“Closing The Gap” project consisted of three phases which took place in a partnership between The Egyptian Life Center for Creativity and Culture jointly with the American Freedom House organization. Its primary phase included an intensive workshop that took place... (Continue reading)
Using their blogs, mobile phones, and new media, Egyptian activists have exposed numerous torture incidents by police officers over the past few years. Wael Abbas (Misr Digital),Shahinaz Abdel Salam (Wa7da Masreya), Ramy Raoof (Human Rights Defender), Amr Gharbeia (Gharbeia), Noha... (Continue reading)
Demonstrations and rage continued in Egypt following the death of a young Egyptian, allegedly at the hands of police. The anger on the street is evident online, where citizen journalists speak out.... (Continue reading)
The Egyptian Supreme Administrative Court has issued a ruling obliging Coptic Pope Shenouda III to allow Coptic divorcees to remarry. The pope has rejected the ruling. Copts are native Egyptian Christians and, according to Wikipedia,... (Continue reading)
The Gaza-bound Flotilla Raid has sparked an uprising in Egypt. Zeinobia covered the first Starbucks Protest in Egypt; A video and photographs were also posted by Sarah Carr and Mostafa Hussein.... (Continue reading)
Khaled Said, a 28-year-old Egyptian from the coastal city of Alexandria, was allegedly tortured to death at the hands of two officers who wanted to search him under the emergency law. He asked for a reason or a warrant -... (Continue reading)
Between online activists, citizen journalists, and street demonstrators, it seems that the cause lost it's purpose and the Internet turned into a soundproof room for cursing and cussing.... (Continue reading)
In the Presidential succession race, and after Gamal Mubarak's Sharek Initiative, Ayman Nour's Facebook activism, Omar Soliman's blog, now you can Ask ElBaradei. From May 17 to 26, you will be able to ask Dr ElBaradei through Google moderator any... (Continue reading)
Four of the seven upstream Nile Basin Initiative countries have decided to sign a new Nile deal. Despite strong Egyptian and Sudanese opposition, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Ethiopia signed a new water-sharing agreement. The other three countries, Kenya, Burundi and... (Continue reading)
Upon discussing recurrent demonstrations and the 6th of April pro-democracy protest, Egyptian ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) members of Parliament lashed out during a verbal battle with Muslim Brotherhood MPs over protesters in the country on Sunday and said Egyptian... (Continue reading)
Mo-ha-med posted a note about Mumtaz El Qott's article where he mentioned that Egyptians want to get visas to Germany to wish President Mubarak a speedy recovery after his surgery.... (Continue reading)
Egyptian blogger and journalist Amira Al Tahawi got fired for blowing the whistle over a fabricated story on the Chinese artificial hymen kit in a post she wrote on her blog, claim bloggers. Here are reactions from the Egyptian blogosphere... (Continue reading)
More than 20 Egyptian bloggers, who were on their way to pay their respects to the families of the victims of the Coptic massacre, were arrested when their train arrived in the village of Naga Hammady in Upper Egypt. They... (Continue reading)
In 2008, Moftasa stumbled upon an old synagogue that was turned into an office for theNational Democratic Party (Egypt's ruling party). It is amazing how the very same Egyptians who were infuriated over Switzerland's decision to ban building minarets are... (Continue reading)
Alaa Mubarak, the Egyptian President's eldest son, turned into a national hero when he called live on TV and beat the drums of war. From the President's son to renowned actors and actresses, media figures, writers, and Facebook users, fury has... (Continue reading)
In the aftermath of the Egypt-Algeria match in Sudan, Egyptian football fans demonstrated in Zamalek in front of the Algerian embassy in Cairo on Thursday night and on Friday afternoon. The President's eldest son, Alaa Mubarak, instigated the riots live... (Continue reading)
Today Egyptians want Alaa Mubarak - Hosni Mubarak's eldest son - for president!... (Continue reading)
A handful of publishers have monopolized the book market in Egypt until a fresher generation of young entrepreneurs introduced readers to new titles by authors who were rejected by the publishing tycoons. Bloggers books took the Cairo International Book Fair... (Continue reading)
Egypt's Culture Minister Farouk Hosni has kept bloggers busy over the previous few days. His failed bid to secure a seat at the helm of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) has polarised the blogosphere, with some... (Continue reading)
As Eid Al Fitr approaches, women in Egypt are bracing themselves for even more sexual harassment than what has already become a disturbing norm. Bloggers and online activists are also joining forces to fight the phenomenon, calling for a fun-filled... (Continue reading)
Today Mohamed Abdel Salam of Bikya Masr reported: Coptic lawyer throws hat in for Presidential run:... (Continue reading)
For the first time in Egypt, the Ministry of Interior arrests Muslims who eat and drink in public during Ramadan. Activists on Twitter said the arrests are illegal and the Ministry proves they are!... (Continue reading)
Now, a Palestinian-Norwegian mother of two was stopped by security as she attempted to board her flight to Amsterdam... (Continue reading)
After learning that blogging is a serious crime in Egypt and that speaking up for others is something that warrants punishment, state security officials are now arresting bloggers who do not moderate comments on their blog posts!... (Continue reading)
