CAIRO: A political coalition including several high-profile Egyptians sharply criticized President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Friday for a speech in which he warned off anyone seeking to challenge his rule, amid growing calls for a boycott of presidential elections.
Earlier this week, Sisi said additional steps would be taken against anyone looking to upset Egypt’s security and warned that the protests of seven years ago, which toppled long-time ruler Hosni Mubarak in 2011, would never happen again.
In a rare public rebuke of El-Sisi’s own remarks, the Civil Democratic Movement called the speech an attempt “to spread fear among Egyptian voters” which “undermines... the integrity of the electoral competition.”
Former military commander El-Sisi was elected in 2014, a year after leading the army to the ousting of hard-line President Mohammed Mursi. He is expected to easily win a vote slated for March 26-28.
The Civil Democratic Movement includes several notable figures, including a former presidential contender as well as Hesham Genena, a former anti-corruption watchdog head who had been campaigning for former military chief of staff Sami Anan, El-Sisi’s top opponent before he was arrested.
The statement follows growing calls to boycott the March vote after all major opposition campaigns withdrew citing intimidation. Anan himself was arrested and halted his presidential bid after the army accused him of breaking the law by running for office without permission.
El-Sisi now faces a single opponent, who is himself El-Sisi supporter, in the March contest.
“Clearing the political space of candidates in the name of preserving security is unconstitutional and does not promote security,” the statement said.
El-Sisi said in the speech that he may call on Egyptians to take to the streets to give him a “mandate” in the face of what he described as “villains,” without specifying who he meant.
“We affirm that states are not run by mandates and the mobilization of supporters in orchestrated gatherings, but rather by constitutions and respect for freedoms,” the statement said.
“Is this a mandate in order to uphold freedoms? Or to crush opposition? Or to violate the constitution?” it said.
Egypt opposition slams El-Sisi’s warning
Egypt opposition slams El-Sisi’s warning
Syrian intelligence says it foiled Daesh attempt to target Damascus shrine
DAMASCUS: Syria's Intelligence Directorate foiled an attempt by Daesh to target the Sayeda Zinab shrine in the capital Damascus, state news agency Sana reported on Saturday.
It said members of the cell were arrested before carrying out an attack.
Lebanon PM arrives in Damascus on first such visit since before Syria war
DAMASCUS: Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati arrived in Damascus Saturday in the first such visit since before civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, an AFP journalist reported.
Mikati’s visit comes as the neighboring countries seek better relations after Islamist-led rebels toppled longtime strongman Bashar Assad last month.
Israel strikes Yemen Houthis, warns it will ‘hunt’ leaders
- Israeli military said fighter jets struck military targets belonging to Houthi regime
- It said it also struck military infrastructure in the ports of Hodeida and Ras Issa
JERUSALEM: Israel struck Houthi targets in Yemen on Friday, including a power station and coastal ports, in response to missile and drone launches, and warned it would hunt down the group’s leaders.
“A short while ago... fighter jets struck military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime on the western coast and inland Yemen,” the Israeli military said in a statement.
It said the strikes were carried out in retaliation for Houthi missile and drone launches into Israel.
The statement said the targets included “military infrastructure sites in the Hizaz power station, which serves as a central source of energy” for the Houthis.
It said it also struck military infrastructure in the ports of Hodeida and Ras Issa.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a statement after the strikes, said the Houthis were being punished for their repeated attacks on his country.
“As we promised, the Houthis are paying, and they will continue to pay, a heavy price for their aggression against us,” he said.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel would “hunt down the leaders of the Houthi terror organization.”
“The Hodeida port is paralyzed, and the Ras Issa port is on fire — there will be no immunity for anyone,” he said in a video statement.
The Houthis, who control Sanaa, have fired missiles and drones toward Israel since war broke out in Gaza in October 2023.
They describe the attacks as acts of solidarity with Gazans.
The Iran-backed rebels have also targeted ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, prompting retaliatory strikes by the United States and, on occasion, Britain.
Israel has also struck Houthi targets in Yemen, including in the capital.
Since the Gaza war began, the Houthis have launched about 40 surface-to-surface missiles toward Israel, most of which were intercepted, the Israeli army says.
The military has also reported the launch of about 320 drones, with more than 100 intercepted by Israeli air defenses.
