Context of Egypt

 

Egypt (Arabic: مصر Miṣr [mesˁr], Egyptian Arabic pronunciation: [mɑsˤr]), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip of Palestine and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south, and Libya to the west. The Gulf of Aqaba in the northeast separates Egypt from Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Cairo is the capital and largest city of Egypt, while Alexandria, the second-largest city, is an important industrial and tourist hub at the Mediterranean coast. At approximately 100 million inhabitants, Egypt is the 14th-most populated country in the world.

Egypt has ...Read more

 

Egypt (Arabic: مصر Miṣr [mesˁr], Egyptian Arabic pronunciation: [mɑsˤr]), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip of Palestine and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south, and Libya to the west. The Gulf of Aqaba in the northeast separates Egypt from Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Cairo is the capital and largest city of Egypt, while Alexandria, the second-largest city, is an important industrial and tourist hub at the Mediterranean coast. At approximately 100 million inhabitants, Egypt is the 14th-most populated country in the world.

Egypt has one of the longest histories of any country, tracing its heritage along the Nile Delta back to the 6th–4th millennia BCE. Considered a cradle of civilisation, Ancient Egypt saw some of the earliest developments of writing, agriculture, urbanisation, organised religion and central government. Iconic monuments such as the Giza Necropolis and its Great Sphinx, as well the ruins of Memphis, Thebes, Karnak, and the Valley of the Kings, reflect this legacy and remain a significant focus of scientific and popular interest. Egypt's long and rich cultural heritage is an integral part of its national identity, which reflects its unique transcontinental location being simultaneously Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and North African. Egypt was an early and important centre of Christianity, but was largely Islamised in the seventh century and remains a predominantly Sunni Muslim country, albeit with a significant Christian minority, along with other lesser practiced faiths.

Modern Egypt dates back to 1922, when it gained independence from the British Empire as a monarchy. Following the 1952 revolution, Egypt declared itself a republic, and in 1958 it merged with Syria to form the United Arab Republic, which dissolved in 1961. Throughout the second half of the 20th century, Egypt endured social and religious strife and political instability, fighting several armed conflicts with Israel in 1948, 1956, 1967 and 1973, and occupying the Gaza Strip intermittently until 1967. In 1978, Egypt signed the Camp David Accords, officially withdrawing from the Gaza Strip and recognising Israel. After the Arab Spring, which led to the 2011 Egyptian revolution and overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, the country faced a protracted period of political unrest. Egypt's current government, a semi-presidential republic led by Abdel Fattah el-Sisi since 2014, has been described by a number of watchdogs as authoritarian and responsible for perpetuating the country's poor human rights record.

Islam is the official religion of Egypt and Arabic is its official language. With over 100 million inhabitants, Egypt is the most populous country in North Africa, the Middle East, and the Arab world, the third-most populous in Africa (after Nigeria and Ethiopia), and the fourteenth-most populous in the world. The great majority of its people live near the banks of the Nile River, an area of about 40,000 square kilometres (15,000 sq mi), where the only arable land is found. The large regions of the Sahara desert, which constitute most of Egypt's territory, are sparsely inhabited. About 43% of Egypt's residents live across the country's urban areas, with most spread across the densely populated centres of greater Cairo, Alexandria and other major cities in the Nile Delta.

Egypt is considered to be a regional power in North Africa, the Middle East and the Muslim world, and a middle power worldwide. It is a developing country, ranking 97th on the Human Development Index. It has a diversified economy, which is the third-largest in Africa, the 33rd-largest economy by nominal GDP, and the 20th-largest globally by PPP. Egypt is a founding member of the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Arab League, the African Union, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the World Youth Forum.

More about Egypt

Basic information
  • Currency Egyptian pound
  • Native name مصر
  • Calling code +20
  • Internet domain .eg
  • Mains voltage 220V/50Hz
  • Democracy index 2.93
Population, Area & Driving side
  • Population 107476864
  • Area 1010407
  • Driving side right
History
  •  
    Prehistory and Ancient Egypt
     
    Prehistory and Ancient Egypt
     
     
    Temple of Derr ruins in 1960

    There is evidence of rock carvings along the Nile terraces and in desert oases. In the 10th millennium BCE, a culture of hunter-gatherers and fishers was replaced by a grain-grinding culture. Climate changes or overgrazing around 8000 BCE began to desiccate the pastoral lands of Egypt, forming the Sahara. Early tribal peoples migrated to the Nile River where they developed a settled agricultural economy and more centralised society.[1]

    By about 6000 BCE, a Neolithic culture took root in the Nile Valley.[2] During the Neolithic era, several predynastic cultures developed independently in Upper and Lower Egypt. The Badarian culture and the successor Naqada series are generally regarded as precursors to dynastic Egypt. The earliest known Lower Egyptian site, Merimda, predates the Badarian by about seven hundred years. Contemporaneous Lower Egyptian communities coexisted with their southern counterparts for more than two thousand years, remaining culturally distinct, but maintaining frequent contact through trade. The earliest known evidence of Egyptian hieroglyphic inscriptions appeared during the predynastic period on Naqada III pottery vessels, dated to about 3200 BCE.[3]

     
     
    The Giza Necropolis is the oldest of the ancient Wonders and the only one still in existence.

