Egypt

ليز تراس: أنا صهيونية كبرى

 

 

الاهرام 

السبت 4 من ربيع الثاني 1444 هــ 29 أكتوبر 2022 السنة 147 العدد 49635

د. عزة رضوان صدقى\

بعد أقل من شهر من توليها منصب رئيسة وزراء بريطانيا، أكدت ليز تراس تفانيها المطلق لإسرائيل. عرّفت تراس نفسها على أنها صهيونية كبرى وداعمة كبيرة لإسرائيل، مما تسبب فى ضجة على وسائل التواصل الاجتماعى ووسائل الإعلام الرئيسية. إنه ولاء نادرًا ما يتم التعبير عنه بمثل هذه العبارات القوية من قبل شخص غير صهيونى الأصل. ولم تمضِ ليز تراس فى منصبها كثيرا، فقد تنحت عن رئاستى وزراء بريطانيا وحزب المحافظين بعد ٤٤ يوما من توليها المنصب. يأمل الكثيرون حول العالم ألا يكون نمط من يعتلى المنصب بعدها مماثلا لأسلوبها المُقلق هذا. ولابد أن نتساءل: أين سيأخذ هذا الأسلوب المتعجرف الصعوبات الكثيرة التى تعصف بالشرق الأوسط؟

شغلت تراس منصب وزيرة خارجية بريطانيا فى الفترة من ٢٠٢١ إلى ٢٠٢٢. خلال خطابها الأول، كوزيرة للخارجية، أدرجت تراس الديمقراطيات الليبرالية بالاسم، مستشهدة بأستراليا وأعضاء حلف شمال الأطلسى ومجموعة السبع ثم إسرائيل، قائلة: لا يوجد صديق وحليف أقرب لبريطانيا من إسرائيل

فقط إذا تم إبعاد الفلسطينيين عن الصورة تمامًا، يمكن للمرء أن يعتبر إسرائيل دولة ديمقراطية. فكما تقول صحيفة عرب نيوز، بالنسبة لتراس، الفلسطينيون لا وجود لهم. فى هجمات إسرائيل على غزة أكدت تراس أن بريطانيا تقف إلى جانب إسرائيل وحقها فى الدفاع عن نفسها

ثم خاضت تراس حملتها الانتخابية لمنصب رئيسة الوزراء، وكانت تضع اليهود البريطانيين على قدم المساواة مع أعضاء حزب المحافظين الذى ترأسه قائلة: أعتقد أن قيم حزب المحافظين والقيم اليهودية تسير جنبا إلى جنب. كما أنها، على الدوام، فضلت اليهود البريطانيين قائلة: قوة الجالية اليهودية هى ضوء ساطع فى بريطانيا. لذلك تعيين ليز تراس كرئيسة وزراء بريطانيا أسعد كل من يؤمن بتعزيز العلاقة بين بريطانيا وإسرائيل لأن دعمها لإسرائيل وحقها فى الدفاع عن نفسها كانت تؤكده دائما

إن إعلان تراس ولاءها للصهيونية ليس بجديد، وكان متوقعًا استمراره، إلا أن الطريقة المتعنتة التى صاغت بها ولاءها وتوقيته المبكر، وما كان سيترتب عليه هو الذى كان ينذر بالخطر. أيضا الإعلان فى حد ذاته كشف عن الاتجاه الواضح الذى كانت قد تتخذه بريطانيا فى القضايا المتعلقة بالشرق الأوسط

يبدو الأمر كما لو أن رئيسة الوزراء تراس لم يكن لديها ما يكفى من المشاكل المحلية مثل التضخم وخسائر الجنيه الإسترلينى، فقد انتقدت وسائل الإعلام البريطانية قولها أنا صهيونية كبرى. سأل البعض: ما هى الصهيونية؟ وشكك الآخرون فى افتقار تراس إلى العمق السياسى والنضج ووجد البعض ملاحظاتها مؤشرا على سذاجتها السياسية وإدمانها الدعاية

بعد أن أوضحت رئيسة الوزراء المستقيلة وجهة نظرها بشأن إسرائيل، التى تكمن فى المساندة التامة تنبأ الكثيرون بتغييرات وتداعيات صادمة. فى عام ٢٠١٧، انتقدت رئيسة الوزراء البريطانية آنذاك تيريزا ماينقل الرئيس ترامب السفارة الأمريكية إلى القدس، لكن قد وعدت رئيسة الوزراء السابقة تراس بخطوة مماثلة وقالت إن بريطانيا قد تحذو حذو الولايات المتحدة وتنقل سفارتها إلى القدس. وقالت أيضًا: هناك عاصمة واحدة فقط لبريطانيا، وهى لندن. هناك عاصمة واحدة لإسرائيل، وهى القدس. الأمل أن رئيس وزراء بريطانيا القادم لا يُقدم على مشروع مماثل ولا يستمر فى هذا الاتجاه، لأنه خطوة جسيمة. لكن العجيب أن هذا الولاء لإسرائيل غير قابل للنزاع

