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Egypt Tag

Posted by Leslie Eastman on April 25, 2017 11 Comments
It is being reported that, despite the numerous attack on Christians in Egypt, the head of the Catholic Church has shunned using an armored vehicle when he tours the nation's capital during his upcoming trip.
...[Pope Francis] will fly from Rome to Cairo on Friday for a two-day visit intended to build on inter-faith dialogue with Muslim leaders and to show solidarity with beleaguered Christian communities in the Middle East. Despite his vulnerability as a potential terrorist target, the Pope will not travel through the streets of Cairo in an armoured vehicle, the Vatican said on Monday.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on April 23, 2017 10 Comments
When President Donald Trump and Egypt's President Abdel Fattah Sisi met earlier this month, one issue that must have been addressed during their productive discussions was the case of Egyptian-American charity worker Aya Hijazi, who had been jailed in Egypt for three years. According to White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, Trump had engaged directly on Hijazi's behalf "and made it clear to the Egyptian government how important it was to him that this American be released and returned." A few weeks later, Hijazi sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office to thank him for the diplomatic efforts.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on April 09, 2017 25 Comments
The year, as we mark the season of Passover, there has been a discovery of the remains of a pyramid in Egypt that was reportedly built around the time of the Exodus:
Ahead of the Passover holiday, an unknown pyramid was discovered in Egypt, dating roughly to the time of Jews’ exodus from bondage. A top antiquities official says an Egyptian excavation team has discovered the remains of a pyramid dating back to the 13th Dynasty, some 3700 years ago.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on April 09, 2017 7 Comments
ISIS has claimed responsibility for two attacks on two Coptic churches in Egypt.  The attacks took place this morning and left 37 people dead and over a hundred wounded. Fox News reports:
The ISIS terror group has claimed responsibility for two separate Palm Sunday bombing attacks at Coptic Christian churches in Egypt that have killed 37 people and injured more than 100.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 24, 2017 7 Comments
Monday, President Trump's pen was very busy signing 3 executive orders, withdrawing the U.S. from the Trans Pacific Partnership, defunding International Planned Parenthood, and freezing the hiring of federal workers. His phone was also very busy. He made a supportive call to Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, indicating essentially military aide would continue to support the regional fight against Islamic extremist terrorists.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Monday that Trump and President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi discussed ways to deepen the bilateral relationship between the two countries, fight terrorism and boost Egypt's struggling economy. ...Egypt is the second largest recipient of U.S. military aid.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 22, 2016 20 Comments
Back in February 2012, I wrote that I expected that in his second term Obama would force his vision of a "peace" deal on the Israelis. We've had several close calls, with the John Kerry negotiation fiasco and flirtation with various European and Arab initiatives through the UN. The mechanism would be a failure to veto a Security Council resolution setting the terms of a deal. Part of it is Obama hatred of Bibi Netanyahu, dating back to the beginning of Obama's presidency. The snubs and dislike was palpable long before Netanyahu's address to Congress opposing the Iran nuclear deal.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on December 11, 2016 20 Comments
Just six days after a bombing in Cairo killed six policemen, another bomb explodes at Saint Mark’s Coptic Orthodox Cathedral, killing 25 and wounding another 35 people.  The victims are believed to be mostly women and children. Hasam, a terrorist group linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, claimed responsibility for the first Cairo bombing, but no one has yet claimed responsibility for Sunday's bombing Saint Mark's. CBS News reports:
A bombing at Egypt’s main Coptic Christian cathedral killed 25 people and wounded another 35 on Sunday, in one of the deadliest attacks carried out against the religious minority in recent memory.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on September 20, 2016 15 Comments
Late last year, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was snubbed by President Obama during his visit to New York City for the United Nations General Assembly’s 70th meeting. Now, al-Sisi is gearing up to meet the two top challengers in the race to be the next Oval Office occupant.
An adviser to U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's campaign said on Sunday that Trump will meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Monday during the United Nations General Assembly, just as Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, is also scheduled to do.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 09, 2016 3 Comments

Female "circumsion" is also known as female genital mutilation, a barbaric practice that causes extreme pain, risk of infection or death, and lifelong problems. But it's still supported in some societies. Here is one Egyptian's bizarre justification. Via MEMRI: Egyptian MP Ilhami Agina Supports FGM: Egyptian Men Suffer...

Posted by Mary Chastain on August 13, 2016 8 Comments
Anti-Israel Egyptian judo fighter Islam el-Shehaby received backlash on Friday when he didn't shake the hand or bow to his Israeli opponent Or Sasson, who defeated him on Friday. In response, the Egyptian Olympic Committee announced they will open an investigation into his actions. Judo Israeli Egyptian refuses to shake hand El-Shehaby received pressure from Muslims not to fight against the Israeli, but the EOC threatened to strip him of his citizenship if he withdrew. He immediately retired after the loss.

Posted by Mary Chastain on August 12, 2016 24 Comments
Israel has faced discrimination at the 2016 Rio Olympics, but Egyptian judoka Islam El Shehaby refused to boycott his match against Israeli judoja Or Sasson. One of the fears of anti-Israel social media, which demanded a boycott, was that El Shehaby would lose, and thereby not only normalize Israel's participation but humiliate the Muslim world. El Shehaby lost. Egypt Israel Judoka Perhaps fearing the internet reaction, Shehaby refused to shake Sasson's hand afterwards.

Posted by Mary Chastain on June 18, 2016 7 Comments
An Egyptian court has sentenced two al-Jazeera journalists to death for allegedly providing Qatar with state secrets. The court gave former President Mohammed Morsi 40 years prison for "leading an unlawful organisation." The new government banned Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood after they deposed him in 2013. Amin el-Sirafy, Morsi's secretary, and his daughter Karima also received 25 years in prison and added 15 more years to the sentence. The court also sentenced four other people to death. From Fox News:
The two Al-Jazeera employees -- identified by the judge as news producer Alaa Omar Mohammed and news editor Ibrahim Mohammed Hilal -- were sentenced in absentia along with Asmaa al-Khateib, who worked for Rasd, a media network widely suspected of links to Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood. The Brotherhood was banned and declared a terrorist group after Morsi's ouster. The three other defendants sentenced to death Saturday are documentary producer Ahmed Afify, EgyptAir cabin crew member Mohammed Keilany and academic Ahmed Ismail.

Posted by Mary Chastain on May 19, 2016 5 Comments
EgyptAir Flight 804 disappeared over the Mediterranean Sea on its way to Cairo from Paris with 66 people onboard. Not much is known at this time, but Egyptian Civil Aviation Minister Sharif Fathi has mentioned terrorism without any proof:
"We do not deny there is a possibility of terrorism or deny the possibility of technical fault," Fathi said at a Cairo news conference. "I will continue to use the term missing plane until we find any debris." Later at the same news conference, he indicated that while there were "no known security issues" with passengers aboard the plane, the probability of terrorism downing it is higher than the likelihood of a mechanical cause. "I don't want to go to speculation. I don't want to go to assumptions like others. But if you analyze this situation properly, the possibility of having a different action aboard, of having a terror attack, is higher than having a technical problem," Fathi said.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on March 20, 2016 12 Comments
In December 2012, Professor Jacobson posted "Barack Morsi". It turns out the title was truer than he realized. President Obama took the advice of "back-benchers" over experienced security experts to promote the ouster of Hosni Mubarak, creating condition for the usurpation of power by Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi:
Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates told Fox News that President Barack Obama ignored the advice of his “entire national security team” during the Egyptian coup in 2011 that ousted Hosni Mubarak, the country’s former president.
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