground …

CAIRO: A survey conducted by The Israel Project claims that Egyptians are more open to peace with Israel than other neighbors such as Jordan and Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. In a survey canvassing the opinions of 800 Egyptians, it was found they were more open to diplomatic relations with Israel than their …

JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Lebanon on Sunday that Israel will not hold back when attacked and holds the Lebanese government responsible for any assault on his country. Netanyahu delivered the warning after two rockets fired from Lebanon struck northern Israel on Friday. Israel responded immediately with artillery fire, and the exchange ratcheted up …

CAIRO: Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is to meet Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak over iftar when he visits Egypt Sunday. Netanyahu “will attend an iftar dinner with President Mubarak and discuss bilateral and regional issues said a statement released by the Israeli embassy. The traditional breaking of the Ramadan fast will take place at the …

BEIRUT: Saad Hariri announced on Thursday that he was stepping down as Lebanon s prime minister-designate after the Hezbollah-led opposition rejected a team he proposed earlier this week. Given that my commitment to forming a government of national unity has run up against difficulties that everyone now knows about, I announce that I have informed …

CAIRO: The Egyptian authorities must rein in their border guards, Amnesty International said on Wednesday, a day after four migrants from sub-Saharan Africa were shot dead near the Israeli border. Enough is enough, said Malcolm Smart, the rights group s Middle East director. They must assert greater control over their forces at the border and …

JERUSALEM: Well over half of nearly 1,400 Palestinians killed in Israel s Gaza war were civilians, including 252 children younger than 16, a leading Israeli human rights groups said Wednesday, challenging Israel s claim that most of the dead were militants. Determining the number of civilian casualties is seen as key in the ongoing debate …

CAIRO: The Rafah border crossing will be opened for two days next Tuesday to allow Palestinians in Gaza to enter Egypt and vice-versa. Palestinians currently in Egypt will be allowed to return and Gazans seeking medical treatment, studying abroad or holding foreign passports will be allowed to enter Egypt. Egypt will consider extending the opening …

RAFAH: Egyptian border guards have fatally shot four African men and wounded three others trying to cross the border with Israel. Security and hospital officials say the men were a group of illegal migrants trying to get to Israel from the southern town of Rafah on Tuesday. They say the migrants ignored warning shots. The …

KHARTOUM: The political supremo of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, Khaled Meshaal, said his group produces and smuggles weapons, during a visit to Sudan on Wednesday. Your brothers in Palestine, despite the blockade and the closing of border passages … despite the fleets from east and west, despite all of this, we buy arms, we …

CAIRO: Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Tuesday that Israel would have to revive peace talks and freeze settlement construction before Arab states take steps toward a normalization of ties. If Israel took a big step toward Palestinians that reflected its sincerity and readiness for serious negotiations … only then if some Arab parties …

DUBAI: Seven Emiratis and an Afghani have gone on trial in the United Arab Emirates on charges of promoting terrorism and raising money to finance acts of violence, the Al-Ittihad newspaper reported on Tuesday. They appeared on Monday in the Federal Supreme Court in the capital, Abu Dhabi, on charges of belonging to a group …

CAIRO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to visit Cairo Sunday for talks with President Hosni Mubarak regarding an array of issues including the prisoner swap exchange with Hamas and the stalled peace process. “He will come to discuss regional and bilateral issues, as a part of the frequent dialogue between the countries, said …