Egypt’s largest metro station in the Middle East, Heliopolis metro station, will be inaugurated on Sunday in Cairo, receiving commuters as of Sunday morning. According to the transportation ministry, the station is built on a 10,000 square metre space, making it the biggest in the region. Construction began in 2015, and is set to connect to Cairo International Airport and Al-Salam city on the outskirts of the capital. Running from Attaba to Korba, the third line extends from Haroun Al Rasheed Street to Shams Club and comprises three stations stretching over four kilometers in Heliopolis. The line will also pass through well-off neighborhoods like Zamalek, Mohandiseen and Agouza Previously, commuters had to drop off at Attaba station in the second line and then take another means of transportation to go to Heliopolis. The new station is fitted with automated machines for direct ticket purchases, as well as digital signage system to help direct passengers within the facility. It will eliminate nearly two million commutes above ground, reducing Cairo’s traffic congestion and saving LE 250 million ($14.2 million) in the cost of public transportation. The Cairo underground metro system currently carries…
Egypt’s Pope Tawadros Opens Coptic Orthodox Church in Belgium
Egypt’s Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Patriarch of St. Mark Diocese inaugurated on Thursday the Saint Mary and Mar Youhanna Church in Antwerp, Belgium, Al Ahram reports. A large number of Christian religious leaders from Egypt, the Netherlands and France attended the church’s inauguration. The ownership of the church was transferred to the Coptic Orthodox Church after initially being owned by the Catholic Church. On Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron Pope Tawadros II at the Elysee Palace in Paris as part of his tour in Europe. The meeting covered the conditions of the Christian Egyptian expats in France and the dangers of the threat of terrorism and violence targeting ethnic and religious minorities. Last Tuesday, Pope Tawadros II visited the European Parliament in Brussels to discuss the situation of Christians living in the Middle East, and met with the EPP Working Group on Intercultural and Religious Dialogue. Christianity is second largest religion in Egypt, most likely accounting for about 15–25% of the country’s population, who are mostly all adherent to the Coptic Orthodox Church. As one of the oldest religious institutions in the world, the Orthodox Churches consider themselves to…
Stormy Lebanon Protests Triggered by Tax Decisions and Austerity Measures
A series of violent protests have erupted across Lebanon’s capital as part of nation-wide demonstrations against increasing austerity measures, corruption and an ailing economy. The protests started early on Thursday, following the government’s decision to charge 20 cents per day for voice over internet protocol use (VOIP) in WhatsApp. VOIP is a feature extant in various applications, including Facebook, and WhatsApp, which enables users to make free phone calls as long as their devices are connected to standard internet. It is considered a cheaper alternative to hefty phone calls in some countries. Government plans also included gradual increase to the value-added tax as well as modified tobacco and gasoline prices. The decision sparked anger across Lebanon, with photos and video footage of protesters setting fire to tyres, garbage bins, shops and blocked roads spread through social media channels. The protests in Lebanon may be sparked by the proposed tax on Whats App, but it is a culmination of a shortage of bread, fuel, basic goods & services, and comes a week after the worst wildfires in decades. I sure do hope, people put politics & religion aside & demand dignity….
Music for Change: AltShift Organizes First Zero-waste Festival in Egypt
Ouishare and the Festival Internacional De Innovacion Social (FIIS) are organizing a full day of music in Cairo on Saturday October 19 with the aim of enacting alternative solutions for society and the environment. The Latin American festival will bring together artists, startups, innovators, NGOs, and Alternative Marketplace to celebrate social innovation and share experiences. This comes as part of the AltShift festival, the first of its kind event in the MENA region with a zero-waste policy. AltShift is marketed as a space “for changemakers to connect, ask new questions, learn, experiment, and work together on the complex challenges of our time. It’s the start of an Egyptian movement to embed a new culture of collaboration with openness and care for people and the planet”. “We at Altshift are trying to challenge the mainstream narrative,” said Ehab Elia, the initiator of Ouishare Egypt. This year, the theme is ‘regeneration is the key’, he said. “Everyone is talking about sustainability. But what takes the earth 365 days to regenerate, humans consume in less than 212 days. We need 1.7 Earths to sustain this kind of life,” Elia stated. For two consecutive…
New Wave of Consciousness: Inside Egypt’s Underground Hip Hop Scene
