#Nile Crisis : Dear Egyptians We Are in Deep Water !!

It seems that we are in deep water when it comes to the Nile crisis , we are in this alone. We counted on Sudan but it seems that surprisingly the Islamist Pro-MB regime in Khartoum is playing for its own gains.

Together for the Nile Valley Renaissance

After officially denying that Sudan will head to the Arab league seeking help against Ethiopia , the Official Spokesperson of the Sudanese government , the minister of culture Ahmed Belal Othman stated that Sudan supported the dam. Othman also added of course the whole thing depends on coordination between the three countries.
Now I do not understand the Sudanese government position considering their so-close relations with the Muslim brotherhood after all the International organization of MB held its annual meeting in Khartoum last year.
Turkish news agency Andolu says that Sudanese experts say that the relations with Addis Abba were better than Cairo and that Khartoum may use the water card with Egypt in order to claim Hala’ib triangle. In other words the unnamed experts say that Khartoum may or is actually blackmailing Egypt.
Amazingly Sudan will be harmed from that dam badly and according to experts if this dam collapses while it is being operated in its full capacity many parts of  Sudan will be drowned.
The trilateral commission report has not been issued , it is delayed. It should have been issued  yesterday but it is delayed. According to Ahram Newspaper the report is delayed because Ethiopia is pressing to omit "any part condemning or harming the current Ethiopian policies". In other words the Ethiopian government does not want anything negative about the dam.
Already there have been leaks about the report say the Ethiopian government did not cooperate as it should hiding information about the dam.
Officially despite the military choice talk was brought up in the Egyptian mainstream and social media, the Egyptian Presidency says it clearly that the military choice is not option. I believe that it is not option but the Egyptian Presidency and government have not told us the other options available.
What I see clearly now that our southern neighbors are taking advantage of political woes. It is not the first time this happen in our long history. Also I see clearly Morsi's administration seems to be lost , I do not know if the Muslim brotherhood believes that Ethiopia is part of their future MB caliphate like Sudan so the dam issue is not a big deal or what. 
We are paying the price of Mubarak’s bad policies in that critical file yet it seems that Morsi and his MB administration are not even willing to try to stop us from paying that price. Anyhow Morsi will pay even more as his support in the street at least in Cairo in the past 72 hours thanks to the Nile Crisis. In shops and taxis people are mad at him and how the Ethiopians are belittling him and belittling Egypt to the level of diverting the Nile course without Egypt’s approval.
I do not understand why the ministry of foreign affairs or even the Egyptian Presidency summoned the Italian and Chinese ambassadors to have talks with them and express Egypt’s official rejection. Of course I am totally against using the Suez canal against them like what Hamdeen Sabbahi suggested but I am with the idea of using our cards with them. We are not a small or weak or insignificant country.
I think we should learn from the past and God we have a very long full of lessons history. We can learn from Suez crisis on how we can have a diplomatic confrontation without losing the world’s support.
We should learn from the Pre-1967 six days war defeat lesson and start to amend our relations with other Arab countries like Gulf states in order to find a support and coordination.

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#NGOs Draft Law is Here

The Egyptian Presidency has released the NGOs draft Law to the public at Mohamed Morsi’s official Facebook Page today. Oh yes because it is an official and professional presidency , it publishes the 40 pages draft law in a photo album
Anyhow to help others , I downloaded the draft law and transferred in to a PDF. You can read the draft law after the break as a PDF.

There is controversy about this law as expected and Egyptian NGOs have expressed their rejection to the NGOs law. Many independent activists as well expressed their refusal.
I am currently in a hurry so I will quote the objections of Heba Morayef , the human rights watch Egypt director which she stated on her official twitter account.
According to Morayef the draft law , specifically article No.14 allows government to object the Egyptian NGOs fundraising domestically as well to object any internal decision taken by the NGOs without any restriction according to article No.18.
She also added that according to articles 12 and 72 any NGO or club joins a foreign club or association or NGO or organization without informing the Coordinating Committee for the NGOs will be either suspended or disbanded.
One of the biggest points she raised also was the foreign funding. The law amazingly approves the foreign funding from individuals and NGOs inside and outside Egypt but it does not allow foreign governmental and inter-governmental funding to the NGOs.
Already you can read the human rights watch's report about the draft law here. 
The coordinating commission of NGOs is a new authority made by the government to supervise the NGOs and its location will be in Cairo. Of course activists outside Cairo are annoyed from this because centralization has already been killing the civil society in Egypt.
The law is heading to the Shura council and based on past experience , we should expect the worst from it. 

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Cairo Opera House To Strike

Artists and employees of Cairo Opera House Protested today and started a strike for the first time in the history of the Opera demanding the dismissal of the minister of culture.

No for the minister of culture "Ahram Online Arts"

The artists and employees were shocked today to find the newly appointed minister of culture issued a sudden decision to sack the head of Cairo Opera House Ines Abdel Dayem earlier today.
Staging a protest outside the Opera house in Zamalek Tuesday afternoon , Musicians from Cairo symphony orchestra, artists, dancers and visual artists joined the protest holding banners and chanting against the minister of culture Alaa Abdel Aziz.
 They even asked the people to honk if they hate the Muslim brotherhood.

If you hate the MB , honk "Ahram Online Arts"

And people did honk "Ahram Online Arts"

What was supposed to be Opera Aida turned in to a protest for the first time in the history of Opera house in Egypt and I think in the history of Opera Aida itself.

Opera Aida tonight turned in to a protest

We are all Ines Abdel Dayem said the banners tonight

The audience supported the decision and even refused to be refunded for the tickets.

