(One of the “suggestions” made by Egypt’s political elite to tackle the Ethiopian dam)

Main headlines

Monday

• Egypt presidency issues summery of tripartite report on Ethiopia dam
• Activist Douma gets 6 months in prison for ‘insulting the president’
• More Tamarod members detained
• Egypt to curb constitutional court power
• FJP proposes army voting ban for next 5 years

Tuesday

• Egypt’s court convict 43 NGO employees
• Secretary Kerry says the U.S. is “deeply concerned” over the NGO verdict
• Ethiopia dam could lead to ‘disaster’ for Egypt: Irrigation minister
• Egyptian diplomats left red-faced after Nile dam meeting was broadcast live
• Sadat assassination plotter returns to Egypt
• Egypt’s culture minister opts for Islamist to head national library and archives

Wednesday

• Ethiopia: Egypt attack proposals ‘day dreaming’
• Artists break into Egypt’s culture ministry building, and declare sit-in
• Activists Alaa Abdel Fattah and Nawara Negm referred to criminal court
• Jama’a al-Islamiya gears up to counter anti-Morsi rebellions
• Egypt demands Ethiopia to halt the Nile dam
• HRW condemns Egypt NGO verdict

Thursday

• Kerry quietly approved huge arms shipments to Egypt
• Egypt to sign $4.8 bn IMF loan by month’s end: Planning minister
• ‘Rebels” campaigners reject meeting with Egypt’s interior ministry
• Salafist, Brotherhood differences ‘undeniable’: El Borhami
• Egyptians commemorate death of Khaled Said
• Artists to give performances as occupation of culture ministry continues
• International criticism continues over Egypt’s NGO verdict

Friday

• Morsy says early election calls ‘absurd’
• Amr Moussa defends controversial meeting with Muslim Brotherhood leader
• Rights watchdog: Three blasphemy cases in one week in Egypt
• Jailed Egyptian blogger begins hunger strike
• Tamarod attacked twice overnight attacked twice overnight
• Muslim Brotherhood MP’s house in Nile Delta city attacked

 Saturday

• Ex-MP Al-Naggar warns ‘full-scale civil war’ on 30 June in Egypt ‘
• High temperature, and short circuit cause ‪dozens of fire across Egypt
• Egypt blacklisted for violating labor rights
• Egypt’s minister of culture ‘doesn’t regret decisions’
• Mubarak trial adjourned to Monday

Sunday

• Moussa apologises for “confusion” over meeting with El-Shater‪
• Eleven detained in attack on FJP leader’s house
• Interior Ministry braces for June 30 demonstrations

A few thoughts

 This week, I would like to introduce a new Arabic term, “Aabath.”  It was mentioned by various Egyptian figures, from president Morsi who described the rebel campaign against him as Aabath, to various disenchanted local political commentators, unhappy with the chaotic political scene in the country, and even the satirist Bassem Youssef.

Aabath is word describing a wild mix of the absurd and futile nonsense. This week was certainly full of unique Egyptian Aabath.

 The best example was Monday’s shambolic meeting called by president Morsi to discuss the Ethiopian dam project, which was broadcast live on Egyptian television. Unaware that the event was airing live, Egyptian political “elite” expressed candid, but reckless, and even condescending suggestions including: sabotaging the dam, interfering in the internal political disputes in Ethiopia, even bribing the local tribes. In a nutshell, our “wise men,” as Amr Hamzaway has rightly described, had decided to assume the role of James Bond. Inevitably, they drew scathing criticism, and provided rich material for Bassem Youssef and his satirical show. Even social media joined in with inspired widespread mockery.

 It is worth noting that workers at Egyptian state TV were instructed not to label the Ethiopia Dam as a renaissance dam, obviously to keep “renaissance” as the exclusive catchphrase of the Brotherhood’s project aimed at rebuilding Egypt. In addition, some local media have circulated that China will not finance Ethiopia’s dam, yet there was no independent verification of this news.

