Top News: Sisi Issues Presidential Decree Amending Penal Code

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi issued on Tuesday a decree amending the Penal Code. Sisi’s third amendment to the Penal Code adds a new article which introduces a punishment for failing to report persons in possession of explosives. The penalty includes one year imprisonment and a fine of 20,000 Egyptian pounds. [SIS, Shorouk (Arabic), 10/7/2015]

POLITICS

Conservative Party leaves For the Love of Egypt electoral coalition
Conservative Party (Al-Mohafzeen) President Akmal Kortam announced Monday he was withdrawing as a parliamentary candidate from the electoral coalition Fi Hob Misr (For the Love of Egypt). The party did not specify the reasons for the last-minute change, denying in a press release that Kortam’s departure was the result of conflicts over acquiring more seats for the party on the list. Senior party member Hafez Abu Seada, however, told Daily News Egypt Tuesday, that “a dispute over the party’s number of seats in the coalition was the reason behind the withdrawal.” [DNE, 10/6/2015]

Turkey-based Muslim Brotherhood entity calls on army personnel to ‘dissent’
In a statement issued on Monday, the Turkey-based, Brotherhood-led ‘Egyptian Revolutionary Council’ called upon Egyptian soldiers and officers to quit their army posts, and join the people’s revolution, marking a development in the opposition’s view on army service in the country. In its statement, the group accused President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and his “military regime,” of “fully agreeing to terms of the ‘the enemy’ and is working as a close ally on their behalf against Palestinians and Arabs.” It added, “We acknowledge the existence of personnel in the military institution who are complaining secretly of what the ‘coup’ leaders are doing.” [DNE, 10/6/2015]

Also of Interest

  • Egypt’s women candidates get creative in campaign season | Aswat Masriya
  • Free Egyptians Party leader wants political debate with Nour Party | AMAY
  • Egypt’s NCHR temporary freezes activity of members running for parliament | Ahram Online, DNE
  • Elections countdown: 12 days | Mada Masr
  • The curious case of Ahmed Shafiq | Mada Masr
  • Sisi supporters smell victory ahead of Egypt election | AFP
  • Sisi’s October 6 speech celebrates Armed Forces, warns of future dangers | Mada Masr

COURTS

Mahmoud Hussein’s detention expected to be renewed for twenty-fourth time
A new trial session will be held for ‘torture t-shirt’ detainee Mahmoud Hussein on Thursday, and it is expected that his detention would be renewed for another month and a half. His previous forty-five day detention extension will conclude on Thursday, marking 620 days since he was imprisoned. Hussein’s latest appeal by his lawyers against his imprisonment was rejected by the court on September 2. The upcoming session is the twenty-fourth of its kind, as Hussein remains in remand without his case going to court, and without him appearing in the renewal sessions. His brother and a member of the Freedoms and Rights Committee in the Dostour Party, Tarek Tito, described the situation as a “detention warrant under an emergency state disguised in the form of pretrial detention.” [DNE, 10/6/2015]

Seventy-seven niqab-wearing faculty members to sue Cairo University president
Seventy-seven niqab-wearing faculty members from across Cairo University are preparing to file a lawsuit against the university president, a lawyer involved in the case told Aswat Masriya. Ahmed Mahran, the head of the Cairo Center for Political and Legal Studies said the complainants asked him to raise a case against university president Gaber Nassar because of his decision last week to ban niqab-wearing faculty from teaching. Mahran said the group includes women who do not wear the niqab but are involved in solidarity with those affected by the ban. The faculty opposed to the ban also issued a statement Tuesday describing the decision as racist, adding that it was in violation of several articles in the constitution. The statement cited Article 2, which says that Islam is the religion of the state of Egypt, Article 9, which says that the state should achieve equal opportunity between all citizens without discrimination, and Article 11, which says that the state has to achieve equality between men and women in all civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. [Aswat Masriya, 10/7/2015]

Also of Interest

  • Former agriculture minister’s detention renewed fifteen days | Cairo Post

ECONOMY

Egypt’s growth forecast unchanged in latest IMF report
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) kept its forecast for Egypt’s growth at 4.2 percent in 2015 and 4.3 percent in 2016 in its latest World Economic Outlook. The IMF expects consumer prices to increase in 2015 to 11 percent (compared to 10.1 percent in 2014) and slow to 8.8 percent in 2016. The IMF also forecast a 0.8 percent decrease in Egypt’s deficit in 2015. IMF Research Director Maurice Obstfeld said that Egypt’s savings following the global drop in oil prices have been a main factor allowing the economy to maintain its performance. “But this is an unsustainable factor,” he said, noting that commodity prices continue to fall. “The fall in commodity prices, which accelerated recently, will have a dramatic impact on developing countries,” he added. Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Egypt said Wednesday that foreign currency reserves fell to $16.335 billion at the end of September from $18.096 billion the previous month. [Ahram Online, 10/6/2015]

