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	MEMRI Daily - Egypt: November 29, 2010 MEMRI | MEMRI TV | THE MEMRI BLOG | MEMRI ECONOMIC BLOG | JIHAD AND TERRORISM THREAT MONITOR TURKISH MEDIA PROJECT | IRAN BLOG | THE MIDDLE EAST CULTURE BLOG| THE URDU-PASHTU MEDIA BLOG
	The following is research published today about Egypt from MEMRI’s Special Dispatch Series, MEMRI TV Project, and the MEMRI Blog. *Special Dispatch Series Special Dispatch No. 3400—Egypt/U.S. and the Arab and Muslim World Egypt Intensifies Hostility towards U.S. Lately, Egypt has stepped up its harsh tone towards the U.S., following American pressure on the Egyptian regime to ensure the fairness of the November 28, 2010 parliamentary elections by allowing international oversight. Egypt held that international oversight constituted intervention in Egypt's domestic affairs and that oversight by local civilian bodies was sufficient. Egypt was also angered by a recent meeting between U.S. officials and representatives of the American research institute Working Group on Egypt, to discuss the internal situation in Egypt. A source in the Egyptian Foreign Ministry stated that this research institute had an anti-Egyptian agenda and was not well-versed in the situation on the Egyptian street. Another bone of contention was a U.S. State Department report on religious freedoms in Egypt. Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki protested that the State Department had no authority to investigate this matter, and said that the only human rights reports Egypt recognized were those issued by the United Nations. He added that the report presented a slanted picture of religious freedoms in Egypt, since it relied on biased sources, such as media reports and data from NGOs of questionable reliability, and that it was unacceptable to Egypt that a certain country should act as the patron of another sovereign and independent country. This harsh tone was also echoed in recent editorials and articles in the Egyptian government press, which accused the U.S. of interfering in Egypt's affairs and of patronizing it. Other articles accused the U.S. of responsibility for Iran's growing impact in the region, especially in Iraq. Some even claimed that Iran's influence in Iraq was the result of an Iranian-American conspiracy to erase Iraq's Sunni Arab identity and let the Shi'ites take over the country. The government paperAl-Masaa published several articles by a columnist who writes under the pen name "Arabi Asil," suggesting that the U.S. was behind the recent terrorist attacks in Iraq as well as the UPS parcel-bombs scare – its aim being to justify the maintaining of troops in Iraq, and to draw attention away from its deeds in Afghanistan and elsewhere. To read in full, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4790.htm. Special Dispatch No. 3401—Egypt/Democratization and Reform in the Arab and Muslim World Egyptian Chief Mufti Issues Fatwa against Terror Operations In Muslim Lands In a recent fatwa, Egyptian mufti Dr. 'Ali Gum'a ruled that terrorist operations in Muslim countries are against the shari'a, because the latter forbids killing Muslims or harming their property unjustly, because a suicide bomber violates the Islamic prohibition against killing oneself, and because these terrorist acts are used by non-Muslims as a pretext to interfere in the affairs of Muslim states and plunder their resources. To read in full, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4791.htm. Special Dispatch No. 3402—Syria/Egypt Syria and Egypt Again Join Battle in Media War The Syrian and Egyptian media have in recent years alternated between exchanges of blows and relative quiet. Approximately five months ago, the Egyptian government daily Al-Ahram published some articles critical of Syria, to mark the first decade of the presidency of Bashar Al-Assad. The Syrian daily Al-Watan, which is close to the Syrian regime, responded by declaring an end to the media ceasefire between the two countries and threatening to publish attacks on Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, but it did not hasten to realize that threat. Now, following several months of relative quiet, the two sides have again joined battle. However, unlike in the past, high-ranking Syrian officials, including Assad himself, have brought up the issue of the tension between the two countries. In an interview with the London-based Saudi daily Al-Hayat, the Syrian president acknowledged the severed Syria-Egypt relationship, citing fundamental differences of opinion and laying the blame on Egypt. Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Al-Miqdad called the relations between the countries "regrettable," saying that Egypt should "rectify its mistaken policy, for which the Egyptian people are paying the price" As of this writing, however, there has been no formal Egyptian response to these statements, aside from an editorial by Al-Ahram editor Osama Saraya criticizing Assad's statements in the Al-Hayat interview. This editorial provoked several biting responses in Al-Watan. To read in full, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4792.htm. Special Dispatch No. 3403—Egypt Egyptian Archaeologist Wassim Al-Sissy on National Identity: I Am An Egyptian Who Speaks Arabic Following are excerpts from an interview with Egyptian urologist and Egyptologist Wassim Al-Sissy, which aired on Egyptian Channel 1 on September 21, 2010. To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2688.htm. To read in full, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4793.htm. *From the MEMRI Blog Initial Count Shows 50% Of Seats Decided In Egyptian Parliamentary Elections; Incidents Reported An initial count of the votes in the Egyptian parliamentary elections shows 50% of the seats have been decided but that another round of voting is expected to the decide the other 50%. To read in full, visit http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/32367.htm. Parliamentary Elections Underway in Egypt Egypt is holding parliamentary elections today, following weeks of clashes between the security apparatuses and Muslim Brotherhood activists over the election campaign, in the course of which over 1,000 of the movement's members were arrested. To read in full, visit http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/32360.htm. Egypt 'Puzzled' By Ethiopian Premier's Threats Of War Over Nile Waters Egypt said that it was "puzzled" by threats voiced by Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi about a military confrontation with Egypt regarding the Nile River waters. To read in full, visit http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/32319.htm. Egyptian Cleric Muhammad Hreiz Al-Sharif Complains about Women's Equality in Sports: When a Woman Scored a Goal in Soccer, She Exposed Her Breasts for All to See To view this clip, visit http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/31830.htm. Egyptian Daily: Monitoring Committee Chairman Rejected Abbas Proposals The Egyptian daily Al-Gomhouriyya reports that a dispute during its October 8 meeting in Libya, between the Syrian representative in the the Arab League's monitoring committee on the Arab peace initiative and the committee’s chairman, Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hamid bin Jassem, broke out after the Qatari prime minister removed several sections from the concluding statement, at the request of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud 'Abbas. To read in full, visit http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/31122.htm. Egyptian Cleric Salama Abd Al-Qawi: Flogging in Islamic Law Follows Certain Regulations To view this clip, visit http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/30885.htm. Mubarak: Iran Must Prove That Its Nuclear Program Is Peaceful Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said in an interview with the Egyptian military newspaper that Iran was an important regional country that can help solve the crises in the Middle East instead of making trouble. To read in full, visit http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/30848.htm. In Egypt, Anti-Succession Demonstration Put Down Egyptian security forces forcibly put down a September 22 demonstration in Alexandria against the succession of the Egyptian regime by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's son Gamal. To read in full, visit http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/30569.htm.