    A unified kingdom was founded c. 3150 BCE by King Menes, leading to a series of dynasties that ruled Egypt for the next three millennia. Egyptian culture flourished during this long period and remained distinctively Egyptian in its religion, arts, language and customs. The first two ruling dynasties of a unified Egypt set the stage for the Old Kingdom period, c. 2700–2200 BCE, which constructed many pyramids, most notably the Third Dynasty pyramid of Djoser and the Fourth Dynasty Giza pyramids.

    The First Intermediate Period ushered in a time of political upheaval for about 150 years.[4] Stronger Nile floods and stabilisation of government, however, brought back renewed prosperity for the country in the Middle Kingdom c. 2040 BCE, reaching a peak during the reign of Pharaoh Amenemhat III. A second period of disunity heralded the arrival of the first foreign ruling dynasty in Egypt, that of the Semitic Hyksos. The Hyksos invaders took over much of Lower Egypt around 1650 BCE and founded a new capital at Avaris. They were driven out by an Upper Egyptian force led by Ahmose I, who founded the Eighteenth Dynasty and relocated the capital from Memphis to Thebes.

    The New Kingdom c. 1550–1070 BCE began with the Eighteenth Dynasty, marking the rise of Egypt as an international power that expanded during its greatest extension to an empire as far south as Tombos in Nubia, and included parts of the Levant in the east. This period is noted for some of the most well known Pharaohs, including Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Akhenaten and his wife Nefertiti, Tutankhamun and Ramesses II. The first historically attested expression of monotheism came during this period as Atenism. Frequent contacts with other nations brought new ideas to the New Kingdom. The country was later invaded and conquered by Libyans, Nubians and Assyrians, but native Egyptians eventually drove them out and regained control of their country.[5]

    Achaemenid Egypt
     
     
    Egyptian soldier of the Achaemenid army, c. 480 BCE. Xerxes I tomb relief.

    In 525 BCE, the powerful Achaemenid Persians, led by Cambyses II, began their conquest of Egypt, eventually capturing the pharaoh Psamtik III at the battle of Pelusium. Cambyses II then assumed the formal title of pharaoh, but ruled Egypt from his home of Susa in Persia (modern Iran), leaving Egypt under the control of a satrapy. The entire Twenty-seventh Dynasty of Egypt, from 525 to 402 BCE, save for Petubastis III, was an entirely Persian-ruled period, with the Achaemenid Emperors all being granted the title of pharaoh. A few temporarily successful revolts against the Persians marked the fifth century BCE, but Egypt was never able to permanently overthrow the Persians.[6]

    The Thirtieth Dynasty was the last native ruling dynasty during the Pharaonic epoch. It fell to the Persians again in 343 BCE after the last native Pharaoh, King Nectanebo II, was defeated in battle. This Thirty-first Dynasty of Egypt, however, did not last long, as the Persians were toppled several decades later by Alexander the Great. The Macedonian Greek general of Alexander, Ptolemy I Soter, founded the Ptolemaic dynasty.

    Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt
     
     
    The Ptolemaic Queen Cleopatra VII and her son by Julius Caesar, Caesarion, at the Temple of Dendera

    The Ptolemaic Kingdom was a powerful Hellenistic state, extending from southern Syria in the east, to Cyrene to the west, and south to the frontier with Nubia. Alexandria became the capital city and a centre of Greek culture and trade. To gain recognition by the native Egyptian populace, they named themselves as the successors to the Pharaohs. The later Ptolemies took on Egyptian traditions, had themselves portrayed on public monuments in Egyptian style and dress, and participated in Egyptian religious life.[7][8]

    The last ruler from the Ptolemaic line was Cleopatra VII, who committed suicide following the burial of her lover Mark Antony who had died in her arms (from a self-inflicted stab wound), after Octavian had captured Alexandria and her mercenary forces had fled. The Ptolemies faced rebellions of native Egyptians often caused by an unwanted regime and were involved in foreign and civil wars that led to the decline of the kingdom and its annexation by Rome. Nevertheless, Hellenistic culture continued to thrive in Egypt well after the Muslim conquest.