كانت تراس ترى جانبًا واحدًا من الصراع الإسرائيلى - الفلسطينى، وكانت ستدعم إسرائيل فى الأمم المتحدة ضد أى تحقيقات فى الأفعال الإسرائيلية ضد الفلسطينيين فى غزة أو فى أى مكان آخر. كانت تقول: ممثلو الأمم المتحدة الذين لديهم تاريخ من الملاحظات المعادية للسامية يجب ألا يكون لهم دور فى مراجعة أنشطة إسرائيل. فى دفاعها عن إسرائيل، قالت أيضًا أن أولئك المعارضين لإسرائيل سيُحاكمون بسرعة فى إطار القانون. كما تجاهلت تراس المخاطر والتهديدات التى يعانيها الفلسطينيون، فلم تشر أو تستشهد مرة واحدة بالقمع المتصاعد ضدهم أو تُندد بالمجتمع العنصرى الإسرائيلي. نرجو ألا يكون هناك المزيد من هذا الأسلوب مع رئيس الوزراء المرتقب لأن تفانى ليز تراس الراسخ لإسرائيل هو بمثابة إنذار عما قد يستجد مع كل تغيير فى المنصب ذاته

وبعد أربعة وأربعين يوما فقط فى منصب رئيسة وزراء بريطانيا أصبحت ليز تراس صاحبة أقصر مدة حكم فى تاريخ بريطانيا. ولن يكون البريطانيون هم الوحيدون الذين يتنفسون الصعداء بعد هذا التنحى، بل قد يشعر آخرون كثيرون بنفس الارتياح

سيحدد القريب العاجل سياسة ريشى سوناك رئيس وزراء بريطانيا الجديد ويشهد العالم مدى قرب أو بعد فلسفته من فلسفة ليز تراس

لمزيد من مقالات د. عزة رضوان صدقى

رابط دائم: 

Far-reaching impacts of the Ukraine war

Al Ahram Weekly by Azza Radwan Sedky

 

Tuesday 18 Oct 2022

The ripple effects of the Ukraine war are leading to widespread economic disruption, threatening the supply of food resources and raising the potential for a global famine, writes Azza Radwan Sedky

Set aside the immense suffering experienced by the Ukrainian people, with millions fleeing the country, millions of others bearing the brunt of displacement, and thousands of people dead.

Disregard the trillions spent on armaments and killing machines, funds that could have been used for humanitarian issues. More importantly, keep your fingers crossed that a nuclear war does not take place. Now consider the far-reaching economic impacts of the Ukraine war on the planet. 

The war in Ukraine unfolded even before the world had fully recovered from the reverberations of the Covid-19 pandemic. It has been seven months since the fighting erupted, and there is no sign of it abating. In the meantime, the world’s dependence on Russian energy and Ukrainian grain and food oil has turned the war into a humanitarian crisis with overwhelming consequences. 

Unfortunately, these consequences are not limited to Ukraine but pose perils across the globe. The fallout is far and wide: disrupted supply chains, the scarcity or unavailability of goods, surging fuel prices, increasing freight costs for all modes of transportation, and, even more traumatic, food shortages, all causing soaring inflation and slowing economic growth across the board. 

Inflation has a catastrophic toll on individuals as it erodes the value of their savings and incomes. In the US, inflation has reached its highest level for more than 40 years, but Europe has been hit even harder. The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) warns of “slowing growth as monetary policy tightens and the possibility of recessions in several European economies.”

The average European inflation rate has climbed to a 25-year high, reaching 9.1 per cent in August and 10 per cent in September. As energy prices surge and natural gas quadruples in price, just about everything is skyrocketing. 

The EU Observer online newspaper says that “countries most affected by high inflation are Estonia (23.2 per cent), Latvia (21.3 per cent) and Lithuania (20.9 per cent).” The UK’s inflation rate has surged to a 40-year-high of 10.1 per cent, as the British pound fell to an all-time low. Germany may be on the brink of recession as inflation devastates Europe’s largest economy. Russia is facing a 15 per cent inflation rate. 

Russia has halted gas deliveries to Europe indefinitely, causing fuel prices to spike in Europe and elsewhere. As a result of defects in the Nord Stream Pipeline that carries Russian gas under the Baltic Sea to Europe and of leakages that were discovered more recently in it, Europe will be facing a brutally harsh winter. 

