Preliminary investigations suggest negligence or an electrical fault caused the fire which destroyed the Shura Council building on Tuesday, reports Gamal Essam El-Din

Digging tunnels between Gaza and Egypt is the only option for Gazans starved of medicine, fuel and basic supplies, writes Saleh Al-Naami

Continued moves by Fatah against Islamic charities and institutions in the West Bank are testament that reconciliation is a pipe dream, writes Khaled Amayreh in Ramallah

Plans to send an Egyptian ambassador to Iraq are progressing, if at a snail's pace, reports Dina Ezzat

The Abu Fana Monastery saga is finally resolved. But at what cost, asks Gamal Nkrumah

Mona El-Nahhas reports on the controversy surrounding the open letter to Barack Obama penned by jailed opposition leader Ayman Nour

The government's decision to relocate the controversial E Agrium fertiliser plant has yet to allay the fears of civil society in the Mediterranean city, reports Mohamed El-Sayed

European ambassadors have been told they must improve the way their embassies process visa applications, reports Doaa El-Bey

A solution to Kirkuk's dispute will be elusive so long as conflicting parties pursue conflicting ethnic agendas, writes Saif Nasrawi

Despite a glowing visit, Lebanon's new president will find progress delayed on the substantive issues presented to Syria, writes Bassel Oudat in Damascus

A bomb in Tripoli last week showed that security in Lebanon remains precarious despite a crop of political settlements, Lucy Fielder reports

After months of global and local bust, the dollar is gaining ground, Sherine Abdel Razek reports on the reasons and repercussions of the change in fortune

In the future, supply-demand fundamentals won't be the only oil price determinants, writes Sherine Nasr as she reviews the latest OPEC Energy Outlook

While Israel appears the beneficiary of US interests in the Middle East region, its place is ultimately as one pillar under a US strategic umbrella, writes Galal Nassar

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf steps down with his head held high, for now, writes Gamal Nkrumah

Russia's firm response to the Georgian gamble in Ossetia is being interpreted in various ways, but the reality is clear, says Eric Walberg

The World of Islamic Art, Bernard O'Kane, Cairo: American University in Cairo Press, 2007. pp224, illustrated; Medieval Islamic Medicine, Peter E. Pormann and Emilie Savage-Smith, Cairo: American University in Cairo Press, 2007. pp240, 12 b/w illus

Sports clubs are crammed to overflowing in summer. But is the pressure to succeed taking the fun out of sport, asks Nashwa Abdel-Tawab

A last-gasp goal from Mohamed Abu Treika gave Ahli the lead of Group A and earned the second spot for arch-rivals Zamalek, Ahmed Morsy reports

By Madame Sostris