Rights Group Calls on Egypt to Reverse Blasphemy Conviction
By HAMZA HENDAWI, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Human Rights Watch on Monday called on Egypt to drop prison sentences against four Coptic Christian teenagers convicted of blasphemy, an appeal made one day after the justice minister was sacked for saying he would imprison the Prophet Muhammad if he committed a crime, remarks widely seen as blasphemous.
The teenagers' Feb. 25 conviction was based on a video in which they intended to mock the extremist Islamic State group after its Libyan affiliate beheaded a group of Egyptian Christians last year.
WASHINGTON – The Republican-led House Judiciary Committee has approved legislation calling on the State Department to label the Muslim Brotherhood a foreign terrorist organization.
Lawmakers voted Wednesday along party lines, 17-10.
Supporters say if the measure is signed into law, the U.S. would have to deny admittance to individuals who are tied to the Brotherhood but aren't U.S. citizens or U.S. nationals.
Individuals who provide material support to the group would face criminal penalties.
New breath test tackles growing rates of oesophageal cancer
Professor George Hanna Imperial College, London
Oesophageal cancer affects the pipe that connects the mouth to the top of the stomach. It’s the ninth most common type of cancer in the UK and 8,500 new cases are diagnosed every year. Professor George Hanna is an upper gastrointestinal consultant surgeon at St Mary’s Hospital. He and his team devised a breath test which can diagnose oesophageal cancer quickly and effectively, without the need for an endoscopy. In this, Oesophageal Cancer Awareness Month, Professor Hanna explains why the condition is on the rise and how a simple breath test could help save lives.
Egyptian columnist delivers stinging attack against el-Sissi
By HAMZA HENDAWI5 hours ago
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Egyptian author Ahmed Naji, center background, attends a court hearing in Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, Feb. …
CAIRO (AP) — A prominent columnist on Sunday delivered the harshest attack to date against Egypt's president in the local media, saying that Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi presided over a "theocracy" that is no different from the Islamist-led government he overthrew in 2013.
In a front-page column in the al-Maqal daily, Ibrahim Eissa expressed outrage over a two-year prison sentence issued Saturday against author Ahmed Naji for publishing a sexually explicit excerpt of his novel that prosecutors said violated "public modesty."
Egypt’s elite bid farewell to ex-U.N. chief Boutros Ghali
A widow’s grief: Leia Maria Boutros-Ghali (L), sits next to the Egyptian flag-draped coffin carrying her late husband Former U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Ghali
By AFP
Egypt’s political and religious elite turned out Thursday for the funeral of former U.N. secretary-general Boutros Ghali, who steered the world body through several global conflicts during one of its toughest periods.
The Egyptian diplomat, who became the first African secretary-general in 1992, died in Cairo on Tuesday aged 93.
He was given an elaborate military send-off attended by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
Egypt writer sentenced to three years imprisonment
Fatima Naaot, a prominent Egyptian writer, poet and broadcaster, was found guilty of "insulting Islam" and sentenced to three years imprisonment for “contempt of religion” on 26 January.
Fatima Naaot was sentenced for comments she made online in relation to the festival of Eid Al-Adha, an important celebration in the Muslim calendar involving the public “sacrificing” of a sheep or goat to commemorate Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son. In an October 2015 post on her Facebook page, Ms Naaot described the annual tradition as the "greatest massacre committed by human beings” and also wrote "Happy massacre, everybody".
Anti-Islam groups launch Europe-wide coalition pledging to defend 'Western civilisation'
ANTI-ISLAMISATION groups from across Europe have joined forces to form a single mass movement today with a pledge to protect "the thousand-year history of Western Civilisation".
Anti-Islamisation groups across Europe have joined forces pledging to defend Western Civilisation
The British branch of the far-right PEGIDA movement will join colleagues from across the continent as part of the Fortress Europe coalition, which says it will "never surrender to our enemies" amid concerns about mass Muslim migration.
The new alliance brings together tens of thousands of campaigners from across Europe and has been announced in response to the escalating migrant crisis and alleged refugee sex attacks in Germany and Sweden.
It will feature veteran activists from all corners of Europe including Tommy Robinson - the former leader of the English Defence League (EDL) who is now fronting PEGIDA UK.
GETTY
Former EDL leader Tommy Robinson is fronting PEGIDA UK
The groups met near Prague last week to thrash out a common mission statement with eight bullet points in which the campaigners pledge to "risk our lives" to oppose "political Islam, extreme Islamic regimes and their European collaborators".
Camel urine is believed to provide healing powers by Muslims.
A Saudi camel urine shop was closed after authorities discovered the owner was selling his own urine. Mail Online reported, via Jihad Watch:
Saudi authorities have closed down a shop selling traditional camel urine drinks after discovering the owner had been filling the bottles with his own bodily waste.
Muslim Brotherhood will legally challenge UK government report
Organisation says long-awaited inquiry into political Islam has been unduly influenced by Britain’s allies that are hostile to democracy in the Middle East
Thursday 17 December 2015 06.00 GMT Last modified on Thursday 17 December 2015 07.52 GMT
A critical report calling for greater oversight of the Muslim Brotherhood is expected to be subject to a legal challenge by the Islamist movement after it is published on Thursday by the government.
The long-awaited inquiry, ordered by David Cameron, into the Brotherhood’s operation in the UK is expected to include new curbs on the group and its associates in a move that will be presented by ministers as a crackdown on Islamism.
