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CNN —Oil powers Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been invited to become members of the BRICS group of developing nations in its first expansion in over a decade. Total bilateral trade between Saudi Arabia and BRICS nations exceeded $160 billion in 2022, the Saudi foreign minister said. It also means Russia and Saudi Arabia — both members of OPEC+, a group of major oil producers — will join each other in a new economic bloc. The BRICS countries have also been talking about a common currency, an idea analysts have described as unworkable and “unlikely” in the near future. Existing BRICS members have “had enough difficulty trying to agree just between the five of them,” he added.

Persons: Cyril Ramaphosa, ” Ramaphosa, Vladimir Putin, ” Putin, Xi Jinping, ” Jinping, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Narendra Modi, Saudi Arabia —, —, Putin, Goldman Sachs, Jim O’Neill, ” O’Neill, “, ”, I’m, ” BRICS, Mohamed bin Zayed al Nahyan, Abdel Fattah el, Sisi, — Manveena Suri, Mostafa Salem, Lizzy Yee, Mengchen Zhang, Nadeen Ebrahim Organizations: CNN, Oil, United Arab, Saudi Foreign, Indian, OPEC, West, Western, Bloomberg, New Development Bank, United Arab Emirates, BRICS Locations: Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, Argentina, South, Johannesburg, Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Russian, BRICS, Saudi, United States, UAE

☆ Before hundreds of protesters were killed, Egypt debated less lethal options, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Cnn Staff | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Official accounts put the death toll at around 600 people, including several members of the security forces. Protesters accused the state of carrying out a mass slaughter; authorities claimed heavily armed demonstrators had attacked police. According to EIPR’s report, investigators at the time also said that the “Egyptian administration was also wrong in its policy of dispersing the gathering.”CNN has reached out to the interior ministry for comment about the EIPR report. Police “incrementally used alarms and tear gas, and did not resort to live ammunition until after several of its (security forces) members were killed and injured,” the summary said. “This wound and all its victims need to be mended,” the EIPR report said, quoting the recommendations.

Persons: Rabaa, Mohamed Morsy, Abdel Fattah el, Morsy, EIPR, Hossam Bahgat, ” Bahgat, EIPR’s, Medhat, Minshawi, ” Al, Egypt’s, ”, Fouad Abdel, Moneim Riad, “, ” EIPR’s Bahgat, Bahgat Organizations: CNN, Adawya, Protesters, Egyptian, Personal Rights, Interior, Central Security Forces, Police, Rights Watch, UN Locations: Cairo, Egypt, ”

☆ Egypt and India bolster ties as Modi makes first trip to Cairo
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi meets with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Ittihadiya presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt June 25, 2023. The Egyptian Presidency/Handout via REUTERSCAIRO, June 25 (Reuters) - Egypt and India discussed strengthening ties in areas including trade, food security and defence during a state visit to Cairo by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the two countries said on Sunday. On his first trip to Egypt, Modi met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Egyptian ministers appointed to an "India unit" after a state visit by Sisi to India in January during which a "strategic partnership" was announced. India is seen as keen to boost ties with Egypt partly to secure trade through the Suez Canal. Modi, a Hindu nationalist, has rarely made public visits to mosques as prime minister.

Persons: Abdel Fattah El, Narendra Modi, Modi, Abdel Fattah al, Sisi, Al Hakim, Mohamed Waly, Rajesh, Jyoti Narayan, Shivani, Aidan Lewis, Ros Russell Organizations: Indian, REUTERS, Global, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Cairo, Egypt, REUTERS CAIRO, India, Sisi, Suez, Gujarat

The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is in talks with The Sovereign Wealth Fund of Egypt (TSFE) about the deal, said two sources with knowledge of the matter, who declined to be named. The fund is considering acquiring a stake of up to 30% in the hotels, the sources said, without naming them. Relations between Egypt and Qatar soured in the wake of the Arab Spring uprisings that toppled former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia has led efforts to rebuild ties with Qatar and, along with Egypt, re-established diplomatic relations in 2021. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi met with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani in Baghdad in August 2021 for the first time since ending the dispute.

Persons: Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, St Regis Saadiyat, Egypt's TSFE, Agatha Christie's, Hosni Mubarak, Abdel Fattah al, Sisi, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad, Hadeel El, Andrew Mills, Patrick Werr, Louise Heavens, Mark Potter, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Abu, Abu Dhabi Executive Council, St Regis, United, United Arab Emirates, Read, Qatar Investment Authority, Sovereign Wealth Fund of Egypt, Regional, Qatar, Thomson Locations: Abu Dhabi, Egypt, Qatar, United Arab, DUBAI, Harrods, London, Aswan, Saudi Arabia, Thani, Baghdad, Ukraine, Hadeel El Sayegh, Dubai, Doha, Cairo

☆ Facing Crisis, Egypt’s Leader Tries New Tack: Talking to Opponents
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Vivian Yee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Facing a ruinous economic crisis, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi recently decided it was time to hold talks with what was left of Egypt’s political opposition, giving them a seat at the table after nearly a decade of repression, prison and exile. But to an authoritarian leader like Mr. el-Sisi, reconciliation only goes so far. Islamists were barred from the dialogue, and much of the secular liberal opposition was not invited. Crucial topics, including anything to do with the ill-defined matter of national security, were off limits. ‌Yet the economic overhaul the government promised has added up to mostly talk and little action.