Inside the Opera House tonight

Of course Opera Aida is cancelled as well other scheduled including the concerts of Omar Khairat. 
There is huge anger in the Opera House as well the rest of the ministry of culture as close to MB newly appointed ministry Abdel Aziz is doing his best in sacking people and appointing his friends as well MB members.
Here is the video from Aida

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#Nile Crisis in #Cairo Thanks to Renaissance Dam

The Nile in Aswan

Whether the Muslim brotherhood likes it or not , the current Nile crisis with Ethiopia is the biggest challenge facing President Mohamed Morsi, the biggest for real. This is the Nile Challenge.
It is now his true capabilities as a President are being tested. This is not Gaza where Hamas, the MB branch in Palestine is , this is Egypt’s national security and future we are speaking about.
For those who do not know what I am speaking , today in a provoking move the Ethiopian government diverted the course of the Blue Nile preparing for a new stage in building the Grand renaissance Dam.It is provoking because the diversion of the Blue Nile was supposed to take place after the trilateral commission’s report in September 2013.
The trilateral commission is made of experts from Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia as well foreign experts who are studying the effects of the dam on the downstream countries “Egypt and Sudan. The commission’s report was already going to be issued by the end of this month. The last meeting in Cairo , this month. Update : On Wednesday the report will be issued and the Egyptian presidency will declare its position accordingly. Leaks in the report say that Ethiopia did not fully cooperate with the commission and withheld information about the dam.
According to this report we will know if the dam is truly a threat to Egypt and Sudan. If it is a threat , there will be supposedly negotiations and so. After all this is an international river.
The diversion of the Blue Nile was supposed to take place in September 2013 if the dam  gets an ok after the Nile flood.
I believe Ethiopia did this move to twist Egypt’s arm like we say in Arabic , to make us face the reality seizing the opportunity of Egypt’s internal woes and weaknesses as well. I can not blame them , I will blame the current Egyptian administration starting with the President , his aides, his advisers , the intelligence and the ministry of foreign affairs.

The high dam in Aswan

The Mubarak administration as well Omar Suleiman had gone with the wind , they are from the past now. All those months some had to pay attentions to our Upstream neighbors especially Ethiopia. Yes Morsi was the first President to visit Ethiopia but as I see that there is no big impact for his visit now.
China is sponsoring this dam and yet this was not raised in the Egyptian Chinese talks during President Morsi’s visit !! The Turks and Iranians got investments in Ethiopia , we can use them. For God sake Mubarak used the Arab Gulf relations in his fight with Ethiopia over the dams.
I do not need to tell you that many Egyptians believe that the military choice is the best one but I am afraid that the military choice is not an option whether from diplomatic view or technical view. Diplomatically you will start a war in hard times. Yes technically we can not afford air strikes to go to the heart of Ethiopia except with the help of neighbors and I do not think that neighbor countries will be welcoming to join us in war !!
I think EGYPT can pull some cards for its once sake but it seems these cards do not appear except for the Muslim brotherhood branches in other countries !! I am sorry to say that. By the way I hope the Muslim brotherhood supporters stop saying “Hey you and other speakers as well the the opposition , what will you do or what are you going to do !?”
I am sorry but I am not the President for God sake. The President and his administration are in trouble. Already the Egyptian ambassador in Ethiopia said that Morsi was informed by the decision to divert the Blue Nile course 12 hours prior his return to Egypt while the Presidency's spokesperson is denying this and belittling the whole matter.
People are praising the Sudanese official reaction from expression rejection and anger as well heading to the Arab League. Of course I wonder what the Arab League will do !!
Of course now all the night talk shows got nothing to speak about it except the Nile crisis and the Renaissance dam.
Now some will say why Egyptians are so angry and do not want this dam to exist at all. Well it has nothing to do with , well I would like to share with you this online study “unfortunately in Arabic” about the dam. This report details the pros and cons of the dam, there are 6 pros fro 9 cons.
I will focus here on the cons :

1. Extreme high cost of building this dam
2. Forest land and irrigated land “extreme rare in Blue Nile” will be dumped and drowned in the dam’s

   

   An illustration for the Renaissance dam

   lake , no other land available for irrigation in nearby area.
3. Mining areas with minerals like Gold and iron as well quarries will be drowned.
4. Nearly 30,000 Ethiopians will be forced to be displaced.
5. The dam’s age is short “between 25-50 years” due to sedimentation that will affect its efficiency.
6. There is high chance that the dam can collapse due to geological factors and the high speed of water current in the Blue Nile , if it collapses  , this may create a tsunami that can drown Sudanese villages and towns.
7. High chances for earthquakes.
8. Egypt and Sudan will lose lots and lots of water share starting from the first year, in fact the first year of operating this dam we will lose huge quantity of water.
9. Political tensions with Egypt and Ethiopia.  

I was planning to write something different tonight ,but important things should not be ignored.
Ironically it comes at the same time the Muslim brotherhood is preparing huge celebration for his first anniversary as a President.

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The video of the Week : When Islamists Sing .. #Ultras Song

This should be the video of the Week after all who would think that Islamists would sing the famous Ultras Ahlawy “UA07” song against police in the court instead of their usual Islamist chants.

Islamists sing UA07 Anti-Police song

Amazingly a woman wearing Niqab led the chanting !! Of course she did not continue nor did the brothers complete the song with its lyrics.

This case or actually lawsuit is against the State security officers accused of torturing Islamists.

Here is the original song in video from Tahrir square “+18”

Ahly Ultras chants in Tahrir square 9/9

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The Renaissance Dam , The Latest Achievements of the Renaissance Age

It does not rain but pours indeed.

