Monday
Jun032013
Entries in Mohamed Morsi (117)
Thursday
May302013
Middle East Today: Iraq --- Deadly Bombings Continue
Thursday, May 30, 2013 at 10:57 | Joanna Paraszczuk in EA Live, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran 
Egypt: Concern Over Effect of Proposed Law on NGOs
Human Rights Watch has expressed concern that a draft law, placed by President Morsi before the legislature on Wednesday, would allow the Government and security agencies to arbitrarily restrict the funding and operation of independent groups.
HRW claims the Associations Law will reinforce and formalise State control over non- Governmental groups by denying them access to both domestic and international funding and giving "complete discretion" to authorities to object to activities of Egyptian and international organisations.
HRW said there were improvements in the draft, notably over the withdrawal of the designation of all NGO funding as "public" and thus open to Government supervision; however, it said the Government still retains excessive powers.
HRW cited the requirement of submission of an annual financial report, as well as copies of all internal decisions and a report on annual activities, to the authorities --- who could object and try to shut down the NGO. Groups also must notify the government in advance every time they wish to raise money through TV campaigns, charity events, or mail campaigns, and a Government committee has absolute discretion to block all access to foreign funding.
tagged Egypt, Human Rights Watch, Iraq, Mohamed Morsi
Egypt, Human Rights Watch, Iraq, Mohamed Morsi Sunday
Apr282013
Iran Today: Tehran Discusses Syria With Egyptian Delegation
See also Iran Claim of the Day: "Ahmadinejad to Release Tape on Rigging of 2009 Election" if His Successor is Rejected
Saturday's Iran Today: Tehran on Nuclear Talks "No Time-Wasting"
Automobile Watch
The official website of Iran's automobile manufacturers that the production of the three largest companies --- Khodro, Saipa, and Pars Khodro --- fell by 47% in the year up to March 2013.
Political Prisoner Watch
Abdolhamid Moafian, who heads the Coordinating Council of Reformists in Fars Province, was arrested on Wednesday.
It is still not clear where Moafian, reportedly a supporter of former president Mohammad Khatami, is being held.
Jamileh Karimi, a former advisor to the governor of Fars Province during the Khatami Presidencyi, was also arrested recently.
Yaghoub Khezri --- Kurdish journalist, teacher, and blogger --- has been summoned to serve a one-year sentence stemming from his arrest in June 2012.
Sunday
Apr282013
Middle East Today: Killing Off an "Independent" Egyptian News Site
Sunday, April 28, 2013 at 8:29 | Scott Lucas in Africa, EA Global, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran See also Syria Today: The Debate Over Chemical Weapons
Saturday's Syria Today: A Chemical Weapons "Game-Changer"?
Egypt: Mubarak Appeal for Release Rejected
The Criminal court has rejected former President Hosni Mubarak's second appeal for his release from prison, during the investigation of charges of illicit gain from his position.
The court ordered Mubarak to remain in detention for 15 days while the charges are investigated.
Libya: Gunmen Surround Foreign Ministry
A military official says about 200 armed men are surounding the Foreign Ministry building in Tripoli, demanding the ministry reform and hire former fighters who helped overthrow the Qaddafi regime.
Sunday
Apr212013
Bahrain (and Beyond) Live: The Protests, the Opposition, and the Grand Prix
Sunday, April 21, 2013 at 6:57 | Scott Lucas in EA Live, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran See also Yemen 1st-Hand: When the US Drones Attacked My Village
Syria Live: International Support for the Insurgency?
Saturday's Iraq (and Beyond) Live: Provincial Elections Amid Spike in Violence
1540 GMT: Egypt
Minister of Justice Ahmed Mekki has offered his resignation, a day after President Morsi had stated there would be a government reshuffle and two days after thousands of Islamist demonstrators calling for the "purging of the judiciary"
According to judicial sources, Mekki complained about the demonstrations in his resignation statement. He also condemned attempts, led by the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party to amend the judicial authority law to decrease the retirement age of judges without taking their view on the issue.
The amendment would mean the forced retirement of more than 3,000 judges.
Monday
Apr082013
Egypt (and Beyond) Live: President Condemns Sectarian Violence
Monday, April 8, 2013 at 8:05 | Scott Lucas in EA Live, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran 1215 GMT: Turkey. Police have fired water cannon, tear gas, and pepper spray in clashes with thousands of activists protesting in support of 275 people accused of plotting to topple the Government.
Defendants in the trial of the "Ergenekon" group, an alleged underground network of secular arch-nationalists, were expected to begin their final defences on Monday. Prosecutors last month demanded life sentences for 64 of them.
Retired armed forces commander Ilker Basbug is among the defendants, accused of attempting to stage a coup against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's administration.
Demonstrators outside the court at the high-security Silivri jail near Istanbul waved Turkish flags and banners of left-wing and nationalist groups as they fought to break through police barriers.