Coinciding with Gamal Murbak's Sharek initiative, Egyptian singer Mohsen El Sayad decided to campaign for Gamal Mubarak in his own way [AR].... (Continue reading)
In an attempt to win their support, Gamal Mubarak launched an open online forum(Sharek)where he promises to address all the questions posed by young internet savvy Egyptians himself.... (Continue reading)
In a previous post, Tarek Amr captured the initial reactions to TE-Data's fair usage policy and more adverse reactions are hitting the Egyptian blogosphere.... (Continue reading)
Egyptian blogger Ahmed Al Sabbagh says in his post that there are more than 100,000 translators in Egypt. ... (Continue reading)
Between those who support her right to choose and those who urge her to conform to traditions and Saudi law, 27-year-old EgyptianHeba Najeeb is trapped between a rock and a hard place.... (Continue reading)
When Marwa El Sherbini was shot dead in a German court Facebook users and the Egyptian blogosphere mourned her as the victim of the veil, the victim of racism, and the victim of her beliefs. But when a heap of... (Continue reading)
Divorce has always been a stigma in the Egyptian society. Today, the winds of change are blowing this away. In this post, Marwa Rakha follows conversations on Egyptian blogs which show what is being done to right a wrong situation.... (Continue reading)
Egyptian progressive thinker, Dr. Sayed El Qemany was granted the State Award for Social Sciences. Egyptian liberals and seculars hailed the award while Wahabis and conservatives declared war on the "Egyptian Apostate". On Egyptian talks the following question was thrown on the table: هل يصح ان... (Continue reading)
Upon his arrival from Sweden at the Cairo Airport, blogger Wael Abbas tweets the details of his detention at Cairo Airport.... (Continue reading)
Urging Egyptian youth to fight against corruption, Wa7da Masreya posted an Egyptian rap song[EN & AR] in support of Iran.... (Continue reading)
In September 2005 Ayman Nour of Al Ghad Party and No'man Goma'a of New Wafd Partynominated themselves against President Hosni Mubarak. Nour was charged with fraud and Goma'a was accused of insanity! Since 2000, Gamal Hosni Mubarak has the... (Continue reading)
In 2008 Egypt passed a law that banned female circumcision (FGM). Today a group of bloggers started a campaign against male circumcision.... (Continue reading)
Lawyer Nizar Ghorab (Ghorab translates to Crow in Arabic) filed a lawsuit calling for banning porn sites because they destroy the core values of the Egyptian society. The Administrative Court in Cairo ruled in his favor. Between anger and sarcasm,... (Continue reading)
After the success of Egypt's Anti-Harassment Day, Egyptian blogger Asser Yasser invited women to share their personal experiences with this issue.... (Continue reading)
Wandering Scarab posted an interesting note on the four types of Internet trolls... (Continue reading)
Here's a translation of the interview, in which the assailant admits to his role in the burning of six homes belonging to Baha'i families in the village of Shoraneya:... (Continue reading)
On January 1st of this year Tarek Amr's Change the Channel initiative took off. A month later,Inji's Going Local campaign hit the blogosphere. More initiatives followed on various levels of development starting from anti-harassment and political awareness to culture ,... (Continue reading)
A Facebook campaign calling for a silent demonstration on April 18 against the harassment of women and girls in Egypt is slowly gathering momentum. The call for allowing Egyptian women to move around in safety in their country, was sparked... (Continue reading)
On April 2, several human rights organizations headed to the public prosecutor in solidarity with the Baha'is who were assaulted in Sohag after a journalist called them reverts and urged people to kill them.... (Continue reading)
In April 2008, freedom of speech and creativity in Egypt was hit in its core with the confiscation of Magdy El Shafee's adult graphic novel - Metro.... (Continue reading)
Between Bahaa Taher's first Arabic Language Booker Prize, bloggers' books, Youssef Zidan's Azazeel's Booker prize, writing competitions on Facebook, the Sawiris Foundation Competitions, and new creative initiatives to nurture new blood, Egypt's literary scene has been revived over the past... (Continue reading)
Young middle and upper class Egyptian women resort to the internet to fight their battles against taboos. The BBC interviewed some of them and Mohamed Hamdy of Bloggers Times comments on the article. ... (Continue reading)
Egypt's first online radio - Radio Horytna - invites youth to apply for the position of President for any Arab country of their choice.... (Continue reading)
On the occasion of Prophet Mohamed's birthday, Egyptian blogger Dalia Ziada launches a campaign asking Saudi Arabia to end their discrimination against young Muslim women worldwide! Marwa Rakha reports on the initiative. ... (Continue reading)
بدأت الكاتبة والمدونة ومقدمة البرامج مروة رخا مؤخراً في الإعداد لأول برنامج تليفزيوني مصري متخصص في المدونات والشبكات الإجتماعية على الإنترنت.... (Continue reading)
Honor, honor crimes, female genital mutilation (FGM), and virginity are deeply rooted concepts in the Egyptian culture. Call them heritage, legacy, or traditions, Mostafa Hussein brilliantly feeds them into the shredder.... (Continue reading)
Egyptian bloggers report that Mohammed Adel, a blogger held in custody since November 21, 2008, has been released. Marwa Rakha sums up their reactions in this post. ... (Continue reading)