The Ethiopians are celebrating today the change of the stream flow of the Blue Nile today as one of the most important phases of constructing the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. 

You can watch the ceremony here live.
According to experts this step will affect the water share of Egypt by 30%.

From ETV

It is worth to mention that President Morsi was there from two days. What the Ethiopians are doing today is not surprising ,this move is not a decision taken in a day or night but let's say we are paying at all in the South  whether the embassy or intelligence. The failure continues from Mubarak administration to Morsi administration.
Now crisis management in both Sudan and Egypt.
Sudan will go to the Arab league , oh yes the Arab league !!
Now in Egypt for couple of hours ago you could not get the minister of irrigation on the phone or his spokesperson as both closed their mobile phones. Nevertheless the ministry held a meeting and issued a statement.
In nutshell this is what was mentioned in the statement :

• The diversion of the Blue Nile Course will not affect the our share of Water !?
• We are waiting the tripartite Commission's report about the dam's effects on Egypt and Sudan. 
• Egypt's silence does not mean its approval on the dam

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Can We Start Speaking about Sexism in our Advertising Please ?

Yesterday millions of Egyptians saw this ad on the first page of Ahram Newspaper ,the most spread ,semi-official and state-owned newspaper to find this ad.
"Like any other ad , we brought this beautiful girl to tell you that maintenance service is working" Siltal refrigerators 

 

I do not know what to say !! This is Al Ahram Newspaper and this is Front Page and yet nobody paid attention to the sexist message of the ad. 

I know that this is the tip of the ice berg when it comes to advertising and sexism in Egypt , in fact in the world but it is just disgusting and sick to open the morning paper to find this ad in the front page.

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Save our heritage , Save our history for God sake "Updated With Photos and Info"

Yesterday we were shocked to find out through the Facebook as usual that a historical gate in Islamic old Cairo was demolished. Yes it was demolished or to be accurate was bulldozed by some contractor !!!!!!
The photos are horrible.

Before the gate looked like that by Amina Abdel Bar

After the bulldozer attack :(( 

The gate of Bab Al Wazir was the among the remaining gates of old Cairo. Here is another page about the Gates of Old Cairo in Tour Egypt.
I want to cry and scream.
More photos and information about the building that turned to be a building and not a gate.The photos are from Reuters' Aswat Masrya by Ahmed Hamed

 Now it turned out that the building is not from the historical gates of Cairo. That building was built in early 19th century for the Sheikh of Al Azhar then Sheikh Abdel Rahman Kara'a. It turned out that despite it has a very distinguished style and despite it is located in a historical area , it was not registered as historical building. The reason is not clear why it was not registered as historical building.  

Now it turned out that the granddaughter of Sheikh Abdel Rahman Kara'a who owns the building decided to demolish it in order to build a modern ugly building of 3 floors. Of course it is her right legally but where the state was from that building and where the urban coordination sector in the ministry of culture from preserving the old Islamic style in that historical quarter in Egypt.

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#Egyelections : Army and Police to Vote and the debate goes on

Yesterday the Supreme constitutional court “SCC” has ruled out for the first time that the army and police personnel can vote in the Egyptian elections and referendums.
This court rule is based upon the constitution issued and approved last year by 64% specifically the following article 55 :

Army and police in the latest referendum

It is a national duty for citizens to participate in public life. Every citizen has the right to vote, run for election, and express his opinion through a referendum. The law specifies these rights.The state commits itself to entering each citizen who is eligible to vote into the voter registry without requiring an application.The state guarantees the peacefulness and integrity of referenda and elections. State organs that interfere in these processes with the goal of influencing them are committing crimes punishable by law.

Other articles the court mentioned in its reasoning : 

Article 33
The citizens enjoy equality before the law. They have identical rights and public duties. There is no discrimination among them.

And

Article 64
Work constitutes a right, a duty, and an honor for every citizen. The state guarantees it on the basis of equality, justice, and equality of opportunity.Forced labor is permissible only to the extent stipulated by law.The public servant works to serve the People; the state awards government employment to citizens according to merit, without favoritism. Any deviation from this is a crime punishable by law.The state guarantees every worker’s right to a fair income and vacation days. It also guarantees pensions, social security, health care, protection against occupational hazards, the availability of safety provisions in the work place, in accordance with the law.Workers may only be fired under circumstances that are specified by law.Peaceful strike is a right, regulated by law.

In other simple words the court ruling depends on the fundamental rights of citizenship and equality as long as there is no clear article that says the army and police personnel are not allowed to participate as voters in the elections and referendums as in past constitutions like in constitution 1971.
In that constitution of 1971 it is clearly says that the citizens allowed to vote according to the regulating laws aka The political rights and elections laws then. It seems that
This is not the first time we have this debate after the 25 January revolution if you remember but this time we got a constitutional court historical ruling. According to the Armed forces in the Wikipedia , there are 468,500 men currently serving. If we add the police to them , then we are speaking about a voting bloc not less than 500,000.
Of course it created a new controversy with supporters and opponents from both sides.
At first I did not understand the position of the Muslim brotherhood because I found Ahmed Rushdie , the famous MB tweep online who is close Presidency extremely happy yesterday announcing that he will be the first volunteer in the Freedom and Justice party campaigns in police stations and military barracks. 
Yet today the position of the Freedom and Justice appeared clearly. Mourad Ali , the official media adviser said the following statement published on the party’s official Facebook Page :

The Constitutional court demand to let the military participate in the elections as voter is strange and raises a lot of questions as if someone was insisting to drag the police and army in the political struggle in any possible way. Is it demanded to transfer the polarization to the military units ? Is there a sane person who accepts to have partisan campaigns in the barracks ? Is it acceptable to have a police officer or an army officer in the elections campaign for one the parties ? For God sake wake up and do not push the army into politics because it has got other scared mission.

