For the sake of SMA Children , Sign this petition

For the sake of SMA children, I ask you to sign this important petition and to spread everywhere online.

Families of children suffering from Spinal Muscular Atrophy "SMA" have been sending pleas for years now to everyone in order to save their children from that cruel disease.

Launched by one of the mothers of SMA children, the petition is calling Egypt's President El-Sisi and Minister of Health Hala Zayed to issue a decree to include SMA's medicine in the medical insurance in Egypt.

Most of you do not know that SMA has got the most expensive treatment system in the whole world and with the struggling Egyptian economy, it is like fighting an impossible battle but the families fight it either way.

Late Khadijah, one of the famous SMA
children on social media.

Parents of SMA children use social media asking for donations and help but this is not a solution.

The petition asks the Egyptian government to provide Sprinza drug which helps SMA children a lot to improve their health condition.

Its only problem is its price tag. Its costs in the United States starts at $ 750,000 in the first year and $375,000 annually after that.

Already I believe that as Egypt heads the African Union this year, it is a good opportunity to speak not only about SMA Egyptian children but rather African SMA children in general.

The Egyptian government can go in talks with the company producing Sprinza with the help of the UNICEF and WHO to get it for a better price.

It is unfair by all measures that SMA children suffer from it in that way in third world countries.

A rare neurological genetic disease, even the richest countries in the world provide its treatment in its medical insurance system for some of its types.

Currently, SMA is making headlines again with its newly approved medicine, Zolgensma.

Newly approved by FDA, Zolgensma is dubbed rightly so as the most expensive drug in history for USD 2.1 million for a single dose, yes a single dose. 

BY the way, Khadijah Mamdouh who was one of the girls mentioned in the 2018 Ahram Online report passed away earlier this year following a long struggle with that terrible disease. She is the second kid I have read about to die in the past three years because of it. 

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " Aladdin saves the day " Ep.10

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
First of all, you can refresh your memory and see how Aladdin found his beloved Tot.
Tonight we are to finish our second tale for this year, the tale of Aladdin and the magical lamp.
Here is the tenth episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.161 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " A Qareen’s help " Ep.9

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.

First of all, you can refresh your memory and see how Aladdin lost his princess as well as his lamp.
Here is the ninth episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.160 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " An new lamp for a old lamp " Ep.8

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
First of all, you can refresh your memory and see how Aladdin got married his beloved princess.
Here is the eighth episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.159 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " Make way for Prince Aladdin" Ep.7

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
First of all , you can refresh your memory and see how Aladdin reacted when he knew princess Tot married someone else.

Here is the seventh episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.158 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " Genie , bring me the princess" Ep.6

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
First of all , you can refresh your memory and see how Aladdin fell in love with Princess Tot here.
Our Aladdin is darker than the Aladdin we know.
Here is the sixth episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.157 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Chronicles of Egyptian Places : The Last Days of Building No.54 in Cairo’s Boulaq Abu Ela

Do you remember that very old watch shop I once spoke about in summer 2018 and how it was going to disappear as its building was going to be demolished by the government ?

The building , officially known as No.54 in the street was demolished as part of the governmental plan to revamp Maspero triangle area but before it was demolished , I was lucky enough to document some of its last moments and to know more about its history or rather its people.

Specifically the shop owners who owned shops in the buildings , most of them spent half of their lives in that buildings maintaining their shops for more than five decades and for that they tried to fight the battle till the end.

It was a lost battle in times where no mainstream media or social media can raise their concerns and screams to the officials.

Here is in my very bad and shaky video, I focused on two stories: the story of S. Hinhayat Clock shop and the story of Hajj Hosni, the mannequin maker.

P.S: I know it is not the best video or audio recording or editing but I hope you like it and share it.

Building No.54 was originally built in 1906 in “Avenue Boulaq” or “Boulaq street” in Boulaq Abu Ela district.

Despite Maspero Triangle is portrayed in the mainstream media now as low-income shanty town area “Which is partially true”, the area had several European Neo-Classical buildings especially in the area adjacent to Avenue Boulaq.

Once I spoke with a taxi driver who was raised there and he told me that those buildings were owned by foreigners who left Egypt after the 1952 Coup.

I think due to the fact that the Old Italian Consulate is located there, there were many foreigners or rather Italians who lived in the area.

An interesting fact that that Italian Consulate complex which included a school in the past was turned in to prison for foreigners or Italians by the British occupation during the World War II.

Back to our building, in 1907 a Bulgarian Jew watchmaker called Solomon Hinhayat inaugurated his clock shop in Boulaq street at Building No.54 according to shop’s last shopkeeper and owner Essam Solomon.

