Holding on to slim hope
Soha Abdelaty looks at the Egyptian diplomatic agenda for 2003

'Absolute power is not enduring power'
Former UN Secretary-General of the UN Boutros Boutros Ghali presented a gloomy picture of the organisation's future in light of the recent past, Willa Thayer listened to the prognosis

Chancy cracks
No sooner had a piece of ceiling from the prominent downtown Omar Makram mosque fallen on worshippers than rumour spread about its imminent collapse. Dena Rashed investigates

What recession?
Prime Minister Atef Ebeid's policy statement, delivered to parliament on Sunday, was as upbeat as its forerunners, though electoral reform was conspicuous by its absence. Gamal Essam El-Din reports

Faceless confessions
Jailan Halawi reports from the courtroom where alleged members of the radical Islamic Liberation Party are being tried

Working at half-time
The debate over women's recently sanctioned right to request less work for less pay has begun. Reem Leila reports

Newsreel
British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his family arrived at the Red Sea resort of Sharm El- Sheikh on 26 December for a private holiday