It is Orthodox Easter, and tomorrow is Sham El-Nassim, our ancient spring festival in Egypt — but it does not feel like a time for celebration, given the relentless grim news of wars and a troubling wave of suicides in Egypt.
Tonight, people — mostly OSINT armchair analysts — discovered that the Apple Maps app, on both iOS and desktop, does not display the names of cities and villages in South Lebanon. At the same time, it does show place names in North Lebanon, northern Israel, and southern Syria.
Some are attributing this to a glitch, but I have my doubts. If Apple Maps can display the names of alleyways in Cairo and neighborhoods in Gaza, it should certainly be able to show village names in South Lebanon.
Several Lebanese users have also noted that those names were visible until as recently as last week.
I checked both the iOS and desktop versions and compared them with Google Maps — the difference is striking.
Today is the National Day of Suez Governorate, commemorating the Suez city’s heroic resistance during the October War of 1973.
Colored by Google Gemini An Egyptian resistance fighter from Suez
The siege of Suez lasted about 101 days — from October 24, 1973, to January 28, 1974 — marking the final phase of the war.
On October 23, Israeli forces under Ariel Sharon attempted to storm the city despite the Israeli commanders’ concerns, expecting minimal resistance due to a fatal strategic error by President Anwar Sadat.
Acting on a request from Syrian President Hafez al-Assad to ease pressure on the northern front, Sadat ordered further offensives eastward on October 14, despite Egypt’s initial success crossing the Suez Canal.
This move went against the advice of senior commanders, including Chief of Staff Saad El-Din El-Shazly, who warned that pushing beyond the SAM (surface-to-air missile) umbrella would overextend Egypt’s forces.
The resulting withdrawal of units from the western bank weakened the sector near Deversoir (between the Egyptian Second and Third Armies) , leaving it thinly defended — a gap that Ariel Sharon’s division exploited on October 23 to cross into the west bank.
Once across, Sharon’s forces deployed an armored brigade and a paratrooper battalion to cut off supplies to Egypt’s Third Army.
Queen Elizabeth II is dead, Long Live King Charles III
And the day has come and the modern world’s longest-serving monarch Queen Elizabeth II has passed away.
96-years-old Queen Elizabeth, the Queen of the United Kingdom passed away earlier Thursday afternoon at Balmoral Castle in Scotland ending a true era.
Queen Elizabeth in front of King Tutankhamun's mask at his special exhibit in London in 1972 at the British Museum "Getty"
It is unclear what the old monarch suffered from.
Her eldest son-73-years-old Charles has become King Charles III and his wife in some irony of fate became Queen consort, Camilla. She had the last laugh as it seems against all odds somehow after decades of being scorned globally.
It is almost the end of the era for real but not the end of that era because Henry Kissinger is still alive and kicking and honestly, he has been more dangerous than Queen Elizabeth II with all that she represented from British colonialism and Monarchy to the end of that talk.
The Second Elizabethan era ended as the UK itself is facing a lot of challenges whether economically or politically in a very critical time in the world.
According to an irony of fate, that era started in a challenging way for young Elizabeth too as the Sun began to set on the British Colonial Empire.
Now after this quick intro, here is a quick look at Queen Elizabeth II and Egypt aside from the long, complicated and ugly then friendly relations between the British governments and Egyptian administrations.
Contrary to my knowledge and the knowledge of millions of Egypt, Queen Elizabeth actually visited Egypt somehow.
A father and a daughter in a Cairo bus stop
"Mohamed Shokry"
On 19 March 2020
Egypt’s ministry of health announced Wednesday evening that 46 new positive Corona cases have been registered in Egypt raising the COVID-19 total patients in the country to 256
It also recorded one death
On 18 March 2020
Egypt’s ministry of health announced Wednesday evening that 14 new positive Corona cases have been registered in Egypt raising the COVID-19 total patients in the country to 210.
It was 196 last night.
There have been no more fatalities and the number of fully recovered cases that left the quarantine hospital increased to 28.
The Egyptian armed forces denied rumors that a curfew was going to impose nationwide Wednesday evening.