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBS) has commented that “lights out, heaters off: Europeans prepare for a winter energy crisis… Businesses are set to shut down or take drastic measures to cut energy use.” Surging energy costs will force families in Europe to cut spending to ensure they can heat their homes and buy food this winter. 

If affluent European countries are suffering, imagine what the under-developed countries are facing. The ripple effects of the war are threatening the supply of food resources like wheat and oil and raising the potential for a global famine. 

Ukraine, a major exporter of grain, has long been considered the breadbasket of Europe and the world. In 2021, Ukrainian grain fed 400 million people. Ukraine and Russia together account for about a third of the world’s wheat and a quarter of its barley production, essential staples for many. Ukraine is also the world’s leading exporter of sunflower oil and vegetable oils in general, but the war has caused a 23 per cent increase in vegetable oil prices.

Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus export 40 per cent of the world’s potash, which is used in fertilisers. The war and the sanctions on Russia have exacerbated an existing fertiliser shortage and driven farmers to reduce fertiliser use and, hence, reduce crop yields. This has been the case not only in Ukraine but also around the world, wreaking havoc with harvests everywhere.

When Ukraine resumed its grain exports, a sigh of relief across the world followed. It is to be hoped that the flow of grain to the underprivileged countries will continue and not be disrupted again so as to ease the hunger crisis. However, the exports are not enough, for up to 30 per cent of agricultural areas in Ukraine will either not be planted or will not be harvested. While the war remains in full swing, Ukraine may be unable to export much of its grain to those that need it the most. 

The grain-importing countries have been hit hard, worsening hunger issues in some of the world’s most at-risk regions. The International Rescue Committee, a NGO, says that “blockades of Ukrainian grain exports have worsened hunger in some of the world’s most vulnerable regions. In East Africa, for instance, a perfect storm of continued drought, the blockade, and the economic fallout from the war is causing mass starvation. Without urgent international funding, three million people in the region could lose their lives.” 

The number of those on the verge of starvation in Somalia, Ethiopia, and Kenya is staggering, and the Sahel Region in North Africa has around 18 million people experiencing severe hunger. 

Egypt, too, has been hit hard by the Ukraine war. The world’s largest importer of wheat, it is buying the grain at almost double the price of 2021. The same goes for petrol. Tourism, a key source of foreign currency, has also suffered since Russians and Ukrainians were among the top visitors to Egypt. 

In all fairness, the whole world is facing the same dilemma, for we are all in this together. It is unknown how long this war will last. In the meantime, its profound repercussions have left the world in shambles. Unfortunately, the suffering is largely falling on deaf ears, and the international community is not doing enough to resolve the conflict. 

A peaceful settlement would bring this crisis and the agony of millions to an end. It would also preserve human life and the dignity of millions. 

التأثير العالمى لحرب أوكرانيا

الأهرام

السبت 19 من ربيع الأول 1444 هــ 15 أكتوبر 2022 السنة 147 العدد 49621

د. عزة رضوان صدقى

ضع جانبا المعاناة الهائلة التى يعانيها الأوكرانيون مع مقتل الآلاف وتحمُّل الملايين وطأة النزوح. تجاهل التريليونات التى أُنفقت على الأسلحة وآلات القتل، أموالًا كان بالإمكان استخدامها فى قضايا إنسانية. ثم عاين بتمعن التأثير الاقتصادى بعيد المدى لحرب أوكرانيا على العالم

اندلعت الحرب فى أوكرانيا قبل أن يتعافى العالم بالكامل من تداعيات الوباء. مرت سبعة أشهر على اندلاع القتال وليس هناك ما يشير إلى انحسارها. فى غضون ذلك، أدى اعتماد العالم على الطاقة الروسية والحبوب والزيوت والأسمدة الأوكرانية إلى تحويل الحرب إلى أزمة إنسانية لها عواقب وخيمة. لسوء الحظ، لا تقتصر هذه العواقب على أوكرانيا، ولكنها تشكل خطرًا ملحا على العالم أجمع. التداعيات واسعة النطاق: سلسلة التوريد معطلة، عدم توافر السلع أو ندرتها، ارتفاع أسعار الوقود، زيادة تكاليف الشحن، والأهم نقص الغذاء، مسببًا ارتفاع التضخم وتباطؤ النمو الاقتصادى

وللتضخم خسائر فادحة فى عموم الشعوب، لأنه يتسبب فى تضاؤل الدخل الفردي. فى الولايات المتحدة، وصل التضخم إلى أعلى مستوى له منذ أكثر من ٤٠ عامًا، لكن أوروبا تعرضت لضربة أشد. تحذر منظمة التعاون الاقتصادى والتنمية ومقرها باريس من تباطؤ النمو وإمكانية حدوث ركود فى العديد من الاقتصادات الأوروبية