This view is supported by the Muslim brotherhood’s current allies in Al Wasat Party and Development and reconstruction party of the Al Gama’a Al Islamiyaa.
Essam Sultan of Al Wasat Party believes that the Constitutional court will destroy the army. Tarek El Zoomer of Al Gama’a Al Islamiyaa attacked the court as well.

بعبارة صغيرة استطاعت المحكمة الدستورية ان تعبث بهيئة الناخبين وأيضا تهدد حياد الجيش والشرطة الﻻزمين لنزاهة وحماية اﻻنتخابات
— د.طارق الزمر (@drtarekelzomor) May 26, 2013

In brief the SCC managed to mess with the voters base in Egypt and to threat the neutrality of police and army needed for fair elections.

Amazingly these Islamist parties are angry from the court ruling which is based upon the constitution that they wrote and supported.
Of course not all those opposing this ruling as Islamists or Pro-Muslim brotherhood supporters. There are other reasons for those people other than the fued between the MB and the SCC as well the MB and army from another hand.
Many of those opposing that right of army and police to vote believe that their votes as a bloc would directed to the supreme commander of the police and army aka the President and his ruling party. That team believes there will be no free will for the officers and soldiers and that they will follow the orders simply as that.
Of course the Pro-civilian state believe that the military and police vote will support only the military candidates like Ahmed Shafik or any other candidate with military background regardless his views and his platform.
Another dilemma where the officers and soldiers especially in the army will vote and whether their polling stations will be under the jurisdiction of normal judiciary or military judiciary aka judicial supervision.
Of course there is another fear as by bringing politics and polarization to the Egyptian army destroying its unity over time like Syrian army and Iraqi army.
Still there are people who believe that it is actually a good thing to give the police and the army their right to vote.
Hafez Abu Saeeda , the head of the Egyptian organization for Human rights tweeted the following :

حقوق المواطنة اهم مظهرها هو حق التصويت وانتخاب السلطتين التشريعية والتنفيذية ولا توجد أي قاعده لحرمان أي فئة من حق التصويت
— hafez abuseada (@hafezabuseada) May 26, 2013

One of the most important features in citizenship is the right to vote the executive and legislative authorities and there is no rule to prohibit any sector from voting

 Liberal politician Amr Hamzawy is also supporting the right of the army and police personnel to vote because this is democracy.
This is valid point. Like any other citizens the officers and soldiers have the right to choose their representatives as any other Egyptian citizen.
Personally I believe all Egyptians should have the right and in the end the army and the police are made of Egyptian citizens. I think in established democracy they have the right to vote but again in established democracy not in struggling democracies in Egypt. It is like a dilemma because established democracies also are built through representations. Already I googled for awhile and I found that it is quite controversial. In fact there is going on debate about it in India , the biggest democracy in the world.
There are lot of fear and mistrust and here I am not referring to the MB and their supporters but to the civilian pro-revolutionaries who got their own concerns that I presented in this post. We are in a very critical time in Egypt , polarization is in its climax. The last thing I want now is divisions in the army due to political polarization 
Nevertheless it is an important debate as well another round of the complicated relation between the current ruling regime or rather the Muslim brotherhood and the army.
On the other hand the SCC has rejected another 4 articles in the proposed elections law once again making it unconstitutional.
By the way for foreign readers , I would like to hear your point of view.

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Gold Rush in The South

The mining for minerals in Hala’ib triangle especially gold is part of the dispute between Egypt and Sudan. Actually in late 1970s or early 1980s the dispute surfaced when Sudan signed an agreement with some American or Canadian mining company to mine gold there “despite it is disputed territory and Egypt officially believes that the triangle is considered an Egyptian territory ”
It is just an irony that despite the people there live in extreme poverty , they are surrounded by rich area of minerals above them gold mine
 Financial Al Mal Daily newspaper reporter Mohamed Ragab travelled to Hala’ib and filmed there the unofficial/illegal gold mining there. He did not say the exact location but it is between the cities of Hala’ib and Shalateen. The speaker in the video who is wearing the galabiya is not a native if I may say, he seems to be of Upper Egyptian origin.

Gold mining in Hala’ib triangle

The people there extract gold from the gold veins found in that mount in the triangle for four years now. Amazingly the deal is as follows a guy comes with gold detector along with workers and a transportation vehicle and in the end the profit is divided by three.
“The government does not interfere” says the Upper Egyptian guy who owns three gold detectors. For 6 months the government aka the army , the intelligence and state security in this area used to stalk those gold diggers but they stopped now. “The best government is in Hala’ib !!”  The man said with no regards to the people suffering there.
Surprisingly in the end of that short yet extremely important clip we find out that there is some Gulf mining company digging for gold there.
When it comes to the unofficial gold mining in Egypt , you will be surprised to know that no only some people in Hala’ib mine it unofficially but in other areas as well.
Last month Al Shorouk newspaper reported exclusively that there is illegal gold mining taking place in Qena. Strangely I cannot find the report anymore in Shorouk official newspaper but I found a cached version from the report “Thank God for Google Cache service”
According to the report the people mainly from Bedouin tribes working in illegal gold mining in the one of the mounts in an area called “Wadi El Lakeeta”. When I checked its location in Google maps I found out that it is near to Red Sea governorate. The report says that despite the governor and the government officials are denying to have any knowledge with that mine unlike what it seems.
Amazingly the report says that there are not less than 3,000 families working in gold mining in that area and in fact not less 500 young men work in one location when it comes to mining. There are illegal gold workshops working in the governorate yet the governor denies it !!
You know if I were from those people , I will use the profit from these mines to improve my village and my area as long as the centralized government in Cairo ignores our existence.

