Egypt’s national women’s beach volleyball team has won the 2019 Africa Beach Volleyball Nations Cup held in Abuja, Nigeria. Egypt, represented by Doaa Elghobashy and Farida El Askalany, defeated Mauritius 2-0 (21-15, 21-16) at the women’s final. Elghobashy, 22, previously competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Meanwhile, El Askalany, 24, is a four time gold medal winner in Africa and was named 2019’s best blocker at the African Club Championship. The duo defeated Gambia, Morocco and Nigeria throughout the tournament and will be heading to the 2019 Beach Volleyball World Championships. The 2019 World Championships will be held in Hamburg, Germany between 28 June and 7 July….
Easter for Egypt’s Coptic Christians: Celebrating the Rise of Christ
Coptic Easter is one of the holiest days on the Coptic Calendar, , the other being Coptic Christmas on Jan. 7, and it is celebrated on the Sunday after the first full moon that follows the vernal equinox. It marks the end of the 55-day Lent, commonly known as the Great Fast, where all animal products – including milk, cheese and butter – are prohibited. Overall, there are 210 days of fasting on the Coptic Calendar, more than for any other Christian tradition. Between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, which is known as ‘Holy Week’, Coptic Christians pray daily at church and hear messages on the sufferings of Christ. On the Great Friday (Good Friday), all dress in black to mourn the death of Christ. On Easter Eve (Holy Saturday), Coptic believers hold an Easter vigil until dawn on Easter Morning. This known as “the Great Vigil,” and the ceremonies involve a Resurrection play that focus on both the Resurrection and the Ascension. At the beginning, Heaven’s gates are shown shut tight and the room is kept dark to symbolise humanity’s fall into sin, yet later, the light floods in as…
Egypt to Become the Region’s Digital Hub: El-Sisi Says at ‘Belt and Road’ Summit
In a roundtable discussion at the “Belt and Road” initiative summit on Saturday, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi announced Egypt as the regional digital hub for data transfer between three continents, Asia, Africa and Europe. During his speech, El-Sisi highlighted how the Egypt has one of the strongest submarine cable crossings across the world, which will attract investors in the field which will develop and monetize the infrastructure. This is will strengthen Egypt’s digital economy closing the market gap bridge between developed and developing countries Three years ago, a new breakthrough and promising opportunity for Egypt to partake on the “Belt and Road” initiative lead to the participation of President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi as head of a ministerial delegation in the forum’s activities. Launched in 2013 by Chinese President Xi Jinping, the initiative was initially a Chinese proposal which later developed into a global consensus based in Beijing, the world’s second largest economy and one of the world’s leading e-business and technological development. The “Belt and Road” summit for international cooperation has become an important platform for all countries and organizations involved to deepen exchanges, enhance trust and maintain close contacts…
What Is So Significant About Mohamed Salah’s Yoga Poses?
Last Sunday, after Mohamed Salah scored his spectacular goal at Anfield during the 2-0 win against Chelsea, fans worldwide were perplexed and confused with the ‘yoga pose’ he did as celebration. Some fans saw it as a powerful response to the racist and Islamophobic remarks made against him, as a video of a group of Chelsea fans singing “Salah is a bomber” about Mohamed Salah was circulated online, sparking outrage. This was the second Islamophobic incident in the space of a few months, which came after another video that emerged in February of a West Ham fan directing abusive chants at Salah because of his religion. https://twitter.com/sworthino/status/1117480837359046657 https://twitter.com/BSmith/status/1117477450538262530?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1117477450538262530&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportskeeda.com%2Ffootball%2Fsocial-media-goes-wild-after-mo-salah-s-yoga-celebration-against-chelsea https://twitter.com/castleofthekop/status/1117495531121541121?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1117495531121541121&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportskeeda.com%2Ffootball%2Fsocial-media-goes-wild-after-mo-salah-s-yoga-celebration-against-chelsea The legend himself responded to the speculations, clarifying that it “simply came to his mind” as he practices yoga. “I am a yoga man! I do yoga and it just came into my mind,” Salah told Sky Sports. However, in light of recent events, it is important to also highlight the significance of Salah openly embracing other cultures outside of his own – that is, the Hindi and Buddhist philosophical traditions. Though he still does the prostration performed in Islamic prayer after he…
New Electric Vehicles to Be Manufactured in Egypt to Reduce Pollution