Mahraganat, or electro shaabi, is often known as the music of the masses in Egypt—a voice to the realities of Egyptian life in the post-Mubarak era. However, there is another musical force gaining momentum among youth, which reflects a new wave of consciousness sweeping the streets with its political and socially conscious lyrics. In contrast to mainstream Egyptian music, which rarely touches upon complex topics other than romance, young Egyptian rappers dig deep to produce more artistic and conscious sounds, critiquing social norms and political life in Egypt. While there are some notable names, like Zap Tharwat, Asfalt, Y Crew, and Marwan Pablo, there are other young Egyptian rappers who have been working independently for a long time, sharing their music in their small communities and neighborhoods. Hossam Helmy, a 23-year-old living in Alexandria, or known by his stage name, ‘Hossam V’, started rapping a year before the 2011 uprising out of pure passion for the art, and also because he found that the scene lacked artists that produced for artistic rather than commercial motivations. “I like to rap about things that people don’t ever talk about, like the comparison…
Three Handicraft Skills That Are Dying in Egypt
Egypt’s handicraft sector has four million workers and is one of the largest sectors after the agricultural sector. Despite this, it has suffered of negligence over the past years according Mosaad Omran, president of the Chamber of Handicrafts Industry, in an interview with Egyptian Streets. Egypt is filled with many handicrafts, many of which are part of Egyptian cultural identity and heritage. As a result of technological development and changing trends witnessed internationally, these heritage professions are unfortunately being blown away by the winds and are almost disappearing from the Egyptian market. Nonetheless, there are attempts to revive these crafts by financially supporting craftsmen and effectively marketing their products in hopes it will slow down the sharp decline in demand for specific products. Moreover, the revival is also aimed at encouraging youth to learn particular craft-making and inherit Egypt’s traditional crafts and professions to keep the skill alive. Wicker Manufacturing Six decades have passed and yet she is still working in an industry facing the specter of extinction. Kamila Ahmed Hamed is from Fayoum governorate, a governorate famous for the manufacture of wicker products from palm trees and rice straw….
20 Intact Coffins Unearthed in Asasif Necropolis
According to Egypt’s Ministry of antiquities, 20 intact and wooden coffins have been discovered in the southern city of Luxor, on the West bank. The find was preliminarily announced on Tuesday, although the Ministry hopes to release a full statement on the discovery on Saturday. Nonetheless, Minister of Antiquities Khaled El Enany and Secretary General Mostafa El Waziri were on site to inspect the finds. Initially, the colorfully-decorated coffins were found resting in a layered heap at the necropolis of Asasif. They bear painted scene of deities, coffins texts and the deceased. As they have been found sealed, they are expected to yield human mummies or remains. The Asasif necropolis is a well-known burial site from which discovered tombs and coffins date to the New Kingdom and especially the Late period. It is located close to the Valley of the Kings, where Egypt’s famed dynasty 18 rulers, including Tutankhamun, have been interred. Deemed a controversial practice, a high number of foreign and Egyptian excavations work all over Egypt’s ancient sites. Although archeology is deemed ‘destructive’ as it requires the removal of cultural and physical layers to study a specific one…
Initial GEM Ticket Prices for Egyptians Announced
According to various local news outlets, the Egyptian Minister of Antiquities has announced the ticket prices for the Grand Egyptian Museum, for Egyptians. In a meeting with Parliament’s Committee of Culture, Information and Antiquities meeting, the Minister announced that the entrance ticket would amount to 30 EGP (US$ 1.9) while a comprehensive ticket giving access to the complete museum would be 60 EGP ($US 3.75). Students and certain segments of society are expected to be able from discounted prices which are still unannounced. Moreover, tentative ticket prices for foreigners have not been announced as of yet, although they are expected to be more expensive than the Egyptian ticket prices. Currently, Egyptians pay 20 EGP ($US 1.25) at the Cairo Museum, while students enjoy a discounted rate of 5 EGP ($US 0.3), and 40 EGP ($US 2.5) and 20 EGP for students for the mummy hall. Alternatively, price tickets for foreigners are 160 EGP ($US 10) for the entrance to the museum, students can pay 80 EGP ($US 5) and 180 EGP ($US 11.25) for the mummy hall, with a discounted rate of 90 EGP ($US 5.6) for foreign students. Last…
Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak Shares War Memories in Rare Appearance
Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who was ousted during the January 25 revolution in 2011, made a rare appearance in YouTube and Facebook video on Tuesday evening where he shared his memories of the October War (also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War). Apart from appearing on television screens during court appearances following his ouster in February 2011, the 91-year-old former President had not previously spoken at length in front of a camera since 2011. In the 25-minute video, which was uploaded to a new YouTube channel called ‘Mubarak Archives’, Mubarak speaks about the lead up to the October War and his role in the October War, highlighting the air battle of Mansoura between Egyptian and Israeli forces. As Mubarak speaks, a book by Henry Kissinger ‘Crisis : The Anatomy of Two Major Foreign Policy Crises’ sits on a table next to him and a portrait of the former President in military gear hangs on the wall above it. The book by Kissinger, who was the former US Secretary of State between 1973-1977, contains unpublished transcripts of his telephone conversations during the October War. The video, which is in Arabic-only…