Liverpool sensation Mohamed Salah claimed the 2018 Confederation of African Football Player of the Year award on Tuesday. Salah, a beloved Egyptian figure and international football sensation, beat Sadio Mane (Senegal) and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon) to the title. It is the second consecutive year that the 26-year-old Egyptian footballer was given award; he received the accolade in a ceremony in Senegal’s Dakar. “I have dreamt of winning this award since I was a child and now I have done so twice in a row,” said Salah according to the BBC. The footballer has scored 16 goals in 29 Liverpool appearances so far this season. He scored a record 44 times during the 2017-18 campaign. Despite an injury following the final Champions league game, Salah also contributed two goals in the World Cup and four in qualification outings for the Africa Cup of Nations in 2018 for Egypt. The momentous decision of his award was on par with news that Egypt would host the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in June, outbidding South Africa for the position after winning the majority of votes. After Cameroon was stripped of the right to host…
beIN Sports Will Stop Airing in Egypt After a Dispute with CNE
Qatari conglomerate beIN Media Group, owners of the biggest sports channels in the region ‘beIN Sports’ , declared on 8 January that the channels will no longer air in Egypt as a result of a commercial disagreement with the Cable Network Egypt (CNE) company. beIN Media Group revealed on Twitter that CNE failed to sign a deal which led to this decision. Information about the deal has not been disclosed. “Our audience in Egypt can continue enjoying our services through their smart phones,” the statement added. beIN MEDIA GROUP is unable to provide services on CNE as of January 8th, 2019 as a result of CNE refusing to agree reasonable commercial terms. Viewers in Egypt can continue to enjoy beIN CONNECT services on smartphones and other devices by visiting: https://t.co/GLVgoWXUso pic.twitter.com/fSaDfzXyMp — beIN MEDIA GROUP (@beINMEDIAGROUP) January 8, 2019 However, CNE released a statement saying that the issue will “soon” be resolved. The statement clarified that “if the problem is not solved, the customers will get back their money.” beIN Sports TV Channels, are the primary broadcasters to all the Confederation of African Football (CAF) matches in the MENA…
Saudi Woman Running Away from Family is Now Under UNHCR Protection
The story of the 18-year-old Saudi women who fled her family seeking asylum to reclaim her rights has been the talk of the town for the past few days with the trending hashtag ‘Save Rahaf’ on Twitter. Rahaf Al-Qunun is a young Saudi woman studying at a local university traveled to Thailand via Kuwait in an attempt to seek asylum in Australia. She revealed to the BBC that the she is fearing her life because she is an apostate, an act that is considered a crime and is punishable by death in Saudi Arabia. Upon arriving to Bangkok, she was met by a Saudi diplomat who seized her passport which meant that she does not meet the Thai visa requirements. This forced the Thai officials to come to the decision to deport her back to her country for “violating the law”. According to Rahaf, she only arrived to Bangkok to catch a connecting flight to Australia, a country she allegedly already obtained a visa for. The chief of immigration police Surachate Hakparn said “the Saudi Arabia embassy contacted the immigration police… and said that the girl had run away from…
Egypt to Host 2019 African Cup of Nations
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced on Tuesday that Egypt has been granted the hosting rights of the 2019 African Cup of Nations after winning the majority of votes. https://twitter.com/DiskiAfrika/status/1082598199842480129 Egypt won 16 votes. One vote went to South Africa and another vote was abstained. The African football governing body had decided to move the announcement of the decision one day earlier before the initial date on Wednesday. After Cameroon was stripped of the right to host in December due to delay in the preparations, the remaining spot was given to Egypt and South Africa. In an effort to convince the Executive Committee members to vote for Egypt, the Egyptian delegation created a promotional video that highlighted Egypt’s ability to host as well as its various stadiums such as the Port said, the Ismailia, Al Salam, Alexandria, Suez and Cairo stadiums. Egypt will have six months to prepare for the kick-off of the African Cup of Nations. The African Cup of Nations is scheduled to start on 15 June and end on 13 July 2019. https://youtu.be/M4wfCl1xUMA Egypt previously hosted the African Cup of Nations in 1959, 1974, 1986 and 2006, and claimed seven…
African Union to Unveil New African Passport Next Month
Chairperson of the African Union Moussa Faki Mahamat announced in a statement that the Commission will present details on the design, production and issuance of the new African passport at the 32nd Summit of the African Union in February. “I am pleased to stress that, in February 2019, in Addis Ababa, at the 32nd Summit of our Union, the Commission will present, for adoption, guidelines on the design, production and issuance of the African passport, the materialization of which will take us one step closer to the long-held dream of complete free movement across the continent.” Mahamat said in the statement. https://twitter.com/AU_KwesiQuartey/status/1080355724889333761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1080355724889333761&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fqz.com%2Fafrica%2F1516507%2Fafrican-union-to-unveil-details-on-african-passport-design%2F The move is meant to unify all Africans, empower countries with weak passports and create free movement for all people in the continent. Only two countries, Seychelles and Benin, offer a visa free travel to all African countries, while other countries such as South Sudan require a visa to visit 48 countries in the continent. First introduced in 2016 for heads of African states, the idea now extends to ordinary African citizens. Yet many have questioned whether the new passport will be successfully implemented, as many African states are still…