I have started a new live blog, I will keep updating it till the ministry of health issues a new statement with a new number of patients or big announcements in general.
We continue our tale for this, the tale of the Amazing tales challenge.
Tonight, we will continue listening to the 17th episode of our Ramadan Arabian Nights Podcast and know the fate of that war that started in the Djinn Realm.
Though it is named after the legendary tales book, our take for this year was inspired by the 1956 war and its events.
You can listen to the 278th episode of the original Egyptian state radio’s “One Thousand and One Nights” after the break.
We continue our tale for this year, the tale of the Amazing tales challenge.
Tonight, we will listen to the 16th episode of our Ramadan Arabian Nights Podcast this year and just like last night’s episode, it was inspired by true events that changed the course of history.
Taher Abu Fasha was inspired by the Suez war events in 1956 to write the 277th episode of the Egyptian Radio state’s One Thousands Nights and One.
There is nationalization or support to Algerian rebels and their great revolution here but you will below what I mean.
I believe that that tale was written and aired following the war.
You can hear the episode after the break.
Veto Gate : Douma , Maher and Adel chant down with the military rule after the verdict.
As a reaction the April 6 Youth movement announced that it withdrew from the roadmap. The revolution way Front announced that it would organize a stand tomorrow in solidarity with the revolutionary activists standing trials including those three.
Of course April 6 Youth is now in a very critical position considering the fact that it is being defamed 24/7 in the media as the MB’s civilian secular undercover movement and how it is a foreign funded movement…etc. No much sympathy when you are defamed 24/7 in the media and all people are attacking you. Felol and Pro-military tweeps and Facebookers are extremely happy for this verdict as they see it the start to the end of those “25 January dogs” who are trying to bring down the state.
I kept starring for this post while it was blank for quite some time , I did not know what to write about tonight. I did not know what to write about amidst all that madness.
Port Said is on fire for real as the protests or rather the clashes between the security forces and the protesters continue for the 5 or the 6 day in row as I have lost counting. The last 48 hours were toughest as the security forces from police forces are using birdshots madly and sometimes live ammunition according to the protesters. Real madness in the coastal angry city. Over 1000 injured from civilians were admitted to the hospitals in the city only this week.
I will focus on what is happening right. Another round of protests, clashes and chases. There are unconfirmed news that one protester at least was killed in the clashes. Currently I know that the police wants a truce and there are negotiations between the Ultras Green Eagles and the Shura MPs in the city now. Interestingly I heard that the police officers from the city have left their work and joined the protesters.
And Port Said is once again on fire and it seems that it is not the usual clash between protesters and security forces from police as it stared but it evolved madly to clashes between armed forces and police forces from CSF.
According to the people of Port Said , the clashes started after the families of Port Said stadium clashes defendants and Green Eagles Ultras group knew that the ministry of interior transferred all the prisoners “including the defendants” to Wadi El Natron prison in Beheira secretly. “The head of Port Said prison reportedly resigned to object how the prisoners were transferred without his knowledge”
The clashes spread and evolved especially it came in less than 24 hours after how the police hit and run a young man from Port Said. Sooner we found news that police forces were acting madly attacking both people and army units that came between them and the people to stop the clashes !!
Today we had these crazy photos showing people aiding the army officers and soldiers after fainting from the tear gas grenades
Then things evolved and police forces began to use birdshots as usual and we began to hear that army soldiers and officers were shot. Then at 8 PM the madness started when reports began to speak to about the live ammunition. Tweeps and bloggers then in the city began to speak on how the army units began to clash with police chasing their vehicles till the governorate HQ building. Then we got news that the police disappeared and people in Port Said were chanting “The people and the army are one hand” and taking the army’s side.
We got video clips , we got photos and we got testimonies
We got also videos despite not so clear but still we got videos and people confirming these videos. Here is a video showing the people standing at the army side while there was unstoppable firearms.
Still the armed forces ironically denied that there are clashes between army units and CSF forces officially blaming on the unknown third party on opening fire on both the army forces and the police forces !!!!