West Bank family wants justice for children killed in Israel strike
- Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 825 Palestinians in the territory, according to Health Ministry figures
TAMMUN, Plestinian Territories: Batoul Bsharat was playing with her eight-year-old brother Reda in their village in the occupied West Bank. Moments later, an Israeli drone strike killed him and two of their cousins.
“It was the first time in our lives that we played without arguing. It meant so much to me,” the 10-year-old said as she sat on the concrete ledge outside the family home in the northern village of Tammun where they had been playing on Wednesday.
At her feet, a crater no wider than two fists marked where the missile hit.
The wall behind her is pockmarked with shrapnel impacts, and streaks of blood still stain the ledge.
Besides Reda, Hamza, 10, and Adam, 23, were also killed.
The Israeli army said on Wednesday that it had struck “a terrorist cell” in Tammun but later promised an investigation into the civilian deaths.
Batoul puts on a brave face but is heartbroken at the loss of her younger brother.
“Just before he was martyred, he started kissing and hugging me,” she said.
“I miss my brother so much. He was the best thing in the world.”
Her cousin Obay, 16, brother of Adam, was the first to come out and find the bodies before Israeli soldiers came to take them away.
“I went outside and saw the three of them lying on the ground,” he said. “I tried to lift them, but the army came and didn’t allow us to get close.”
Obay said his elder brother had just returned from a pilgrimage to Makkah.
“Adam and I were like best friends. We had so many shared moments together. Now I can’t sleep,” he said, staring into the distance, bags under his eyes.
Obay said the soldiers made him lie on the ground while they searched the house and confiscated cellphones before leaving with the bodies on stretchers.
Later on Wednesday, the army returned the bodies, which were then laid to rest. On Thursday, Obay’s father, Khaireddin, and his brothers received condolences from neighbors.
Despite his pain, he said things could have been worse as the family home hosts many children.
“Usually, about six or seven kids are playing together, so if the missile had struck when they were all there, it could have been 10 children,” he said.
Khaireddin was at work at a quarry in the Jordan Valley when he heard the news. Adam had chosen to stay home and rest after his pilgrimage to Makkah.
He described his son as “an exceptional young man, respectful, well-mannered and upright,” who had “nothing to do with any resistance or armed groups.”
Khaireddin, like the rest of the Bsharat family, said he could not comprehend why his home had been targeted.
“We are a simple family, living ordinary lives. We have no affiliations with any sides or movements.”
Violence has soared in the West Bank since war broke out in Gaza with the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023.
Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 825 Palestinians in the territory, according to Health Ministry figures.
As the Israeli army has stepped up its raids on West Bank cities and refugee camps, it has also intensified its use of air strikes, which were once a rarity.
A day before the Bsharat home was hit, a similar strike had struck Tammun.
Khaireddin regrets that the army made “no apology or acknowledgment of their mistake.”
“This is the current reality — there is no accountability. Who can we turn to for justice?“
Tajani says Syrian leader pledged to stop ‘illegal immigration’
- Tajani also met his new counterpart Asaad Al-Shaibani, after which the Syrian official said he would soon make his first official tour of Europe
BEIRUT: Syria’s new leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa told visiting Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on Friday that he was ready to stem “illegal immigration” to Europe, the European diplomat said.
“Al-Sharaa says he is ready to block illegal immigration, (and) fight against drug traffickers,” Tajani said in the Lebanese capital, the second leg of his trip, adding these were “two crucial commitments for Italy.”
Tajani said he had called for a moratorium on EU sanctions on Syria for six months or one year.
However, Tajani added that “lifting sanctions is not a national decision. They are a European bloc decision.”
Tajani also met his new counterpart Asaad Al-Shaibani, after which the Syrian official said he would soon make his first official tour of Europe.
“I am pleased to announce my intention to head a high-level delegation on a foreign tour that includes a number of European countries,” he said. Al-Shaibani has already visited Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Jordan since the start of the month. Tajani arrived after hosting talks with European counterparts and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Rome on Thursday, where Tajani said they are seeking a “stable and united Syria.”
The EU’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas earlier on Friday said the 27-nation bloc could begin lifting sanctions if Syria’s new rulers took steps to form an inclusive government that protects minorities.