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Follow Up : Mohamed Ali Palace in Shubra El Kheima

This is a follow up post for the Mohamed Ali Palace in Shubra El Kheima and what I wrote about earlier regarding the palace.
Tweep @Ronna56 works in the ministry of culture and she told me on twitter that the engineers and experts in the ministry already wrote a report about the bad condition of the palace. 

A photo for ceiling by Howard Jones

@Ronna56 , who is also an engineer says that according to the report “Wadi Al Nil for constructions” committed horrifying mistakes in the renovation like for instance like using bad type of fire stop plastic pipes that led to water leaks if I understood correctly affecting the old palace. The report is supported by testimonies from professors in engineers.
Allegedly the construction company follows the General Intelligence , thus no one dared to speak up and criticize their work !!
The report predicted that the palace will collapse from several years ago.
I do not understand we did not spend LE 55 million to have fancy restaurants and gala hall , this is a part of our great history. Egypt was ruled from this palace , in fact that palace witnessed the birth of Modern Egypt !!
The report is kept in the ministry of culture for anyone interested. I believe the ministry should represent it a report the prosecutor general despite he will not do something still this is the right legal step available.
At the same time I urge the journalists to dig for the report and publish it in their newspapers and websites in order to force the government to do something. It seems that this is the only way available to us.
Here are @Ronna56's tweets  in Arabic

@zeinobia شركة المقاولات المنفذه للترميم "وادى النيل" مخابرات محدش هيكلمهم - والموضوع ده قديم وزمايلى أشتركوا فى تقرير هندسى عن حالة القصر 1
— اﻷفكار المبعثره (@Ronnaa56) May 20, 2013

@zeinobia جبنا لجنه هندسيه لأثبات أن الترميم فيه خطأ وشبهة فساد - جابوا دكتور من هندسه ورفعنا تقرير وأتشال فى الدرج عشان ميفتحوش فى القديم 2
— اﻷفكار المبعثره (@Ronnaa56) May 20, 2013

@zeinobia أنا عندى التقرير اللى أترفع للمسئولين .. للتنبيه بحالة القصر وتوقع انهياره .. من سنين الكلام ده .. بس كالعاده لا حياة لمن ينادى 3
— اﻷفكار المبعثره (@Ronnaa56) May 20, 2013

@zeinobia مشروع أتكلف 55 مليون جنيه وأتنفذ مواسير الحريق فيه من خامة "البلاستيك" والفسقيه لم تعالج فحدث تسريب منها لكل أساسات القصر
— اﻷفكار المبعثره (@Ronnaa56) May 20, 2013

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No Electricity , No Bills

As Egypt began to be hit by a new wave of blackouts for long hours from North to South Egyptians , some Egyptians began to think to object in their own way : They will not pay the electricity bill.
People are leaving messages on their doors and gates that they will not pay the electricity bill.

Tanta : we are not pay the electricity bill 

Why to pay for something they do not get especially in exams season !? 
Hers is a Facebook event page as well a Facebook Page for the campaign
This is a peaceful pressure tool I believe whether you or disagree and yet millions are harmed as a result of having reactive government that did not act as it should since last summer. It is worth to mention that there is increase in the electricity bills.
Since last summer 2012 and the massive blackouts we suffered from in the country as well with the shortage in fuel , there have been warnings that the blackouts will continue in summer 2013 and yet from what I see the government did not do anything to prevent or to stop this new crisis or even prepare for it. I swear to God I know that this crisis goes back to time of Mubarak during the summer but what the new democratically elected president and his government have done regarding this pressing problem for two years !?
I am tired of having reactive governments before and after the revolutions. I am tired of having a government that does not save energy itself , why on earth we find light posts in the daylight working ?? Why can not we have solar light post like solar billboards for God sake !?
Now part of the government responsibility as well the NGOs and the media to be frank in this time is to provide people with alternatives trying to save energy.I am not speaking about Hisham Qandil’s type of advices like all the family members stay one room wearing cotton underwear and one air conditioner is on. I am speaking about energy saving bulbs. I am speaking about instructions for emergencies whether health emergencies or security emergencies.
Again it is not the role of the government only but the society and its NGOs as well.
I am speaking about using solar charges for mobile phones and other devices. I am speaking about encouraging people especially in new communities and rural areas to use solar heaters. I wrote about this before and I will continue to write about it again. By the way I heard that people in areas like October and Sheikh Ziyad began to think about buying solar generators ‘rich class’.  I do not know why the government does not support those people and help them , at least it will lift some of the burden.
Already I can not believe with that amount of sand and sun we have got in Egypt , we do not manufacture solar heaters and solar plates . For God sake we were the first to try solar energy !!
By the way we will face even tougher times with upcoming fuel problem in the summer.

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Leave Cairo's Saint Patron Alone For God sake !!

I am getting tired of hearing that sort of news everyday.Yesterday I found photos showing horrible agression on Sayeda Zeinab Mosque in Old cairo. First you can read more about the history of that mosque and shrine in Cairobserver blog. You will be shocked to know that this mosque is not listed as Islamic monument !!
Now It seems that either the ministry of endowment or some people decided to paint the old mosque as they want. They began to color the roof white the minaret was painted by pink !!
Here is a photo gallery for what happened exactly in the mosque from Historic Cairo Facebook Page.