Persons: Abdel Fattah el, Sisi, Mr, hemming Locations: Egypt

☆ Egypt's pound is among the worst performing currencies in 2023. And it's expected to plummet further
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

A photo of one hundred Egyptian pound, one hundred U.S. dollars against the pyramids of Giza in Egypt on January 17, 2023. Fadel Dawod | Getty ImagesThe Egyptian pound has plunged almost 20% against the greenback since the start of the year — with some analysts predicting that the currency may still have room to plummet further. Egypt's pound currently ranks as the sixth worst performing currency since Jan. 1, extending a decline that saw it lose more than half its value during 2022. Egypt's embattled economyHowever, the economic woes plaguing the Middle East's most populous country means its pound still has a way to plummet, according to the experts. He expects Egypt's inflation to peak at around 36% in the third quarter, if there are no more devaluations.

☆ Gulf states have given billions in aid to Egypt. Now they want to see returns
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

He was referring to the tens of billions of dollars in bailouts his country has received from the wealthy Gulf monarchies over the past decade. Many of those assets have long been under the control of Egypt’s military, an economic behemoth and the backbone of Sisi’s power. This time, however, Gulf Arab allies – especially Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – want to see returns. Last year alone, Gulf states pledged $22 billion to Egypt as it faced an economic crisis caused partly by the fallout from the Ukraine war, Reuters reported. Analysts say that Egypt was pushed by Gulf states to accept the IMF’s conditions, especially those on privatization.

☆ Blinken begins Middle East trip amid spate of violence
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Simon Lewis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

CAIRO, Jan 29 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the Middle East on Sunday, beginning a three-day visit as violence flares between Israelis and Palestinians, and with Iran and the war in Ukraine high on the agenda. There has also been a spate of deadly violence in recent days, heightening fears that already spiralling violence will further escalate. A Palestinian gunman killed seven people in an attack outside a Jerusalem synagogue on Friday. Blinken will also travel to Ramallah to meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, other Palestinian officials, and members of civil society. Blinken will hear from people inside and outside of government on the reforms, she added.

☆ Blinken to visit Middle East amid heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Simon Lewis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivers remarks during a visit to NASA headquarters with Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and other U.S. and Japanese officials (not pictured) in Washington, U.S., January 13, 2023. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File PhotoWASHINGTON, Jan 26 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Egypt, Israel and the West Bank from Sunday to Tuesday to discuss heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians as well as the war in Ukraine with regional leaders, the State Department said. The decades-old status quo allows only Muslim worship at the compound, a site also revered by Jews. While Israel has condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it has limited its assistance to Kyiv to humanitarian aid and protective gear. Reporting by Simon Lewis; additional reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Why Egypt is asking its people to eat chicken feet
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

Abu Dhabi CNN —Egypt’s economic situation is so dire that the government is asking people to eat chicken feet. In Egypt, chicken feet are seen as the cheapest of meat items, considered by most as animal waste rather than food. After the recommendation to switch to chicken feet, the price of one kilogram of the product reportedly doubled to 20 Egyptian pounds ($0.67). But those firms don’t operate like private companies, enjoying special privileges without disclosing their financial data to the public. Experts have questioned why international creditors had not leveraged their loans to drive Egypt’s military out of the economy.

☆ Turkey's Erdogan shakes hands with Egypt's Sisi at World Cup
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan shakes hands with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on the sidelines of the World Cup in Doha, Qatar, November 20, 2022. Murat Cetinmuhurdar/PPO/Handout via REUTERSISTANBUL, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan shook hands with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on the sidelines of the World Cup in Qatar on Sunday, a photo from Turkey's presidency showed. Turkey's state-owned Anadolu Agency said Erdogan briefly met, shook hands and talked to Sisi and other leaders, including Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and King Abdullah of Jordan. Ankara's ties with Cairo have been strained since Sisi, then Egypt's army chief, led the 2013 ouster of Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood, who was strongly supported by Erdogan. Egyptian officials had expressed caution over any rapprochement, although Erdogan said in July there was no reason high-level talks should not take place.

☆ Time running out for climate deals on final day of COP27
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Global climate talks approached crunch time on Friday, the final scheduled day of negotiations that are expected to go past their deadline as chances of a deal still looked unclear. The document contained few new proposed solutions for curbing oil and gas emissions and repairing damage caused by climate change. The proposal would tie compensation for climate disasters to tougher emissions cuts, two of the thorniest issues at the meeting. In climate negotiations, loss and damage refers to the idea that rich nations, which have historically done the most to contribute to climate change, should compensate developing countries most impacted. Antigua and Barbuda’s environment minister says they have concerns about the EU proposal, while the environmental advocacy group Action Aid called it a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” because it doesn’t go far enough.