ارتفع متوسط معدل التضخم الأوروبى إلى أعلى مستوى له فى ٢٥ عامًا ليصل إلى ١٠٪ فى سبتمبر. مع ارتفاع أسعار الطاقة وتضاعف أسعار الغاز الطبيعى أربع مرات، ارتفع كل شىء تقريبًا. تقول صحيفة «الأوبزرفر» البلدان الأكثر تضررًا من ارتفاع معدلات التضخم هى إستونيا (23.2٪) ولاتفيا (21.3٪) وليتوانيا (20.9٪). ثم ارتفع معدل التضخم فى المملكة المتحدة إلى أعلى مستوى له فى ٤٠ عامًا ليصل إلى10.1، وانخفض الجنيه البريطانى إلى أدنى مستوى له على الإطلاق. وقد يدمر التضخم أكبر اقتصاد أوروبى وهو الألماني

أوقفت روسيا شحنات الغاز إلى أوروبا إلى أجل غير مسمى، مما تسبب فى ارتفاع أسعار الوقود فى أوروبا. وبالتأكيد ستواجه أوروبا شتاءً قارسًا. سيجبر ارتفاع تكاليف الطاقة العائلات الأوروبية على أن تختار بين تدفئة منازلها أو شراء الطعام هذا الشتاء

إذا كانت الدول الأوروبية الغنية تعانى، لنتخيل المعاناة التى تواجهها الدول الأقل حظا. تهدد الآثار المتتالية للحرب إمدادات الموارد الغذائية الرئيسية مثل القمح والزيوت وتزيد من احتمالية حدوث مجاعة عالمية. تعتبر أوكرانيا المُصدِّر الأكبر للحبوب. فى عام ٢٠٢١ وفرت الحبوب الأوكرانية الغذاء لـ٤٠٠ مليون شخص حول العالم. إلى جانب ذلك، تمثل أوكرانيا وروسيا معًا حوالى ثلث إنتاج العالم من القمح وربع إنتاج الشعير اللذين يعتبران من العناصر الغذائية الأساسية للكثيرين. تعتبر أوكرانيا أيضًا المصدر الرئيسى لزيت دوار الشمس والزيوت النباتية الأخرى، لكن الحرب تسببت فى زيادة بنسبة ٢٣٪ فى مؤشر منظمة الأغذية والزراعة للزيوت النباتية

تصدر روسيا وأوكرانيا وبيلاروس ٤٠٪ من البوتاس المستخدم فى الأسمدة. أدت الحرب والعقوبات المفروضة على روسيا إلى تفاقم النقص الحالى من الأسمدة، ودفعت المزارعين إلى الحد من استخدام الأسمدة لتتسبب فى نقص المنتج الزراعى. عندما استأنفت أوكرانيا تصدير الحبوب، تنفس الكثيرون الصعداء آملين أن يستمر تدفق الحبوب إلى البلدان المحرومة لتحد من الأزمة الحالية. لكن حوالى ٣٠٪ من الأراضى الزراعية الأوكرانية إما لم تُزرع أو لن تُحصد. وطالما لا تزال الحرب على قدم وساق، فإن أوكرانيا غير قادرة على تصدير الكثير من حبوبها لمن هم فى أمس الحاجة إليها

حرب أوكرانيا تسببت ولو جزئيًا فى تفاقم مجاعات كبرى. البلدان التى تستورد الحبوب تضررت بشدة مما أدى إلى تفشى الجوع فى مناطق العالم الأكثر تعرضًا للخطر. وتقول لجان الإنقاذ الدولية، لقد أدى الحظر المفروض على صادرات الحبوب الأوكرانية إلى تفاقم الجوع فى بعض أكثر مناطق العالم ضعفًا وحدوث مجاعات جماعية. دون تمويل دولى عاجل، قد يفقد ٣ ملايين شخص فى المنطقة حياتهم. إن عدد الذين هم على وشك المجاعة فى الصومال وإثيوبيا وكينيا مذهل، ومنطقة الساحل فى شمال إفريقيا بها حوالى ١٨ مليونًا يعانون الجوع الشديد

مصر، أيضًا، تضررت من حرب أوكرانيا. مصر، أكبر مستورد للقمح فى العالم، تشترى الحبوب بما يقارب ضعف سعر عام٢٠٢١. وينطبق الشىء نفسه على الوقود. وعانت السياحة، وهى عامل رئيسى فى جلب العملات الأجنبية، لأن الروس والأوكرانيين يشكلون أكثر السائحين لمصر

بكل إنصاف، يواجه العالم مشكلة معضلة. تركت تداعيات الحرب آثارا عميقة، ولسوء الحظ فإن المعاناة تقع على آذان صماء، والقوى العالمية لا تفعل الكثير لحل النزاع. التسوية السلمية ستنهى معاناة الملايين. كما ستحافظ على حياة البشر وكرامة الملايين

لمزيد من مقالات د. عزة رضوان صدقى

Egypt farmhand deal paves way for laborer influx

Ekathimerini.com

Stavros Papantoniou

Egypt is preparing to send 5,000 farm workers to Greece, which is also in talks with Vietnam, India and possibly the Philippines for arranging the immigration of thousands of laborers to fill shortages in the agricultural, construction and other sectors that are in desperate need of more workers.