Official army spokesperson Ahmed Ali posted that official statement on his Facebook Page announcing the death of CSF conscript and the injury of army colonel in the clashes. The army colonel was shot by gunfire in his leg. He headed the army unit securing the governorate building. So far 7 from police and army are injured including 3 army soldiers and that colonel according to ministry of health.The death toll has increased to 5 for God sake.
Ironically Ali says so when we got videos and photos. Of course I do understand the deep trouble the army and the police are now. We are speaking about something we can watch in black comedy films. It is another sign of the State’s absence.
My own prediction that the police leaderships in Port Said will face days like hell.
For hours now hundreds of angry protesters are trying reach to the ministry of interior again and for hours now the clashes have not stopped between these protesters and the security forces mostly from the CSF assigned to protect the ministry in none other than : The bloody Mohamed Mahmoud street !!
Of course there are new streets added to the bloody Mohamed Mahmoud like El Falaky and Nubar. Things are not good at all.
The protesters managed to bring down the infamous Mohamed Mahmoud street wall.
According to the ministry of health over 800 were injured today in the clashes at ministry of interior , most of the clashes resulted from suffocation due to the endless tear gas as well rubber bullets and birdshots. Chaotic scene by all measures especially that many people and political organizations are begging the protesters not to go to the MOI as it seems to be another trap.
April 6th Youth movement “both fronts” have urged the protesters to leave MOI and its streets and head to Tahrir square but nobody listens. At first we were being told that these guys are Ultras Ahlaway but the famous fan league issued a statement saying that they are not protesting at the MOI because they are busy in the funerals. Ultras experts say that they were there , things would have been far worse.
I do not understand why the full names of our fallen peacekeepers in Darfur had not been declared yesterday. I have been following the official and unofficial media in order to know the names of our fallen soldiers in Darfur to pay respect for them and their families but it seems that it was not allowed from UNAMID to declare their names for some reason because I couldn't find their names either in international websites except after arriving back home in coffins. All what I found was the name of one of the three injured soldiers in the attack : Mohamed Hussein
Mohamed Hussein
Regardless of their names , I believe nothing can stop us from paying our proper respect to those peacekeepers May Allah bless their souls. If you are interesting in knowing their names , they were late Ahmed Soliman Mohamed Soliman and Mahmoud Reda Mohamed Jad
I really wonder why every time the Suez war or the Suez Crisis is mentioned or remembered in the media , it is considered more of a diplomatic crisis that led to military conformation than from a real war that caused the destruction of a whole city and the death of innocent civilians for no good reason except economic and political domination.
I do not know is it because Port Said had seen another war in less than a decade or what that the world has forgotten how its people had suffered in those terrible days or what exactly that suddenly no one remember those terrible scenes I see in the photos and I read in the stories who lived and saw their houses destroyed and their families killed in front of their eyes. We are not whiners , in 1956 despite the fact that two powerful countries unleashed their hell on the city , the honorable people of Port Said stood defending it in a legendary way but it makes me sad that no remembers this.
This slideshow below includes few photos from Port Said in 1956 , they show a little piece of the destruction the city suffered because of the Anglo-French attack on the Suez Canal cities.
There is no excuse what so ever to UK,France and Israel to unleash this war , there is no real excuse what so ever despite their claims which do not meet the death and destruction they caused in Egypt. There were terrible war crimes committed by the three countries and as usual they got away with it despite the fact at that time they were and up till now are chasing the Nazis for their crimes against humanity.
What is difference between Joseph Mengele and that doctor who took the eyes of Mahran in Cyprus ??
Last week we celebrated the 53rd anniversary of Suez Canal nationalization on the 26th of July. The nationalization showed us how important and valuable the Suez Canal is after all it was among the reasons that led to the Suez war in the 1956. I do not need to speak about its strategic and economic importance in Egypt and how Egypt was blessed and cursed at the same because of it yet I will speak about the danger this international vital canal is facing currently.
I won’t to speak about the current global recession and its negative impact on trade movement through the canal. I do not need to speak about the Somali piracy that is threatening our canal as now ships and Yachats think twice before passing by the red sea without enough protection either.