During Sisi’s visit to China the past week, Minister of State for Military Production and Minister of State for Trade and Industry Amr Nassar witnessed on Sunday morning the signing ceremony of a partnership agreement with China for the joint manufacture of electric cars in Egypt, as reported by the State Information Service. Amr Nassar pointed out that the partnership deal includes joint manufacturing of 2,000 buses within four years, in which the Egyptian component represents 45 percent, followed by other phases of joint manufacturing of other types of electric vehicles in cooperation with the Military Factory 200. He added that he also paid a visit to Foton Motor to ensure that the Chinese company’s factory is capable of fulfilling its obligations under the partnership. In October 2018, the ‘Sustainable Transport Egypt 2018’ conference kicked off in Cairo discussing the advent and future of electric vehicles in the country. Egypt’s Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad stated that the environment ministry began working on a sustainable transport project six years ago as part of efforts to reduce emission levels in the country. Fouad added that the ministry’s target is to also lay…
How Egyptian Designer Farah Abdelhamid is Changing the Art of Jewelry
Each time we look at a piece of jewelry or object, a short powerful moment of interaction occurs. We can either feel connected to it, marveled by its artistic shape, or simply admire its different colours and texture. For young Egyptian jewelry artist Farah Abdelhamid, this moment is the focus of her work, which reflects on the way people interact with jewelry and other non-wearable objects, and how jewelry can reflect an artistic experience rather than just a luxury product. “What I am trying to do is really elevate looking at the jewelry and wearing it as an experience and as an art form, rather than as an accessory. So, I want to challenge the societal and cultural norms of how we understand jewelry and our expectations of it,” she tells Egyptian Streets. Starting out with an interest in art and painting, Abdelhamid went on to conclude her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Jewelry and Metalsmithing at the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design. She was then introduced to contemporary design and more hands-on approaches to work, after which she transferred to focus on jewelry upon discovering new design aspects…
Young Egyptian Filmmaker’s Inspiring Struggle with Obesity and Depression
Egyptian filmmaker, Mohamed Shalaby, has used his craft to share his struggle with depression and body image in his coming-of-age film, 51 Kilos. The short film, which premiered with BBC Arabic Documentaries this year, highlights Shalaby’s feelings of constraint growing up in the Gulf, and his reliance on food as his only companion. Following his journey, Shalaby reflects on happiness not being defined by a number on a scale, but on his mental well-being and a sense of ownership over his life. In an interview with Egyptian Streets, Mohamed Shalaby shares more of his thoughts on topics raised in his short-film as well as his motivation to turn to film. He particularly shares ideas about associations made with food in the Gulf region, the stigma attached to mental health, and the outcomes of social-media as a platform for further discussion. What is the biggest thing you want people to take away from your film? What is your main goal? Depression and anxiety are natural reactions to the outside world. Unfortunately, so many times we think we should hide them because we don’t want to look weak. We don’t want people…
Rami Malek Will ‘Shock and Surprise’ as New James Bond Villain
Egyptian-American Rami Malek, who won an Oscar and a Golden Globe earlier this year for his portrayal of Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody, is set to star as the new James Bond villain. Malek’s role was announced at a launch event for the 25th official James Bond movie in Jamaica. The movie, currently unnamed, will be released in April 2020 and will be Daniel Craig’s last time playing 007. According to an official plot summary, 37-year-old Malek, who was not in attendance at the official launch due to other work commitments, will play a “mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology”. Entertainment Today (ET) spoke with Malek after the announcement and revealed that Malek will begin shooting in London, United Kingdom shortly. Malek also revealed that audiences are in for a surprise, as the Mr. Robot actor plans to “shock” fans with his currently un-named villainous portrayal. “There’s so many different ways you can look at these characters. I’ve been watching Joaquin Phoenix in this new Joker movie and you can see he’s doing something so special. I often look at Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs and what…
Meet the Egyptian Empowering Educators in the Middle East
Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) boasts many success stories, and recently highlighted the work of the Middle East Professional Learning Initiative (MEPLI). The initiative, co-founded by Amin Marei two years ago, aims to develop educational structures already in place in the region, by working directly with educators and system-level leaders. By doing so, MEPLI aims to support students with the means to lead sustainable lives. One of the initiative’s most notable programs is its Fellowship, which was piloted in Jordan, Palestine and Lebanon. It focuses on providing both formal and informal resources which broaden the tools available to teachers in the region, to better serve them. After the success of the first two Fellowship cohorts, MEPLI is already in discussions to extend their focus to other countries in the region. In an interview with Egyptian Streets, Associate Director and co-founder of MEPLI, Amin Marei, shared further insight into the initiative’s goals and mission, its personal success stories and his personal connection to it. Can you summarize the initiative and describe the importance of it? What drove you to start this initiative? How does it feel to watch it gain…