Solomon Hinhayat in the last days of his shop 

Later that street was renamed  Fouad street named after Egypt’s King Fouad I and during that era, it became one of Downtown Cairo’s busiest and commercial street. 

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " Mama Aladdin goes to the King’s palace " Ep.5

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
First of all , you can refresh your memory and see where we left Aladdin last night here.

Here is the fifth episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.156 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " Meet the genie " Ep.4

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
First of all , you can refresh your memory and see where we left Aladdin last night here.

Here is the fourth episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.155 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " Just get the lamp " Ep.3

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Interestingly , Taher Abu Fasha changed the origin of Aladdin as in the original story.

In the original One Thousand and one nights book , the story of Aladdin takes place in China.
Already China is mentioned several times in the book and this is a proof that the Arab Islamic civilization reached China before Mao and his comrades.

Here is the third episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.154 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin " A long missing uncle" Ep.2

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.

Tonight we will start a new tale or rather an old tale you know very well , tonight we will continue the second tale for this Ramadan , the tale of Aladdin.

I can’t ignore the buzz Mina Massoud is creating online in Egypt especially with his pinned tweet speaking about how the music of Abdel Halim Hafez was played on Aladdin set and his message to the Egyptian people and its nationalistic finale.

His Egyptian Arabic is much better than Ramy Malek FYI.

To be honest , I am not so optimistic about Aladdin as a live action film with all its colors and style but I am glad that another actor of an Egyptian-origin is making headlines in the world.

Anyhow without further ado , here is the second episode of Aladdin and the magical lamp or episode no.153 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Another brick in the wall : The tablet system and high school students saga “Updated”

Earlier on Monday , Egypt’s tens of Egyptian students in First Secondary stage “High school sophomores” protested against the ministry of education and its insistence on using the tablet-system in final exams in several governorates.

It is another episode in the big sage of the "Tablet system and high school" this school year !!

Since the start of the final exams of the First secondary stage “ 10th grade” , many students reported the tablet-system did not work due to connection problems and system failure.

The new tablet system in exams works as follows : The test sent from the ministry of educations to students’ tablets, and will be answered and marked electronically.

This photo from Youm 7 already shows the students using the tablet in the exams and honestly I do not
how this way can prevent cheating in Giza !! "Youm7" 

It is currently being generalized for “10th grade” students across the country. We are speaking about nearly 500,000 students.

As we are in the final exams phase 10th grade students in different governorates and in different reported its failure.
Group of angry students protested on Monday in Cairo, Giza, Gharbia , Ismailia , Suez, Alexandria, Luxor and New Valley governorates against the failure of that tablet system and current minister of education Tarek Shawky.

Before Iftar in Cairo , photos and videos went viral online on showing the protests by the angry teenagers and how the police forces dispersed some of these protests with no consideration that they are dealing with 13 and 14 years old teenagers who did not chant against the president but rather the minister of education calling for his dismissal.

In Cairo at the ministry of education HQ

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : Aladdin "A young man called Aladdin" Ep.1

The official poster of Aladdin
"Disney" 

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will start a new tale or rather an old tale you know very well , tonight we will start the second tale for this Ramadan , the tale of Aladdin.

This is the something time I post this radio tale in Egyptian Chronicles in Ramadan , I posted it in Ramadan 2010 when I started this Ramadan blogging tradition in 2010.

Now I re-post the episodes again as Disney will release its live-action “Aladdin” film starring Canadian Egyptian Mina Massoud and Will Smith worldwide on 24 May.
It is different than the one I post in 2010 as during then I posted a compilation of the episodes but this time you can hear each episode in high quality.
As you have heard “Aladdin” is based upon Disney’s blockbuster “Aladdin” animation film released in 1992.

you can hear to the first episode of Aladdin tale or episode no.152 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 15 "Azad knows the truth"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.

Tonight is the finale of Games of Thrones as well the finale this year’s first tale, the tale of King Haras so buckle it up for an interesting night of fairy tales of magic “somehow”

To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the fifteenth episode or episode no.194 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 14 "Azad goes mad"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.

Tonight we will see what happens to Azad when he wakes up to find himself a commoner in this year’s first tale, the tale of King Haras.

To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the fourteenth episode or episode no.193 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Seen at the Egyptian Museum of Cairo : That yellow stone coming from space

It is the International Museum Day and I will seize this opportunity to share with one of the pieces from King Tutankhamun's beautiful collection in his old home at the Egyptian Museum of Cairo before he and his treasures are fully transferred to the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

The amulet with the yellow glass scarab

Is not it beautiful and amazing?
This amulet depicts ancient Egyptian deity Khepri aka the scarab beetle “I think”
It is made of gold, coloured and it was encrusted with gemstones.
Its centre of attention without a doubt is its the scarab beetle made of yellow gemstone

Now this yellow gemstone is making news nowadays in the world as according to new research published in The Geology Journal its source is mineral called Reidite, which only forms when a meteor smashes into Earth.

