The sister of imprisoned Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel Fattah will appear before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Wednesday to campaign for her brother’s release, as a human rights group warned that inmates at Egypt’s recently constructed Badr prison were suffering “horrific abuses”, with many attempting suicide.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry affirmed that Egypt has the right to defend the capabilities and interests of its people, and that Egypt takes strong standings and takes into account all considerations and relations.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen witnessed the inking of documents on the extension of a strategic energy sector cooperation and technical aid agreement between Egypt and Denmark.

The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders said yesterday that she is following the prison sentences issued against lawyers and human rights activists in Egypt with concern. Mary Lawlor also called for their release.

Egyptian authorities are systematically refusing to provide or renew identity documents to dissidents, journalists and activists living abroad, in an apparent attempt to pressure them to return, according to a new report.

The unprecedented visit of a top Egyptian diplomat to the Syrian capital Damascus last month, the first in over a decade, was seen as a new chapter in relations between Cairo and Damascus.

Last month, an investigation by an international consortium of journalists revealed that Israeli contractors operating under the name “Team Jorge” claimed to have manipulated more than 30 elections worldwide, using techniques such as hacking and automated disinformation.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi reaffirmed their countries’ close military ties Wednesday, Sisi’s office said, during the Cairo leg of Austin’s regional tour.

Egypt is counting on Arab nations to pressure Ethiopia to halt its “unilateral practices” over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said yesterday.

The recent eruption of a media war between prominent Saudi and Egyptian figures comes against the backdrop of Cairo’s continuing requests for monetary support and Riyadh’s shifting financial aid policy. Although authorities in Saudi Arabia and Egypt have remained largely silent, the unfolding media battle is being seen as a …