    Christianity was brought to Egypt by Saint Mark the Evangelist in the 1st century.[9] Diocletian's reign (284–305 CE) marked the transition from the Roman to the Byzantine era in Egypt, when a great number of Egyptian Christians were persecuted. The New Testament had by then been translated into Egyptian. After the Council of Chalcedon in CE 451, a distinct Egyptian Coptic Church was firmly established.[10]

    Middle Ages (7th century – 1517)
     
     
    The Amr ibn al-As mosque in Cairo, recognized as the oldest in Africa

    The Byzantines were able to regain control of the country after a brief Sasanid Persian invasion early in the 7th century amidst the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628 during which they established a new short-lived province for ten years known as Sasanian Egypt, until 639–42, when Egypt was invaded and conquered by the Islamic caliphate by the Muslim Arabs. When they defeated the Byzantine armies in Egypt, the Arabs brought Islam to the country. Some time during this period, Egyptians began to blend in their new faith with indigenous beliefs and practices, leading to various Sufi orders that have flourished to this day.[9] These earlier rites had survived the period of Coptic Christianity.[11]

    In 639 an army of around 4,000 men were sent in Egypt by the second caliph, Umar, under the command of Amr ibn al-As. They were joined by additional 5,000 men in 640 and defeated a Roman army at the battle of Heliopolis. Amr next proceeded in the direction of Alexandria, which surrendered to him by a treaty signed on 8 November 641. Alexandria was regained for the Byzantine Empire in 645 but was retaken by Amr in 646. In 654 an invasion fleet sent by Constans II was repulsed. From that time no serious effort was made by the Byzantine Romans to regain possession of the country.

    The Arabs founded the capital of Egypt called Fustat, which was later burned down during the Crusades. Cairo was later built in the year 986 to grow to become the largest and richest city in the Arab caliphate, second only to Baghdad and one of the biggest and richest in the world.

    Abbasid period
     
     
    The Ibn Tulun Mosque in Cairo, of Ahmad Ibn Tulun

    The Abbasid period was marked by new taxations, and the Copts revolted again in the fourth year of Abbasid rule. At the beginning of the 9th century the practice of ruling Egypt through a governor was resumed under Abdallah ibn Tahir, who decided to reside at Baghdad, sending a deputy to Egypt to govern for him. In 828 another Egyptian revolt broke out, and in 831 the Copts joined with native Muslims against the government. Eventually the power loss of the Abbasids in Baghdad has led for general upon general to take over rule of Egypt, yet being under Abbasid allegiance, the Tulunid dynasty (868–905) and Ikhshidid dynasty (935–969) were among the most successful to defy the Abbasid Caliph.

    Fatimids, Ayyubids and Mamluks
     
     
    The Al-Hakim Mosque in Cairo, of Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, the sixth caliph, as renovated by Dawoodi Bohra

    Muslim rulers remained in control of Egypt for the next six centuries, with Cairo as the seat of the Fatimid Caliphate. With the end of the Ayyubid dynasty, the Mamluks, a Turco-Circassian military caste, took control about 1250. By the late 13th century, Egypt linked the Red Sea, India, Malaya, and East Indies.[12] The mid-14th-century Black Death killed about 40% of the country's population.[13]

    Early modern period: Ottoman Egypt (1517–1867)
     
     
    Napoleon defeated the Mamluk troops in the Battle of the Pyramids, 21 July 1798, painted by Lejeune.

    Egypt was conquered by the Ottoman Turks in 1517, after which it became a province of the Ottoman Empire. The defensive militarisation damaged its civil society and economic institutions.[12] The weakening of the economic system combined with the effects of plague left Egypt vulnerable to foreign invasion. Portuguese traders took over their trade.[12] Between 1687 and 1731, Egypt experienced six famines.[14] The 1784 famine cost it roughly one-sixth of its population.[15]

    Egypt was always a difficult province for the Ottoman Sultans to control, due in part to the continuing power and influence of the Mamluks, the Egyptian military caste who had ruled the country for centuries.

    Egypt remained semi-autonomous under the Mamluks until it was invaded by the French forces of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1798 (see French campaign in Egypt and Syria). After the French were defeated by the British, a power vacuum was created in Egypt, and a three-way power struggle ensued between the Ottoman Turks, Egyptian Mamluks who had ruled Egypt for centuries, and Albanian mercenaries in the service of the Ottomans.

    Muhammad Ali dynasty
     
     
    Egypt under Muhammad Ali dynasty
     
     
    Muhammad Ali was the founder of the Muhammad Ali dynasty and the first Khedive of Egypt and Sudan.

