Al-Ahālī

Umniyyah Talāl reports on the complaints of followers of the Bahā’ī faith in Egypt, meeting some of them and giving them space to express their grievances.

The first conference of the Middle East Freedoms Forum was held in Cairo under the title: “Where is Egypt heading?” The following lines present information about the participants and the main subjects that were discussed during the conference.

The author talks about Ḥārat al-Yahūd [Ally of Jews] in Cairo, referring to a number of lawsuits filed by Jews used to live in Egypt 50 years ago, in which they ask Egyptian Government to pay them 5 billion U.S. dollars as compensations on prosperities they left in Egypt.

The article shows attacks on the banned Muslim Brotherhood’s proposed manifesto and responses of the group’s leaders.

Egyptian media has published abstracts from Imām’s book of revisions. The book was recently published to announce al-Jihād Islamic organization’s initiative to quell violence and lead interventions.

Four Egyptian editors have been sentenced to a one-year jail sentence with hard labor and given fines for publishing false information about President Husnī Mubārak suffering from a serious health condition to undermine national security. The following report discusses the reactions of the four journalists and also those of a number of prominent journalists and writers in Egypt.

Rumors about Mubārak’s health spread like wildfire and created wide-ranged uproar in society. Although the role of the press in the circulation of the news was undeniable, some insist on the unwavering responsibility of official authorities in making rumors appear more credible by hesitating in denying the rumors.

A Coptic Orthodox group is calling for changes in the legislative system of the church. While members and advocates of the group assert their respect for the church leadership, they stress the necessity of initiating serious administrative changes within the church. The church refuses to acknowledge the group and its suggestions.

The article sheds light on "al-Adyān wa Hurīyat al-Ta‘bīr, Ishkālīyat al-Hurīyah fī al-Mujtama‘āt al-Mukhtalifah,’ [Religions and the Freedom of Expression; the problem of Freedom in the Different Societies] a book issued by the Cairo Center for Human Rights Studies.

Talāl Naṣr criticizes the use of media in attacking religions. He believes that the issue of converting from one religion to another should be kept a personal affair. Nasr exclaims that problems in Egypt have nothing to do with religion but with the corruption of the ruling regime.