Bassem Youssef and the Sultan
[Originally posted on Foreign Policy.] Mocking rulers is a tradition almost as old as rule itself. At times mockery is subtle and allegorical; at others it is blunt, sometimes gauche, but always funny. [...]
April 2013
December 2012
Presidential Palace Protest: Photos
I can't speak for the size of the protest, but it was massive. Revolution massive. Particularly given that it's on a workday, and it's on the eastern side of the city as opposed to downtown. [...]
November 2012
Egypt’s ominous attack on porn
Monday's post at Foreign Policy: Transitions. "I called people up so they would join the revolution. And they died. I let (Ahmed) Harara walk onto Mohamed Mahmoud Street, and he was blinded. My friends, who weren't [...]
September 2012
Morsi vs. Omar
As I looked at this photo [source] of Mohamed Morsi praying Juma'a in Italy, surrounded from three sides by his security detail, I remembered this beautiful story from the days of Omar Ibn El Khattab. A [...]
August 2012
Egypt’s foreign relations, in light of the new Morsi-SCAF dance – Yale Global Magazine
Update: Republished in Real Clear World Republished in Outlook India (under the title “Morsi’s Code”, which I like!) Republished in Khaleej Times ——————— Morsi, with a moderate stance, could signal a more active Egypt in [...]
Military leadership reshuffling in Egypt – what it isn’t, what it is.
I'm trying to make sense of it all and organize my thoughts as news, analysis and speculations keep coming, so bear with me. Let’s first try to understand what this is not. It is not [...]
July 2012
My first lady doesn’t wear a tiara (and that’s a good thing)
Long overdue but worth a post as the topic regularly keeps coming back. First posted at Foreign Policy Transitions. This is what I received by email. Classy, right? Since the presidential elections [...]
June 2012
WWMBD? (What will the Muslim Brotherhood do?)
Crossposted at Foreign Policy Transitions. In short: two elected presidents and one who died then resurrected, a (political) party on the street and possible backroom deals, and we haven't got a clue as to where [...]
Why the bad news in Egypt is worse than you thought
Crossposted at Foreign Policy Transitions. In short: It's not a coup, but we're screwed anyway. This week, the Egyptian military made its boldest attempt yet to regain control over a country that has been slipping from [...]
The five stages of electoral grief
a.k.a "the article where I refer to Shafiq and Morsi as "dumb and dumber" and "Bert and Ernie". Crossposted at Foreign Policy Transitions.[and big thanks to my editor Christian Caryl!] The first is denial. And that's what [...]