Egypt: Electricity supplies cut to mosques

Separate, but linked to the question of energy subsidies, is the question of energy supplies. The gap between supply and demand for gas is growing rapidly, and the authorities have taken steps.

Limits have been set for the use of electricity at mosques. The religious endowments minister has ordered mosques not to run air conditioners before 15 May and after that date to use air conditioning only during prayer time and half an hour before and after the call to prayer.

Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa was reported by the state-run Al-Ahram as saying that he would also ensure that electricity meters were installed at mosques that do not have them.

For more news and expert analysis about Egypt, please see Egypt Politics & Security.
© 2014 Menas Associates

Egypt: Foreign minister says relations with the US now in turmoil

 

Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy was quoted as telling Al-Ahram that relations with the US are now in turmoil and the entire Middle East could suffer. He was speaking after the US Administration delivered a small rap across Egypt's knuckles for its undemocratic governance by suspending some military aid. However minimal the material effect of the suspension of some arms deliveries will be, there is no doubting that Egypt has felt the slight. Foreign ministers in the Arab world have seldom made foreign policy, which has been the preserve of the president or ruler. However, successive foreign ministers in the post-Hosni Mubarak era have demonstrated that they can be more than mere mouthpieces for their leaders. Fahmy is articulating the new mood in Egypt, one far more critical and hostile to the West, while rather more craven - for now - towards its new backers Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait.

 

Fahmy told the newspaper that Egypt had been depending for too long on US aid and that Washington should not take Egypt's support for its actions for granted. "We are now in a delicate state reflecting the turmoil in the relationship and anyone who says otherwise is not speaking honestly," he said. He said that the roots of the problems extend far beyond the current spat over aid suspension. "The truth is that the problem goes back much earlier, and is caused by the dependence of Egypt on the US aid for 30 years. (The aid) made us choose the easy option and not diversify our options."

 

There has been a suggestion that Egypt might turn to Russia for arms purchases - but such a move would be more political than strategic. Few expect Egypt to make the kind of break with Washington that it made with Moscow and the-then Soviet Union in 1973. One relic of the old relationship with the Eastern bloc is the Mig 21 fighter, used still to train Egyptian pilots. Their continued use came to light when one crashed near Luxor. For all the bluster, the military is enjoying the support of the US in confronting Islamist militants in the Sinai.

 

For more news and expert analysis about Egypt, please see Egypt Politics & Security.

 

© 2013 Menas Associates

Egypt's referendum hailed as a success

An estimated 18.5 million, out of 45 million eligible voters, turned up for Saturday's [19th March] referendum. Organising commission chairman Mohammed Attiya said that 14 million Egyptians approved the constitutional amendments, and the remainder 4 million voted “no”.

Egyptian daily Al-Ahram said the referendum was a "win for democracy," a view that was seconded by the State owned Al-Gomhuria: "Everybody has won in this referendum, whether they voted yes or no."

Egypt's main opposition group, banned under former president Hosni Mubarak, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB), used its clout and organisational skills to crusade for a "yes" vote. The youth groups, largely responsible for ousting Mubarak, however, called for a “no” vote, saying that the deadlines set by the military were too tight and that the constitutional changes were simply too narrow.

The Coalition of the Revolution's Youth urged supporters to respect the result of the "historic democratic process" and posted the following statement on its Facebook page: "We are now on the doorstep of a new era, in which Egyptians will shape their state for decades to come... we must work to carry on fulfilling the ambitions of the revolution.”

US ambassador to Egypt Margaret Scobey said the referendum was "an important step towards realising the aspirations of the 25 January revolution".

Sources: AFP, BBC News, The Guardian

For more news and expert analysis about Egypt, please see Egypt Politics & Security.