(Egypt’s best known actress. May 27, 1931 – January 17, 2015)

Main Headlines

 Monday

• A Libya affiliate of ISIS has claimed the abduction of 21 Coptic Christians
• Court acquits 26 men in “gay bathhouse” case
• Egyptian security  arrests ISIS cell that planned to assassinate key political figures
• Seven men found dead Monday from gunshot wounds in Egypt’s Sinai
• Egyptian found dead and handcuffed in Libya’s Benghazi
• Egypt rejects Ethiopian Dam storage capacity
• El- Sisi tells Ethiopian patriarch that Nile is Egypt’s source of life
• 13 suspected Ansar Beit El-Maqdis members are referred to criminal court ‪
• Four Egyptians accused of spying for Al-Qaeda face death penalty

Tuesday

• Egypt’s high court overturns last conviction against Mubarak
• Missing policeman found killed in Egypt’s Sinai
• ‪Egypt ‪to pardon prisoners on January 25
• Egypt’s Islamic authority slams new Charlie Hebdo’s Mohammed cartoon
• Sisi expresses wish for unity among political groups
• FM says pardon is still possible for Al-Jazeera journalists
• Egypt’s Higher Elections Committee announces campaign regulations
• Court acquits 21 Brotherhood loyalists in Upper Egypt
• El-Sisi didn’t question religious foundations: Nour Party leader

 Wednesday

• Al-Azhar calls on Muslims to “ignore” new Charlie Hebdo’s latest edition
• Egyptian forces kill 7 jihadists, destroy 68 terrorist sites in Sinai
• Canadian FM is in Egypt to talk security, religion and jailed AJ journalist –
• El-Sisi to visit UAE on Sunday
• El-Sisi moves on banning foreign publication offensive to religion‪
• Egypt is open to importing gas from Israel

 Thursday

• Egypt’s FM travels to Morocco amid strained relations
• Army officer killed in attempt to defuse bomb in North Sinai
• Egypt unexpectedly cuts key interest rate as oil price drops
• Mahalla textile workers strike for 3rd day over unpaid bonuses
• Canadian FM in Cairo says anti-Islam insults are unacceptable
• ‪‪Egypt expects $500 million in savings from importing LNG due to oil price drop
• Egyptian cabinet approves funding for $1.6 bn electricity link with Saudi Arabia
• Egypt surprisingly cuts key interest rates

 Friday

• King Mohamed VI invites Egypt’s El-Sisi to Morocco
• EU won’t monitor upcoming elections, rebukes Egypt for human rights record
• Egypt slams EU Parliament’s criticism of its rights record
• ‪‪Sinai militant group beheads for collaborating with Israel
• Washington: Egypt plays leading role in tackling extremism

 Saturday

• Political divisions threaten El-Sisi’s call for electoral consensus
• Egypt uncovers explosives-laden tunnel between Sinai and Gaza
• Two Egypt policemen to stand trial for sexual assault
• University presidents are granted more power to discipline and dismiss professors
• Alaa Abdel Fattah’s defence accuses prosecution of fraud
• Jama’a al-Islamiya founder Assem Abdel Meguid was sentenced to 15 years in prison for killing protestors
• Egyptian TV presenter says police are ‘pushed’ to commit foolishness such as rape
• Bomb explodes on Egypt’s Suez railway, derails train, no injuries

Sunday

• Morsi launches tirade against Sisi ‘coup’ in in his espionage trial
• Sisi starts 2-day visit to UAE
• Electoral coalitions map remains the same as Sisi’s wish confronts reality in Egypt
• Egypt finds Gaza-bound smuggling tunnel laden with explosives
• “No restriction” on freedom of expression in Egypt: El-Sisi
• Egyptian among 9 suspected Jihadis expelled by Italy
• Sufi party demands probe into Salafi Nour Party
• Egypt’s pound hits weakest official level since December 2012

Good Reports

• Timeline of Egyptian reactions to blasphemy and insults to Islam. Zeinab El-Gundy
• Is Egypt verdict a victory for LGBT rights? . Sarah El-Sirgany
• 12 things that could land you in military court under Egypt’s new laws. Mada Masr
• Egypt looks to roll back Islamist militias in Libya. Ayah Aman
• Alexandria’s streets were flooded and some residents decided to break out the jet ski. Sara Yasin
• Egypt’s revolutions have not stopped corruption. Enas Hamed (translated by Al-Monitor).
• Egypt’s need for low-income housing. Maria Golia

Good Read

• Egypt’s judicial politics: From pharaoh to phoenix. The Economist
• The Christian Exodus from Sinai ‪Muhamed Sabry
• Is Egypt on the verge on the verge of another revolution? Thanassis Cambanis
• The fading faces of opposition media under El-Sisi’s Egypt. Aya Nader
• The dehumanization of the nation. Sally Toma

Video

• Unwed woman breaks taboo, roams Cairo’s streets in wedding dress

 Plus:

• Beloved Egyptian actress Faten Hamama dies at 84
• Full test of amendment to University law. Arabic
• TV fatwa by Muslim Brotherhood sheikh calls for murder of Egypt’s Sisi on a TV channel in Turkey
• Sisi interview with Sky New Arabia. Arabic 3
• El-Sisi talks about revolutionary Islam(with English subtitles)

 Photo Gallery:

• Egypt bid farewell to beloved actress Faten Hamama
• Actress Faten Hamama on and off the screen

Finally here are Jayson Casper’s prayers for Egypt