I will speak about the real danger that is threatening the Suez Canal or rather the red sea , or Egyptian part of the red sea : The two seas canal. The proposed Two Seas Canal would run from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea and provide electricity and potable water to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Authority as it is said.
The two seas canal is the love child of Israel , the Palestinian authority and the Jordanian regime which I am amazed at how its people accept this disgusting dangerous deal so peacefully. The idea of such project is as old as the Suez Canal , British William Alan thought about it in 1855 as an alternative for the Suez Canal which was under the French control , for some reason the project did not work then “May be because the lack of cheap labor” still the idea did not die , many others though about it including Theodor Herzl who mentioned in it in his novel Altneuland/ The old new land.
I do not know how the Israelis really think as this project is like an atomic bomb to the environment in this very special unique area from the ecological perspective. Of course I know how they think economically and strategically but to ignore the negative effects of such project which include turning the region in to a big massive earthquake region amazes me on how the Israelis think , they will be harmed as much as we do.
I do not know how the Palestinians and Jordanians think , especially the Jordanians as they are independent real state. Do the Jordanian People approve this canal ??? I am not speaking about their king who will say yes to whatever Israel and America say. I am speaking about the people themselves !! Do they trust the Israeli government that much ?? This is even worse than exporting gas to Israel
Now the Jordanian media came in the last couple of weeks saying nonsense that our experts are approving that love child of their regime and the Israelis despite the the Egyptian refusal and concerns about this project has been known to the world since the agreement in 2005. Still do not know if the Jordanian media had highlighted the direct and clear statements of Admiral Ahmed Fadel , the Chairman of the Suez Canal authority or not regarding the two seas canal or not.
The new proposed Canal, if constructed, will harm the environment in the Gulf of Aqaba as the [strong] water stream coming out from the pipeline will threaten the environment in the Ras Mohamed zone
The admiral had said so in the press conference held celebrating the 53th anniversary Suez Canal nationalization , of course at last someone official from the government in Egypt had the balls to criticize the project unlike our prime minister who doest see a problem or a threat from the Canal and minister Mofid Shahab who does not see any negative effects on the Suez Canal from its side. Of course I must hint out that the statements of both Nazif and Shahab were before the statements of Admiral Fadel. Also we should not forget that Nazif once has said that there was no danger from the Somali pirates on the Suez Canal and Shahab has said that Gamal Mubarak won’t inherit the rule of Egypt !!!
The Egyptian experts are divided between those who see that it won’t affect the Suez Canal movement and those who see it it WILL affect the Suez Canal movement yet they agreed that its ecological effects can’t be ignored. The first team say that it won’t affect our canal simply because the ships will take more time to reach from the dead than to reach to the Mediterranean , plus from the commercial point unloading the cargos in Israel using its highways to Haifa will take too much not to mention the nature of the dead sea will allow certain ships to go in to it. The other team believes otherwise after all this canal was meant to be alternative for the Suez Canal saying that this is the long goal of Israel especially there is a rumor that Israel is going to build another canal from Dead sea to Haifa.
There are other reasons which make us in Egypt refuse this project totally.
It will turn the Negev Desert in to a settlement area
It will increase the salinity of wells.
Besides other reasons related to the national security of Egypt and the fact that a possible war with Israel can happen anytime especially that we got people in the current Israeli cabinet calling for bombing our high dam with nukes !!!
It is remarkable how the International bank agrees to study this project despite the refusal of the UN for it years ago. I must mention that the international Bank refused to fund the high dam in 1956. Of course the international bank or rather the west finds this a great opportunity to push the neutralization of relations between the Arabs and Israelis , they wish that it will connect more than two seas regardless of destroying a whole eco-system in the red sea.
If the Jordanians want this canal so much then they should apologize for protesting in front our embassy from 6 months ago because of Gaza war.
Last Thursday I watched a wonderful Egyptian documentary , yes an Egyptian , I know it seems strange , we do not have a real documentary cinema like abroad despite we got big names in the documentaries world like for instance Farida Arman , Samiha Ghonam and Attiyat Al-Abnodi.
