First Independent Mena Newspaper
Libya has applied to become a partner of the Organization for Security & Co-operation in Europe (OCSE) in a bid to receive support from this international security body and benefit from its assistance in matters of security, arms & border control, promotion of human rights, freedom of the press and polls’ organization. The Libyan application […]
Ethiopia’s project to construct the Grand Renaissance Dam, a $4.2 billion hydroelectric project that will divert the Blue Nile from its natural course, has flared up passions downstream in Egypt. Although some experts deem that Ethiopia’s move is largely technical and will not alter the water flow that is vital for both downstream states, Egypt […]
Eight oil and gas exploration projects have been awarded by Egypt to several companies in a statement released from the ministry of petroleum. The decision followed the reception of 13 offers after an international call for tender concerning prospective acreage. Among the companies are British Petroleum (BP), International Egyptian Oil Company (IEOC), a subsidiary of […]
Interview with Dr. Norafidah Ismail, conducted by Jakub Janda, Czech political analyst and project coordinator of the European Values think-tank Mrs. Ismail, you have earned your master degree and Ph.D. in the United Kingdom. Could you compare how it has influenced your views on Middle Eastern issues? Are your views somehow different from those of […]
The Middle East issue with its wars, crises, attempts, and death toll has been making the headlines for over 60 years, and last week in Marrakesh, the tragic stories of the Middle East were brought back to minds, if ever they can be forgotten, by the screening of the Attack by Lebanese Ziad Doueiri, during […]
The Arab revolutions of 2011 have brought into immediate focus the following question related to Turkey’s foreign policy: ‘Can Turkey’s economic and political model become a reference-point for the region’s post-autocratic societies, similar to the EU for east-central Europe after 1989?’. Indeed, many political observers see the revolutions in the Arab countries as a chance […]
Recently, a truce was mediated – by Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi – between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza. But … how long can such a truce last before the new round of warfare is unleashed? Notwithstanding many obvious analogies with the previous tensions between the two sides (such as Operation Cast Lead at the […]
Egypt has purchased ten Turkish-made ANKA drones after months of secret negotiations between the two countries before reaching deal, first of its kind after the fall of former President Hosni Mubarak in a popular uprising in 2011. With a 56-foot wingspan, the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has the ability to fly 24 hours at a […]
New Geopolitical Realities The escalating violence in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel, in which scores of Palestinians and Israelis have so far been killed, is being played out against a fast changing geopolitical setting. The current Israel-Gaza clash is the largest since Israel’s war in Gaza in 2008-2009, when Hamas was a political pariah […]
Egypt has recalled its newly appointed ambassador to Israel, Atef Mohamed Salem, after the commander of Hamas military wing, Ahmed Al-Jaabari. was killed in an Israeli raid on Gaza strip. The announcement was made Wednesday evening by a presidential spokesman in a televised statement. The spokesman said that President Mohamed Morsi has also summoned the […]