EGYPT: ElBaradei shows solidarity with tortured supporter March 11, 2010 |  9:14 am Former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency and potential presidentialcandidate Mohamed ElBaradei has strongly condemned the torture of one of his supporters by security forces in the city of … Continue reading →

AP – A stela at the Egyptian museum in Cairo is seen Thursday, March 11, 2010 , Egypt, showing Pharaoh Akhenaten, … By PAUL SCHEMM, Associated Press Writer Paul Schemm, Associated Press Writer – Thu Mar 11, 6:25 pm ET CAIRO – The DNA tests that revealed … Continue reading →

              من هو محمد البرادعي؟    بقلم: السفير نبيل العربي    ترددت كثيرا فى كتابة هذه السطور لأنه لم يسبق لى أن كتبت فى أمور تدخل فى إطار الشئون الداخلية، فقد شرفت بتمثيل مصر فى … Continue reading →

Dear fellow Egyptian Americans:

Many of us have expressed their strong desire to be able to vote in the upcoming elections in Egypt during this pivotal period in Egyptian history.

Upon the advice of some leading Egyptian constitutional and legal scholars you are requested to send the attached letters as indicated and a copy to the Egyptian Ambassador in Washington.

The letters can be sent to the Egyptian Embassy, 3521 International Ct, NW. Washington, DC 20008. Phone 202-244-4319. With a request to forward then to the Foreign and Interior Minsters respectively.

Best Regards
Mahmoud Elshazly,
Alliance of Egyptian Americans Continue reading →

Egypt’s top cleric dies aged 81
Sheikh Mohammad Sayed Tantawi
Sheikh Tantawi has died suddenly of a suspected heart attack

Egypt’s foremost Muslim cleric, Sheikh Mohammed Sayed Tantawi, has died, aged 81, while on a trip to Saudi Arabia.

Sheikh Tantawi was the Grand Imam of the al-Azhar mosque and head of the al-Azhar University, Sunni Islam’s centre of learning and scholarship.

He died of a heart attack in the Saudi capital Riyadh, where he was attending a prize-giving ceremony.

Sheikh Tantawi had infuriated radical Islamists with his moderate views on women wearing the veil.

His body will be taken to the Saudi city of Medina, the burial place of the Prophet Muhammad, for burial, Egyptian authorities said.

An adviser to the Sheikh told Egyptian television Sheikh Tantawi’s death was a shock, as before leaving for Saudi Arabia he had seemed in “excellent shape and health”.

FROM GLOBAL VOICES
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He leaves behind an unreformed al-Azhar – an institution that includes a university and a school system as well as a theological center – whose credibility has hit rock-bottom. This may be because Tantawi was too pliant towards the regime, or because of the growth of various trends in contemporary Islam that reject al-Azhar’s centrality.

Issandr El Amrani, blogging at The Arabist

Read more reactions from Middle East blogs and twitter on Global Voices.
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A member of Sheikh Tantawi’s office, Ashraf Hassan, told news agency Reuters that Mohamed Wasel, Sheikh Tantawi’s deputy, was expected to temporarily take over leading the institution until the Egyptian president appointed a new head for the body.

Sheikh Tantawi was appointed to his position by Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak in 1996.

But as a government appointee, he was always forced to negotiate a careful path between his religious imperatives and his government position, the BBC’s Christian Fraser in Cairo says.

He was vocal in his opposition to female circumcision, which is common in Egypt, calling it “un-Islamic”.

Last year, Sheikh Tantawi barred female students at the university from wearing the full-face covering niqab veil.

He also caused upset other Muslim scholars by saying that French Muslims should obey any law that France might enact banning the veil.

His views on the veil prompted Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood to accuse him of “harming the interests of Islam”.

He has also condemned suicide attacks, saying extremists had hijacked Islamic principles fo Continue reading →

March 6, 2010 |  8:28 am (LA Times. March 6, 2010) Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s first public reaction to the political reaction that surrounded Mohamed ElBaradei’s return to Egypt seems to have been a very spontaneous attempt to remind everyone that … Continue reading →

إجتمع لفيف من رجال الأعمال والمتخصصين من المصريين المقيمين بولاية كاليفورنيا اليوم الموافق السابع من شهر مارس لسنة ٢٠١٠ لبحث السبل والوسائل اللازمة لتفعيل حقهم  في ممارسة الانتخابات القادمة. ويتساءل المجتمعون عن هذه الوسائل التي تتخذها الحكومة المصرية حالياً لتمكين … Continue reading →

Statement of Solidarity with African American and Palestinian Students in the UC System    We strongly condemn the spurious connection made between despicable acts of anti-black racism at UCSD and on other campuses in the system, and the acts of … Continue reading →

    By David Schenker Forbes.com March 2, 2010 In the most interesting development in Egyptian politics in years, former International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) head and Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohamed ElBaradei is eyeing an improbable challenge to six-term … Continue reading →

By MICHAEL SLACKMAN Feb 28, 2010 The New York Times CAIRO — Since arriving to a hero’s welcome just days ago, the former chief international nuclear watchdog and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mohamed ElBaradei has taken on the country’s leadership … Continue reading →