☆ Africa is hosting the UN climate summit. It's also home to 3 oil-and-gas deals announced in just two weeks.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

During the COP27 event, three oil-and-gas deals in Africa have been announced. In the past two weeks — essentially the time of the COP27 summit — three oil-and-gas deals were announced for Africa alone, in Egypt, Nigeria, and Tanzania. That demand is evident even in announcements that purportedly support renewable energy. Plus, the projects are more expensive than building out renewable energy like solar. "If we really want to improve the lives of people, we need to invest in community renewable energy," Elmaawi said.

☆ Jailed Egyptian hunger striker is hospitalized, family says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Egyptian prison authorities have intervened medically with jailed pro-democracy activist Alaa Abdel-Fattah, who this week escalated a food and hunger strike demanding his release, coinciding with Egypt’s hosting of the U.N. climate summit, his mother said. Abdel-Fattah’s mother, Leila Soueif, said she spoke to prison authorities by phone and asked them if her son was undergoing any medical procedure and they said he was. She asked “if it was by force, and they said no” and told her, “Alaa is good,” she told The Associated Press. Soueif has been waiting outside the prison every day this week, asking for proof of life for her son. World leaders and activists have repeatedly called for Egyptian authorities to release the activist.

He'll hold his first face-to-face meeting with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping at the G20, where he hopes to explore Xi's "red lines", talk to allies about punishing Russia for its Ukraine invasion and discuss containing North Korea after a barrage of missile tests. On Wednesday, Biden said U.S. aid for Ukraine will continue uninterrupted and any territorial compromise between the two countries is up to Ukraine. Putin will not attend the G20 summit in person but is due join one of the meetings virtually, an Indonesian government official said. They will address North Korea's "unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs," the official said. Biden will "continue to urge the Egyptian government to release political prisoners and undertake human rights related legal reforms," said one of the officials.

☆ 'After COP, I don't know if I'll be alive or not': Sister of the jailed Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah calls for his release
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Egyptian-British activist Sanaa Seif is calling for her brother's release from an Egyptian jail. The Egyptian government has denied mistreatment, and this summer a member of the presidential-pardon committee said Abd el-Fattah was among those being considered for possible release, reported Al-Ahram, an Egyptian state-owned newspaper. He added that foreign intervention in human-rights reform in Egypt "is fated to fail" and would harm the country's people. Seif said her family has exhausted every legal route in Egypt to secure her brother's release, to no avail. "After COP, I don't know if I'll be alive or not," she said.

☆ Egypt human rights record under fire as it hosts COP27 climate conference
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Hyder Abbasi | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

When world leaders, diplomats, campaigners and scientists from nearly 200 countries arrive for the United Nations climate change conference in Egypt Monday, their focus will be on curbing global warming. They have called for the world leaders attending the event, known as COP27, to confront the Egyptian government over its alleged human-rights abuses, particularly its treatment of political prisoners. In 2019, he was jailed for “joining a terrorist group” and “spreading false news” to undermine national security. It said that Fattah, 40, a British national, was being prosecuted because of his activism and social media posts highlighting human rights violations allegedly committed by the Egyptian government. Amnesty’s head, Agnes Callamard, warned Sunday that Egypt had no more than 72 hours to save the jailed dissident's life.

☆ Jailed British-Egyptian activist escalates hunger strike by refusing water as COP27 gets underway
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt — Jailed British-Egyptian citizen Alaa Abdel-Fattah stepped up his hunger strike by refusing water, ratcheting up fears for the life of one of the country's leading rights activists just as world leaders arrive in Egypt for the start of the COP27 climate summit. Amnesty International chief Agnes Callamard said Sunday that authorities had less than three days to save Abdel-Fattah's life, warning that failure to intervene would overshadow the U.N.'s flagship climate conference. The 40-year-old has stopped drinking water in a desperate attempt to pressure Egyptian authorities to allow him U.K. consular access. The escalation of Abdel-Fattah's hunger strike has prompted grave concerns for the prominent human rights activist and writer, who had consumed just 100 calories a day for more than 200 days. Egypt is hosting the COP27 climate summit in the Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh through to Nov. 18.

☆ Egypt faces criticism over crackdown on activists ahead of COP27 climate summit
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Egypt is facing a barrage of criticism over what rights groups say is a crackdown on protests and activists, as it prepares to host the COP27 climate summit starting Sunday. According to rights groups, security forces have been setting up checkpoints on Cairo streets, stopping people and searching their phones to find any content related to the planned protests. The Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms (ECRF), an NGO, said Wednesday that 93 people had been arrested in Egypt in recent days. Then there is a separate public venue where climate exhibitions and events take place throughout the two weeks of the summit. But rights groups said the government’s initiatives amounted to little change.

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