31 July - 6 August 2003 [649]
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'Only you, Mr president'
Ariel Sharon offered the Palestinians nothing during his eighth visit to the White House, reports Khaled Dawoud from WashingtonUS tightens grip on Iraq
Saddam Hussein's foes tighten their control of the Governing Council in Iraq, reports Salah HemeidPhoto caption
ELECTION FEVER: As Al-Ahram Weekly went to press votes were being counted to decide who will be the next chairman of the Press Syndicate. Polls for the chair, and the Press Syndicate's 12 council seats, closed at 5pm yesterday, by which time Salah Montasser, prominent Al-Ahram columnist, and Galal Aref, who writes in Akhbar Al-Youm, had emerged as the front-runners...
Gradual steps forward
President Mubarak spoke candidly to students of his vision for the future of Egypt and the region, reports Nevine KhalilEducation in flux
Reforming Egypt's education system may be the most controversial issue on the agenda of the ruling party's first annual conference, reports Gamal Essam El-DinSuspending belief
A British Coroner's Court ruling confirming that movie star Soad Hosni committed suicide has failed to convince many of her friends and fans at home. Hanan Sabra reportsDisgusting display
The televised images of the corpses of Saddam's sons shocked and horrified many Egyptians. Gihan Shahine gauges the public moodOne hundred days
The government clampdown on anti-war activists is not over. Amira Howeidy investigates the case of Ashraf IbrahimTaking the trash out
Despite a court ruling confirming the legality of garbage collection fees being linked to electricity bills, consumers remain unsatisfied with the arrangement. Dena Rashed reportsNewsreel
On Sunday a Cairo State Security Court hearing the case of 23 Egyptians and three Britons charged with belonging to the banned Hizb Al-Tahrir or Liberation Party adjourned until 25 December, when the court is scheduled to issue a verdict in what was described by defendants' family as "a negative" sign...More than a 'problem'
The apartheid wall is contributing to the slow death of the roadmap, reports Khaled Amayreh from HebronSelective accountability
The Syria Accountability Act under debate in Washington is a model of American bullying tactics, writes Imad Fawzi Shuebi from DamascusRoadmap timeline
23 July: Despite assurances by Palestinian resistance groups that they have been given guarantees not to be disarmed, a top Palestinian security official warns that Hamas and Islamic Jihad cannot remain armed if there is progress in the peace process...Bodybags after the war
American casualties have become a daily occurrence in post-war Iraq. Anayat Durrani reports from WashingtonClampdown widens
Saudi Arabia's crackdown on suspected terrorists moved into the Kingdom's religious heartland last week, reports John R Bradley in JeddahMissing pages decried as malicious
Saudi diplomats insist claims of the kingdom's culpability in the 9/11 terror attacks are both "malicious and blatantly false". Khaled Dawoud , in Washington and John R Bradley, in Jeddah, reportTime for change
Cairo spelt out an ambitious plan to reform the Arab League. Nevine Khalil and Soha Abdelaty leaf through the proposalGearing up for reform
Egypt is joining hands with Arab countries to reform the Arab League Dina Ezzat reportsFlexibility behind the rhetoric
Israel downplayed threats by Hizbullah to take more soldiers hostage if Lebanese detainees in Israeli prisons are not released. Mohalhel Fakih reports from BeirutTargeting Haram Al-Sharif
Provocative visits by non-Muslims aid Sharon in quietly destroying the roadmap, writes Jonathan Cook in JerusalemWinning the peace
Despite the killing of Saddam Hussein's sons last week in Mosul, US attempts to pacify and rebuild Iraq are floundering. Jihan El-Alaily reports from BaghdadThe real point
The US says the release of photos and video footage of the bodies of Uday and Qusay is consistent with the Geneva Conventions; Arabs are saying they are in violation, Rasha Saad reportsJoker's wild
Did the US exploit fears about Al-Qa'eda to rally the nation around an invasion of Iraq? Nyier Abdou revisits one of the key building blocks of the Bush administration's case for war
A natural way to unite
The Arab world has begun to connect economically, one gas molecule at a time, writes Nevine KhalilA twist of fate
Contrary to expectations, business in the Suez Canal has thrived as a result of the war in Iraq. Niveen Wahish reports from IsmailiaWarming up for Cancun
Arab countries are seeking a more balanced international trade system. Dina Ezzat reportsBriefs
The $3 per share bid to buy the local cement producer Misr Beni Suef Cement (MBSC) by a consortium of both Egyptian and foreign investors has been withdrawn after...When to engage?
Washington is hesitant about sending American troops to Liberia, exhibiting once again a preference for disengagement from African conflicts, writes Negar Azimi'Open confrontation'
As the standoff between the government and guerrilla forces continues, US-inspired anti-terrorist measures are deepening the humanitarian crisis in Colombia, reports Tamam Ahmed JamaHomeland security at work
Detention of a high-ranking Jordanian priest is seen as part of new American restrictions on Middle Easterners travelling to the land of the free, writes Muna HamzehThe fall-guy
Instead of toppling the increasingly unpopular Blair government the apparent suicide of a discreet scientist has signalled open season on the BBC, writes Iason Athanasiadis in LondonWhat's good for the goose...