According to an official at the Agriculture Ministry, Greece currently has a shortage of 50,000 laborers and needs at least 30,000 to fill essential gaps in that sector alone.

The agreement with Egypt, which has been pending since 2021 and gathered steam over the summer on the orders of the prime minister, is expected to pave the way for similar deals with other countries.

Initial talks with Egypt were for 2,000 laborers, but this number was later raised to 5,000 workers, who will have permits to stay in Greece for nine months, the maximum allowed under European Union rules. 

‘I’m a huge Zionist’ Truss

Al Ahram Weekly and Ahram Online, by Azza Radwan Sedky

Tuesday 11 Oct 2022

Where will the unabashed assertions of newly appointed British Prime Minister Liz Truss take the United Kingdom and its relations with the Middle East, asks Azza Radwan Sedky

Less than a month after she became Britain’s newly elected prime minister, Liz Truss reiterated her unwavering support for Israel. Truss identified herself as “a huge Zionist” and a “huge supporter of Israel,” causing a commotion in social and mainstream media. It is an allegiance rarely expressed in such powerful terms by a non-Israeli citizen. 

Truss held the position of Britain’s foreign secretary from 2021 to 2022. Her record reveals the probable direction the British government will take on issues related to the Middle East, as Truss was and remains a staunch supporter of Israel and a self-proclaimed champion of the British Jewish community. 

During her first speech as foreign minister, Truss listed “liberal democracies” by name, citing Australia, the members of NATO, the G7 group of countries, and, astonishingly, Israel, saying that “there is no closer friend and ally” to Britain than Israel. 

At that point, Ian Austin, a former Labour MP who now serves as UK prime ministerial trade envoy to Israel, said that “anyone who believes in strengthening the relationship between Britain and Israel should be delighted by the appointment of Liz Truss as the new foreign secretary. There is no doubt about her support for Israel and its right to defend itself.”

But it is only if the Palestinians are removed from the picture altogether that one can consider Israel to be a democracy. As the newspaper the Arab News has commented, “to Truss, the Palestinians do not exist.” 

That may be exactly what is happening. Truss hailed Israel during the assault on Gaza in August when 15 children were killed by commenting that “the UK stands by Israel and its right to defend itself.” 

In November 2021, while signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with then Israeli foreign minister and future Prime Minister Yair Lapid that committed Britain and Israel to closer collaboration and pushed hard for a free-trade agreement with Israel, she also spoke of Britain having a “unique partnership” with Israel. 

Campaigning for the prime ministerial position, she many times identified British Jews with members of her Conservative Party. “I believe that Conservative values and Jewish values go hand in hand,” she said. She also favours and admires British Jews, saying that “the strength of the Jewish community is a shining light in Britain.” 

So, Truss’ voicing her allegiance to Zionism is nothing new, and it was anticipated. However, the adamant way in which it was phrased, its premature timing, and its subsequent reverberations are alarming. 

It is as not as if Truss does not have enough on her plate already, with domestic woes such as inflationary pressures and historic losses for the British pound. The British media has had a heyday with her “I am a huge Zionist” comment. Some have asked rightfully “what is a Zionist?” Some have questioned her lack of “political depth and maturity,” and some have found her remarks indicative of her “political naivety” and “addiction to publicity.” 

Others were more blunt, “Truss’ language when praising the Jewish community suggests the new prime minister’s awkwardness on the public stage is not confined to past bizarre remarks about British cheese, apples, and pork markets which, for a time, made her an object of ridicule,” one said.

In her zealous defence of Israel, Truss may have stepped on some Brits. The Times of Israel said that a lack of deftness was evident in Truss’ statement about a “woke civil service culture that strays into antisemitism” in Britain, which had British trade union spokespersons fuming, accusing her of “throwing around unfounded inflammatory accusations” that illustrate “a lack of leadership” and should be viewed as “insulting and abhorrent.” 

And now that Truss has made her views on Israel utterly clear, what will the ramifications be? In 2017, then British prime minister Theresa May criticised then US president Donald Trump’s moving of the US Embassy to Jerusalem. Today, Truss may go ahead with a similar move. She has openly said that she will review whether Britain should follow suit and move its embassy to Jerusalem. She has also said that “there is just one capital to the UK, and that is London. There is just one capital to Israel, Jerusalem.”

