Archive for Defense Ministry

Defense Ministry agrees to host football matches in army stadiums

by admin
December 27th, 2012

The Defense Ministry has agreed to host football league matches in the Armed Forces’ stadiums as of Sunday.

Azmi Megahed, director of the Egyptian Football Federation’s Media Center, told the German news agency DPA on Thursday that the ministry agreed to host the matches for three months.

The ministry had initially declined the federation’s request to host the matches.

The league stopped all activities in February following violence that broke out during a match between Al-Ahly and Al-Masry in Port Said Stadium, where 74 Al-Ahly fans were killed.

Seventy defendants are on trial in the Port Said Stadium case. A court is due to issue a verdict on 26 January.

The league’s activities have been halted several times since the clashes. The Interior Ministry initially said it could not secure the matches, and Al-Ahly fans objected to the resumption of play before justice was attained for those were killed in the incident.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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Maadi Military Hospital prepares for Mubarak arrival

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December 19th, 2012

Maadi Military Hospital has made arrangements to receive imprisoned former President Hosni Mubarak, who is expected to be transferred from Tora Prison Hospital Wednesday.

Mubarak's lawyer's requested the transfer so the former leader could undergo scans of his brain, knees and pelvis after he fell in the bathroom Saturday. He reportedly sustained a head injury as well as abrasions and bruises.

Prosecutor General Talaat Abdallah on Monday ordered the formation of a medical committee to examine Mubarak.

Assistant Interior Minister for Prisons Mohamed Ibrahim told the Turkish Anadolu news agency Tuesday that the transfer from Tora Prison to the hospital would take place as soon as the Defense Ministry responded to the request.

Mubarak is serving a 25-year sentence in prison for failing to prevent the deaths of protesters during the 2011 revolution that forced him from power. Other former members of his administration are also serving sentences in Tora prison.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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Prison authority requests transfer of Mubarak to military hospital

by admin
December 18th, 2012

The prison authority has requested that the Defense Ministry grant permission to transfer former President Hosni Mubarak to Maadi Military Hospital due to his deteriorating health.

Assistant Interior Minister for prisons Mohamed Ibrahim told the Anadolu news agency that the transfer from Tora Prison to the hospital would take place as soon as the Defense Ministry responds to the request.

Mubarak had received treatment at that hospital before he began serving his sentence at Tora Prison.

Two days ago the former president fell while in the bathroom and sustained injuries to his head and bruises to his torso. He reportedly has had several fainting incidents over the past few weeks.

After Mubarak stepped down on 11 February 2011, he was treated in the Sharm al-Sheikh International Hospital. The Criminal Court then transferred him to the World Medical Center near Cairo as he awaited trial.

Hearings in the Mubarak trial began on 3 August 2011. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in the killing of demonstrators during the revolution.

The former top prosecutor transferred Mubarak to the Tora Prison Hospital on 2 June 2012. Mubarak briefly left Tora and was transferred to the Maadi Military Hospital shortly thereafter, but returned to prison on 17 July, where the majority of former regime figures are serving their sentences.

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Categories Egypt, Egypt Top Stories
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Premier League football play to resume on 30 December

by admin
December 16th, 2012

The Egyptian Football Association announced on Sunday it would resume Premier League play on 30 December, after postponing matches for constitutional referendum voting.

The association had originally said it was committed to beginning the Premier League on 18 December, but had to change its plan following President Mohamed Morsy’s deciding to hold the referendum on 15 and 22 December. The Sunday statement said the first and second rounds of play, which would have been held on those days, have been postponed, and that play would begin with the third round on 30 December.

“The association has obtained written approval from the Defense Ministry to hold games in Armed Forces stadiums without an audience,” Hassan Farid, vice president of the association, said in a press conference Sunday.

