Days at the Egyptian Museum of Cairo: The Sarcophagus from Arabia

On the occasion of the renewed war between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia, as well as Cairo's decision to send military troops to Saudi Arabia if requested — a controversial decision in itself — and the attempts to put diplomacy ahead of war, there is nothing better than sharing an amazing piece I came across at the Egyptian Museum of Cairo (EMC).

I visited the Egyptian Museum of Cairo in Tahrir Square in July 2023, after reading an announcement on the museum's official Facebook page that this artefact had been selected as its Piece of the Month.

It was a huge surprise to discover this piece at the museum in the first place, let alone in Egypt.

Warning: This was one of my worst artefact-photography experiences at the EMC. Aside from the reflective glass covering it, the sarcophagus was placed right at the entrance, facing the sun when I visited.

The artifact is a wooden sarcophagus belonging to an ancient Yemeni merchant who died in ancient Egypt.

More specifically, it is a wooden sarcophagus, without its lid, belonging to a Minaean merchant from the Kingdom of Ma'in.

And Egyptian Americans made it to Capitol Hill — in the loudest, most historic way!

4 November is a unique date in modern Egyptian history.

It was on this day in 1922 that a young Egyptian boy stumbled upon the first step of a staircase in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, leading to the rediscovery of a lost king who would become one of the most famous pharaohs in Egyptian and world history: King Tutankhamun.

It was also on this day in 2026 that Egyptian Americans made history, winning seats in the US Capitol in one of the most important and controversial elections of the 21st century in the United States.

US voters elected Democrat Dr Abdelrahman El-Sayed to represent Michigan in the US Senate. El-Sayed made history as the first Muslim and the first American of Egyptian origin to become a US senator, after standing his ground and even firing back at the US president himself.

US voters also elected Democrat Dr Adam El-Hamawy to represent New Jersey's 12th Congressional District. El-Hamawy is the first American of Egyptian origin ever elected to the US House of Representatives.

El-Sayed secured more than 2.5 million votes, winning 52.5 per cent of the vote against Republican Mike Rogers, who received 45.5 per cent.

I don't care what is said about Abdul, but it is enough for me that he reportedly made AIPAC spend between $22 million and $32 million trying to defeat him, whether in the Democratic primaries or the midterm elections.

I don't understand why or how, because, realistically speaking, it will take more than Abdul to stop the United States' blind support for Israel.

Watch: Our Badawy visits Iran and Hormuz during the war — and it is not what you imagine.

Before Trump nukes Iran or the Democrats, whichever comes first!

Egyptian travel vlogger Ahmed Badawy’s latest videos from Iran have gone viral in Egypt and across the Arab world.

Despite the absence of official diplomatic relations between Egypt and Iran, Badawy travelled to Iran using his Egyptian passport to see the country and its people following the 10,000 US and Israeli missiles that hit the country. He also made his way to the island of Hormuz.

Badawy holds another passport, a French one, but identifies himself as Egyptian. It was a wise decision to travel using his Egyptian passport rather than his French one.

Egyptian-Iranian relations have been drawing closer, with almost weekly telephone calls between the two countries’ foreign ministers — a level of engagement we have not seen since the days when Shah of Iran Reza Pahlavi married Princess Fawzia Fouad of Egypt in 1939.

Badawy and a friend arrived in Tehran on 3 October 2026, travelling via Turkey aboard Iranian airline Iran Airtour.

He documented the trip in his first video, titled "Inside Tehran After the US Bombing… The Reality Is SHOCKING".

You can also watch it with English translation and dubbing — his first time trying this feature.

Needless to say, the video has attracted plenty of comments and remarks.

One of the most striking observations is that, judging from the footage, Tehran hardly looks like the capital of a country at war and under four decades of economic sanctions.

Egypt plans tougher online regulations despite existing cybercrime law

As if the witch hunt against independent news websites and fact-checking services such as Matsda2sh and Mada Masr over the past three weeks were not enough, the government appears to be preparing a new Digital Safety Law alongside proposed amendments to the Penal Code that would increase fines for crimes involving rumours and false news.

The proposals follow what the Cabinet described as a review of measures to address harmful practices on social media.

On Wednesday, the Cabinet reviewed in its weekly meeting a report outlining recommendations by a committee formed under Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly’s Decree No. 2417 of 2026 to examine legislative and technical measures to address harmful online practices and safeguard Egyptian family values and social cohesion.

The report proposed establishing a national digital safety framework to strengthen the state's role in regulating the digital environment, overseeing platforms and managing systemic risks associated with their activities.

A key recommendation is to strengthen the technical capacities of the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), the Supreme Council for Media Regulation and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to monitor and respond to violating online content.

Under the proposals, the NTRA's Content Unit, which currently serves as the state's channel for dealing with digital platforms and implementing removal and blocking decisions issued by the media regulator, courts and other authorities, would be developed into a fully integrated national technical centre.

Watch this : CAIRO , the city and challenge

It’s been a while since I watched a short documentary that moved me like this.

You must watch “Cairo.” This short documentary captures the feelings many Egyptian photographers and videographers have towards their beloved city.

I can’t count the number of times I’ve been approached by concerned citizens asking to see “my permit” to photograph in Cairo or questioning whether I’m allowed to take pictures at all. I can recount the feeling that it is dangerous.

I share the same feelings and passion as Ahmed Alaa, the director of this short film.

“So if you do not let us film it today, who will know it tomorrow?”

Alaa’s words hit like salt on an open wound.

And Court fines Lina Attalah LE3 million, orders Mada Masr closure

In a huge blow to the Egyptian press and freedom of expression, Mada Masr Editor-in-Chief Lina Attalah was released on Tuesday after spending nearly seven hours in custody following her conviction by the New Cairo Misdemeanor Court for managing an unlicensed website.

The court imposed a LE3 million fine — I believe the highest fine in a publishing- or media-related case in Egypt — and ordered the closure of Mada Masr’s website and the confiscation of its equipment and devices.

Mada Masr paid the fine in full, but Attalah’s release procedures took several hours to complete.

During the release procedures, Attalah learned that she had been sentenced in absentia to one year in prison in 2024 on charges of publishing false news and managing an unlicensed website.

Her lawyers took steps to challenge the ruling, with a retrial scheduled for November 11.

It is a sad day for the press and freedom of expression, not only in Egypt but across the Global South.

Lina Attalah to stand trial in Egypt in latest case against Mada Masr

Lina Attalah, editor-in-chief of independent Egyptian award-winning news website Mada Masr, is due to stand trial before a New Cairo misdemeanour court on Tuesday, 27 October, on charges of establishing and operating a website without a licence, following an unusually swift referral by the Supreme State Security Prosecution.

The referral came on Thursday, 22 October, less than 24 hours after Attalah was released on EGP 100,000 bail following more than six hours of questioning by prosecutors.

She was investigated in Case No. 9072 of 2026, in which prosecutors initially accused her of publishing false news and operating a website without a licence.

The false news allegation was dropped from the charges in the referral decision, leaving the licensing charge to be heard by the court.

According to Mada Masr's legal counsel, Hassan El-Azhari, prosecutors questioned Attalah about the website's legal status and its coverage of recent protests inside Egyptian prisons, as well as other journalistic work.

El-Azhari described the decision to refer the internationally award-winning Attalah to trial within hours of the investigation's conclusion, with a hearing scheduled for the following week, as an unjustified rush.