Egypt Revolution 2011
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Interview with director Tamer El Said
"In the Last Days of the City": Between light and dark
″In the Last Days of the City″ is Egyptian director Tamer El Said′s debut film. Although it premiered to great acclaim at the 2016 Berlinale and has gone on to win more than ten awards, it is still hasn't been released in Egypt. Tugrul von Mende spoke to El Said as the film opened in Germany
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Justice under Abdul Fattah al-Sisi
The law′s an ass
The increasing number of executions following unfair trials is destroying what little confidence remained Egypt′s legal system. Report by Sherif Mohy Eldeen
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Authoritarian rule in the Arab world
Fear of change
Given their poor records in so many areas, how is it that authoritarian regimes in the Arab world manage to cling so successfully to power? In this essay, Amr Hamzawy examines how the ruling elites in the countries of the Arab spring use a mixture of oppression and fear of chaos and disorder to nip any demands for democratic change in the bud
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Abdul Fattah al-Sisi′s totalitarian state
Nearing completion
In recent months, the Egyptian regime has moved decisively to close what remains of public space, heralding a new era of repression that is likely to dominate all aspects of political life for decades to come. By Maged Mandour
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′Pharaoh′ Mubarak′s acquittal
Some are more equal
While ex-dictator Hosni Mubarak – who has apparently got off scot-free – will not be called to account for the deaths of hundreds of demonstrators, democracy activists released from detention such as Ahmed Maher continue to suffer harassment at the hands of the legal system. Karim El-Gawhary reports from Cairo
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Interview with Egyptian activist Ahmed Said
The scorpion's sting
Trainee doctor Ahmed Said was arrested in Egypt in 2015 and imprisoned for one year. His crime? Taking part in a peaceful event to mark the 2011 revolution. Part of his sentence was spent in the infamous ″Scorpion″, a prison where torture is rife. Interview by Delia Friess
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Abdul Fattah al-Sisi′s ascendancy
Sweetness and light?
Egypt is in crisis. To tighten his grip on power, President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi claims to be its saviour. He tries to discredit any dissent as anti-national. His idea of the nation, however, does not include every Egyptian. By Ingy Salama
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Bonn′s Beethovenfest
Sounds of the Arab Spring
Six composers from five Arab countries translated their impressions of the Arab Spring into music, providing the pianist Seda Roder with material for her multimedia ″Songs of Spring″ performance, rich in hope and disappointment. By Gaby Reucher
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Tahrir Square's democracy activists
The forgotten heroes
Egypt's activists were once the heroes of Tahrir Square. Then the world forgot them – and all other Arab democrats along with them. Authoritarian states and Salafists are not giving them any leeway. By Mey Dudin
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Arab theatre at the Zurich Theaterspektakel
Between coma and protest
Political theatre from the Arab world five years after the Arabellion: from a country in a permanent vegetative state comes the piece "While I Was Waiting" by the Syrian playwright Mohammad Al Attar. And in "Zig Zig," an Egyptian theatre group headed by Laila Soliman tells the tale of a gang rape. By Susanne Schanda
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Egypt's economic and fiscal crisis
Rescuing the sinking ship
Just last week, the Egyptian government and a delegation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reached a staff-level agreement about a 12 billion US-dollar loan package. Egypt hopes to restore confidence in its crippled economy and attract more investors. But is this deal the right answer for Egypt's economic problems? Sofian Philip Naceur talked to Amr Adly, a non-resident scholar of the Carnegie Middle East Center
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Interview with the Egyptian author Youssef Rakha
"Taken together, these things would make up home..."
The Egyptian poet, essayist, novelist and journalist Youssef Rakha moves between two worlds. He aims to show his Western readers an eclectic Cairo beyond common cliches. Interview by Susanne Schanda