Eman AbdElRahman wrote about how the Egyptian blogosphere reacted to Al Hussein bombs on February 22 that resulted in the death of a French tourist and the injury of more than 20 people. Today, I will write about a... (Continue reading)
Marwa Rakha presents Tadweena in an informal and relaxed atmosphere. The neutral background and furniture is also a bonus. Unlike the distracting bright and mismatched colours in other Egyptian talk shows, the setting of Tadweena does not make the viewer... (Continue reading)
Amira Al Hussaini of Global Voices Online supports Tadweena... (Continue reading)
Will Facebook groups, anti-harassment T-shirts, posts, articles, bloggers, and activists put an end to sexual harassment in Egypt? Wandering Scarab does not think so! Upon reading Asser Yasser's story and the blogosphere's reaction to her post, Wandering Scarab wrote:... (Continue reading)
Is there such a thing as blog plagiarism? Egyptian bloggers argue both sides of the fence on Facebook and on their blogs after a newspaper started quoting bloggers - without their permission. Bella Shereef created a group attacking El Shorouk... (Continue reading)
The bombs on Gaza may have stopped falling, but a fierce cyber battle continues, with bloggers on both sides of the fence mobilising their troops to 'obliterate' the presence of the other - at least online. Marwa Rakha taps into... (Continue reading)
Asser Yasser is an Egyptian female blogger who recently moved to Mokattam area with her family. Her maid complained of how she got harassed on the street on her way to or from Asser's home. Her 15 year old niece... (Continue reading)
Egyptian blogger, Zeinobia wrote a series of posts about bloggers and journalists who are either behind bars, sued, or fined. Marwa Rakha takes a closer look at the situation in Egypt concerning bloggers and journalists. ... (Continue reading)
Nermeen Edrees of Global Voices Online wrote about Egypt's Going Local Campaign. Today Blogger Juka celebrates the launch of the initiative's facebook group, Ahmed Al Sabbagh reacts to Facebook itself going local while another two bloggers dictate their terms to... (Continue reading)
From Egypt, Perwin Ali came across an article mentioning Israel's first press conference on Twitter and she commented saying:... (Continue reading)
In December 2006 frustrated Tunisian bloggers launched the "Action Blank Post" initiative in defense of freedom of speech. Supporting bloggers from all over the world posted a blank on their blogs on the 25th of December, and now bloggers have... (Continue reading)
The outcasts of the Egyptian society - the spinsters - are raising their voices in an attempt to change how society views them. Khokha - the anonymous author of The daily diaries of a sinister spinister - says:... (Continue reading)
Several Egyptian bloggers lost their blogs whether to hackers or to web hosting services. Are those blogs being deliberately suspended by hosting services or are there invisible hands at play behind the scenes? Check out what bloggers have to say... (Continue reading)
Eighty-nine per cent of Egyptian young men and women surveyed recently stated that they are in favour of an Internet censorship law. Bloggers Times shares the most recent statistics on Egyptian internet users in this post, translated by Marwa Rakha... (Continue reading)
Designed to accommodate 5,500 full-time students and 1,500 faculty and staff, the American University in Cairo's new $400 million, 260-acre campus is technologically advanced and environmentally friendly. Students say that it was a premature move as they suffer sexual harassment... (Continue reading)
Is blogging a serious crime? And is speaking up for others something which warrants punishment? Egyptian Marwa Rakha translates a post from Arabic which discusses bloggers and blogging in Egypt. ... (Continue reading)
Word is out that every Egyptian citizen who is over 21 years old will own a part of Egypt's public sector companies and factories. The announcement has been the core topic of talk shows and has made its way to... (Continue reading)
On May 23, in a post titled The Victimization of Egyptian Women and Children, I quoted Fantasia - a girl who dreams of a better future for Egyptian women - who wrote about the new laws that were being discussed... (Continue reading)
On November 1, Al Masry Al Youm shocked its readers with an article about two girls who went to the police station to report a sexual harassment incident but instead, they were detained for six hours and harassed by the... (Continue reading)
On October 24, Noha made Egyptians proud when in an unprecedented case, sexual harasser Sherif Gommaa was sentenced to three years behind bars, hard labor, and was also ordered to pay 5,001 Egyptian pounds fine to Noha Roshdy Saleh for... (Continue reading)
In an unprecedented case, sexual harasser Sherif Gommaa was sentenced to three years behind bars, hard labour, and was also ordered to pay 5,001 Egyptian pounds fine to Noha Roshdy Saleh for groping her in the street. Egyptian blogger rejoice.... (Continue reading)
More than 1,100 students have so far joined a Facebook group crying for attention for a tragedy waiting to happen at Alexandria University's Engineering College. As more than 7,000 students get ready to return to classes, will their plight be... (Continue reading)
In the aftermath of the Egyptian Parliament going up in flames, people's reactions ranged from utter shock, sadness, to gloating. Wael Nawara conducted an independent poll asking bloggers, readers, and Egyptian internet users to answer the following question: Does the... (Continue reading)