Also of Interest

  • Small and Medium Enterprises: Egypt’s broken backbone? | DNE
  • Egypt, Morocco economic growth stronger than other MENA countries in 2015: World Bank | Ahram Online
  • Oil rally lifts energy firms, dollar dips on risk confidence | Ahram Online
  • ICDL secures grant empowering 152,000 government employees, job seekers | DNE
  • Housing minister discusses Cairo Capital projects with Chinese company | DNE
  • Vegetables prices continue to rise | AMAY
  • Rice exports regulator says no need to raise prices | AMAY
  • Egyptian minister to meet with heads of WB, IDB, and EBRD | DNE
  • Egyptian government to bid for EGP 8 billion in treasury bills Thursday | Cairo Post

SOCIETY & MEDIA

Freed Al Jazeera journalist Fahmy receives award, leaves Egypt for Canada 
Mohamed Fahmy, a Canadian journalist with Al-Jazeera whose name was included in a presidential pardon last month announced Tuesday he was flying home to Canada. Fahmy posted a photo taken in Cairo Airport on Twitter saying, “Canadian Ambassador Troy [Lulashnyk] kindly escorted me to the gate at Cairo airport. A glorious end to our battle for freedom!” His departure was also confirmed by an airport security official who stated that Fahmy had boarded a flight bound for London. Fahmy had previously been convicted of fabricating “false news” in August. Additionally, Fahmy, along with his colleagues Baher Mohamed and Peter Greste were honored with a Freedom of Speech Award from the International Association of Press Clubs on Tuesday for standing up for freedom of speech despite intimidation and incarceration. [AFP, AP, 10/6/2015]

Also of Interest

  • Child abuse cases in Egypt peak in September | DNE
  • Interview: Fear and Islamism in Egypt | Ahram Online
  • Smoke covers Lower Egypt governorates due to burning rice straw | AMAY
  • Dredging company workers protest delayed salaries | AMAY
  • Egypt’s women-only taxi service promises protection from male drivers | The Guardian
  • Released political detainees wonder: ‘Did we go to jail for nothing?’ | DNE

SECURITY

Journalist running for parliamentary elections shot by unknown assailants in Egypt’s Kafr al-Sheikh
Nashaat al-Alwany, a journalist running for the upcoming parliamentary elections, was shot by unknown assailants in Nile Delta’s Kafr al-Sheikh governorate on Tuesday night, Al-Ahram reported. Alwany, who works as a reporter for TV program, al-Ashera Masaa, and independent weekly Sawt al-Umma, was transferred to the hospital in critical condition after being attacked following his electoral campaign. His family accused five individuals from an antiquities smuggling group of attacking Alwany after he published an investigative report on the theft of antiquities in the governorate. According to his family, police have opened an investigation in order to identify the culprits. [Ahram Online, 10/7/2015]

Also of Interest

  • Interpol arrests long-time Egyptian corruption fugitive in Lebanon says Interior Ministry | DNE

INTERNATIONAL

Egypt largest contributor among Arab states to UN missions says official
Egypt presented its comprehensive vision regarding peacekeeping operations during the third annual ministerial dinner organized jointly by Finland, Rwanda, Indonesia, Uruguay, and the International Peace Institute (IPI), according to a Foreign Ministry statement issued Tuesday. The vision was presented by Assistant to the Foreign Minister for Multilateral Relations and International Security, Ambassador Hisham Badr, on behalf of Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, late September at IPI. Badr stated that Egypt contributes to the UN peacekeeping missions through army and police personnel as well as observers, amounting to 2,700 personnel, making Egypt the largest contributor among Arab states. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry presented Egypt’s efforts in supporting peacekeeping operations, which included hosting Arab consultations and co-organizing African consultations, in its statement during the dinner. [DNE, 10/6/2015]

Also of Interest

  • Egypt’s Pope Tawadros II makes first official trip to United States | Ahram Online
  • Mubarak’s grandson granted travel permission from London | AMAY
  • Greek police break up migrant smuggling ring, arrest twelve people including Egyptians | Reuters
  • French Prime Minister to visit Cairo Saturday | SIS
  • Ninety-six unregistered Egyptian migrants arrested in Libya, fifty deported | Cairo Post
  • Egypt to partially open Rafah border crossing for pilgrims returning to Gaza | Ahram Online, DNE, AMAY