17 - 23 July 2003 [647]
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The embers smoulder
Israel remains determined to exacerbate, rather than redress, Palestinian grievances, writes Khaled AmayrehJury still out
Will the declaration of a governing council hasten the end of the occupation of Iraq, asks Salah Hemeid
Setting America above the law
Bowing to US pressure, Cairo has agreed to grant US officials immunity from prosecution by the International Criminal Court. Soha Abdelaty investigatesReform talk
A new strategic report suggests that the rules of the game have changed both for Egypt and the entire Middle East. Dina Ezzat summarisesUnderground unresolved
Will the opening of a new garage in Tahrir Square help solve downtown Cairo's chronic parking problems? Reem Nafie tries to find outBusy session in the balance
While a parliamentary report was full of praise for this year's session, independent analysts were far less enthusiastic. Gamal Essam El-Din reviews the assembly's harvestFlight, interrupted
A year after EgyptAir's transformation into a holding company, the national carrier seems more confused than ever about its plans for reform. Amira Ibrahim reportsBribery business
This week's sentencing of former Giza Governor Maher El-Guindi to seven years in prison may have far reaching implications for other powerful officials, reports Gamal Essam El-DinThe road to extradition
Although Egypt doesn't have an extradition treaty with Uruguay, the South American country has turned over an alleged Islamist militant to Egyptian authorities following four years of legal wrangling. Jailan Halawi reportsNewsreel
On Monday, Egypt welcomed the creation of the Iraqi National Council, which was formed a day earlier...'Middle East surprises for America'
Can stability be achieved in the Middle East despite the failure of the post-Iraq "domino effect" to materialise, asks John V WhitbeckArafat vs Abbas
The tug of war between Arafat and Abbas has been contained for the moment, but as Khalid Amayreh reports, there are no guarantees it will lastGaza's sweatshops
Palestinian workers have little choice but to work for Israeli settlers, writes Annika Hampson from GazaChildhood disrupted
One of the most terrible effects of the Israeli occupation is the destruction of Palestinian childhood. Lesley Whiting shows howPartial Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon
Syria has scaled back its military presence in Lebanon in the fourth major redeployment in three years. Mouhalhel Fakih reports from LebanonLosing in Faluja
This week the US army decided to substantially reduce its troop presence in Faluja. It amounts to an admission of their failure to govern there, reports Graham Usher in FalujaDaggers and roses
The tribes of southern Iraq continue to hold the reigns of power despite efforts by the occupation forces to establish their own version of law and order, writes Karim El-Gawhary in BasraKurdish collision course
Kurdish militants killed six people in two attacks in southeast Turkey last week, further exacerbating the crisis in Ankara's ties with Washington. Gareth Jenkins reports from IstanbulArchive: Invitation to the Madrid Peace Conference
Issued jointly by the US and the Soviet Union on 30 October 1991...
The sixth round of Sudanese peace talks in Kenya ended abruptly when Khartoum rejected the mediators' proposals for a peace deal. But in an exclusive interview with Gamal Nkrumah, United States Special Envoy to Sudan John Danforth said he remained confident that peace can be achieved
Inflationary rumblings
While producers, importers, wholesalers, and merchants point at each other as the culprits behind the latest price increase, consumers remain the victims. Mona El-Fiqi reportsPromoting SMEs
The second SMEtech conference and exhibition ended earlier this week. Niveen Wahish was in attendance.Surprisingly upbeat
Despite the aftermath of the pound devaluation and the American-led war on Iraq, the market has recorded historical highs during the first half of year 2003. Sherine Abdel-Razek reportsBriefs
Egyptian farmers and exported of fruits and vegetables can expect increased profits with the opening of Cairo International Airport's first refrigerated cargo terminal...Into Africa
Negar Azimi explores US President George W Bush's sudden interest in AfricaDefine truth
CIA Director George Tenet was the scapegoat in the scandal over the use of false information claiming Iraq tried to purchase uranium from Niger. Yet, many Americans believe responsibility lies higher up the chain of command. Khaled Dawoud reports from Washington
The Arafat complex
Sharon's obsession with sidelining Arafat knows no bounds, writes, Ibrahim NafieThe neo-con triumph
The US has a new approach to the Middle East. But the neo-conservatives, who devised it, are more pragmatic than far-sighted, writes Hassan NafaaIs the Iraqi war legitimate?
Can a crime be said to have been committed in the absence of any material evidence attesting to its commission? asks Mohamed Sid-AhmedFirst-class manipulation
Spin doctors have turned around the Blair government. Their success in doing so is cause for alarm, writes Galal AminTake Mexico instead
For the US to re-visit 19th century traditions of colonialism it didn't need look as far afield as Iraq, argues Abdel-Moneim SaidMoment of truth
The Shi'ites of Iraq have a glorious future ahead of them, writes Salah Nasrawi -- but only if they can overcome their internal divisionsEnvisioning peace
Coercion does not win peace. Muqtedar Khan identifies the wasteland at the heart of the roadmapEditorial:
Gestures and reminders
The Indians are not playing ball, and for good reasons. India is standing up to the Americans and has said no to Washington...Close up
Amid the accusations
The row which has erupted between Britain and the US over the evidence on which both states relied in waging war against Iraq is telling...