 It is unclear who is behind this cultural agression. Some say that it is the ministry of endowment while others say that they are some El Sayeda fantatics trying to get rid to celebrate the birth of Cairo's Saint patron in their own way !!
Either ways the ministry of culture and its Urban harmony sector are extremely angry and they demand that nonsense to stop right way.
The head of the Sayeda Zeinab district claimed that he did not do anything about the painting of the mosque !! 
The district stopped the painting thank goodness but one must wonder what if those photos above did not make it online.
By the way I think the ministry of culture and ministry of antiquities should pay attention to what is happening to the old mosques related to Islamic saints. I wrote before about Sultan Abu Ela Mosque and nothing happened. By the doom of Sultan Abu Ela mosque is painted white. 

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And The Soldiers Are Back and Free

From four hours ago the official spokesperson of armed forces announced the end of the hostages crisis in Sinai with the following message : 

The 7 kidnapped soldiers are in their way back to Cairo after they are being released thanks to the efforts of the military intelligence with the help of the tribes chieftains and honorable people of Sinai. 

I think my predictions were right.
After an honor we found that the soldiers would arrive to Al Maza Military airport where President Morsi , minister El Sisi of defense and PM Qandil were waiting for them.

Morsi, El Sisi, Qandil and Ibrahim at Al Maza airport 

During that time the soldiers were being prepared to show  up shaved and wearing their uniform. The soldiers look even younger and distraught.

 

President Morsi spoke during the reception and sent several messages :

• He supports the army. 
• He calls the opposition for dialogue. 
• He is open to reconcile with Mubarak's era investors. 
• We are ready for elections.

The official spokesperson of armed forces will hold a presser to discuss what happened. The Presidency will hold a presser too as well.
Rafah crossing is now open.  
Now on social networks Egyptians believe the kidnapping was more of a charade to raise the popularity of Morsi !!
Here is a cartoon by Andeel that summarizes this view.

El Sisi to Morsi : Why nobody is buying this ? JF Andeel

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Sinai’s Hostage Crisis Day#7: Statements and Conferences

On Tuesday we found the admin of the official FB page of SCAF “Do you remember him !?” posting a very interesting Wall post about the latest developments in Sinai. The post’s title was “The last message” and it was more of warning.

Up till this moment , I repeat till this moment we respect the Egyptian blood despite how awful the terrorist act but our answer will be quick and touch. It will be devastating and we will not have mercy on the terrorists or those who will help them by protection or shelter.

This page is from the official FB pages following the Egyptian armed forces last time I checked.
Amazingly the Salafist Jihadist group in Sinai issued a statement on the same day. First the group holds the presidency , the ministry of interior and the commandership of the army the responsibility of what happened. Neglecting the demands of the detainees families and torturing one of the detainees “Hamda Abu Sheita” till he lost his sight led to what we see from what I understood in the statement. This makes me wonder whether the unidentified group was related to the families. Also how the group  knew about this.
Second the Salafist Jihadist group wonders why there are large military deployments in Zone “C” of Sinai and why Israel approved that. They believe it could be for another goal approved by Sinai. That goal of course is getting rid of them.

The statement copy from Walid

Third the Salafist Jihadist group’s main is Israel and the Egyptian army knows that but the group will not leave the detainees alone. Still the group will take calculated steps to help those detainees.
Fourth the Salafist Jihadist group warns the Egyptian army from any move against the group claiming that it will be for the benefit of Israel.
This statement indicates the trap I fear the Egyptian army is being led to.
Then the President’s advisor for Media Ayman Ali and the spokesperson of the ministry of interior “Where is Colonel Ahmed Ali of the armed forces ??” had a meeting with the journalists and TV hosts. Ali said that there are no negotiations and there is no military operation because we are not facing enemy army.The MOI spokesperson says that the kidnappers are known to the ministry and they are criminals “who they are ??” 
In the evening Abu Sheita clan has held a press conference in Al Arish to defend itself.The clan found itself in the center of the accusation. The kidnapped soldiers mentioned the name of Hamda Abu Sheita in particular in the shocked video released on Sunday.
Also the his brother Hany Abu Sheita was accused by the media of leading the operation of kidnapping the soldiers by name. Hany was already in his home when major newspapers in Cairo claimed that he is on the run.
The clan refuses all the accusations to the family and it is saying clear that it refuses the release of Hamda in return of the release of the hostages. They are also stated their support to the efforts of the state to free the hostages. Nevertheless they did not forget their son. They demanded an investigation in the incident of torture Hamda Abu Sheita.
Yesterday I spoke on the phone with Mrs. Hamda Abu Sheita and she denied that the family was involved in the kidnapping.

If any man was involved in the kidnapping , all the men in the clan would have been arrested

She said adding that she was supported the hostages. She accused the ministry of interior of standing behind the kidnap to cover the torture of her husband.

Stating the name of my husband in particular from all the Sinai detainees makes me believe that kidnappers are not from Sinai , if they were from Sinai then they will mention all the detainees not to single out Hamda from them.

Of course in the video the “Sinai political detainees”term was mentioned but the name of Hamda was singled out. Already I want to know who the Sinai political detainees are that this unknown group wants to swap with the hostages.
Just like the elderly of the clans , the wife as well the cousin of Abu Sheita is insisting his innocence claiming that he was framed by the MOI. She was also angry from the claims in the media about him. From two days ago some so-called security experts said that he was a Jihadist as well a Mossad agent.
She does not like President Morsi and believes that his days are much worse than the old Mubarak days considering the alleged torture her husband had been through.