This documentary is called { سحر ما فات فى كنوز المرئيات } “The magic of what had passed in the treasures of the visuals” , I know it is a very silly long name. Its director is Dr. Madkor Thabat ,the former chairman of the Arts academy if I am not mistaken besides other official positions. Of course he made this film after leaving the service.
This film was produced from two years ago and up till now the government for some unknown reason did not permit its public screening !! It was a strange thing because the film in the early screenings whether for critics or at national film and documentaries festivals received high positive reactions. The film is produced by businessman Ahmed Bahgat ,the owner of Dream Channels , it was hard for Thabat to do it alone and as you may know our ministry of culture does not really interested in anything serious like that !!
The idea of the film according to Thabat was to show the importance of our visual modern history presented in newsreel as we can know a lot and re-read our history again from these newsreels , of course you know I am already doing this in my blog ;)
The film depends only 35mm films focusing on Egypt in last 100 years or to be precise from 1897 to the inauguration of Toshka and Salam pound in Mubarak’s era. Thabat focused more on Egypt before the revolution as this is the era most people know nothing about it and the news media during that time besides press and radio was newsreel in cinemas , so there are plenty of material for him. It was well known that in 1897 the Lumière brothers had sent one of their photographers to Egypt to capture the life in that fascinating country called Egypt. Yes Life in Egypt in the 19th century was captured on film shown in Paris from more than 100 years and this is what the film includes in its first part after the quick introduction of Nasser funeral in 1970 and Nasser in 1948 , yes President Nasser.
I will stop at here and leave you with the film ,please enjoy it.I will complete my review below :
The film is narrated by actors Mahamed Wafiq and Mahmoud El-Genndy, I believe Wafiq was enough , also Thabat narrates parts of the film where he is reciting the names of our heroes who died in 1948 war, six days war and Yom Kippur war.
These events were covered in the documentary : “too many but I tried to point them”
Sir Lee Stack, Sirdar and Governor-General of the Sudan’s funeral after his assassination in Cairo
King Farouk arrival from UK and the reception he received from the people after the death of his father King Ahmed Fouad.
The 1948 war ---- > very rare footage before and after the war , especially the reception of the Egyptian people and the officers cemeteries in Khan Yunis,Gaza not to mention King Farouk’s visit to the front and Nasser appearance in the minister of defense’s visit to the front too. “ The Jordanians should watch this part carefully !!”
Mohamed Naguib and the free officers after the revolution.
The Nasser Arab nationalism in Syria and Lebanon
The Nile flood ---> first time to see it like that.
Suez War , terrible footage
The 1967 defeat
The funeral of Nasser
1973 war “very short”
The re-inauguration of Suez Canal on the 5th of June 1975
Nothing important in Mubarak’s era for real.”I think this is why the film was screened publicly”
Now the film is more than a call to grab our attention to our history in the newsreel for sure , Thabat himself said that he did not know when he started making it that it would turn to a political historical documentary in its way.
Thabat’s political views are clearly present in the documentary, he is a Nasserite , it is so obvious starting from the moment he began his film with Nasser’s funeral and finding Nasser in Hydar Pasha’s visit to the front in 1948. This weakened the film some how despite to be honest I was surprised that he was fair to both King Farouk and President Naguib. Still he was not fair towards Sadat and Mubarak especially Sadat , of course he may have a valid point that starting from 1970s the use of 35mm films began to decline but … there were films for Sadat.
There is also part that I did not understand in the end , concerning late Princess Diana to Egypt ,I felt lost here , it did not make any sense. I did not understand the part regarding banking industry in Egypt , I know very well that its start was a colonial industry dominated by Jews but let’s remember something , not all the Jews in Egypt then were Zionists. Of course the facts he mentioned in the documentary from the existence of Zionist organizations in Egypt
I started with what I did not like , now what I like is how Thabat should that the Egyptian people do not change a bit , it is the same old kind people who cheer up for any leader stands on Abdeen Palace’s balcony as long as they have hope and faith in that leader , of course from Farouk to Sadat they were kept cheering and cheering , Mubarak does not like to stand balconies except of course for his NDP cheerers !!