Truss, along with Israel, a vocal opponent of the nuclear deal with Iran, will also likely work hard to stop a new deal being signed even though this is being devised not to allow Iran to have nuclear weapons. One of her sayings is “believe me, the UK will never allow – together with our allies – Iran to get a nuclear weapon.” 

Truss sees one side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, never once reflecting on the Palestinians. She will likely back Israel at the UN against any probes into Israel’s actions against Palestinians in Gaza or elsewhere. 

“UN representatives with a history of antisemitic remarks should have no role in reviewing the activities of Israel,” she says. Truss has ignored the perils that the Palestinians suffer. Not once has she referenced or cited the escalating repression against them or denounced Israel’s apartheid society. The Israeli Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, a NGO, has identified 2021 as the deadliest year since 2014 for the Palestinians.

In 2014, Israel killed 319 Palestinians including 71 minors and demolished hundreds of homes.

 Truss may prove to be overly committed to her words by exhibiting an unwavering dedication to Israel. In her defence of Israel, she will always ensure that those who are against Israel are “prosecuted quickly within the full force of the law,” she says. 

Time will tell where Truss’ words and her opinionated views will take the UK and its relations with the Middle East. 

---

* The writer is former professor of communication based in Vancouver, Canada.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 13 October, 2022 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

Search Keywords:

• Zionist

• British Prime Minister Liz Truss

• the Middle East

• Israel

International luxury brand Stefano Ricci to celebrate 50th anniversary in Luxor

Daily News, by Nehal Samir October 3, 2022 

The celebration, which will last for several days, includes two concerts — one in Luxor Temple on the eastern bank and the other one in Habu Temple on the western bank.

Italian luxury menswear brand Stefano Ricci — one of the most expensive brands in Europe — will be holding a fashion show to celebrate its 50th anniversary in the Temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor on 9 October.

The celebration, which will last for several days, includes two concerts — one in Luxor Temple on the eastern bank and the other one in Habu Temple on the western bank.

The celebration It was supposed to be held in March, however, it was postponed to October due to the war in Ukraine out of respect for the conditions and the feelings of the people involved in the war. 

CEO of Egypt’s Tourism Promotion Board Amr Al-Kady told Daily News Egypt earlier in an interview that the Pharaohs’ Golden Parade and the Luxor Sphinx Avenue reopening had a very positive impact on tourism in Egypt, as they established two essential things — that Egypt is a safe country, and that the state has a great ability to organise major events, as the two events witnessed much praise from the international community.

“Also, since then, we have received many requests to organise different events in Egypt’s archaeological locales and museums,” he added.

COP27: Loss and Damage

Ahram Online, by Doaa El-Bey

As the convening of COP27 draws closer, Egypt is stressing the importance of developing mechanisms to ensure developing countries are compensated for the damage they suffer due to climate change.

Although the major aim of COP27 is to cut carbon emissions causing climate change and deal with existing climate impacts, the issue of “loss and damage” is likely to be one of the priorities of the meeting this year as the impacts of climate change, including floods, drought and wildfires, become clearer on the ground and affect ever more people.

Egypt has repeatedly underlined that it will put the issue of loss and damage at the centre of COP27, scheduled to be held in Sharm El-Sheikh between 6-18 November.

Wael Abul-Magd, Egypt’s special representative of COP27, told the media this week that Cairo is putting a lot of effort into ensuring that compensation for countries that have experienced heavy economic loss due to climate catastrophes is prioritised.

“We need to find a practical solution and it is up to the incoming COP presidency to navigate and finesse the process,” he said. “We are inching closer.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the world to act against what he called “a life-or-death struggle for our own safety today and our survival tomorrow”. He was speaking ahead of the COP27 preparatory meeting which took place on 3 and 4 October in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“We know people and nations are suffering now... Failure to act on loss and damage will lead to more loss of trust and more climate damage… This is a moral imperative that cannot be ignored and COP27 must be the place for action on loss and damage,” he told media at the UN headquarters in New York ahead of the Kinshasa talks.

Before the same meeting, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri highlighted the importance of “appropriate and fair” climate financing, including financing for adaptation as well as mitigation. “We must find a way to address this challenge,” Shoukri said. “Without appropriate and fair financing serving as a catalyst, we will struggle to make a significant impact on climate change.”

The issue of loss and damage was discussed at last month’s UN General Assembly during the meeting of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), among the most vulnerable countries to climate change. Shoukri told the AOSIS meeting that Egypt understands the seriousness of the losses and damage suffered by small island nations and will make them a key issue in discussions at COP27.