    After the French were expelled, power was seized in 1805 by Muhammad Ali Pasha, an Albanian military commander of the Ottoman army in Egypt. While he carried the title of viceroy of Egypt, his subordination to the Ottoman porte was merely nominal. Muhammad Ali massacred the Mamluks and established a dynasty that was to rule Egypt until the revolution of 1952.

    The introduction in 1820 of long-staple cotton transformed its agriculture into a cash-crop monoculture before the end of the century, concentrating land ownership and shifting production towards international markets.[16]

    Muhammad Ali annexed Northern Sudan (1820–1824), Syria (1833), and parts of Arabia and Anatolia; but in 1841 the European powers, fearful lest he topple the Ottoman Empire itself, forced him to return most of his conquests to the Ottomans. His military ambition required him to modernise the country: he built industries, a system of canals for irrigation and transport, and reformed the civil service.[16]

    He constructed a military state with around four percent of the populace serving the army to raise Egypt to a powerful positioning in the Ottoman Empire in a way showing various similarities to the Soviet strategies (without communism) conducted in the 20th century.[17]

    Muhammad Ali Pasha evolved the military from one that convened under the tradition of the corvée to a great modernised army. He introduced conscription of the male peasantry in 19th century Egypt, and took a novel approach to create his great army, strengthening it with numbers and in skill. Education and training of the new soldiers became mandatory; the new concepts were furthermore enforced by isolation. The men were held in barracks to avoid distraction of their growth as a military unit to be reckoned with. The resentment for the military way of life eventually faded from the men and a new ideology took hold, one of nationalism and pride. It was with the help of this newly reborn martial unit that Muhammad Ali imposed his rule over Egypt.[18]

    The policy that Mohammad Ali Pasha followed during his reign explains partly why the numeracy in Egypt compared to other North-African and Middle-Eastern countries increased only at a remarkably small rate, as investment in further education only took place in the military and industrial sector.[19]

    Muhammad Ali was succeeded briefly by his son Ibrahim (in September 1848), then by a grandson Abbas I (in November 1848), then by Said (in 1854), and Isma'il (in 1863) who encouraged science and agriculture and banned slavery in Egypt.[17]

    Khedivate of Egypt (1867–1914)

    Egypt under the Muhammad Ali dynasty remained nominally an Ottoman province. It was granted the status of an autonomous vassal state or Khedivate in 1867, a legal status which was to remain in place until 1914 although the Ottomans had no power or presence.

    The Suez Canal, built in partnership with the French, was completed in 1869. Its construction was financed by European banks. Large sums also went to patronage and corruption. New taxes caused popular discontent. In 1875 Isma'il avoided bankruptcy by selling all Egypt's shares in the canal to the British government. Within three years this led to the imposition of British and French controllers who sat in the Egyptian cabinet, and, "with the financial power of the bondholders behind them, were the real power in the Government."[20]

    Other circumstances like epidemic diseases (cattle disease in the 1880s), floods and wars drove the economic downturn and increased Egypt's dependency on foreign debt even further.[21]

     
     
    The battle of Tel el-Kebir in 1882 during the Anglo-Egyptian War

    Local dissatisfaction with the Khedive and with European intrusion led to the formation of the first nationalist groupings in 1879, with Ahmed ʻUrabi a prominent figure. After increasing tensions and nationalist revolts, the United Kingdom invaded Egypt in 1882, crushing the Egyptian army at the Battle of Tell El Kebir and militarily occupying the country.[22] Following this, the Khedivate became a de facto British protectorate under nominal Ottoman sovereignty.[23]

    In 1899 the Anglo-Egyptian Condominium Agreement was signed: the Agreement stated that Sudan would be jointly governed by the Khedivate of Egypt and the United Kingdom. However, actual control of Sudan was in British hands only.

    In 1906, the Denshawai incident prompted many neutral Egyptians to join the nationalist movement.

    Sultanate of Egypt (1914–1922)
     
     
    Female nationalists demonstrating in Cairo, 1919

    In 1914 the Ottoman Empire entered World War I in alliance with the Central Empires; Khedive Abbas II (who had grown increasingly hostile to the British in preceding years) decided to support the motherland in war. Following such decision, the British forcibly removed him from power and replaced him with his brother Hussein Kamel.[24][25]

    Hussein Kamel declared Egypt's independence from the Ottoman Empire, assuming the title of Sultan of Egypt. Shortly following independence, Egypt was declared a protectorate of the United Kingdom.

