French President Emmanuel Macron made his first official visit to Egypt since he assumed office on Sunday. Ahead of the visit, a presidential advisor in the Elysee told Reuters that there has been an ‘evolution’ in Macron’s thinking, and that the French president will raise subjects of human rights to the Egyptian president. “The president’s approach in October 2017 was maybe a bit different … but time has passed,” a presidential adviser said. In October 2017, when the French president hosted President Abdel Fattah El Sisi in Paris, Emmanuel Macron said that it was not up to him to “lecture” Egypt on civil liberties. “I believe in the sovereignty of states. So in the same way that I do not accept other leaders giving me lessons on how to govern my country, I don’t lecture others,” Macron reportedly said at a news conference. Sisi also responded to journalists at the news conference on the question of human rights that his forces do not use torture, and that Egypt “must be wary of all the information published by rights organizations.” “When it comes to human rights, we’re not evading an answer…
Woman Pushing Child Out of 3rd Floor Window Arrested
UPDATE: The public prosecutor’s office decided to release Hind, the mother who is accused of neglecting her son’s life by forcing him to stand in an apartment window to sneak into a nearby balcony after she lost the key to her apartment. She wrote a pledge that she would not endanger his life again. A video went viral on social media showing a woman pushing a child out of the window of a 3rd floor apartment to climb to the 6th floor to get the house keys, as the child was screaming and crying and the neighbors were yelling that he is going to fall. The child was later pulled back inside the house after he was left hanging on another apartment’s balcony. The incident was reported through the child helpline 16000, and the child welfare department of the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM) submitted a report to the attorney-general to investigate the video. Following that, security source at the Ministry of the Interior said that the ministry took security measures to determine the location of the woman of the incident. Dr. Azza al-Ashmawi, Secretary-General of the National Council…
Andariya Roadshow Exposes Sudanese and South Sudanese Musicians to Egypt
Sudan-based multi-disciplinary digital media platform Andariya launched ‘Andariya Roadshow’, a project giving selected Sudanese and South Sudanese musicians the opportunity to share their talent through a series of workshops in both Cairo and Kampala, as well as a chance to perform at Sawy Culture Wheel on 26 January. Music plays a huge role in Sudan, South Sudan, and Africa in general, where every region and tribe has its own unique composition, from ceremonial tunes to war beats and funeral melodies. However, despite the rich history in the field, music in Sudan has been suppressed as a result of various religious and cultural conflicts. In the midst of the battle rose ‘Andariya Roadshow’, founded by Omnia Shawkat and her co-founder Salma Amin, giving Sudanese and South Sudanese musicians the opportunity to enhance their digital media skills along with “alleviating the digital awareness of Sudanese & South Sudanese musicians.” Through this program, Andariya hopes to revive Sudanese and South Sudanese music scene locally and internationally. Founder of Drum Circle Sudan Salma Omar says that “we wanted to explore different rhythms in Sudan, because we feel like we have an identity crisis,” Omar chuckles,…
IMF’s Christine Lagarde Praises Egypt’s ‘Ambitious Economic Reform’
Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), issued a statement on the eighth anniversary of Egypt’s 25 January Revolution applauding the patience and commitment of the Egyptian people in light of Egypt’s “ambitious economic reform”. In a statement released on the IMF’s website, Lagarde highlighted the achievements of Egypt’s economic reform to date and reiterated the IMF’s continued support of Egypt. “The Egyptian authorities embarked on an ambitious economic reform program in 2016 that is being supported by an IMF financial arrangement. Since then, Egypt has made substantial progress as evident in the success achieved in macroeconomic stabilization,” said Lagarde in her statement. “Its growth rate is now among the highest in the region, the budget deficit is on a declining trajectory, and inflation is on track to reach the Central Bank of Egypt’s target by the end of 2019. Unemployment has declined to around 10 percent, which is the lowest since 2011, and social protection measures have been expanded.” Lagarde stressed that it is important to continue the economic reform program to ensure continued growth and higher living standards. “It is important to build on the…
Apple CEO Tim Cook Considers Investing in Egypt
Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly discussed on Tuesday with Apple CEO Tim Cook the chances for the giant tech company to make direct investments in Egypt, according to a statement by the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation. On the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, Apple CEO Tim Cook expressed the company’s interest in investing in Egypt, and that the company is examining the map and possible areas of investment. Cook added that there are 38,000 people from Egypt working in IOS apps development, and also welcomed cooperation with Egypt in the field of education and sharing Apple’s experience and successes in the field around the world. Prime Minister Madbouly said that Egypt has a very ambitious plan to improve its education system, which includes providing 750,000 tablets yearly to high school students that Apple can benefit from by providing these tablets. Madbouly also highlighted the popularity of Apple products in the Egyptian market, and that the government is working on a plan to turn Egypt into a hub for electronic industries in the Middle East. The Egyptian prime minister added that Apple can find investment opportunities in the New Administrative…
