News In Brief
Orascom Hotels eyes acquisitions in 2008Reuters reported that Orascom Hotels and Development plans to acquire two local hotels and aims to expand further in the Middle East and nearby regions,…
Bastawisy barred from Israeli war crimes trial
CAIRO: The Higher Judicial Council has rejected a request from the vice president of the Cairo Appeals Court, Hisham Al-Bastawisy, to travel to Belgium to observe a trial and a…
Egypt calls for return of EU observers to Gaza border
CAIRO: As border tensions remained high between Egypt and the Hamas-controlled Gaza, Egypt's top diplomat on Tuesday sharply rebuked the Palestinian group, saying the militants were driving the people in…
Israel to build new barrier along part of Egypt border, says report
JERUSALEM: Israel decided on Wednesday to start building a reinforced barrier along parts of its porous border with Egypt in a bid to prevent infiltration attempts by Palestinian militants, an…
Turkey's parliament debates lifting Islamic head scarf ban at universities
ANKARA: Turkish legislators opened debate Wednesday on one of their secular but predominantly Muslim country s most fiery issues: whether to allow female students to enter university campuses wearing Islamic…
Spain, Egypt sign two protocol worth $375 mln
CAIRO: Spain will give Egypt $375 million to finance nationwide infrastructure projects. In a bid to boost bilateral trade and investment, Egypt and Spain signed two strategic treaties on Wednesday…
SODIC plans 'contemporary downtown' for Egypt
CAIRO: With an ambition to create Egypt's new downtown, real estate developer Sixth of October Investment and Development (SODIC) is gearing up to challenge market leaders including Gulf-based Emaar and…
Steel giant to invest $1 dollars in Egypt
CAIRO: ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer, on Tuesday signed a deal to produce sponge iron and steel billets in Egypt, in a $1billion investment, the official MENA news agency…
The view from the top
The sky looks different from the top of Mount Everest. For one thing, there is more of it. You are looking down on the world, rather than up at it,…
The Politics of illusions
I have just returned from an extended trip to the Middle East, hoping that I would come back feeling recharged by the progress made in the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, especially in…