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Creating new perspectives since 2009

 

Mahmoud Hassan

 

Items by Mahmoud Hassan

  • Why the great escape from Egypt?

    Businessmen, athletes, influencers on social media and others are the protagonists of a dramatic wave of departures from Egypt. The stars of the “Great Escape” series, who are leaving Egypt in search of a safe haven for their investments and activities abroad, are raising many questions about the future of...

  • Egypt’s options for the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza

    US President Donald Trump’s insistence that Egypt and Jordan will accept displaced Palestinians from the Gaza Strip raises significant concerns about a potential deal being negotiated behind closed doors to facilitate their forced displacement. In other words: ethnic cleansing. The final details of such a deal may not yet...

  • Egypt faces a tough test

    The Egyptian government faces a critical test on Tuesday, 28 January, when it will appear before the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) amid allegations of increasing human rights violations and oppressive practices against political opponents. The administration of President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi seeks to showcase steps it has taken...

  • When will Egyptians reclaim the January Revolution?

    Next Saturday, Egyptians will mark the 14th anniversary of the 25 January Revolution of 2011, amidst a nostalgic longing for the unfulfilled promises of the uprising and ongoing questions about how to rekindle the popular momentum that toppled the regime of late President Hosni Mubarak after 30 years in...

  • Al-Sisi expands the military's economic share

    A new network of commercial outlets affiliated with Egypt’s Ministry of Defence has spread widely across the country’s governorates. These outlets specialise in selling dairy products, meat, food items and essential goods, marking the latest public economic activity of the Egyptian military. The organisation, Future of Egypt for Sustainable Development,...

  • Egypt and the new Syria: Concerns about the spread of revolution

    Extreme fear and caution dominate Egypt’s ruling circles regarding the new Syria in the post-Assad era. This comes amid a campaign to discredit Syria’s new leadership, cast doubt on their intentions and spread fear among Syrians about an uncertain future. Cairo appears to be one of the most hard-line Arab...

  • New asylum law raises concerns of violations in Egypt

    Egypt’s first asylum law raises concerns of violations being committed against refugees and asylum seekers, especially after responsibility for registering asylum seekers and determining their refugee status is transferred from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to the Egyptian government. A few days ago, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi...

  • Does Egypt have its own Sednaya Prison?

    The horrific Sednaya Prison in Syria has thrown the spotlight on the reality of Egypt’s prisons, the files of those forgotten behind bars, and the fate of the victims of torture and forced disappearance during the rule of current Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi. Thousands of Egyptian families fear a...

  • What does Assad's downfall mean for Sisi's regime?

    The fall of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime last week has triggered contrasting reactions in Egypt. While the Egyptian public has welcomed the development with joy and hope, the ruling circles are visibly anxious and fearful. This dichotomy reflects Egyptian aspirations for potential change from the iron grip that’s...

  • Egypt’s judges are facing three crises

    Egypt’s judges are facing three crises which have sparked open discontent and anger within the judiciary. The country has around 22,000 judges, of which 11,000 serve in civil and criminal courts; 2,500 serve in the State Council; and the rest are in the State Litigation Authority and Administrative Prosecution. They...

  • Is Sisi moving towards reconciliation with the Muslim Brotherhood?

    The Egyptian authorities’ decision to remove 716 people from the terrorist list is surrounded by mystery. The list includes Muslim Brotherhood leaders, businessmen, journalists and human rights activists, and it raises many questions about the significance of the decision and whether it is a prelude to resolving the crisis...

  • Cheating is ruining Egypt's education quality indicators

    There are more than 25 million students across all levels of the Egyptian education system, which is the largest in the Arab region. Egypt, however, scores low on education quality indicators in the Arab world and globally. This is caused by the spread of cheating, exam leaks, the growing...

  • Why doesn't Egypt host the Hamas Political Bureau?

    As US President-elect Donald Trump gets ready to return to the White House in January, regional and international matters are getting shuffled and mixed. Arguably the most prominent of these matters on the Arab and international agendas is the future of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas. Washington has...

  • The truth about Egypt’s entanglement in supporting Israel

    The MV Kathrin incident has heavy political and strategic implications for the Egyptian regime, which is accused of allowing a German-owned ship transporting military arms to the Israeli army to dock at its ports at a time when Israel continues its war against the Gaza Strip for the second...

  • Why a Trump win will suit Egypt’s Al-Sisi

    Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s eyes are on the White House. A Trump win will suit him very nicely. Indeed, not just Cairo, but other Arab and Gulf capitals also have high hopes for a Trump victory, because he is regarded as being more pragmatic than outgoing US President...

  • Why has Sisi reassigned his most trusted aide?

    Egyptians continue to debate the reasons for the reassignment of the now former head of the General Intelligence Service, Major General Abbas Kamel. Kamel was President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s right-hand man, the keeper of his secrets, and his companion in the military coup against the late President Mohamed Morsi...

  • Death on the ‘Long Live Egypt’ trains

    Three accidents have involved Egypt’s trains in one month, killing and injuring dozens of people, despite the billions of dollars supposedly being spent to improve the railway network that carries one million passengers a day. The second oldest railway network in the world often witnesses deadly accidents due to...

  • Happening in Egypt: suspension of ration cards as punishment

    You may get deprived of subsidised bread, flour, beans, lentils, cooking oil, sugar and pasta, with no prior notice. It is part of a new form of punishment and abuse against Egyptians, who are suffering from severe deterioration in living and economic conditions under the rule of President Abdel...

  • Egypt is paying a heavy price for the Iran-Israel escalation

    Egypt appears to be directly affected by the negative repercussions of the escalation between Iran and Israel. The assassination of the Secretary-General of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, following Israel’s political murder of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, and Iran’s response — it fired around 200 ballistic missiles...

  • Who is responsible for the Aswan epidemic?

    The people of Egypt are wondering about the causes of the so-called Aswan epidemic in the south of the country. Hundreds have become sick, and people are worried about a possible spread of cholera; there have been claims that Sudanese refugees are spreading it. Despite official denials of the spread...

  • US aid gives Egypt a green light for more oppression

    The decision of US President Joe Biden’s administration to grant Egypt full military aid without any cuts raises questions about Washington’s commitment to human rights, given how much they are violated in the Arab world’s most populous country. The US State Department has decided to exempt Egypt from foreign...

  • Egyptians are rebelling through the electricity power lines

    A controversial fatwa — Islamic legal opinion — has been issued in Egypt. It gives a green light to Egyptians to steal electricity, drinking water, gas and other public utilities on the pretext of high prices, inflation and increasing taxes. The fatwa from Al-Azhar University scholar Sheikh Imam Ramadan Imam...

  • Who is the winner in the Erdogan-Sisi summit?

    People are on the lookout for the outcome of the historic visit of Egyptian President, Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, to Ankara where he met with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, last Wednesday. The visit comes after more than 11 years of political estrangement between the two countries. The Erdogan-Sisi summit...

  • The Philadelphi Corridor proposal is a trap that can explode at the Egyptian border

    The Philadelphi Corridor has become an important part of the ongoing negotiations under Egyptian, Qatari and US mediation to agree a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists that Israel will not withdraw from the border corridor between Gaza and Egypt. Hamas, meanwhile, insists on a complete...