Supreme Council of Antiquities Expedition Discovers A Number of Tombs and Burial Sites in Koum al-Khalajan
Archaeological expedition by the Supreme Council of Antiquities revealed a group of tombs dating back to the Second Intermediate Period of the Hyksos and 20 burials dating back to the period of Naqada III at Koum al-Khalajan located on the border between the eastern province of Dakahlia. Mustafa Waziri, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said that the graves contain animal fossils attached to it, and a group of broken black pottery known as the Jewish hill of the Second Era, as well as circular vessels and other small potsherds and pots of pottery. In one of these vessels, the expedition found seven jars, six of which were made of lanterns, with inscriptions and decorations of this period, and the seventh jar was made out of a semi-precious stone. Head of the Egyptian Antiquities Department, Ayman Ashmawy, said that 20 burial sites have been found so far, all of which are in squatting condition. The burials date back to the predynstic period; between 6000 BC and 3100 BC. Most of the burials were found in poor condition due to destruction by subsequent human activity. Inside some of the burials were some…
Egyptian Man Stabbed to Death for Defending Woman From Harassment
UPDATE: We have launched a fund raiser to help support Sayed Taha’s family. Taha leaves behind a daughter who is in primary school and a wife. Support the cause by clicking here: https://www.gofundme.com/SayedTaha An Egyptian man was stabbed to death as he attempted to prevent another man from harassing a woman in a district of southern Cairo, a security source said, Ahram Online reports. According to the source, 28-year old Sayed Taha went to defend a female passerby as another man attempted to harass her in the middle of the street by trying to hug her and touch her inappropriately. The two men had a brawl, which resulted in the harasser stabbing Taha to death, as the source states. The attacker was arrested by the police department after receiving a report on the incident Tuesday night, and will be later sent to public prosecution office to take further necessary action. Egypt has been taking measures to fight sexual harassment in the last few years, as a new law issued in 2014 punishes sexual harassment with at least six months in jail or fines of at least 3,000 Egyptian pounds. In November 2018, for…
Mohamed Salah Disappears from Social Media Platforms after a Confusing Tweet
Egyptian striker and Liverpool player Mohamed Salah (Mo Salah) has completely vanished from social media on Wednesday morning after tweeting a vague message saying “2019 Resolution: Time to get in touch, for real” on Thursday evening. After going on a social media hiatus for two weeks, Salah deleted all his social media accounts including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram leaving fans very confused and skeptical. My guess is he’s probably sick of receiving abuse online of supposed fans — Dale 🔴🔥LFC 🔥🔴 (@DaleLFC1983) January 23, 2019 What do you mean dear 🤔 — Ali Farrag (@fWz1Zj4BuVbK2J8) January 22, 2019 Some believe that he was trying to get away from the negative energy online to focus on his upcoming competitions, while other are still trying to decipher what it meant. Salah has just scored his 50th Premiere League goal in his last game against Crystal Palace. For the second year in a row, Salah was named the Best African Footballer of 2018 by the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF). In December, the Egyptian striker was also awarded ‘Best Player in Africa Award 2018’ by the BBC for the second consecutive year. He…
Rami Malek Scores First Oscar Nomination
Egyptian-American actor Rami Malek scored his first Oscar nomination with ‘Best Actor’ for his role as Freddie Mercury in Queen biopic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. “I guess there are words you just don’t expect hearing in your life and one is that you’ve been nominated for an Oscar,” Malek told Good Morning America, “It’s an emotional moment.” The film also received other nominations including sound mixing, sound editing, film editing and best picture. Bohemian Rhapsody was also the big winner at the 76th Golden Globe Awards earlier this month, as Rami Malek won the Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama, while the film took the prize for Best Motion Picture – Drama. “I am beyond moved,” Malek said when he accepted the award, also thanking Freddie Mercury, adding: “This is for and because of you, gorgeous.” Queen guitarist, Brian May, also said that Malek deserved to be nominated for an Oscar for his ‘remarkable’ performance. Bohemian Rhapsody was released early November 2018, and has grossed over $406 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing musical biographical film of all time. Rami Malek is also known…