“Climate change is inflicting increasing losses and damages on small island developing countries through repeated waves of severe weather conditions in the form of storms, hurricanes, floods and droughts that result in grave human and economic losses,” said Shoukri.

The issue was also raised in New York during a high-level meeting with the Group of 77 and China. Shoukri told the meeting he was looking forward to active engagement from all climate change stakeholders, including the G-77 and China, in dealing with the loss and damage caused by climate change.

Meanwhile, informal consultations at the level of the heads of delegations have been organised to bridge views among the various parties on how losses and damages can be assessed. The same topic also preoccupied the pre-COP27 meeting in June in Bonn, Germany, which ended without any agreement being reached.

Negotiators at last year’s COP26 agreed to launch a two-year dialogue on loss and damage but stopped short of setting up an actual fund. During COP27 the topic is likely to raise debates on where the money for any fund comes from, how it will be distributed or how climate-induced losses are defined, with some research suggesting the latter could reach $580 billion annually by 2030, rising to between $1-$1.8 trillion for developing countries by 2050.

Tensions and difference over the war in Ukraine and the rocketing energy and food prices it has brought and their negative economic and political impacts across the developed and developing world and the diplomatic showdown between the US and China, the world’s biggest producers of greenhouse gas emission, will further complicate any breakthrough over the loss and damage issue.

Shoukri highlighted during this week’s Kinshasa meeting that challenges posed by the current geopolitical and economic situations must not be an excuse for delaying action on climate change.

The Egyptian COP presidency has repeatedly called on all parties to set aside political differences and work together to make progress on climate change.

It has also welcomed a Danish initiative “as a step in the right direction” which sets a precedent for other countries to follow. The Danish government announced it would provide DKK100 million (€13.4 million) to countries most vulnerable to climate change. In doing so it became the first UN member state to pay loss and damage compensation to developing countries for the impact of climate change. Scotland — a non-UN member — also pledged finance to address loss and damage, when First Minister Nicola Sturgeon committed £2 million to the cause during COP26 which was held in Glasgow. The allocated funds are already being used to deliver on the ground and help communities recover from climate-related events such as flooding, wildfires, and tropical storms.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 6 October, 2022 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

 

Why Blocking King Charles From COP27 In Egypt Is A Mistake – OpEd

Arab News

With Britain having acquired a new head of state and a new head of government in a matter of days last month, some constitutional teething troubles between Buckingham Palace and Downing Street were perhaps inevitable. It is a source of regret, however, that the first issue to apparently divide the UK’s two seats of power should be climate change.

With Britain having acquired a new head of state and a new head of government in a matter of days last month, some constitutional teething troubles between Buckingham Palace and Downing Street were perhaps inevitable. It is a source of regret, however, that the first issue to apparently divide the UK’s two seats of power should be climate change.

It has been widely reported in the British press that Prime Minister Liz Truss ordered King Charles not to attend the forthcoming COP27 climate change conference at Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt in November.

Naturally, Truss’s office points out that the prime minister is in no position to “order” the king to do anything, and the official line from the palace is that the monarch accepted Truss’s “advice” that he should not attend.

Perhaps what triggered this early confrontation was Truss subconsciously harking back to her fiery university years as an anti-monarchist; or, as some analysts see it, it may be her eagerness to draw a clear line — early on in the relationship — that she will be calling the shots in her country.

Either way, the fact remains that King Charles will be denied participation in an event close to his heart, on an issue close to his heart, in a region close to his heart — and that is a mistake.

Climate change is a real and pressing threat. Only this summer the UK endured three devastating heatwaves in June, July and August: Temperatures hit a record 40.3C, there was a 200 percent increase in the number of wildfires, the Meteorological Office declared a national emergency, and three people died from drowning. All of this was attributable to climate change.

There is a convention that British monarchs do not get involved in politics, but climate change is an issue that transcends politics. Only last year, as Prince of Wales, Charles addressed the COP26 opening ceremony in Glasgow, and his late mother Queen Elizabeth also gave a speech at the event. Last November, Charles had the British government’s blessing for a trip to Egypt, where he discussed COP27 with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. If it was acceptable then, why not now?

Throughout his life, King Charles has been a genuine, passionate advocate for environmental causes and action to combat the climate emergency. Not only that, but he is also a figure around whom many countries in the world can unite: I can at least speak for Arab countries, where he enjoys deep personal bonds with Gulf royal families, and is widely respected for his understanding of Islam and Arab culture.

Last month’s state funeral of Queen Elizabeth, watched by billions worldwide, was a classic illustration of how the British royal family is a key element in the country’s soft power, image, and culture. Meanwhile, with efforts such as the Saudi Green Initiative and the Middle East Green Initiative, there is clearly momentum, resources and focus for change in a region that had not paid much attention to the issue before.