The Premier League was suspended in February after 72 fans of Egypt’s leading Ahly Club, mostly members of the hardcore supporter group known as the Ultras Ahlawy, were killed in a fight following a match between Ahly and the Port Said-based team Masry.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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Govt allocates LE1.95 bn for Sinai development

by admin
September 3rd, 2012

The government allocated LE1.95 billion for the development of Sinai in the current year's budget, said on Monday Major General Shawqy Rashwan, head of the Sinai Development Authority.

Out of the total amount, LE250 million is allocated by the Defense Ministry to fund the immediate needs of citizens in Sinai, particularly water projects and schools. These projects will be undertaken by the Armed Forces engineering authority.

In a press conference Monday after his meeting with Prime Minister Hesham Qandil, Rashwan said US$50 million of the remaining amount will be provided by the US.

The rest of the money comes from the Irrigation, Housing, Transport, Agriculture, Interior and Health ministries.

He said the government is considering the establishment of three free zones in Sinai, including in Rafah, Nuweiba and Arish.

In addition, legal procedures are currently being undertaken that would allow Egyptians to buy plots of land in Sinai. Rashwan said that Egyptians with Egyptian parents would be allowed to buy land; others can get the land under a usufruct agreement only, and through the Societe Anonyme Egyptienne (an Egyptian joint stock company), in which the ratio of Egyptian stocks is at least 55 percent.

Irrigation Minister Mohamed Bahaa El Din, who was also at the press conference, said that there is water for the cultivation of 80,000 acres in Sinai.

South Sinai Governor Khaled Fouda, who was also present, said that the state of security has improved in Sinai, as reflected by the 68 percent increase in hotel occupancy rates in Sharm El Sheikh.

According to the governor, tourist reservations have risen in October. He also noted the demand for an air ambulance, pointing out that some roads in Sinai are as long as of 800 km.

Analysts have proposed development as a solution for the security problems plaguing Sinai. The peninsula has been the scene of a series of attacks against Egyptian security targets, Israeli targets and tourists.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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Egypt requests update on 4 Egyptians detained in Yemen

by admin
August 2nd, 2012

 

Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr sent a message Wednesday to his Yemeni counterpart, Abu Bakr al-Qurba, asking for a status update on the four Egyptians who were arrested in Yemen on suspicion of belonging to Al-Qaeda.

Amr requested that he be kept informed regarding the investigations into the four individuals, and stressed that they should be returned to Egypt as soon as possible, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Amr Roshdy.

The Yemeni Defense Ministry had announced Tuesday that security forces arrested 14 Al-Qaeda militants, including nine foreigners, who were suspected of plotting a series of attacks.

The militants were allegedly planning to target the army and civil leaders, as well as sites of foreign interest, the ministry claimed.

The suspects are thought to have been working in three groups, the biggest of which was allegedly intending to focus on fighting the army in the south of Yemen, an area that had until recently been under Al-Qaeda control, the ministry continued.

Details regarding the timing and place of the arrests were not given, but the Defense Ministry did state that among the arrested were four Egyptians, two Jordanians, one Somali, one Tunisian and one individual from Dagestan, a republic in Russia’s North Caucasus region.

Edited translation from MENA

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ElBaradei: Meeting with SCAF was fruitful

by admin
June 26th, 2012

 

Constitution Party founder Mohamed ElBaradei said Monday that his meeting with members of the military council two days ago was fruitful and resulted in mutual understanding.

ElBaradei said in a briefing that they discussed Egypt’s current problems, adding that now is the time for national reconciliation after the election of the new president. He urged all Egyptians to think of the future of the country.

ElBaradei met Saturday with head of the military council Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and other SCAF members at the headquarters of the Defense Ministry. ElBaradei requested the meeting.

The parties discussed the supplement to the Constitutional Declaration, the dissolution of the People's Assembly and the recently passed law allowing army and intelligence personnel to arrest civilians, said sources familiar with the meeting.

Tantawi stressed his respect for the judiciary’s ruling that dissolved Parliament, and requested to postpone discussions of the supplement to the Constitutional Declaration and the arrest law until the results of the presidential election were announced. He promised to continue discussions and reach a solution that would satisfy all parties.