I like the idea of the Nile importance of the this country since from a very long time and how it was a part of our national security.
I like the idea of the cotton importance and history in Egypt , I do not need to say that it made me so sad because this year Egypt is no longer from the main producers of Cotton in the world thanks to our government’s decisions !!
The 1948 war footage was like a big surprise to me than the 1897 footage.
Israel and Zionism were there in the documentary as the historical enemy of Egypt since the 19th century. Of course I want to correct something this Zionist colony in Kom Ombo was not the first Zionist Colony the Zionist movement tried to found in Egypt , there was another one in the 19th century in Sinai that led us to lose our control on Aqaba Gulf and City too. Some may think that Thabat is anti-Semitic ,which is untrue he is anti-Zionist.
I can’t considered it a 100% bad Nasserite film or documentary because then I will not be fair or even respect the political beliefs of Thabat , he is a director who has the right to express his thoughts in the same way other directors have the right to do it. At least he did not attack King Farouk and President Naguib nor did he glorified the Nasser era in the same way for instance like Khalid Youssef does in his films. I like the film and up till I am thinking about it not in the context of Nasser and Sadat.. etc but in the context that history is repeating itself, Farouk just like Nasser when both of them were taking the train across Egypt , when both of them were visiting the front before the 1948 war in case of Farouk and six days war in case of Nasser and both wars ended with tragedies !! History does repeat it and yet we the Egyptians do not learn from our mistakes at all !!
My advice to you is to watch it and enjoy it, more important to think about it over and over.
During the past few days I was busy in the Egyptian POWs website as I have found after a long search new set of Egyptian POWs photos in Magnum Photo Agency. That set of photos was new to me , I have seen most of the Egyptian POWs photos available online ; it was like a brand new discovery to me , some sort of sad scoop. These photos were taken mostly by the Israeli photographers like Micha Bar Am , they were available in the wire services at that time.
These photos have never been published in the Egyptian Press whether in the past or the Present. In the past I understand the reasons behind that ,no regime regardless of how democratic would publish the photos of its defeats or the capture or death of its soldiers in the battle field in time of war like that for fear the negative effect on the public. Yes the Egyptian regime back in time of Nasser was a dictatorship that lied to its people but these photos were part of the psychological war Israel was launching against the Egyptian army and people building its legend of the invincible army.
It was not about Nasser when you publish the photos of the Egyptian soldiers and officers wearing nothing except their underwear walking humiliated in the desert
These photos were aimed to broke down the Egyptian people more and more , to make them believe that they would not be able to stand against Israel and its army especially Nasser made the Egyptian people live in a bubble. Yes we woke up on a bitter reality on the 5th of June 1967 yet Israel wanted us to wake and live in an endless nightmare that we were so weak to fight them.
Among the photos that made stop are the following photos :
This was taken three weeks from the 5th of June 1967 , in Al Arish beach , already you can see in the background Al Arish famous palm trees. The remaining of an Egyptian officer or solider who may have thought it was safer to take the beach way , it is horrible. Already I wonder if he was buried or he was still in his place.
This photo reminded me with the stories of Al Arish people and 1967 veterans who saw the Israeli tanks moving over the Egyptian POWs by the orders of Israeli generals and officers ,for instance like Tofaha massacre.
This photo reminded with the sad stories on how the Egyptian POWs used to be killed while blindfolded just like that in the same position leaving their bodies for birds :(
Believe it or not after more than 40 years and I am from the generation of Peace which came after victory I feel so angry when I see these photos , I feel so sad and angry from that regime that ruled us , I feel so angry from Israel and I feel so sad on my country and on those fine men who did not deserve that.
It is important to see these photos and study them , it is important because these photos remind us on how we reached to them to the bottom and hopefully we won’t reach the bottom again insh Allah.
