21 - 27 August 2003 [652]
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IN THE bloodiest suicide bombing since January a Palestinian blew himself up aboard a packed Israeli bus in the ultra-Orthodox West Jerusalem neighbourhood of Shmuel Hanavi on Tuesday night, killing nearly 20 Israelis and wounding 120, including 40 children...Orchestrating chaos
Tuesday's car bomb attack on the UN headquarters in Baghdad is evidence that Iraq is descending deeper into chaos, reports Jihan Al-Alaily from BaghdadParliament in disarray
The People's Assembly may not be dissolved though a Supreme Constitutional Court ruling consigns many members to the political wasteland, reports Gamal Essam El-Din
Discussing peace
An Egyptian-Omani summit began on Tuesday in Alexandria, with a meeting between President Hosni Mubarak and Oman's Sultan Qabbous Bin Said...Drowned in blood
Preliminary investigations into the case of the seven Egyptian workers who drowned in a pool of animal blood in a Jordanian slaughterhouse revealed no "malicious intent". Sana Abdallah reports from AmmanUnearthing the 'master key'
Nevine El-Aref reports on a major archaeological discovery at Tel-Basta near ZagazigNo parking -- yet
Reem Nafie tries to find out why the much-ballyhooed underground garage in Tahrir -- inaugurated more than a month ago -- is still not open for businessNewsreel
Cairo dismissed reports that it would be reopening its embassy in Baghdad anytime soon. "Egypt's position has not changed on that issue," Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher said on Saturday...A land without Arabs
Israel's policy of land grab turns viable neighbourhoods into ghost towns. Jerry Levin writes from HebronBetween a rock and a hard place
Scientists in Iraq are coming under intensified scrutiny from coalition authorities frustrated by their inability to uncover any weapons of mass destruction, writes Nermeen Al-Mufti from BaghdadPushing regional reform
Political, economic and educational reforms in the Middle East must happen now, US Deputy Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs Liz Cheney, told Khaled Dawoud in WashingtonKiller in the long run?
Coalition forces used between 1000 and 2000 tons of depleted uranium bombs during the war on Iraq. Dr Robert Younes paints a bleak picture of the devastating damage to humans and the environmentRoadmap to despair
A week of assassinations, military incursions and home demolitions paves the way to despair and frustration, reports Khaled Amayreh from the West BankControlling the gate
Palestinian farmers fear a repeat of 1948 as Israel's apartheid wall separates them from their land. International Solidarity Movement activist John Petrovato writes from JayyousCrossing the divide
Disillusioned by her new country's segregation policies, a British Israeli immigrant moves in with the Muslims. Jonathan Cook writes from TamraStateless limbo
Susan Akram shows how post 11 September deportations from the United States particularly affect PalestiniansArabs debate response to the IGC
Is the Arab world divided over the Iraqi Governing Council? asks Salah HemeidUS act sacrilegious to Shi'ites
The downing of the Iraqi Shi'ite sacred banner by an American chopper last week drove the three million Shi'ites in Sadr City to the edge of their tolerance of US occupation.In the line of duty
The shooting to death of a Palestinian cameraman in Iraq angers press groups and raises concerns about the growing number of reporters killed by coalition forces writes Muna HamzehVirtual escape
Amidst the rubble of the Anglo-American invasion, the Internet arrives to reopen the connection between this once cultural capital and the world. Michael Jansen reports from BaghdadWelcome to the future
On a recent visit to the US, Ahmed Chalabi, leader of the INC and member of the Iraqi Interim Governing Council, spoke to Amr ShalakanyRound and round towards war?
The Sudan peace talks are producing more ambiguity than solutions. Dina Ezzat reportsVeto bargaining
France insists on striking a new compensation deal with Libya over the bombing of a French airliner before sanctions can be lifted. Rasha Saad reports
Balancing interests
While some experts claim that a drastic interest rate cut is long overdue, others believe that the negative consequences should not be overlooked. Niveen Wahish reportsCurrency dispute threatens airline services
Foreign airlines operating in Egypt are facing difficult times trying to transfer their remittances in hard currency, Sherine Nasr investigatesTime to take stock
The upcoming WTO meeting in Cancun must take a step back and look at the present distortions in world trade, writes Montasser Fathy AhmedBriefs
A comprehensive customs and trade agreement was signed last week to boost Egyptian-Libyan bilateral economic relations, Mona El-Fiqi reportsThe plot thickens
The Bush administration claims credit for the arrest of yet another leading Al-Qa'eda agent. Khaled Dawoud reports from WashingtonIndia and Pakistan inch towards peace
Last week's burial of the war hatchet may usher in a brand new era, reports Iffat Idris from IslamabadIndependent but yet to be free
The South Asian sub-continent continues to be shackled by religious intolerance, writes Muqtedar Khan'Can we criticise Israel?'