Attendees of the meeting also discussed possibilities for national reconciliation, said Mostafa Bakry, former MP of the now dissolved Parliament.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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Defense Ministry nominates SCAF’s Shahin for Constituent Assembly

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June 10th, 2012

The Defense Ministry has nominated Major General Mamdouh Shahin, assistant defense minister for legal affairs and member of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, for the committee that will write Egypt's new constitution.

Meanwhile, Sami Mahran, the secretary general of Parliament, said Sunday he has received 39 nominees from political parties, 13 from trade unions, five from Al-Azhar, five from among law professors, four from Christian churches, and 21 public figures from institutions and syndicates.

He added that People's Assembly Speaker Saad al-Katatny would head a joint session of the People's Assembly and Shura Council on Tuesday for their members to select the body.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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Defense Ministry approves tender for gas exploration in Mediterranean

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May 27th, 2012

 

The Petroleum Ministry has obtained approval from the Defense Ministry for the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (GASCO) to offer a tender for international companies to explore for gas in the Mediterranean Sea for the first time, in four areas near Egypt’s eastern border with Israel.

Petroleum Ministry sources said the Defense Ministry received details of the exploration areas in order to protect investments in the gas project, which GASCO has valued at US$4 billion.

The sources added that some of the new areas touch the maritime boundary line that was previously established between Egypt and Israel, and that the exploration is consistent with international law and the high seas demarcation treaty that Egypt and most United Nations member states signed in 1983.

“The tender will be offered this week,” said Petroleum Minister Abdullah Ghorab.

GASCO Chairman Mohamed Shoaib said the region is rich with natural gas. “The tender would increase our production and serve our development plans,” he said.

The United States Geological Survey estimates the gas reserves of that region at 223 trillion cubic feet, while the Egyptian government official quantities announced are 76 trillion cubic feet, which means three times more gas may be there than the government has believed. “We shall therefore offer more tenders in the coming three years,” explained Mostafa Bahr, GASCO’s vice president for exploration.

Ramadan Abul Ela, a professor of petroleum engineering at Pharos University in Alexandria, said this was a good step, although it came late. “Neighboring countries like Lebanon, Israel and Cyprus have increased exploration and plan to enter into military and political partnerships to secure gas discoveries in the Mediterranean,” he said.

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Defense Ministry approves tender for gas exploration in Mediterranean

by admin
May 27th, 2012

 

The Petroleum Ministry has obtained approval from the Defense Ministry for the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (GASCO) to offer a tender for international companies to explore for gas in the Mediterranean Sea for the first time, in four areas near Egypt’s eastern border with Israel.

Petroleum Ministry sources said the Defense Ministry received details of the exploration areas in order to protect investments in the gas project, which GASCO has valued at US$4 billion.

The sources added that some of the new areas touch the maritime boundary line that was previously established between Egypt and Israel, and that the exploration is consistent with international law and the high seas demarcation treaty that Egypt and most United Nations member states signed in 1983.

“The tender will be offered this week,” said Petroleum Minister Abdullah Ghorab.

GASCO Chairman Mohamed Shoaib said the region is rich with natural gas. “The tender would increase our production and serve our development plans,” he said.

The United States Geological Survey estimates the gas reserves of that region at 223 trillion cubic feet, while the Egyptian government official quantities announced are 76 trillion cubic feet, which means three times more gas may be there than the government has believed. “We shall therefore offer more tenders in the coming three years,” explained Mostafa Bahr, GASCO’s vice president for exploration.

Ramadan Abul Ela, a professor of petroleum engineering at Pharos University in Alexandria, said this was a good step, although it came late. “Neighboring countries like Lebanon, Israel and Cyprus have increased exploration and plan to enter into military and political partnerships to secure gas discoveries in the Mediterranean,” he said.

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Categories Egypt Economy
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