egypt

Massive Demonstrations in Egypt as Protesters Flood Streets

Max Rivlin-Nadler · 06/30/13 01:19PM

A year after the inauguration of President Mohamed Morsi, Egyptians deeply frustrated with his leadership have flooded the streets of Cairo, massing outside of the presidential palace and marching on Tahrir Square.

U.S. Embassy in Cairo Deletes Twitter Account After Linking to Daily Show Clip

Taylor Berman · 04/03/13 09:19PM

The U.S. Embassy in Cairo could use a good social media editor after two disastrous days on Twitter. The embassy's problems began Tuesday, when they (or whoever is in charge of their Twitter account) tweeted a link to The Daily Show's passionate defense of "Egypt's Jon Stewart" Bassem Youseff, who was arrested last weekend for insulting President Mohamed Morsi and Islam. That tweet didn't go over well with the offices of Morsi or the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Unbelievable Photos Taken by the Crazy Russians Who Illegally Climbed Egypt's Great Pyramid

Max Read · 03/26/13 09:55AM

Last week in Egypt, a group of Russian photographers apparently climbed the Great Pyramid of Giza—hiding from guards for four hours after closing time before beginning the ascent. Climbing the pyramid, one of the photographers claims, carries a punishment of one to three years. But it was worth it. "I was speechless," one wrote. "I felt a chilling delight, absolute happiness." Here are some of their photos:

U.S. Delays Award to Egyptian Activist After Finding Her Anti-Semitic Tweets

Max Rivlin-Nadler · 03/09/13 01:47PM

Samira Ibrahim was scheduled to receive an award yesterday from First Lady Michelle Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry honoring her as one of the "International Women of Courage". But that was before the State Department became aware of a number of tweets that Ibrahim had sent out endorsing Hitler quotes and celebrating the deaths of Israeli tourists. Now her award has been "delayed" as State Department officials look into the source of the tweets (which Ibrahim had been claiming weren't hers).

Hot Air Balloon's Explosion, Plummet Captured on Terrifying Video from Nearby Balloon

Max Read · 02/27/13 08:55AM

A passenger on a nearby balloon managed to capture video of the hot air balloon accident that claimed the lives of 19 tourists yesterday in Luxor, Egypt: Smoke billows from the balloon's basket for several seconds before the ballon itself dramatically deflates and plummets toward the ground. Passengers on the balloon filming the terrifying scene can be heard gasping and praying. Victims included tourists from Japan, China, the U.K. and Hungary; the two survivors, the pilot and a British tourist, survived by jumping from the balloon. "I saw tourists catching fire and they were jumping from the balloon," local farmer Hassan Abdel-Rasoul told AP. "They were trying to flee the fire but it was on their bodies." The crash—by far the worst in history—led to the immediate suspension of hot air balloon flights in Luxor.

Hot Air Balloon Explosion Kills 19 in Egypt; Worst-Ever Accident of Its Kind

Max Read · 02/26/13 08:04AM

Nineteen tourists are dead and two are injured following a hot air balloon explosion 1,000 feet above Luxor, Egypt. The balloon apparently collided with a high-pressure electrical cable, detonating one of its gas cylinders; as it plummeted to the ground, some passengers leaped out "from about the height of a seven-story building," a witness told the BBC. Eighteen, including tourists from the UK, China, Japan, France, Hungary, and Egypt died at the scene, their bodies strewn about the field where the balloon crashed, while the nineteenth victim died in surgery five hours later. The two survivors, the pilot and one passenger, a British tourist, may have saved their lives by jumping. A 2009 hot air balloon accident in Luxor, in which more than a dozen tourists were injured, prompted a six-month suspension of flights as safety standards were tightened and pilots were re-trained; today's accident, by all accounts the worst-ever of its kind, has prompted the city to indefinitely suspend flights. [BBC | AJE]

Egypt Court Bans YouTube for a Month Over Muhammed Movie

Adrian Chen · 02/11/13 11:53AM

The fallout from the low-budget Innocence of Muslims YouTube video continues, incredibly. Egyptian judge Hassouna Tawfiq has just ordered that YouTube be blocked for 30 days in Egypt over the video, which was directed by a softcore porn director and portrayed Muhammed as a murderous child molester. The Egyptian courts sentenced seven people to death over the film last year, including filmmaker Mark Basseley Youssef. It's fair to say this Innocence of Muslims is now the most disastrous viral video in all of history, surpassing even "Friday."

13 Powerful Images of Muslim Rage

Max Read · 09/17/12 11:19AM

"MUSLIM RAGE," screams Newsweek's new cover story about last week's violent anti-American protests. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the well-known anti-Islam activist, is here to tell "us" (The_West) how to "end it." And it's true, isn't it? All Muslims are constantly raging about everything. So to pay tribute to Ali's article — which describes the protesters as "the mainstream of contemporary Islam" — and the subtle, smart cover that accompanies it, we've collected 13 striking, powerful images of MUSLIM RAGE.

Mohammed Morsi Is the New President of Egypt

Louis Peitzman · 06/24/12 10:17AM

Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohammed Morsi won the presidency in Egypt, beating opponent Ahmed Shafik in the country's closely watched election. Shafik was the last prime minister to have served under ousted President Hosni Mubarak.

Let Stephen Colbert Keep You Appraised of Egypt's Fledgling Democracy

Matt Toder · 06/21/12 11:06PM

On tonight's Colbert Report, Stephen Colbert recapped everything that's gone on with Egypt's turbulent political situation. He began, naturally, several thousand years ago and ended with the latest back and forth regarding the health of Hosni Mubarak and the results of recent elections.

Nicest Kidnappers Ever Served Tea, Dried Fruit

Louis Peitzman · 02/04/12 05:48PM


If you're going to get kidnapped, do your best to get kidnapped by these guys: an armed group of Bedouin tribesmen held two California women captive for a few hours, during which time they served up food and good conversation. Seriously. The AP story makes these guys sound like people I would hang out with willingly.