According to what I understand that yellow glass or gemstone was found in Egyptian and Libyan desert, it is called Libyan desert glass.

The new research published in Geology Journal says that Libyan desert glass was formed about 29 million years ago when a meteorite smashed into the Earth in that Western desert.
Here is a close-up image for that stone and the amulet.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 13 "Sultan Azad in Court "

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will see what happens to Azad as a sultan for one day in this year’s first tale, the tale of King Haras.

To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the thirteenth episode or episode no.192 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 12 "Sultan Azad"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will start a new chapter in this year’s first tale, the tale of King Haras.

To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the twelfth episode or episode no.191 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 11 "Under the peach tree"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will continue the tale in a tale for this year’s first tale, the tale of King Haras.

To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the eleventh episode or episode no.190 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 10 "The palace owner’s tale"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will start the third tale in a tale for this year’s first tale, the tale of King Haras.

To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.

Now without further ado, you can hear to the tenth episode or episode no.188 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Egypt’s Ramadan 2019 : Racism and body shaming as usual in Prank show

There is no doubt in my mind when Egyptian comedian Shaimaa Seif agreed to appear in a blackface as a Sudanese lady for a prank show in Ramadan , she did not see any problem in that and believed it would bring laughter as usual.

Then thousands of Sudanese people slammed her online forcing her to close her Facebook account and official Facebook page and I do not have to bet that till now she may not understand why they are so angry.

Shaimaa's bad prank 

The popular Egyptian comedian had a prank show from couple of years when she was still unknown comedian in B-List Comedy channel where she tricked people while ridding a micro-bus.
In 2019 , she and her team brought back the show but this time with a big budget from Saudi-network MBC to be aired in Ramadan on MBC Misr 2 before Iftar in Egypt.

Shaimaa Seif in blackface in the show

On its first episode , we found Sudanese people expressing their anger online when they saw Seif appearing in blackface harassing people in the micro-bus and what made it worse , MBC Misr and MBC Misr 2 were promoting the video on social media as a funny thing !!
In no time , her social media accounts, official Facebook pages and accounts were flooded with angry thousands of angry comments from Sudanese people.

Many of them were not kind in their comments as they body-shamed her for also being oversized or in other common words : fat.

The reverse-racism and body-shaming , one issue brings us to the other.

Shaimaa Seif issued a very short apology saying that she meant no insult to the Sudanese people , a thing which I  believe it but it does not make things less serious. She attacked those who attacked her and then she closed her social media account.

Shaimaa Seif become recently a popular rising comedian and TV host.
As TV host , Shaimaa became part of the localized “The View” show and actually mostly voices logic in those show
Unfortunately , part of Seif’s comedian start was in “Misr theater” TV troupe and their sisters which depend on body-shaming jokes and her co-actors making fun of weight in a very cheap way.
It is very sad thing.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 9 "Sawsan and the King"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will continue our second tale for this year, the tale of King Haras.
To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.

Now without further ado, you can hear the ninth episode or episode no.188 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 8 "The Horse"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will continue our second tale for this year, the tale of King Haras.
To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the eighth episode or episode no.187 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Noman turning Sawsan into
a horse by  H.J Ford

Living in the body of a dog, Noman found himself living with his neighbor, the baker. One day while staying at the bakery with a neighbor, a Dervish came and spotted him.
The Dervish knows that there is something wrong about that dog and so he takes it from the baker.
The Dervish breaks the spell that turned Noman to a dog and he becomes a human once again.

Angry like hell, Noman returns home and confronts Sawsan once again.
Now he casts her a spell that turns her into a horse.
He comes to our kingdom to torture her in the same way she had done.

The king tells him to get Sawsan or the horse because his story is not over yet.
The king wants Noman to bring the Dervish in order to make the horse or Sawsan returns to her human form so she can be investigated for treason.

Tomorrow we will know her fate inshallah 

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 7 "The Ghoul"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will continue our second tale for this year, the tale of King Haras.
To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the Seventh episode or episode no.186 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 6 "The Five rice grains"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will start our second tale for this year, the tale of King Haras.
To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the Sixth episode or episode no.185 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

World Press Freedom Day 2019 : Bad time in Egypt

Last week, the world celebrated or rather commemorated the World Press Freedom Day on 3 May and it does not need the genius to say that it comes at very hard times for Egyptian press and media.
In an irony, the 2019 theme of the World Press Freedom day is “Media for Democracy: Journalism and Elections times of disinformation”.

