Egypt

DW's guest columnist and novelist Alaa al-Aswany has been sued by military prosecutors in Egypt after he criticized the way military officials are appointed to civil posts in an article for DW's Arabic section.

CAIRO, March 2 (Xinhua) -- The Sharm El-Sheikh Asian Film Festival (SAFF) opened on Saturday in Egypt's Red Sea South Sinai province, with China as the guest of honor of the festival's third edition.

The opening ceremony was presented in cooperation with the Chinese Cultural Center in Cairo. Ancient Chinese folk dances were performed during the ceremony.

The festival features 58 films from 26 countries competing for nine awards in five competitions.

CAIRO, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- At least 20 people were killed and dozens injured when a train crashed and caught fire at Cairo's main train station on Wednesday, resulting in the resignation of Transport Minister Hesham Arafat.

The train engine slammed into the buffers at the end of the track at high speed at the main railway station in downtown Cairo on Wednesday before a fire broke out.

A security source told state-run Ahram news website that the crash caused explosion of the fuel tank which triggered the fire.

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- Arab and European leaders stressed on Sunday the need to beef up efforts to face common challenges.

This came during the first League of Arab States (LAS)-European Union (EU) Summit which kicked off Sunday in Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh city and will end on Monday.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the two-day summit, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi said that terrorism is spreading like a "plague," urging leaders to stand together against it.

ISTANBUL; 03 Feb 2019; AA: Egyptian opponents have launched an online campaign to reject proposed amendments to the country's constitution.

The move came shortly after the largest bloc in parliament, Support Egypt Coalition which holds 317 seats in the 596-member assembly, said it will ask parliament to amend the constitution.

According to local media, the proposed constitutional amendments include increasing the presidential term from four to six years.

CAIRO, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The Cairo-based Arab League (AL) welcomed on Thursday the formation of a new Lebanese government and expressed strong support for the new cabinet.

AL Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit praised the efforts of Lebanese President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri to form the new unity government after nine months of deadlock, according to AL spokesman Mahmoud Afifi.

CAIRO (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron is headed to Egypt with a large delegation on a three-day trip to reinforce ties with the Arab world’s most populous country.

He arrives Sunday in the country’s south to visit the temple of Abu Simbel and other archaeological sites, before meeting his counterpart Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and signing accords between the two states on Monday.

CAIRO, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- Cairo Court for Urgent Matters on Sunday delayed to Feb. 24 the examination of a lawsuit demanding the amendment of a constitution article regulating the number of president's terms.

The lawsuit, filed by several people, calls on the House of Representatives' speaker to request the parliament to convene with the aim of voting on a proposal to amend article 140 of the Constitution, Egypt's official MENA news agency reported.

CAIRO; 13 Jan 2019; AA: Egyptian parliament on Sunday approved a presidential decree to extend the nationwide state of emergency for another three months, according to the official gazette.

This is the seventh time the state of emergency is being renewed for three months since April 2017.

The decision will be valid as of the early hours of Tuesday.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi first declared a three-month state of emergency in April 2017 after twin bomb attacks killed 45 people in northern Egypt.

10 Jan 2019; AFP: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo vowed Thursday the United States and its allies would work diplomatically to expel all Iranian troops from Syria, urging Middle East nations to forge a common stand against Tehran.

"It's time for old rivalries to end, for the sake of the greater good of the region," said Pompeo at a keynote address in Cairo.