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To Negotiate or Not to Negotiate , To Attack or Not Attack , The Options currently in #Sinai

We have got a national security crisis in Egypt , the recent kidnapping of the soldiers in Sinai is a huge challenge for the Egyptian state whether for the Presidency “as in Morsi’s administration” or the army or the police.
The presidency and the army are in extreme critical position with not much options. All the options come with the price especially we are speaking about Sinai.
Sinai and its tribes got its own share from neglect and security mistreatment especially in the last ten starting with Taba explosives and what followed it from random arrests by state security. We are not speaking the tamed Nile Valley but a tribal environment with people of high dignity.
After speaking to several people from Sinai in the past two years I can say the locals especially from tribes did not forget what the ministry of interior. “We will not allow the old days of El Adly and Mubarak to return back” this phrase I heard from locals in Sinai too many times including today.
I believe the army and the police understand this very well especially the military intelligence that runs the show in the North and the South. Thousands of men were arrested randomly whenever something happens in Sinai and some of them were badly tortured by security forces. They can’t forget the humiliation they faced.
Another important thing , while talking to people from Sinai over the last two years I found that people there have been warning that Jihadists were roaming around there with the authorities knowledge . Some say that if the ministry of interior and the State want to purge Sinai from all the criminal spots , it will be done in no time.
By the way people of Cairo and Nile Delta will not understand what I am speaking about as they got their own negative perception about the Bedouins.I believe that the people of Upper Egypt will understand what I am speaking about here clearly after all the major clans in Upper Egypt got their own tribal system.
Now for the Egyptian state, there are two options and each with a price.

- Negotiating with the kidnappers fulfilling their demands  :

Negotiating with the kidnappers and even fulfilling their demands will shake the state’s image. It will make the state look weak so that kidnappers are twisting its arm. If the State fulfills the demands and they are simply to release “Sinai’s political detainees” , everyone will kidnap soldiers and officers. In other words it will be  like “the terrorists have won”
The kidnapped soldiers will be released but on the expense of the State’s authority and image.
Despite the Presidency and army denied that there are negotiations with kidnappers , I am sure that there were and there are still talks through some channels. Otherwise how the state knew the demands of the kidnappers including the transfer of prisoners from one prison to another.
In hostage situation there must be negotiations stage because actually this stage gives the authorities an opportunity to collect information and assess the whole situation. In fact I will bet the military intelligence will open a channel because it will help other security forces to locate the kidnappers.
Unfortunately the Egyptian state whether in time of Mubarak or Morsi used to negotiate with kidnappers whether in North or South of Sinai. It was a norm actually in the past years where the tribes , groups and militants kidnap tourists in the south and security forces in the north to get what they want. Most of they want from the Egyptian state is to release their relatives from prison. By the way the military intelligence is responsible for negotiations in these cases.
Here is extreme short list for previous kidnapping cases that ended by negotiations : “Thanks to dear friend Ahmed Ragab”

• In 2008 during the iron fist era of Habib El Adly , not less 51 policemen including a major were kidnapped. The kidnappers from tribesmen were demanding the trial of a police officer accused of killing a member from their tribe in order to release them.
• In February 2012 Chinese workers were kidnapped in North Sinai by some angry locals and were later released after negotiations with military intelligence aka the army in the media.
• In March 2013 a militant group in North Sinai kidnapped British tourists and then released them after negotiations with the military intelligence.

What we see now is not something new but it is rather a norm , the kidnappers used to get what they wanted after talks with the authorities. This is an important fact we are deliberately forgetting for some unknown reason beyond me.

- Attacking the kidnappers :

The other option in to attack the kidnappers. To launch an operation in Sinai against the unknown kidnappers bearing the heavy price of consequences. Some say that the special forces “777” and “999” are capable the whole issue in few minutes, well I am sure they can considering they are highly trained but historically and internationally such operations included losses in life , the kidnapped lives to be accurate. Already some Skeptic Egyptians fear from the curse of Larnaca airport operation and Malta operation.
These two operations are actually classical example for what I mean about high risk of losses when you use force in liberating hostages.
Even the army is very cautious for real when it comes to this option. It does not want this option actually , not because it is weak on the contrary but because it does not want to get involved in another trap in Sinai. A trap in Sinai starts with fighting unknown Jihadist groups in very difficult areas , if you face enemy like this soon the fighting will spread to include the locals and the tribes. You also got old bad memories when it comes to State Vs. Sinai locals with highly armed society in an area with bad record of wars , I fear we may lose Sinai and the army as well.
I am not in not the conspiracy theories about MB and Hamas are behind because MB is in deep shit but I look from different perspective.
Fighting terrorist groups was and is the mission of the ministry of interior and it has got teams trained for this and yet strangely the army seems to be involved completely in the picture. Unfortunately after the horrifying video released on Sunday most Egyptians support military operation option.
By the way all leaks about the military operation in North we find in the newspapers and news websites are part of a psychological warfare in my view. On one hand  you scare the kidnappers and on the other hand you send a message to the public that your armed forces are there as the strong shield of the state. If there is a true military operation , it will not be announced in this media circus way.
I am not a security expert but I know rescue operations in areas like this should be more secretive , at least to force the kidnappers to transfer the soldiers to some where else and to take their precaution especially that they seem to know where to hide them in Sinai very well.
Personally from all what I see I believe that there are on going talks and at the same time there are military deployments in Sinai serving two proposes : Psychological warfare to pressure on the kidnappers and To purge the Jihadist zones if they can.
Anyhow Today there was a meeting at the Presidential Palace and a group of journalists and TV hosts with President Morsi’s media adviser “Ayman Ali”  and the spokesperson of ministry of interior. During that meeting Ali said the following :

The Presidency did not negotiate and did not assign anyone to negotiate but it does not stop anyone to have talks except for national security reasons. 

