Middle East Monitor - The Latest from the Middle East
April Guest Writer
News from Africa
Youth movements demonstrate in central Cairo against anti-protest law
Hundreds of Egyptian political activists from a number of different youth movements organised a human chain in central Cairo on Wednesday, demanding for the interim government to abolish the controversial anti-protest law and release all political prisoners.
Dalia Mogahed: Al-Sisi will fail in uniting Egyptians
American scholar Dalia Mogahed predicted that Al-Sisi will fail to unite Egyptians if he wins the presidential elections.
Egypt court sentences 119 Morsi supporters to three years in prison
An Egyptian court sentenced 119 Mohamed Morsi supporters to three years in jail on charges of illegally protesting last October 6.
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News from the Middle East
UN official pledges to lift the 'illegal' siege on Gaza
The new Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) Pierre Krahenbuhl pledged yesterday to defend Gaza and work hard to end the blockade.
Kuwait: Gulf rift 'will be resolved soon'
The dispute between the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar "will be resolved soon" as things are "moving in a positive direction towards containing the issue", Kuwait's Foreign Ministry Undersecretary said.
Haniyeh: 'Turkey is fighting to lift the siege of Gaza'
Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said on Wednesday that Turkey is "fighting" in every way to break the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip.
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News from Europe and Russia
New EU restrictions on Egyptian agricultural exports
The EU Commission in Brussels has issued a new decision to double check the Egyptian agricultural exports to countries within the EU.
Morocco sentences British paedophile to 20 years in prison
A Moroccan Criminal Court sentenced on Tuesday a British man to 20 years in prison on charges of attempting to kidnap and rape three minors, a judicial source reported.
Labour Party leader Ed Miliband: The basis of the success of negotiations is the recognition of a Palestinian state
The basis for the success of the negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis depends on Israeli recognition of a viable independent Palestinian state, living side by side with the State of Israel, the leader of the British Labour Party and opposition Ed Miliband said.
EU: Syrian elections 'parody of democracy'
EU Foreign Affairs Ministers said on Monday that the planned Syrian elections would be a "parody of democracy" if carried out only in areas under the regime's control.
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News from Asia, the Americas, & International Organisations
New campaign seeks to suspend Israel's FIFA membership
American and Arab sports activists in the United States have launched the Red Card Israeli Racism campaign calling for Israel to be expelled from the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) on the grounds of Israel's repeated violations of Palestinian athletes' rig...
US should save Egypt from a looming solvency crisis, think tank
A report by the Council on Foreign Relations suggested that Egypt is close to experiencing an economic deadlock and that the US must intervene to rescue Egypt from impending insolvency.
Carter says Israel possesses more than 300 nuclear warheads
Israel possesses more than 300 nuclear warheads, former US President Jimmy Carter told MSNBC last week.
US angry with Israel's 'neutrality' over Ukrainian crisis
US officials expressed anger over Israel's policy of "non-interference" with the Russian annexation of the Crimea; Israel's Haaretz newspaper reported.
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Latest In-Depth Articles
Why is Israel opposed to Palestine joining international treaties?
Last week, the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced that he had accepted the application of Palestinians to join 13 international UN conventions. Significantly, these include the Geneva Conventions, which govern the rules of war and military occupation.
Post-coup politics raise tensions between Egypt and Sudan
Relations between Cairo and Khartoum are tense. Although many fleeing the coup have made it to Libya or London, hundreds if not thousands of Muslim Brotherhood members are thought to have fled to Khartoum. The run down to the border is punctuated by military checkpoints, but it is 2000 km long and Sisi's men have not been able to police it completely. However the recent capture of Prime Minister Hisham Qandil, and his subsequent detention and alleged torture, shows that the trip is not for the faint-hearted.
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MEMO Commentary & Analysis
The EU and Middle East democracy
Is there any difference between the forthcoming presidential elections in Egypt and Syria? The Europe Union apparently believes that there is. While the EU has dismissed the Syrian process as a "parody of democracy", the European High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton, conveyed an entirely different outlook on the election in Egy...
DEBATE by Ben White
From ethnic cleansing to return: a peace process worthy of the name
This week marks the 66th anniversary of the ethnic cleansing of Miska, a Palestinian village whose roughly 1,000-strong population was expelled in April 1948 by Haganah forces. Located around 10 miles from Qalqilya, Miska boasted 100-200 houses, an elementary school for boys, and a mosque.
INQUIRY by Asa Winstanley
Israel's doomed 'lawfare' strategy
A report in the Jewish Chronicle last week stated that a "secret conference" had been held in London whose aim was to combat the "delegitimization of Israel". The three-day event was reportedly held amid heavy security and was attended by representatives of Israel's spy agencies and by Israeli Strategic...