    After World War I, Saad Zaghlul and the Wafd Party led the Egyptian nationalist movement to a majority at the local Legislative Assembly. When the British exiled Zaghlul and his associates to Malta on 8 March 1919, the country arose in its first modern revolution. The revolt led the UK government to issue a unilateral declaration of Egypt's independence on 22 February 1922.[26]

    Kingdom of Egypt (1922–1953)
     
     
    Fuad I of Egypt with Edward, Prince of Wales, 1932

    Following independence from the United Kingdom, Sultan Fuad I assumed the title of King of Egypt; despite being nominally independent, the Kingdom was still under British military occupation and the UK still had great influence over the state.

     
     
    British infantry near El Alamein, 17 July 1942

    The new government drafted and implemented a constitution in 1923 based on a parliamentary system. The nationalist Wafd Party won a landslide victory in the 1923–1924 election and Saad Zaghloul was appointed as the new Prime Minister.

    In 1936, the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty was concluded and British troops withdrew from Egypt, except for the Suez Canal. The treaty did not resolve the question of Sudan, which, under the terms of the existing Anglo-Egyptian Condominium Agreement of 1899, stated that Sudan should be jointly governed by Egypt and Britain, but with real power remaining in British hands.[27]

    Britain used Egypt as a base for Allied operations throughout the region, especially the battles in North Africa against Italy and Germany. Its highest priorities were control of the Eastern Mediterranean, and especially keeping the Suez Canal open for merchant ships and for military connections with India and Australia. The government of Egypt, and the Egyptian population, played a minor role in the Second World War. When the war began in September 1939, Egypt declared martial law and broke off diplomatic relations with Germany. It did not declare war on Germany, but the Prime Minister associated Egypt with the British war effort. It broke diplomatic relations with Italy in 1940, but never declared war, even when the Italian army invaded Egypt. King Farouk took practically a neutral position, which accorded with elite opinion among the Egyptians. The Egyptian army did no fighting. It was apathetic about the war, with the leading officers looking on the British as occupiers and sometimes holding some private sympathy with the Axis. In June 1940 the King dismissed Prime Minister Aly Maher, who got on poorly with the British. A new coalition Government was formed with the Independent Hassan Pasha Sabri as Prime Minister.

    Following a ministerial crisis in February 1942, the ambassador Sir Miles Lampson, pressed Farouk to have a Wafd or Wafd-coalition government replace Hussein Sirri Pasha's government. On the night of 4 February 1942, British troops and tanks surrounded Abdeen Palace in Cairo and Lampson presented Farouk with an ultimatum. Farouk capitulated, and Nahhas formed a government shortly thereafter. However, the humiliation meted out to Farouk, and the actions of the Wafd in cooperating with the British and taking power, lost support for both the British and the Wafd among both civilians and, more importantly, the Egyptian military.

    Most British troops were withdrawn to the Suez Canal area in 1947 (although the British army maintained a military base in the area), but nationalist, anti-British feelings continued to grow after the War. Anti-monarchy sentiments further increased following the disastrous performance of the Kingdom in the First Arab-Israeli War. The 1950 election saw a landslide victory of the nationalist Wafd Party and the King was forced to appoint Mostafa El-Nahas as new Prime Minister. In 1951 Egypt unilaterally withdrew from the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 and ordered all remaining British troops to leave the Suez Canal.

    As the British refused to leave their base around the Suez Canal, the Egyptian government cut off the water and refused to allow food into the Suez Canal base, announced a boycott of British goods, forbade Egyptian workers from entering the base and sponsored guerrilla attacks, turning the area around the Suez Canal into a low level war zone. On 24 January 1952, Egyptian guerrillas staged a fierce attack on the British forces around the Suez Canal, during which the Egyptian Auxiliary Police were observed helping the guerrillas. In response, on 25 January, General George Erskine sent out British tanks and infantry to surround the auxiliary police station in Ismailia and gave the policemen an hour to surrender their arms on the grounds the police were arming the guerrillas. The police commander called the Interior Minister, Fouad Serageddin, Nahas's right-hand man, who was smoking cigars in his bath at the time, to ask if he should surrender or fight. Serageddin ordered the police to fight "to the last man and the last bullet". The resulting battle saw the police station levelled and 43 Egyptian policemen killed together with 3 British soldiers. The Ismailia incident outraged Egypt. The next day, 26 January 1952 was "Black Saturday", as the anti-British riot was known, that saw much of downtown Cairo which the Khedive Ismail the Magnificent had rebuilt in the style of Paris, burned down. Farouk blamed the Wafd for the Black Saturday riot, and dismissed Nahas as prime minister the next day. He was replaced by Aly Maher Pasha.[28]

    On 22–23 July 1952, the Free Officers Movement, led by Muhammad Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser, launched a coup d'état (Egyptian Revolution of 1952) against the king. Farouk I abdicated the throne to his son Fouad II, who was, at the time, a seven-month-old baby. The Royal Family left Egypt some days later and the Council of Regency, led by Prince Muhammad Abdel Moneim was formed, The council, however, held only nominal authority and the real power was actually in the hands of the Revolutionary Command Council, led by Naguib and Nasser.