I do not know what the reason that prevents us as citizens not as a state to go in to international courts like in EU to sue Israel for its war crimes not only in 1967 but in 1956 with the confessions of its commanders , Al Arish is full of mass graves , its people are still alive , our 1967 veterans are still alive and are ready to stand up and say their testimony in front of the world and history. Yes we have returned back our land and dignity yet those POWs killed in 1956 and 1967 were protected by international law and their rights must be back by international laws too.
Via Nawra Nagm and Al Jazeera
I am waiting for either an official denial saying that this is a hoax and that leaked document from Israel from our embassy is not a real document or something kind !!
Already should not this message include his own signature !!! With my all respect and knowledge , pardon me but my grand father received a letter from President Sadat congratulating him on one of his books in 1970s and it included his signature !!!
Israel is harming Mubarak and it is intending to do so , it wants to harm him and isolate him from the rest of the Arab world. This act will make more hated in the Arab world , a person who celebrates the loss of Palestine !!!
Instead of visiting the Solider memorial on the memory of 1948 war to honour of those who fell in the land of Palestine from Egyptian resistance in Palestine and our great army men like Ahmed Abdel Aziz , he is sending a congratulation letter on the Nakba anniversary !!
And to whom to the man who planned the Israeli attack on Sinai in 1956 !!!?? Update #1:
Thanks to dear friend JP I remember to mention that this letter seems to me too unprofessional to be sent from a Presidential office. Not to mention the fact that the header included "the Egyptian Embassy " not the Presidential office in Cairo !! This is a hoax I am afraid, this is not a real letter sent from the Egyptian presidency
As an annual custom President Mubarak made an interview with the official "Police" Magazine published by the interior ministry. In the interview he praised the heroism of the police forces as part of the Egyptian resistance in Ismailia in year 1956 !! Of course the battle between the police and the British forces in Ismailia which marks the Police was on the 25th of January 1952 !! Some journalists like for instance Mohamed Abd El-Koddous commented about this mistake in both Al Dostor on Sunday and Sawt Al Oma on Monday.Abd El-Kuddos wondered why the editors of the magazine did not correct this mistake while revising the interview for publishing. He said that the interior ministry insulted the President for not correcting that mistake for fear the fact he is president and he does not do or say anything wrong. Well I would dare and say may be Mubarak said and the brainy editors in the magazine wrote the wrong number !! In fact this will be the justification of the magazine next month after all the President does not do or say something wrong I have one silly question : Who reads the Police Magazine for real ?? I bet already that majority of our police officers know that publication in the first place.
Of course you may have heard the wonderful news that the Google Images website now hosts a very rare Life Magazine photo collection.
I am mad about old photos and as soon as I read the news I began to play around with the new site. Let us say I became addicted to this wonderful archive. I found wonderful photos of Egypt chronicling some parts of its modern history from the 1940s till the 1970s. Wonderful photos about life in Cairo in the 1940s and 1950s. I found that wonderful set from the construction of the high dam till its inauguration.
Anyhow I search for our country's rare images and I found those rare and lovely collections and photos :
The Egyptian army commanders in the 1940s needed a diet with my all due respect to them.”
The exterior of the Egyptian Embassy in Washington D.C in 1943
King Farouk and an artistic shot from the Abdeen Palace
All the king’s men ,the second one from the left is his bodyguard and his close friend Omar Pasha Fatahi. “yes he was much older than in the TV series”
Prince Mohamed Abdel Manam in Switzerland in 1946
Ladies to sit here if they want to see that match between the Egyptian army units in the Presence of King Farouk in Heliopolis Club in 1940s
Um Kalthoum in August 1956 in a recording session for the Egyptian Radio
A close up shot for Thuma while she singing and I love her earrings
President Nasser walking in his home garden with his baby son “Abd El-Hameed” “ You know it is strange that this photo was in 1957 and yet they host Abd El-Hameed to speak about the time of the Royalty !! Abd El-Hakim is a business man and has from time to time his own financial legal problems”
President Nasser on his first visit to Moscow in 1958, the man giving us his back was Khrushchev
Nasser praying with Akram Hourani of Syria in a Mosque in Moscow in 1958 !!
