Vol 52 No 23 | EGYPT Electoral alliances 18th November 2011 Egyptians set off on their democratic electoral road using a system designed bythe army and with a confusing 42 or so parties to vote for, 31 formed since...
Vol 52 No 21 | EGYPT Generals stall the revolution 21st October 2011 The fall of Hosni Mubarak left a vacuum and the army wants to be sure his replacement will protect its interests The generals who rule in Cairo are well positioned to shape the new political landscape and hold on to their huge financial interests. As economic pressures grow on...
Vol 52 No 21 | EGYPT Coffers empty, power for sale 21st October 2011 The revolution has run low on funds as tourists have stayed away and businesses closed after President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak fell in February. Flaunting its nationalism, the Supreme...
Vol 52 No 16 | EGYPT Many more scores to settle 5th August 2011 The military makes history by putting one of its own on trial but cannot disguise the regime’s loss of direction On 3 August, ousted President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak appeared in court, caged and bedridden, alongside his two sons, Alaa el Din and Gamal, to face charges of murder...
Vol 52 No 16 | EGYPT Strange alliances 5th August 2011 Political parties are talking about a ‘Democratic Alliance’, combining the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) with rival groups such as Al Wafd, Al Ghad and others...
Vol 52 No 11 | EGYPTETHIOPIA Blue Nile blues 27th May 2011 Egypt’s revolution seems to have boosted prospects for a settlement with Ethiopia over the Nile waters dispute. Cairo’s interim Prime Minister, Essam Abdel Aziz Sharaf, made a cordial...
Vol 52 No 7 | EGYPT In command and control 1st April 2011 The generals have won some important tactical victories against the activists of Tahrir Square Six weeks after the military eased out President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak after a mass campaign against his regime, the generals are gradually reasserting their grip on Egypt’s political...
Vol 52 No 6 | EGYPT Ambushing the revolution 18th March 2011 Oppositionists want sweeping constitutional change; the military wants quick fixes to the old constitution, then fresh elections Political tension is rising again over the military’s plans to hold constitutional and presidential elections within six months, a move which would benefit mainly the formerly ruling National...
Vol 52 No 5 | EGYPT The revolution continues 4th March 2011 The resignation of Prime Minister Ahmed Shafik, 77, on 3 March is another victory for protestors. Former Transport Minister Essam Sharaf succeeds him and is forming the next cabinet. Sharaf, 59,...
Vol 52 No 4 | EGYPT Dropping the pilot 18th February 2011 Under pressure from revolutionary youth, the army has pushed out Mubarak but its commitment to reform is highly questionable As everyone – save fearful tyrants – salutes the spectacular courage of Egypt’s young people in driving out President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak, the military has emerged as the...
Vol 52 No 4 | EGYPT Mubarak’s friends sanctioned 18th February 2011 Civilians who benefitted from the ancien régime may fare less well than their military counterparts. Hosni Mubarak’s younger son, Gamal Mubarak, is believed to have made a fortune...
Vol 52 No 3 | EGYPT Mubarak stumbles to the exit 4th February 2011 As protestors and Mubarak supporters clash in Al Tahrir Square, the organised political parties are positioning themselves for negotiations The fast-growing power of Egypt's democracy movement seems set to force President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak from power sooner rather than later, following the military's promise not to suppress the street protests...
Vol 52 No 3 | EGYPT The major opposition 4th February 2011 New Wafd Party: nationalist and liberal with free-market values; founded in 1983, reviving the aristocratic and traditional Wafd, abolished after Gamal Abdel Nasser's 1952 'revolution'. It is considered a major opposition...
Vol 52 No 3 | EGYPTBRITAIN Gamal Mubarak's retreat 4th February 2011 Gamal Mubarak, Egyptian presidential son and putative heir (until he announced on 3 February that he would not stand for President) of beleaguered President Hosni Mubarak, was widely rumoured to be...
Vol 52 No 2 | EGYPTETHIOPIANILE Telling the story 21st January 2011 As the 13 May deadline for the Nile Basin Initiative Cooperative Framework looms, Egyptian efforts to stop the deal have become more apparent. The stances taken by Burundi...
Vol 52 No 1 | EGYPT Mubarak and son limited 7th January 2011 This year’s presidential election is unlikely to bring much change but the real challenge to the ruling party will come from the streets The likeliest choice of official candidate for the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) in September’s presidential election is between the 82-year-old and ailing incumbent, Mohamed Hosni Mubarak, and...