    Popular expectations for immediate reforms led to the workers' riots in Kafr Dawar on 12 August 1952, which resulted in two death sentences. Following a brief experiment with civilian rule, the Free Officers abrogated the monarchy and the 1923 constitution and declared Egypt a republic on 18 June 1953. Naguib was proclaimed as president, while Nasser was appointed as the new Prime Minister.

    Republic of Egypt (1953–1958)

    Following the 1952 Revolution by the Free Officers Movement, the rule of Egypt passed to military hands and all political parties were banned. On 18 June 1953, the Egyptian Republic was declared, with General Muhammad Naguib as the first President of the Republic, serving in that capacity for a little under one and a half years.

    President Nasser (1956–1970)
     
     
    Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser in Mansoura, 1960

    Naguib was forced to resign in 1954 by Gamal Abdel Nasser – a Pan-Arabist and the real architect of the 1952 movement – and was later put under house arrest. After Naguib's resignation, the position of President was vacant until the election of Gamal Abdel Nasser in 1956.[29]

    In October 1954 Egypt and the United Kingdom agreed to abolish the Anglo-Egyptian Condominium Agreement of 1899 and grant Sudan independence; the agreement came into force on 1 January 1956.

    Nasser assumed power as president in June 1956. British forces completed their withdrawal from the occupied Suez Canal Zone on 13 June 1956. He nationalised the Suez Canal on 26 July 1956; his hostile approach towards Israel and economic nationalism prompted the beginning of the Second Arab-Israeli War (Suez Crisis), in which Israel (with support from France and the United Kingdom) occupied the Sinai peninsula and the Canal. The war came to an end because of US and USSR diplomatic intervention and the status quo was restored.

    United Arab Republic (1958–1971)
     
     
    Smoke rises from oil tanks beside the Suez Canal hit during the initial Anglo-French assault on Egypt, 5 November 1956.

    In 1958, Egypt and Syria formed a sovereign union known as the United Arab Republic. The union was short-lived, ending in 1961 when Syria seceded, thus ending the union. During most of its existence, the United Arab Republic was also in a loose confederation with North Yemen (or the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen), known as the United Arab States. In 1959, the All-Palestine Government of the Gaza Strip, an Egyptian client state, was absorbed into the United Arab Republic under the pretext of Arab union, and was never restored. The Arab Socialist Union, a new nasserist state-party was founded in 1962.

    In the early 1960s, Egypt became fully involved in the North Yemen Civil War. The Egyptian President, Gamal Abdel Nasser, supported the Yemeni republicans with as many as 70,000 Egyptian troops and chemical weapons. Despite several military moves and peace conferences, the war sank into a stalemate. Egyptian commitment in Yemen was greatly undermined later.

    In mid May 1967, the Soviet Union issued warnings to Nasser of an impending Israeli attack on Syria. Although the chief of staff Mohamed Fawzi verified them as "baseless",[30][31] Nasser took three successive steps that made the war virtually inevitable: on 14 May he deployed his troops in Sinai near the border with Israel, on 19 May he expelled the UN peacekeepers stationed in the Sinai Peninsula border with Israel, and on 23 May he closed the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping.[32] On 26 May Nasser declared, "The battle will be a general one and our basic objective will be to destroy Israel".[33]

    Israel re-iterated that the Straits of Tiran closure was a Casus belli. This prompted the beginning of the Third Arab Israeli War (Six-Day War) in which Israel attacked Egypt, and occupied Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip, which Egypt had occupied since the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. During the 1967 war, an Emergency Law was enacted, and remained in effect until 2012, with the exception of an 18-month break in 1980/81.[34] Under this law, police powers were extended, constitutional rights suspended and censorship legalised.[35]

    At the time of the fall of the Egyptian monarchy in the early 1950s, less than half a million Egyptians were considered upper class and rich, four million middle class and 17 million lower class and poor.[36] Fewer than half of all primary-school-age children attended school, most of them being boys. Nasser's policies changed this. Land reform and distribution, the dramatic growth in university education, and government support to national industries greatly improved social mobility and flattened the social curve. From academic year 1953–54 through 1965–66, overall public school enrolments more than doubled. Millions of previously poor Egyptians, through education and jobs in the public sector, joined the middle class. Doctors, engineers, teachers, lawyers, journalists, constituted the bulk of the swelling middle class in Egypt under Nasser.[36] During the 1960s, the Egyptian economy went from sluggish to the verge of collapse, the society became less free, and Nasser's appeal waned considerably.[37]