بعد مضى اكثر من سنه على رفعها قررت المحكمه الاداريه العليا (دائرة الاحزاب السياسيه ) نظر الدعوى المرفوعه من المستشار ممدوح نخله بصفته وكيلا عن مدحت قلادة الناشط الحقوقي المعروف لحل حزب النور باعتبارة حزبا دينيا ومخالفا للدستور المصرى الجديد وكذلك لقانون شئون الاحزاب الذان يحظرا قيام حزب سياسي على اساس دينى او طائفى وحددت لنظرها جلسه 16 يناير القادم واشارت عريضه الدعوى الى ان الماده 54 من الدستور تنص على ان للمواطنين حق تكوين الأحزاب السياسية بإخطار ينظمه القانون، ولا يجوز قيامها أو مباشرتها لأي نشاط على أساس ديني، أو التفرقة بين المواطنين بسبب الجنس أو الأصل أو الموقع الجغرافي أو الطائفي أو ممارسة نشاط سري أو معادٍ لمبادئ الديمقراطية، أو ذي طابع عسكري وشبه عسكري، ئ بينما حزب النور منذ تاسيسه ينادى بقيام دوله الخلافه الدينيه ويمارس نشاطا اقرب للدعوة الدينيه منه للسياسه كما ان هناك اختلاط بين برنامج الدعوة السلفيه وبرنامج الحزب وعدم وضوح الرؤيا بين المتحدثين باسم الدعوة السلفيه وقادة الحزب
Christian heavyweights hail Copts rights in Sisi era, attack blasphemy law
By Hani Danial/ Geneva
Christian Egyptian heavyweights attending the eighth edition of the Minority Rights Forum, held in Switzerland's Geneva highly commended human rights for minorities in modern Egypt.
Head of United Copts Organization, Ibrahim Habib said President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s ascent to power saved Egypt and the Copts from the oppression of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Egypt discovers iron tunnel network under Gaza border
Massive network of 'extremely expensive' tunnels with 40cm-thick iron walls discovered on Egyptian side of the border, which Cairo claims was built by Hamas and funded by Qatar.
Roi Kais
Egyptian border guards discovered a first of its kind underground tunnel network made of iron under the country's border with Gaza on Friday, according to Egyptian security officials
The tunnel was discovered at a depth of 10 meters near the northern part of the Rafah crossing, which connects the Gaza Strip to the Sinai Peninsula.
Egyptian forces destroyed the tunnel using vast quantities of explosives.
I know that Putin isn’t exactly a “good guy,” but, don’t I just love these quotes from him. They’re both awesome and hysterical. He’s a world leader who is really a movie character.
He seems to be the one world leader unfazed, undamned and super ready to turn these ISIS cowards to ‘WAS-WAS’ in no time.
“To forgive the terrorists is up to god, to send them to him is up to me.”
He once also said, “American techs can spot water in Mars, but, can’t detect ISIS trucks”
ISIS camp in Istanbul trained children as terrorists
Turkish police have detained dozens of ISIS-connected suspects, among them 24 under the age of 18, who are being trained to operate in Syria and Iraq as Islamic State’s militants.
The Istanbul Anti-Terror Directorate has arrested dozens of foreigners in one of the districts of Turkey's largest city. Those detained are suspected of getting ready to transfer to areas of Syria in Iraq under Islamic State's control, the Turkish daily Vatan reports.
Egypt, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay elected to serve on UN Security Council
Conference officers hold up empty ballot boxes for inspection prior to the vote to elect five non-permanent members of the Security Council. UN Photo/Cia Pak
15 October 2015 – In one round of voting the United Nations General Assembly today elected Egypt, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay to serve as non-permanent members on the Security Council for two-year terms beginning on 1 January 2016.
New members Egypt, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay will serve until 31 December 2017.
The five overall seats available for election in 2015, distributed regionally, were: two seats for the African Group (currently held by Chad and Nigeria); one seat for the Asia-Pacific Group (currently held by Jordan); one seat for the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States (currently held by Chile); and one seat for the Eastern European Group (currently held by Lithuania).
Egypt starts dig on Gaza border to stop smuggling tunnels
ByFARES AKRAM
RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Egyptian military bulldozers are digging through the sand along Egypt's border with the Gaza Strip in recent days, pressing ahead with what appears to be a renewed campaign to pressure Gaza's Hamas rulers and stamp out militant activity along the border.
The project, billed as an Egyptian military-operated fish farm, effectively would fill the border area with water and is designed to put an end to the last remaining cross-border underground smuggling tunnels, Egyptian military officials said. Hamas accuses Egypt of further isolating the beleaguered Palestinian territory.
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Analysts fear that share prices of the Tamar and Leviathan partners could fall further.
Share prices on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) of the Tamar and Leviathan partners were down sharply in afternoon trading, after yesterday's announcement by Italian energy giant Eni that it had found the largest-ever natural gas field in the Mediterranean off the coast of Egypt.
Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: ) is down 11% and its energy exploration and production units Avner Oil and Gas LP (TASE: ) and Delek Drilling Limited Partnership (TASE: ) are down 8.9% and 9.75% respectively. Their partner in Leviathan, Ratio Oil Exploration (1992) LP (TASE:) is down 18.26% and their partner in Tamar, Isramco Ltd. (Nasdaq: ; TASE: ) is down 6.73%.
Egypt gas find sparks panic in Israel about Israeli reserves
By DANIEL ESTRIN | Associated Press –
Eni's Bouri Offshore oil terminal is seen off the Libyan coast, in the Mediterranean …
FILE - In this Saturday, Aug. 29, 2015 file photo provided by Egypt's state news …
JERUSALEM (AP) — Egypt's new natural gas bonanza is causing an uproar in Israel, with energy stocks plummeting and recriminations over indecisiveness and infighting that have delayed production from the country's own gas fields.
The government is currently struggling to get parliament to approve its natural gas business plan, but observers fear Israel may need to reassess everything now that Egypt, which had been cast as both an export destination and a partner, may have found its own independent solution.
