A very cautiously written, but important column by Rami Khouri: When Arab security chiefs conduct foreign policy
Two intriguing meetings took place this past week in the Arab world. In Egypt, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with the intelligence services directors of four Arab states - Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab [...]

An intriguing op-ed by a young Muslim Brother:
Egypt’s Two-Faced Regime: Not Secular, Not Islamic, Authoritarian
There is an increasing realization amongst Egypt’s opposition political factions that the regime has no ideology to defend, least of all a secular one. The regime’s crackdowns on the Muslim Brotherhood are not part of a sincere attempt to uphold [...]

There’s been some very interesting developments at the 5th Cairo Conference against Imperialism and Zionism. Hossam reports that it held an anti-torture forum featuring Abu Omar, the Alexandria imam kidnapped in Italy by the CIA in 2003:
Abu Omar–the Alexandrian cleric kidnapped 2003 by the CIA in Milan and rendered to Egypt where he was brutally [...]

Maria Golia, author of Cairo: City of Sand, sent me her latest Daily Star column:
Referendum Blues

Egypt’s ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) should be congratulated for its expeditious handling of the March 26th referendum. Well-scripted, timed, and executed, it also fulfilled the public’s expectations. Everyone knew the yes-no vote would favor the institution of 34 [...]

The royal family: His Excellency Abu Gamal, Umm Gamal and the Little Bey
Abu Gamal’s village, a little rural paradise nestling in the Egyptian countryside, governed and guided by village headman Mohammed Hosni (Al-Hagg Abu Gamal) and ably assisted by Al-Hagg Fathi Shurour and Kamal Al-Shatamouni (Fathi Evils and Kamal They-abused-me… ho ho). Things are [...]

It is probably a sign of my terrible dietary habits, but I am rather happy about this: Burger King to Expand in Egypt.
They make tasty burgers. Not Ne’maa in Agouza greasy egg-and-cheese burger tasty, but still tasty.

The Daily Star - Opinion Articles - Rice’s show: Is it comedy or horror?:
The most galling thing about Rice’s and Washington’s approach is its fundamental dishonesty. The Bush administration spent its first six years avoiding any serious engagement in the Arab-Israeli conflict, or decisively siding with the Israelis on most key contested points, like refugees, [...]

After sorting out some technical problems (and coping with traffic much higher then expected), horytna.net is now on air! The internet youth radio aims to promote tolerance in Egyptian society, by discussing topics such as human rights, women issues, education and others.
Good luck with that, of course, but at the very minimum the site [...]

I’ve been skeptical myself about the incredibly high figures for mortality in Iraq since the invasion quoted by the Lancet study — they are after all several times higher than other sources — but the BBC has obtained (through a freedom of information request) a formerly confidential report from the UK’s top government scientist who [...]

The plot thickens:
Egypt’s president wants military appeals courtWed 28 Mar 2007, 12:41 GMT
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has proposed a law to set up an appeals court for suspects tried before military tribunals, known for their tough and swift verdicts, a cabinet statement said on Wednesday.
Mubarak has sent the draft bill to both [...]

Interesting to be on the outside looking back into Egypt at the moment. BBC is still airing that great Egypt tourism ad—the one with the scantily clad babes emerging from the pristine sea and the romantic (I suspect CGI) shots of Cairo, while at the same time the news is of another rigged referendum and [...]

Via Sandmonkey, although I think they were originally posted by Wael Abbas.

Read this hilarious right-wing blog post where every non-Muslim who interacts with Muslims (or is not right-wing) is called a dhimmi, Muslims are plotting to Islamize America by starting Arabic language schools, Canada and Europe are pretty much lost because of the cowardly dhimmis not fighting Islamofascism, and a whole lot more.

From artist Sandow Birk. Click on pic for full size.

The strongest statement thus far?
Statement on Egyptian Referendum Vote
Yesterday Egypt concluded a popular referendum on a package of amendments to its constitution. While the approval of these amendments is a question for the Egyptian people to decide, it is evident that the vast majority of Egyptians did not choose to participate. Many voices in [...]

The June 2006 of the Arab Reform Bulletin contained an excellent short essay by Amr Hamzawy urging for a closer look at the role of security services as a barrier to democratic change in the Arab world. I have been working on similar issues myself and think his point is highly relevant to explaining, for [...]

The final schedule for the Conference and Forum meetings is now available in Arabic and English. Click on the poster below to download it…

I’ll be speaking in two meetings. The first is on the fight against police torture in Egypt…
Sorry, some last-minute rearrangements… I won’t be speaking at the anti-torture forum. Blogojournalist and friend Abdel [...]

Late last night, friends and I engaged in post-referendum relaxation by watching “300,” the film about the epic battle between Sparta and the Persian Empire. While the fight scenes are admittedly cool, the movie as a whole is a rather ridiculous fascist ode to Western supremacy against the barbarian hordes. I am sure that a [...]

Surprise, surprise: the amendments passed, officials say.
CAIRO, March 27 (Xinhua) — Egyptian Justice Minister Mamdouh Mohieddin Marai announced on Tuesday that 75.9 percent of voters in Monday’s national referendum said yes to constitutional amendments, the official news agency MENA reported.
Marai said the turnout reached 27.1 percent, which meant that some 9.6 million of Egypt’s 35.4 [...]

Full thing after the jump.

Egypt: Don’t Enshrine Emergency Rule in Constitution
Protesters, Journalists Assaulted on Eve of Referendum
(Cairo, March 26, 2007) – Proposed constitutional amendments approved by the Egyptian parliament on March 21 effectively remove basic protections against violations of Egyptians’ rights to privacy, individual freedom, security of person and home and due process, Human Rights [...]