    Arab Republic of Egypt (1971–present) President Sadat (1970–1981)
     
     
    Egyptian tanks advancing in the Sinai desert during the Yom Kippur War, 1973

    In 1970, President Nasser died of a heart attack and was succeeded by Anwar Sadat. Sadat switched Egypt's Cold War allegiance from the Soviet Union to the United States, expelling Soviet advisors in 1972. He launched the Infitah economic reform policy, while clamping down on religious and secular opposition. In 1973, Egypt, along with Syria, launched the Fourth Arab-Israeli War (Yom Kippur War), a surprise attack to regain part of the Sinai territory Israel had captured 6 years earlier. Eventually Israel won the war, but early successes restored Egypt's confidence and morale, allowing Sadat to later regain Sinai in exchange for peace with Israel.[citation needed]

     
     
    Celebrating the signing of the 1978 Camp David Accords: Menachem Begin, Jimmy Carter, Anwar Sadat

    In 1975, Sadat shifted Nasser's economic policies and sought to use his popularity to reduce government regulations and encourage foreign investment through his program of Infitah. Through this policy, incentives such as reduced taxes and import tariffs attracted some investors, but investments were mainly directed at low risk and profitable ventures like tourism and construction, abandoning Egypt's infant industries.[38] Even though Sadat's policy was intended to modernise Egypt and assist the middle class, it mainly benefited the higher class, and, because of the elimination of subsidies on basic foodstuffs, led to the 1977 Egyptian Bread Riots.

    In 1977, Sadat dissolved the Arab Socialist Union and replaced it with the National Democratic Party.

    Sadat made a historic visit to Israel in 1977, which led to the 1979 Egypt-Israel peace treaty in exchange for Israeli withdrawal from Sinai. In return, Egypt recognized Israel as a legitimate sovereign state. Sadat's initiative sparked enormous controversy in the Arab world and led to Egypt's expulsion from the Arab League, but it was supported by most Egyptians.[39] Sadat was assassinated by an Islamic extremist in October 1981.

    President Mubarak (1981–2011)

    Hosni Mubarak came to power after the assassination of Sadat in a referendum in which he was the only candidate.[40]

    Hosni Mubarak reaffirmed Egypt's relationship with Israel yet eased the tensions with Egypt's Arab neighbours. Domestically, Mubarak faced serious problems. Even though farm and industry output expanded, the economy could not keep pace with the population boom. Mass poverty and unemployment led rural families to stream into cities like Cairo where they ended up in crowded slums, barely managing to survive.

    On 25 February 1986, the Security Police started rioting, protesting against reports that their term of duty was to be extended from 3 to 4 years. Hotels, nightclubs, restaurants and casinos were attacked in Cairo and there were riots in other cities. A day time curfew was imposed. It took the army 3 days to restore order. 107 people were killed.[41]

    In the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, terrorist attacks in Egypt became numerous and severe, and began to target Christian Copts, foreign tourists and government officials.[42] In the 1990s an Islamist group, Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, engaged in an extended campaign of violence, from the murders and attempted murders of prominent writers and intellectuals, to the repeated targeting of tourists and foreigners. Serious damage was done to the largest sector of Egypt's economy—tourism[43]—and in turn to the government, but it also devastated the livelihoods of many of the people on whom the group depended for support.[44]

    During Mubarak's reign, the political scene was dominated by the National Democratic Party, which was created by Sadat in 1978. It passed the 1993 Syndicates Law, 1995 Press Law, and 1999 Nongovernmental Associations Law which hampered freedoms of association and expression by imposing new regulations and draconian penalties on violations.[45] As a result, by the late 1990s parliamentary politics had become virtually irrelevant and alternative avenues for political expression were curtailed as well.[46]

     
     
    Cairo grew into a metropolitan area with a population of over 20 million.

    On 17 November 1997, 62 people, mostly tourists, were massacred near Luxor.