Trial by nationality? Nyier Abdou looks at accusations that the US is dispensing justice to Al-Qa'eda suspects by fiat
Tale of two visits
The Palestinian prime minister's visit to Washington marks a significant shift in the US position, writes Ibrahim NafieKeeping whose peace?
The US wants an international force not to protect the Iraqis, but to defend the occupying army against growing national resistance, writes Abdalla El-AshaalShikaki's surprise findings
The outcry following a new poll conducted among Palestinian refugees leads Mohamed Sid-Ahmed to call for more opennessTo corrupt the committed
State attempts to control culture cannot help but result in stagnation, writes Mohamed RabieDivide and rule?
Iraq has a Governing Council, but where is it taking the country? Azmi Bishara warns that sectarianism can create a divisive momentumSpeaking truth to power
Will the long history of the Jewish people end in the displacement and ghettoisation of the Palestinian people? Marc H Ellis offers a Jewish perspectiveOn the edge of a knife
Americans are torn between a sense of betrayal and a sense of obligation, writes Todd MayRepublic in review
The Egyptian republic was born 50 years ago last June. Roger Owen saw it unfoldTime to move on
What is the Arab Mutual Defence Pact? As Abdel-Moneim Said points out, even some of its most vigorous proponents know little about itEditorial:
Walls to peace
There is growing concern in the Arab world over Israel's continuing refusal to make any conciliatory measures towards the Palestinians...Close up
Sharon's wall
The security wall Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is so desperate to complete represents one of the most insidious measures undertaken by Israel...
By Salama A SalamaSoapbox
Updating the Arab order
Reform of the Arab League will be the key issue for Arab leaders at the summit scheduled to take place in Tunis during the first week of March 2003...
By AUTHORPulling the carpet
The optimism generated by the cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinians has in the last few weeks been so undermined that little can remain of the positive spirit it had engendered...
By Naguib MahfouzBahgory One-line: QUSAY AND UDAY HUSSEIN
High committees and low incomes
Presidential directives for faster implementation of government appointments and intellectual introspection featured in the Egyptian press this week, writes Aziza SamiReconciling the irreconcilable
The photographs of the dead bodies of Uday and Qusay Hussein that appeared in the Arab and Western press this week marked a morbid start to a morbid week, writes Amina ElbendaryBottom Lines
Quotes from the Arab press
Sheherazade meets Antigone
A curious intercultural encounter at Al-Hanager leaves Nehad Selaiha feeling ambivalentIn progress: Day and night
Islam El-Azzazi graduated from the Film Institute in 1993...
By Youssef RakhaPlain Talk
July is the month of revolutions. At least two July revolutions have changed the face, indeed the very structure, of their respective countries...
Mursi Saad El-DinOf joys and sorrows
Amal Choucri Catta relishes the sounds and lightsLove lost in Shubra
Buddy, buddy, buddy, and a load of sectarian bliss: Amina Elbendary finds Film Hindi more than a little irritating
Elkab's hidden treasure
A 17th dynasty inscription found three months ago in Upper Egypt uncovered a critical and previously unknown Kushite attack on Egypt. Nevine El-Aref relates the discoveryRemaking an aging beauty
The vivid painted scene discovered in Nebamun's tmb at Thebes is undergoing a complex conservation process in the British museum in London.
By Nevine El-Aref
One after the other
Zamalek continued their dominance of Arab clubs. Inas Mazhar looks at the latest casualtyNigerians everywhere
Fate has decreed that the three Egyptian clubs playing in African football championships will all be facing Nigerian squads. Eric Asomugha sees whether the unusual draw is good or badHalf-time
Say good-bye
Once again, the twins, Hossam and Ibrahim Hassan, of Egyptian football fame, are in the headlines for what is becoming a common request -- they want to quit...Centenary cycler
Lance Armstrong celebrated the centenary Tour de France by winning it for the fifth time, a feat only four other men have achieved...
By Inas MazharWith the best
The draw for the fourth FIFA Women's World Cup in the United States put African teams in unenviable positions, writes Eric Asomugha
How sweet the peasant life
It was the early 1930s and the Great Depression had tightened its grip on Egypt. Because fellahin, or farmers, made up the vast majority of the country's population, Al-Ahram sent several reporters to the countryside to get a first-hand look at how that class of society was affected by the economic crisis. Professor Yunan Labib Rizk examines lean years of the land
Abdallah Said: Giving voice to the voiceless
From refugee camp to Cairo: an Eritrean journey
Profile by Gamal Nkrumah
Pack of cards
By Madame SosostrisLimelight: Public enemy No 1
We can hardly avoid it, escape it, or hide from it. It is called "Stress"...
By Lubna Abdel-Aziz