 On the other hand, the Egyptian main opposition, the National Salvation Front (NSF) has decided to assume a different role, not from a James Bond movie, but from a classic Egyptian crime movie, “The Second Man.” They did this when a prominent member of the NSF, Foreign Minister Amr Moussa, agreed to meet the Brotherhood strong man Kheirat Al-Shater, which was hosted by politician Aymen Nour. The meeting was ^___ somehow^___ leaked to the media, triggering accusations and counter-accusations, plus endless debate and criticism. Although everyone agrees that the meeting has achieved nothing, still Egypt’s feckless opposition has opted to be distracted by this virtual battle, arguing about the logistics, purpose, and details of the meeting, rather than focusing on its main goal; fighting the Muslim Brotherhood and their growing iron-fist rule.

Thus far, the opposition has no clear strategy for 30 June, a day of planned protests throughout Egypt against president Morsi on the anniversary of his swearing into office, or even for the day after. There are endless challenges ahead, from a high probability of bloody violence on 30 June to a lower possibility of a political void if Morsi decides to step down. Yet the only action that the opposition is currently offering is ranting.

 In another example of Aabath, on the 43rd anniversary of the Six-day War, many in Egypt are still bickering about Nasser’s rule in the 1967 war, with Muslim Brotherhood’s members and supporters blasting the late president’s military performance in 1967. Meanwhile pro-Nasser activists responded by hacking the Brotherhood’s Facebook page. Such nonsense is not really new, the old debate erupts ^__ quietly ^__ every year, but this year was louder as the brotherhood are now the ruling party and it has started to openly express its grievances from Egypt’s left.

This week Jerusalem rally was an opportunity for the Brotherhood to support their Culture Minister Alaa Abdel-Aziz, who is facing a serious challenge by artists who have started a sit-in at his office in the ministry’s headquarters this week. In addition to expressing his support of Jerusalem, Dr. Abdel Aziz has  declared a cultural revolution that provides all forms of arts and creativity, and rejects “intellectual terrorism.” It is unclear what “all forms of arts and creativity” means for the Islamists. On various occasions they have expressed their desire to ban ballet, contemporary dance, and other modern art. Unless maybe they mean that the revolution that Abdel Aziz is advocating is the Islamist equivalent of Mao’s cultural revolution, with the intent to purge Egypt’s contemporary customs, cultures, habits and ideas, and replace them with puritan Islamist alternatives.

The Brotherhood’s ongoing mission of empowerment is growing steadily, with concrete results within the information and culture ministries, not to mention the “efficient” public prosecutor who has already arrested a substantial number of anti-Morsi activists.

The Recent NGOs trial and the recent verdict that decried foreign funding as a new form of “control, predominance and soft imperialism practiced by donors to destabilise, weaken and dismantle beneficiary countries,” is another form of populist Aabath, as H Hellyer wrote, it’s about sending a message – that civil society organizations in Egypt are not welcome to challenge the status quo and authority.

In a nutshell, Islamist arrogance has met with only confusion and division from their opposition. As a result, both camps are fighting at the expense of the state with its collapsing economy, energy crisis, water shortage, and million of angry, disenchanted Egyptians. Both sides are not fighting to save Egypt, but are fighting for the ruins of what will be left of it. It is unlikely that this Aabath will stop anytime soon. In fact, Egypt is probably heading for at least a few weeks of meaningless Aabath. However, the determined Egyptian youth are ignoring both sides and are still collecting signature in their relentless anti-Morsi ‘Rebel” campaign, they are the only meaningful movement among the Aabath, that is why I am still optimistic about the future of Egypt.

Good Read

• Brotherhoodization of the Opera by Vivian Salama
• Farag Fouda; assassination of the word by Sara Abou Bakr
• What the U.S. should have said to Egypt about the NGO trial by Amy Hawthorne
• Egypt’s Khaled Said : Three years on, still no justice by Bel Trew

Finally, here are Jayson Casper‘s prayers for Egypt