In 1980, soon after my family and I arrived in Cairo, where my husband, Dan, had been assigned as a political officer at the American Embassy, we were introduced to an elderly woman. Esther Weinstein was the nominal head of Egypt’s small Jewish community. Slight and slender, she was dressed meticulously, in blue from top…
Egypt’s Jewish community has elected a new leader, Magda Haroun. The announcement on Tuesday follows the death of former Jewish community head Carmen Weinstein on April 13, after leading the community for more than 20 years. “My goal is to preserve the cultural heritage of the Egyptian Jews so that when we are gone, it…
The leader of Egypt’s dwindling Jewish community died Saturday at the age of 82. Carmen Weinstein, president of the Egyptian Jewish Community Council, had suffered from numerous health problems, according to Bassatine News, a newsletter for the Egyptian Jewish community, the Egypt Independent reported. “The tireless long-term president of the JCC died … in the…
Egyptian prosecutors questioned Egypt’s most prominent television satirist on Sunday over allegations he insulted the president and Islam, a case that has increased opposition fears of a crackdown on dissent. Bassem Youssef rose to fame after the uprising that swept Hosni Mubarak from power in 2011, with a satirical online show. His programme, that has…
A controversial documentary on Egypt’s expulsion of its long-resident Jewish population opened despite an initial effort by the Egyptian government to block its release. “Jews of Egypt” opened on March 27 at three movie theaters in Cairo and Alexandria after official permission was first granted, then withdrawn and then granted again. When the initial scheduled…
President Barack Obama was greeted with calls of “We love you” when he visited Cairo in his first term, seeking to turn the page on the Bush era with talk of a new beginning for ties between the United States and the Muslim world. Four years on, Egyptians who attended the Cairo University speech feel…
Egyptian authorities rescinded a ban on the screening of a documentary about Egyptian Jews. “Jews of Egypt” will be screened in theaters beginning March 27, director Amir Ramses said in a tweet. “We won the war against National Security. We got the permit,” Ramses said on Twitter and Facebook. The film had been banned earlier…
Egyptian authorities have failed to issue a permit to screen a historical documentary about the country’s Jewish community, the film’s producer said on Wednesday, one of a series of disputes over freedom of expression under the Islamist government. Egypt already had restrictions on film makers under president Hosni Mubarak, requiring them to seek approval from…
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