0805 GMT: Egypt. President Morsi has condemned clashes at the Cairo headquarters of the Coptic Christian pope as "an attack against myself", ordering an enquiry.
At least one person was reportedly killed and 17 wounded in fighting, as riot police fired tear gas to disperse the crowd.
On Friday, four Christians and one Muslim were killed in El Khusus, near Cairo, after anger rose over graffiti daubed on the wall of a mosque.
Clashes erupt yesterday after hundreds of Copts who had attended a funeral service at St Mark's Cathedral spilled out into the streets of Cairo, chanting, "With our blood and soul, we will sacrifice ourselves for the cross."
A withness said protesters hurled rocks at police officers and smashed six private cars, setting two on fire, prompting an angry reaction from Muslims living in the neighbourhood.
The Coptic Church issued a statement on Sunday night calling for calm and expressing sorrow for the clashes.
tagged Egypt, Ilker Basbug, Mohamed Morsi, Turkey
Egypt, Ilker Basbug, Mohamed Morsi, Turkey Sunday
Mar312013
Mali (and Beyond) Live Coverage: A Suicide Bombing in Timbuktu
Sunday, March 31, 2013 at 8:48 | Scott Lucas in Africa, EA Global, EA Live, EA Middle East and Turkey See also Syria Live Coverage: Getting the Story Wrong on US Intervention
1516 GMT: Egypt. Prosecutors have released political satirist and TV host Bassem Youssef on LE15,000 ($2,142) bail after hours of questioning.
Youssef is accused of insulting President Morsi and denigrating Islam on his TV show.
1509 GMT: Mali. At least three Malian soldiers have been injured in fighting today in Timbuktu, a day after insurgents killed two troops and injured another in attacks including a suicide bombing (see 0853 GMT).
A military spokesman said, "The fighting is heavy and it is ongoing. We are in the process of encircling them."
Wednesday
Mar272013
Egypt (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Parliamentary Elections in October?
Wednesday, March 27, 2013 at 9:49 | Scott Lucas in Africa, EA Global, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran See also Turkey Analysis: Will the Kurdish Peace Offer Survive the Next Steps?
Syria Live Coverage: The Arab League Recognises the Opposition
Tuesday's Egypt (and Beyond) Live Coverage: "Only President Morsi Can Save the Economy"
President Mohamed Morsi1625 GMT: Egypt. An appeals court has ordered the reinstatement of Prosecutor General Abdel Maguid Mahmoud, dismissed by President Morsi last November.
The court also cancelled Morsi's decision to appoint a replacement, Talat Ibrahim.
Morsi's Freedom and Justice Party has expressed its surprise at the decision, which may go to a higher court for review.
Tuesday
Mar262013
Egypt (and Beyond) Live Coverage: "Only President Morsi Can Save the Economy"
Tuesday, March 26, 2013 at 17:47 | Scott Lucas in EA Live, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran See also Egypt 1st-Hand: The Immersion in Political Violence
Syria Live Coverage: Will the Arab League Recognise the Opposition?
Monday's Bahrain (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Activist Zainab AlKhawaja Writes from Prison
1910 GMT: Egypt. Blogger Alaa Abdel Fattah handed himself to the authorities for hours of questioning, a day after being accused along with four others of inciting violence.
Abdel-Fattah was cheered by a crowd as he entered the Cairo office of Prosecutor General Talaat Abdullah, who ordered the arrests for encouraging "aggression" against members of the Muslim Brotherhood last week.
The blogger's supporters chanted: "Down, down with [President] Morsi's rule."
1750 GMT: Egypt. Lawyer Hamdy Al-Fakharany has been arrested for allegedly inciting violence against the Freedom and Justice Party's headquarters in Al-Gharbeya.
Al-Fakharany’s daughter Abeer said her father was on his way back from a meeting with the provincial Governor, Mokhtar Al-Hamalawy, when Central Security Forces stopped him.
Abeer said she could not contact her father and did not know where he was taken.
Sunday
Mar172013
Iran Live Coverage: Nuclear Talks in Istanbul
See also Iran Feature: Why Withdrawal of Google Reader is a Blow for Iranians
1659 GMT: On the Seas. Iran launched a domestically-built destroyer in the Caspian Sea on Sunday, its first deployment of a major warship in the area.
President Ahmadinejad inaugurated the guided missile destroyer Jamaran-2 in the port city of Anzali, about 250 kilometers (150 miles) northwest of Tehran.
He said the deployment aimed to bolster peace and friendship in the region: "The destroyer is there to meet those who want to jeopardize the security of surrounding nations,"
The 1,400-ton destroyer is equipped with surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles as well as anti-aircraft batteries and sophisticated radar and communications terminals.
Iran launched a version of the Jamaran destroyer in 2010 in the Persian Gulf.