Although the leadership of the French Socialist Party continues to support Israel come what may, dissent is brewing in the ranks. Jeremy Landor writes from ParisPowerless in North America
Last week Americans and Canadians had a taste of Third World scarcity, reports Anayat DurraniHutton's hunt
The Hutton Inquiry is shedding far more light on the death of David Kelly than the government, the BBC or the media had bargained for, reports Alistair Alexander from LondonHeat wave ripples hit France
Faced with the political fall-out from the country's recent heat wave, pressure grew on the French government this week, writes David Tresilian from Paris
Dreams and delusions
Meanings are not imposed from one culture on to another any more than one language and one culture alone possesses the secret of how to get things done efficiently, writes Edward SaidReform under siege
Washington's plans to transform the Middle East look increasingly naïve, writes Hala MustafaRe-reading the Iraq war
Recently released facts shed new light on the preparations for the war in Iraq. Mohamed Sid-Ahmed discusses the implicationsThe politics we see
As spectacle dominates electoral politics, real political business is conducted elsewhere, writes Azmi BisharaOf sheep and men
Humanity is shaped by education, science and culture, not by cloning, writes UNESCO Director General Koïchiro MatsuuraThe first step
The present fragmentation of the Palestinian political polity could spell disaster. George Giacaman says new Legislative Council elections are vitalEyes wide open
It is not ignorance that keeps the Israeli public from decrying their state's atrocities against the Palestinians. There are different kinds of blindness, writes Jonathan Cook in this reply to Ran HaCohenNot a playground
Though the Arab resistance must continue to challenge occupation, it would do well to reassess its tactics, writes Amr ElchoubakiEditorial:
A legitimate failure
A recent UN resolution on Iraq welcomed the establishment of the Interim Governing Council but stopped short of offering any legal recognition to the body as the representative of the Iraqi people...Close up
Unique legacy
Friends pass away, leaving a void that no one knows how to fill. The shock is worse when their death is unexpected and when one is unable to offer proper condolences when it happens...
By Salama A SalamaSoapbox
Apology in order?
The recent tour by Mahmoud Abbas of Gulf states has opened old wounds...
By Abdel-Qader YassinTwo kinds of laureate
You are right about Nobel laureates being of two kinds. One kind produces books that continue to excite the interest of an international readership, while the other shines momentarily on receiving the prize, then fades...
By Naguib MahfouzBahgory One Line: HAMBALI
Democracy from below
In this week's press, a prominent intellectual argues for democracy, crisis threatens the pharmaceuticals industry, and Al-Gama'a Al-Islamiya's volte-face continues to provoke commentary, writes Aziza SamiDisrupting still waters
Major transformations and ripple effects throughout: the Arab press is struggling to keep up, writes Amina ElbendaryBottom Lines
Quotes from the Arab press
Of jungles and outer space
Amal Choucri Catta succumbs to the open airIn progress: A new direction
Jehane Morsi is director of Cairo Opera House's main stage, responsible for the design of scenography and the staging of various types of musical performance...
By Amal Choucri CattaPlain Talk
I've just finished reading an article in the New York Times by Douglas Brinkley, director of the Eisenhower Center and professor of History at the University of New Orleans...
By Mursi Saad El-DinFreeing the spirit
Youssef Rakha goes to MinyaIf this is September it must be CIFET
Nehad Selaiha gears up for another experimental whirlwind
Satellite for all?
Thousands have found a new way to enjoy satellite channels, but is it legal? Dena Rashed investigatesFunny business
Rania Khallaf explores the adult dilemmas of making animated films for children
En route to the Olympics
The Angolan Basketball team's win at the African Basketball Championship bought it a qualification ticket to the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Inas Mazhar reportsSpanish liaison
In the match dubbed a promotion for Egypt's 2010 World Cup campaign, Ahly regained composure and made its point. Eric Asomugha reportsEvolution of squash
For the first time in its own history of the sport, Egypt is playing host this week to the 10th World Junior Women's Squash Championship...
The summer the poets departed
Egypt's two leading modern poets, Shawqi and Hafez, died in 1933, within months of each other. In this week's Diwan, Professor Yunan Labib Rizk reviews Al-Ahram's marking of the twin tragedies and the various eulogies of the poets the paper published
Hosny Guindy: (1940-2003)
'But the greatest of these is love'
By Amina Elbendary
Pack of Cards
Society columnLimelight by Lubna Abdel Aziz:
'Hasta la vista' - Terminator
The supersonic rise of one Arnold Schwarzenegger is nothing less than dazzling! How on earth did he ever get to where he is?