Regarding  whether there is negotiation or the military operation , Ali said the following :

There is no negotiation , there is no military operation either because we do not have an enemy army in Sinai. 

I think these statements can be interpreted in different ways.

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And Who is that sick person behind this stupid act ?

Just today people in Alexandria were shocked in the morning to see the beautiful and iconic Mermaid statue disfigured by some assholes , yes assholes.

Some idiot or idiots threw blue paint on the beautiful statue made by famous artist Fathy Mahmoud. I am so angry.
Anyhow a group of Alexandrian activists are having an event to clean the mermaid next Friday.

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Kidnapped Soldiers appear in Video "Updated"

In a major development today a video surfaced online allegedly for the 7 kidnapped soldiers in Sinai. The kidnapped soldiers identified them and their ages. They demanded to President Morsi to release all Sinai's political detainees. They are blindfolded. They say that they are tortured. They are begging Morsi to release the detainees especially Sheikh Hamda Abu Sheita. "Updated : The video has been removed because it violates YouTube's policy regarding violence"

We are not less than Gilad Shilat whom Israel traded for 1000 Palestinian prisoners

Said the soldier Sobhi who directed his talk to both Morsi and El Sisi.
Hamda Abu Sheita was the one who was allegedly tortured till he lost his sight in Tora prison last week. Abu Sheita was one of the leading figures in the Salafist Jihadists trend in North Sinai. He was arrested last year.
It is just sad video. The average age of the poor soldiers is 20 years.
The video is uploaded by "SSAS SSAS" channel in YouTube. The user has joined the video uploading service only today. It was uploaded from 7 hours ago and strangely only now people are paying attention.There is no official reaction about it so far.
More to come.
Ok an official reaction :
The video is studied by the security and military forces , an official reaction to be expected soon.
In another development Manishet TV show on ONTV announced the Morale department  has sent an order to TV channels not to air the video for fear it would affect the officers' morale !! Ironically this comes after 7 hours of posting the video online. I saw army officers sharing it on twitter already !!
Anyhow MBC Misr aired the video and Al Youm channel also has aired from short time ago.
Now here is a photo for Hamda Abu Sheita who seems to be popular among the Salafists as I have found his photo in the Salafist , Jihadist and Hamzoon Facebook page frequently.

They are saying that he lost his sight from torture. Abu Sheita got a death sentence waiting for him. He was arrested during the Falcon military operation in 2012. His brother Hossam spoke about his brother insisting his innocence and recounting the torture he faced in a post on his FB account last Thursday. Since then he has not posted anything on his account.
Here is the front page of Akhbar Newspaper tomorrow and it is about the video.

Other Egyptian TV channels have aired the video included MBC Misr and CBC. The parents of the kidnapped soldiers have confirmed to TV channels that those are their sons.
All TV channels are discussing what is happening in Sinai.
According to sources there is new military deployment in North Sinai. Reporters say that security forces are saying the security forces started to evacuate the hotels of Al Arish !!
The clip has been uploaded on YouTube again.

 Now there are leaks in the newspapers with the names of those suspected in kidnapping. One of the name that stands out is Hany Abu Sheita , the brother of Hamda. Of course Abu Sheita is still insisting that it is not involved in kidnapping.
Hany Abu Sheita is convicted in the same case of his brother that goes back to 2012. He is a fugitive from what I understood.
Here is a video for him with his imprisoned brother Hamda.

I will try to get more info about his family tomorrow. He is the most important lead about the kidnappers.

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Can We Save Mohamed Ali Palace in Shubra El Kheima ??

Culture activist Sally Soliman spoke on her twitter account about what happening and is happening to Mohamed Ali Palace in Shubra El Kheima and it is not good.
First of all Mohamed Ali Palace in Shubra is one of the most oldest and beautiful palaces remaining from Mohamed Ali Era itself. Mohamed Ali Pasha ordered its construction in 1808. The construction of that palace finished in 1812.

A painting showing the palace during the day of the Pasha

The Palace is built like the Palaces in Istanbul , extremely beautiful. 
It was neglected for years yet in 2000 the minister of culture then Farouk Hosni suddenly remembered. Not less than LE50 millions were allocated then for the restoration works in the neglect palace. About 14 experts in the restorations of palaces from Italy and France were brought in to help in its restoration.
In 2005 it was re-inaugurated by Mubarak in a very big celebration. Of course since then we knew that the palace was being rented for big galas , parties and weddings especially for the VIPs like former NDP leading member and policy maker Mohammed Kamel "He is still in the scene and last thing I know about him was being an adviser to Ahmed Shafik."
Now Soliman shocked us and told us online that part of the palace is collapsing.

 Part of the Palace , one of

its dooms collapsed in 2012 and nobody paid attention as usual. Al Ahram Daily published a report then with a picture and nobody moved a muscle. Yes I know we are in transitional period , difficult and soon on but this will be not forever the case.

It seems that the was corruption as usual in the restoration works. In 2010 Al Masry Al Youm published a report with a video about the neglect in the palace and how the paint used in the restoration works began to collapse after only 5 years of the restoration work.
Sally Soliman raised important matter. If you remember I wrote once that old original paintings were stolen in 2009 from the palace  and suddenly resurfaced in matter of days in some mystery. Up till now we do not know who stole those paintings and why they were returned and more important : Where the paintings are now !?
Allegedly they are in some warehouse.
Another thing she says during the restoration works there were rumors that the original crystal chandeliers from Beligum and Italy were being replaced by Egyptian ones.
Here is a slide show with photos from the beautiful palace that can bring to Egypt a lot of cash if you treat it like the Turks and their palaces. If the history talk does not work , the money talk does.


Below the series of Soliman's tweets in Arabic.

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