The UK is still finding its feet again after a series of blows that began with the repercussions of Brexit, then the COVID pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and now a cost-of-living crisis. Choosing not to empower King Charles in a role that suits him so well, and could have been an additional channel to lobby and win favor with attending Arab and international leaders, shows both a lack of sophistication and a lack of confidence.

Not very British, is it?

The entire world is threatened by the total ignorance of American governing elites

IPE, Institute of Political Economy, by Paul Craig Roberts (link: The entire world is threatened by the total ignorance of American governing elites)

As I have described, we have approached a fateful moment in world history, not because of global warming, Covid, over-population, white racism, or any of the “crises” that an ignorant media hypes, but because we face nuclear war originating in the total stupidity of Western elites.

David Johnson  publishes a daily Russian List, a collection of commentary by presstitutes and alleged “Russian experts.”  I peruse these scribblings, and I seldom encounter anything the least bit intelligent.  In the US and its European puppets, “Russian analysis” consists of Russophobic rants.  Russia this, Russia that, and so on.  These ignorant rants have created a frame of mind among Western decision makers that is unreal and is deceiving Washington policy makers into fatal mistakes.  

I read that Russia has been defeated in Ukraine or will be.  I read that 4-star General Petraeus, one of the most stupid of Washington’s political generals, has declared that Putin is desperate and in an irreversible situation and that Ukraine will become a NATO member after the victory against Russia.

I sit and ponder how a person this utterly stupid got to be a four-star US general.  God help us.

Back in the days of the Cold War in which I was involved, we listened to each other and debated who was responsible for the Cold War. The Committee on the President Danger, of which I was a member, also listened to the Soviets as well as to the American left who thought that the conflict existed in order to serve the interests of the budgets and power of the US military/security complex.

Never were Soviet leaders insulted and ignored in the manner that Putin has been.  President Reagan told the contingent that accompanied him to Reykjavik for his meeting with Gorbachev that anyone who took a rude or dismissal attitude toward the Soviet delegation would be fired on the spot.

In those long ago civilized days, the US government took no risks that could result in a nuclear exchange with the Soviet Union.

In the 21st century the US government’s rude dismissals of Russian concerns is unprecedented.  Washington by overthrowing the Ukraine government and forcing a war there is vastly exaggerating its war fighting capacity.

What explains the lack of Washington’s caution?

The answer is that with the Western media reduced to a compliant propaganda ministry, Washington’s decision makers have no reliable information. The presstitutes, Western politicians, and so-called “Russian experts” have created a make-believe world for decision makers that causes them to think that they still control the situation.  Nothing could be further from the truth.

So, we have a situation that is comprised of arrogant Americans overflowing with hegemonic hubris, European puppets who obey instructions from Washington, and a Russian government forced to defend itself and Russian peoples. 

This is an explosive situation, especially as Putin has been slow to take a firm stand.  Putin’s deference to international law means nothing to the West, for whom international law is nothing but a weapon to be used against those who don’t comply.  Putin’s deference to international law is read by Washington as irresolution to really defend Russian interests.  

The consequence will be, as I have always said, that Washington misreads the situation and crosses too many Russian red lines.  At that point, fire and brimstone take over.  My concern is that we are very close to that point.

Putin’s recent public statements and his address to the Russian people clearly show that Russia’s leadership has finally and reluctantly lost all belief in reaching accommodation with the West.  It is the total failure of Western diplomacy that has greased the skids for war.  The Kremlin does not want war, but Washington has convinced the Kremlin that it is not possible to negotiate away war.  The unreasonableness of the West in refusing a mutual security agreement with Moscow, the complete involvement of the West into what the Kremlin regarded as a police action in the Donbass region, and now Washington’s sabotage  of the Nord Stream pipelines, together with incessant threats of dealing Russia devastating blows has resulted in Moscow preparing for war.

NATO is an insignificant military force, and the US has zero chance of prevailing against Russia in conventional war.  The only way Washington can avoid humiliating defeat is by going nuclear.  One would think the Kremlin knows this, and would not wait for a first strike.

The complete and total failure of Washington to create an ally and business partner out of a willing Russia is the worst diplomatic failure in world history.  The Jewish neoconservatives demanded hegemony at Russia’s expense. The US military/industrial complex demanded Russia as an enemy to justify its power and budget.  The State Department needed a Russian threat to Europe in order to keep normal relationships between Europe and Russia from loosening Washington’s hold on its European empire.  An American President who intended to normalize relations with Russia was driven out of office.

All of these selfish material interests, without an honest media to expose and check them, have opened the road to World War III, a war that will forever remove the West as a force in history. 

Tucker Carlson Explains the Absence of Intelligence Life Among CNN Viewers and the US Government

The total unreality that prevails in the US is driving the world to destruction.