By Salama A SalamaSoapbox
After the truce
Five Palestinian factions have declared a three-month unilateral truce, after months of prodding by Egypt and the EU...
By Abdel-Qader YassinArt and the public
Among the points raised by the phenomenal success of the Harry Potter series is the critical stand adopted towards best sellers...
By Naguib MahfouzBahgory One-line: KAMAL EL-TAWIL
Prices gone mad
In Egypt, statues, spiraling inflation and the Arab intellectuals' conference vie for newsprint space with developments in Palestine and Iraq, where the setting up of a ruling council in one and the roadmap's endurance in the other give the impression that some type of order is at last coming to Arab affairs. Amina Elbendary reads the week's Egyptian and Arab pressBottom Lines: A semblance of order
"Peace, security and basic needs have become the primary Iraqi demands, before freedom which, under Saddam Hussein, they had thought would be a priority,"
Trumpets and harps
Summertime, and the programmes are diverse, writes Amal Choucri CattaIn progress: A will to perform
Sherine El-Ansary, 32-year-old storyteller, was born in Cairo, raised and schooled in France...
By Sherif Iskander NakhlaPlain Talk
Nial Ferguson is a regular contributor to the Sunday Times Review...
By Mursi Saad El-DinObituary: Kamal El-Tawil (1922-2003)
Celebrated composer Kamal El-Tawil died last Wednesday, 9 July, at the age of 81...
By Amina ElbendaryFour couples and a camcorder
Youssef Rakha assesses the significance of a sensationReaching reality
Filmmaker Hani Khalifa speaks to Sherif Iskander Nakhla about his debut, which gleaned LE4,300,000 in the first two weeks of its release
Genet in Palestine
Inspired by the plight of the Palestinian people and shocked by the massacres carried out at the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian refugee camps during the 1982 Israeli invasion of Beirut, Jean Genet began work on his final book Un Captif Amoureux. It was the coming together of his art, politics and humanity, writes Ahdaf SoueifEnduring Mesopotamia
La Société irakienne, communautés, pouvoirs et violences (Iraqi Society: Communities, Authority and Violence), Hosham Dawod and Hamit Bozarslan, eds., Paris: Karthala , 2003. pp166A gallery of Iraqi characters
Duna Talib, Al-Nuqta Al-Ab'ad (The Furthest Point), Damascus: Dar Al-Mada, 2000. pp215; Harb Nameh (The Book of War), Damascus: Dar Al-Mada, 1998. pp204Demonising the Wahhabi kingdom
The Two Faces Of Islam: The House of Sa'ud from Tradition to Terror, Stephen Schwartz, New York: Doubleday, 2002. pp336; Hatred's Kingdom: How Saudi Arabia Supports the New Global Terrorism, Dore Gold, Washington, DC: Regnery, 2003. pp309Collecting the footnotes
Palestine and Egypt under the Ottomans, Hisham Khatib, Cairo: American University in Cairo Press, 2003. pp272Confronting the Arab malaise
Al-Arab fi Muwagahat Al-Udwan (The Arabs Confronting Aggression), Tarek El-Bishri, Cairo: Dar Al-Shorouk, 2002. pp120At a glance
Transcending borders
A shorthand guide to recent publications compiled by Mahmoud El-Wardani
I couldn't tell you how or when Zohra learnt to draw and paint. But she has been producing beautiful works of art for the past two weeks...
By Gamal NkrumahThose were the days my friend
Injy El-Kashef has grown olderStrawberry walnut cake
Weekly recipe by
Moushira Abdel-MalekAnatomy of an exerciser
As gyms spring up around the country, and fitness and slimness take on national appeal, Yasmine El-Rashidi hangs out at a bunch of work-out centres to analyse the dynamics
Fit to be a star
Is stardom for the talented only a phone call away? Reem Nafie tunes in StarMakerLearning to burn
Farah Akbar attends the Oscars of belly-dance
'You should be proud'
Back from the Special Olympic Games, Egypt's athletes were received by Mrs Mubarak. Inas Mazhar reportsArsenal among us
A mini version of the giant British football club is now in Egypt. Nashwa Abdel-Tawab sees what it will do and how it can helpIn good hands?
German Jorn-Uwe Lommel arrived in Egypt last week but has had little time for sightseeing...Mido in Marseille
Egyptian international striker Ahmed Hossam, popularly known as Mido, has signed a five-year deal with Olympique Marseille of France worth 12 million euros...Briefs
Egyptian FA Cup champions Ahli have named Antonio Oliviera as their new head coach...
Academy of Arabic
To preserve the splendour and eloquence of classical Arabic, an academy to study the language was to be established in Cairo. The reasons for such an academy were manifold -- the assault on classical Arabic by colloquial dialects; Arabic was being challenged by foreign language instruction in the schools; a large number of Arabic terms which were no longer being used. Professor Yunan Labib Rizk investigates one attempt to save the mother tongue
Anoushka: Sixth sense
A perfectionist and a Piscean
Profile by Gamal Nkrumah