African Cup Host Decision by Jan 9, Egypt Competes with SA
The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations host is set to be chosen on January 9 with South Africa and Egypt as frontline contenders for the position. Cameroon was stripped of its position as host by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) due to delay in preparations and security concerns, leaving the spot vacant for the staging event in June 15 to July 13. Accordingly, Egypt officially stepped in for the spot on December 13 and launched its promotional video to boost its bid on Monday. The video highlighted Egypt’s readyness to host as well as its various stadiums such as the Port said, the Ismailia, Al Salam, Alexandria, Suez and Cairo stadiums. The upcoming Africa Cup of Nations will be different this year around as it will be expanded to 24 times for the first time, instead of 16. Egypt’s Pharaohs have claimed seven AFCON victories; the country hosted the event four times: in 1959, 1974, 1986 and lastly in 2006. Egypt’s Borg El Arab Stadium is one of the top biggest football stadiums worldwide, with a seating capacity of 86,000. In July 2018, Dr. Ashraf Sobhy, Minister of Youth and Sports,…
Egypt’s President El-Sisi Inaugurates the Largest Cathedral in the Middle East
Egypt’s president Abdel-Fattah El Sisi along side Pope Tawadros II inaugurated the largest cathedral in the Middle East on 6 January located in the New Administrative Capital on the outskirts of Cairo right in time for the Coptic Christmas celebrations. Official spokesman of the Coptic Church, Paul Halim, revealed that the church’s inauguration also hosted a Christmas mass. Those who attended the mass registered beforehand. The cathedral is officially called ‘Cathedral of the birth of Christ’ and can 8,000 to 9,000 people. Located east of the exhibition project EXPO and south of the central park, the edifice, sprawled over a surface of 7,500 square meters, will be home to several features including papal headquarters, administrative offices, a main square, papal headquarters, and a reception hall. The Coptic Church, which brought Christianity to Egypt in the first century AD, celebrates Christmas on January 7 every year. It follows the old system that the Roman Catholic Church abandoned when it adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1582. It is estimated that about 10 percent of Egypt’s population are Copts. The new administrative capital was announced in March of 2015, and it is currently being constructed…
Egyptian-American Rami Malek Wins Golden Globe
Egyptian-American Rami Malek’s portrayal of Freddie Mercury in ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ won him a Golden Globe on Sunday night, with Malek winning ‘Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama’. Malek, who faced off against Bradley Cooper (A Star is Born), Willem Dafoe (At Eternity’s Gate), Lucas Hedges (Boy Erased) and John David Washington (BlacKKKlansman) had been widely praised for his portrayal of Mercury in the biographical film about iconic band Queen. “Oh my God. I am beyond moved. My heart is pounding out of my chest right now,” expressed Malek as he took to the stage for his acceptance speech with the Golden Globe in his hands. “This is a profound honour to receive this and to be counted among such extraordinary actors. I am privileged to be counted among you.” Malek ended his classy and humble acceptance speech by thanking Queen and then Mercury. “Thank you to Freddie Mercury for giving me the joy of a lifetime,” said Malek to a room filled with applause. “I love you, you beautiful man. This is for you, gorgeous.” In addition to Malek’s success, the 2018 film ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ also…
King Tut Exhibit To Tour Seven European Countries
According to local news outlet Egypt Today, the exhibition of Tutankhamun is set to tour ten cities in seven European countries. Although it is not yet clear which countries or cities, it is known that the temporary exhibition “King Tut: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh” will be moved from California to Paris in March 2019. The interim exhibition will be displayed at La Grande Halle de la Villette in Paris on March 18, 2019 through September 30, 2019. It currently located at the California Science Center although it is managed by the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities and companies Exhibitions International and IMG The exhibition, which racked up $US 5 million and was visited by more than 500,000 visitors, was first exhibited on March 24, 2018 on the occasion of the 100th aniversary of King Tutankhamun’s tomb discovery by Howard Carter. Its purpose was not only to foster international cultural relations with countries worldwide but to also promote tourism to Egypt and asisst with the funding of the Grand Egyptian Museum. Tourism constitutes a significant segment of Egypt’s economy; many tourists travel to Egypt to visit its ancient sites, museum and…