Nasser and Fidel in the UN at the big apple.”The axis of evil then”
Mrs Nasser with Mrs Khrushchev in Cairo, the First Lady of Egypt with the first lady of the U.S.S.R in 1964.
On the Left an Egyptian Reception for Khrushchev in Egypt in 1964 and on the right Mr. Ibrahim Zaki of the Aswan dam project .
Chou En Lai and on his left General Mohamed Fawzy.
The mayor of Cairo Mohamed Shahine Bey and his wife in 1940s
This is the Tahrir Square in the past , can you imagine it, some of the buildings are still there !!
Egyptian twin belly dancers “Liz and Min” dancing in some American Nightclub in 1950s {I think they were Jews ,they also appeared in some Ismail Yassin film}
Iraqi Prime Minister and later President Ahmed Hassan Al Baker reception in Cairo in 1962 “God I do not like those little children with flowers !! I think in this visit he brought with him Saddam Hussein :( “
This Egyptian lady was working in the TeleMisr factory. I am from the generation that still remembers the TeleMisr Television set, the set that used to be manufactured in Egypt.
According to Life Magazine, half of the employees and workers in that factory during that time were women. Telemisr is still there to my surprise.
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I have added to the Egyptian POWs site a very rare silent video from 1956 war. It is the video about the capture of Egyptian Warship I Ibrahim in the Suez War by the Israeli and French forces.
I think very few people have seen it in Egypt along with the photos of the captured crew. Of course these are sad moments in our modern military history but You have to know that Ibrahim Warship and its crew had fought bravely till the last moment. It is also important to know that the Egyptian Regime then could not have aired that film or let the press publish the images otherwise it would affect the spirit of the people. Of course some now will say that this is an attack on the freedom of press but again I would like to remind that the Psychological war plays an important role here ; already if you notice Israel was keen to publish the pictures and footage of our men in their worst moments ever to break us down then , just like in 1967.
Here is quick info about Al-Burullus City ,You know that there were violent clashes between the citizens and the police , still the city deserves more attention. As almost every City and place in Egypt , it has got real long history ,I will try to summarize it in the few minutes
Al-Burullus is a coastal city,well it is actually a peninsula , the Mediterranean sea is in its north and the lake of Al-Burullus is in its south. The city of Al-Burullus itself is historical ,It is named after the Al Burullus lake and the fortress of Salah El-Din known as “the tower or Al Borg” , officially it is “Borg Al-Burullus” still it is known as “Al-Burullus”
The city has got one of the original light houses that Khedive Ismail had built in 1869. There is also a from the time of Ahmed Orabi and his battle against the British invasion in the 19th century.
It has its own battle in 1956 against the French invaders on the 4th of November which is its national day , the famous Battle of Jules Jamal and co-heroes against Jean Bart.
The Al Burullus lake is from our biggest and oldest natural lakes in Egypt and from our main resources in fishing. About 21,8% of the total production of fish in Egypt comes from there . It was known in Ptolemaic era as Buticus Lacus then Nichiolias Lacus till the Romans came and conquered Cleopatra . The lake name had changed since then to become “Burullos”, according to some stories it was named after a Roman military commander , in another stories it was named after a Christian Priest. Anyhow this name stuck with it with little modification due to time to become “Al Burullos”
The majority of people in the city about 80% there work as fishermen depending either on the sea or the lake and the rest 20% work in professions related to fishing like making boats and so on , also they have carpenter workshops. This is their lifestyle that did not change for centuries. It is simple life , they are from the low working class outside Cairo that the government that put them in its consideration at all , the government believe that the security forces and the policemen would scare them.
The lake of Al Burullus is a protected area , a national reserve by the orders of the ministry of environment , already it is a hot spot for the birds in Egypt due to the fact that it is in the way of the bird annual migration from the north to the south in the winter.
This is a quick information about the city of Al-Burullus ,I found that in all the coverage there is complete neglect to the city background and history despite the reader especially the foreigner must know the background in order to have complete picture.
The Egyptian army commanders in the 1940s needed a diet with my all due respect to them.”
outside Cairo that the government that put them in its consideration at all , the government believe that the security forces and the policemen would scare them.