This year's theme 

It is like a slap in the face considering the amount of disinformation shared on a daily basis in the Egyptian mainstream media

More red lines and more taboos have been forced by law this year thanks to Egypt’s Supreme Council for Media Regulation and its bylaws or organize media in the country.
Those bylaws are not imposed on the state-owned press but state-owned and private media as well the social media accounts with more than 5000 followers.

You know how bad those bylaws are bad when you see someone Pro-regime/Pro-army figure like Mostafa Bakry attacking them saying that they would make people forget there was media or press in Egypt after all.
“We are shutting it (the media) down completely,” He said in March admitting indirectly that “they are already shutting it down”.
He also claimed that President Sisi would not allow those bylaws to pass.
Nothing happened so far.
The National Council For Human rights also slammed the bylaws saying that they were unconstitutional.
But yet again, since when the Constitution is respected in Egypt !?
The Supreme Council for Media Regulation did not stop here, it became also a body to monitor TV shows in Ramadan this year.

In its annual index for press freedom in 2019, Reporters Without Borders “RSF” listed Egypt in its “Very Serious Situation” list.
Egypt ranks currently 163 in the 2019 World Press Freedom index going two places down from 2018.
It is not a surprise at all.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 5 "Greed blinds a man"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight we will continue our first tale for this year, the tale of King Haras.
To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the fifth episode or episode no.184 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 4 "The Dervish"

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are now and reading this post.
Tonight is a new Arabian night.
We are going to continue our first tale for this Ramadan, the tale of king Haras.
To refresh your memory and to know where we stopped, I recommend you go back and hear last night’s episode.
Now without further ado, you can hear to the fourth episode or episode no.183 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break so we can know how the rich merchant’s son ended up as a blind beggar in one foreign city once upon a time.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 3 "The King and the story of the blind beggar "

Okay Liverpool is going to play the Champions Leagues finale after one hell of a game to remember with Barcelona and nobody is paying attention to Ramadan Egyptian TV series anymore because they all suck as it seems so come and hear a new Ramadan Arabian night tonight.

Tonight we are going to continue our first tale , the tale of King Haras.

You can refresh your memory and listen last night’s episode to know where we stopped with that king who once ruled that faraway kingdom in China once upon time in the Arabian nights universe.

Now without further ado , you can hear to the third episode or episode no.182 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 2 "The King and the palace owner "

Good evening or Good afternoon or Good morning where ever you are and reading this post.
Tonight we will continue our tale for this year’s Ramadan Arabian nights 2019 podcast.
It is getting interesting by the minute.
I must say that I love the format of those episodes thanks to those geniuses behind it : Egyptian radio legendary host and director Mahmoud Shaaban and writer Taher Abu Fasha.
You can refresh your memory and hear last night’s episode here.
Now without further ado , episode 2 or rather episode no.181 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break.

Ramadan Arabian Nights 2019 : King Haras Episode 1 "The King and the blind beggar"

Ramadan Karim ☪

It is our annual meeting with one of my favorite time of the year, Ramadan and its Arabian nights.
Tonight is our first night of Ramadan Audio Arabian nights in 2019.

This Ramadan season will not have one single tale but rather three tales.

We will start our triple bill season with the tale of King Haras and his adventure.

In the Arabic language, Haras is another synonym of the word “Assad” or “ fierce lion”.

You can listen to the first episode of our tale or no.180 of the Egyptian State Radio’s One Thousand and One Nights show in Arabic after the break

#RIP Hany Shukrallah , another loss to Egyptian Press in hard times

I am not good in writing obituaries especially for people I knew personally and who have touched my life.

Earlier Sunday , news came that veteran Egyptian journalist Hany Shukrallah passed away in his house at the age of 69 years old.

A prominent figure in Egypt’s English speaking press as well Arabic speaking press , Shukrallah served as Ahram Weekly’s managing editor for several years, nearly from 1991 to 2005, and the executive editor in chief from 2003-2005 in its golden years.

Hany Shukrallah by Hossam El-Hamalawy

In November 2010 , he founded Ahram Online and served as its editor-in-chief for two years and I remember till this day how it has raised the bar for state-owned news website during then.

The leftist journalist also was among the journalists who founded independent daily Al-Shorouk newspaper.

He was also one of the pioneers in Egypt to launch true local journalism service "Welad al-Balad"  to serve districts and governorates in Egypt in a successful attempt to break the Cairo centralization complex in press.

Personally , I was lucky enough to know Hany Shukrallah.