Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Osama Gaweesh
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Tamer Amin is not the only racist in Egypt
Television presenter Tamer Amin has sparked a storm of anger on social media with a racist story. “Sa’idi people and farmers ,” he said, “have a lot of children so they can work as servants.” Amin is close to the regime in Egypt and tries...
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We are still part of the January Revolution and it is part of us
Bread, freedom and social justice was the slogan chanted by Egyptians on the streets ten years ago yesterday. Yes, it has been ten years since the January Revolution. I remember that day, as if it were yesterday. There was a small crowd of young people who did not know each...
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Trump the banned president
Donald Trump is likely to go down in history not only as the first US president to be impeached twice, but also as the first (and so far only) to be banned by social media. If criminal proceedings follow in connection with his supporters’ attack on the Capitol Building...
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Sisi builds more palaces while intensive care units without oxygen are common in Egypt
An eyewitness in the intensive care unit of the Covid-19 isolation centre in El Husseiniya, Sharqia governorate in Egypt confirmed that “everybody died” when ventilators ran out of oxygen. “No oxygen in intensive care! Are you kidding me?” I was asked on Twitter. I replied that this is the...
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No matter what else he claims, Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi is a tyrant
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi told journalists during a press conference with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron in Paris that, “It is never appropriate for us to be described by you as a tyrant.” He is wrong; it is entirely appropriate. Nevertheless, Sisi appeared to be angry at the...
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An open letter to Scarlett Johansson
Dear Scarlett Johansson, I would like to begin by expressing my sincere gratitude and appreciation for your strong support for human rights in Egypt. You have succeeded in exposing the military regime, making it clear to the world how insignificant it is; that it has no sovereignty or ownership of...
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Egyptians are now being arrested and charged with being human rights activists
On 3 November, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) received ambassadors and diplomats representing 15 countries, mostly from the European Union, at its Cairo office for a public meeting. The EIPR published photos on its social media pages, pointing out that the session was intended to assess the...
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Egyptian opposition groups must take every opportunity to engage with Biden
The Muslim Brotherhood has issued what I would describe as a “measured” statement about Joe Biden’s victory in the US presidential election. “We call upon the incoming US administration to reconsider previous policies of support for dictatorships around the world,” it said. “We implore the Biden administration to repudiate...
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Sisi, Biden…and 20,000 lies
“The President is lying.” A striking statement that appeared on CNN’s news ticker just a few moments after Donald Trump began a speech in which he refused to acknowledge his defeat in the election and accused Joe Biden of fraud. The CNN presenter said that Trump keeps lying as usual, adding that we have...
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Al-Sisi could have restored Egypt as a key regional player, but has opted not to
At the end of September 2001, former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon stormed into Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, and hours later the Second (Al-Aqsa) Intifada erupted. Demonstrations swept through Arab capitals for weeks in conjunction with calls to boycott American and Israeli goods. I was in my first year at university...
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Al-Sisi and the black box
The new mantra of Egypt’s ruling military regime when anyone attempts to express an opinion that differs from the official narrative is that “leaks are our duty”. This, in short, is a summary of what happened last week to the host of the “Black Box” TV show, Abdel-Rahim Ali. The...
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One slap has broken the fear barrier in Egypt
The police lieutenant shouted at his subordinates as he left the scene in a hurry: “Come on, get in the cars quickly.” It reminded me of the Egyptian police escaping from the streets during the 25 January Revolution, particularly when the Interior Ministry forces were overwhelmed while trying to...
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Does Egyptian army contractor Mohamed Ali really have a magic wand?
If you believe that the Egyptian army contractor Mohamed Ali has a magic wand with which he can persuade millions of people to protest against President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, then this article is definitely not for you. However, if you believe in the inevitability of cumulative change through continuous...
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Al-Sisi and the opposition TV channels
For the fourth or fifth time in seven years, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi outrageously addressed opposition TV channels broadcasting from abroad, particularly from Turkey. This time Al-Sisi accused these channels of fabrication, lashing out at the Egyptian state and spreading false news about Egyptian internal affairs. During my work...
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Half of Egypt's population wanted by the Public Prosecutor
The National Elections Authority in Egypt have decided to refer more than half of the Egyptian people to the Public Prosecutor to investigate the fact that more than 54 million Egyptian citizens did not participate in the Senate elections last week. I could not believe my eyes while reading the...
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In Egypt, only Asian tourists get tested for coronavirus
When Bill Jones* and his partner arrived at Luxor Airport to prepare to fly back to Cairo at the end of February, it was the end of a two-week tour around the main sites of Egypt, an excursion that passed through Abu Simbel Temple, Lake Nasser, the pyramids and...