    In late February 2005, Mubarak announced a reform of the presidential election law, paving the way for multi-candidate polls for the first time since the 1952 movement.[47] However, the new law placed restrictions on the candidates, and led to Mubarak's easy re-election victory.[48] Voter turnout was less than 25%.[49] Election observers also alleged government interference in the election process.[50] After the election, Mubarak imprisoned Ayman Nour, the runner-up.[51]

    Human Rights Watch's 2006 report on Egypt detailed serious human rights violations, including routine torture, arbitrary detentions and trials before military and state security courts.[52] In 2007, Amnesty International released a report alleging that Egypt had become an international centre for torture, where other nations send suspects for interrogation, often as part of the War on Terror.[53] Egypt's foreign ministry quickly issued a rebuttal to this report.[54]

    Constitutional changes voted on 19 March 2007 prohibited parties from using religion as a basis for political activity, allowed the drafting of a new anti-terrorism law, authorised broad police powers of arrest and surveillance, and gave the president power to dissolve parliament and end judicial election monitoring.[55] In 2009, Dr. Ali El Deen Hilal Dessouki, Media Secretary of the National Democratic Party (NDP), described Egypt as a "pharaonic" political system, and democracy as a "long-term goal". Dessouki also stated that "the real center of power in Egypt is the military".[56]

    Revolution (2011)
     
     
    Top: celebrations in Tahrir Square after the announcement of Hosni Mubarak's resignation.
    Bottom: protests in Tahrir Square against President Morsi on 27 November 2012.

    On 25 January 2011, widespread protests began against Mubarak's government. On 11 February 2011, Mubarak resigned and fled Cairo. Jubilant celebrations broke out in Cairo's Tahrir Square at the news.[57] The Egyptian military then assumed the power to govern.[58][59] Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, chairman of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, became the de facto interim head of state.[60][61] On 13 February 2011, the military dissolved the parliament and suspended the constitution.[62]

    A constitutional referendum was held on 19 March 2011.[63] On 28 November 2011, Egypt held its first parliamentary election since the previous regime had been in power. Turnout was high and there were no reports of major irregularities or violence.[64]

    President Morsi (2012–2013)

    Mohamed Morsi was elected president on 24 June 2012.[65] On 30 June 2012, Mohamed Morsi was sworn in as Egypt’s president.[66] On 2 August 2012, Egypt's Prime Minister Hisham Qandil announced his 35-member cabinet comprising 28 newcomers, including four from the Muslim Brotherhood.[67]

    Liberal and secular groups walked out of the constituent assembly because they believed that it would impose strict Islamic practices, while Muslim Brotherhood backers threw their support behind Morsi.[68] On 22 November 2012, President Morsi issued a temporary declaration immunising his decrees from challenge and seeking to protect the work of the constituent assembly.[69]

    The move led to massive protests and violent action throughout Egypt.[70] On 5 December 2012, tens of thousands of supporters and opponents of President Morsi clashed, in what was described as the largest violent battle between Islamists and their foes since the country's revolution.[71] Mohamed Morsi offered a "national dialogue" with opposition leaders but refused to cancel the December 2012 constitutional referendum.[72]

    Political crisis (2013)

    On 3 July 2013, after a wave of public discontent with autocratic excesses of Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood government,[73] the military removed Morsi from office, dissolved the Shura Council and installed a temporary interim government.[74]

    On 4 July 2013, 68-year-old Chief Justice of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt Adly Mansour was sworn in as acting president over the new government following the removal of Morsi.[75] The new Egyptian authorities cracked down on the Muslim Brotherhood and its supporters, jailing thousands and forcefully dispersing pro-Morsi and pro-Brotherhood protests.[76][77] Many of the Muslim Brotherhood leaders and activists have either been sentenced to death or life imprisonment in a series of mass trials.[78][79][80]

    On 18 January 2014, the interim government instituted a new constitution following a referendum approved by an overwhelming majority of voters (98.1%). 38.6% of registered voters participated in the referendum[81] a higher number than the 33% who voted in a referendum during Morsi's tenure.[82]

    President el-Sisi (2014–present)
     
     
    Women in Cairo wear face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic in Egypt in March 2020.

    On 26 March 2014, Field Marshal Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Egyptian Defence Minister and Commander-in-Chief Egyptian Armed Forces, retired from the military, announcing he would stand as a candidate in the 2014 presidential election.[83] The poll, held between 26 and 28 May 2014, resulted in a landslide victory for el-Sisi.[84] Sisi was sworn into office as President of Egypt on 8 June 2014.[85] The Muslim Brotherhood and some liberal and secular activist groups boycotted the vote.[86] Even though the interim authorities extended voting to a third day, the 46% turnout was lower than the 52% turnout in the 2012 election.[87]

    A new parliamentary election was held in December 2015, resulting in a landslide victory for pro-Sisi parties, which secured a strong majority in the newly formed House of Representatives.[88]

    In 2016, Egypt entered in a diplomatic crisis with Italy following the murder of researcher Giulio Regeni: in April 2016, Prime Minister Matteo Renzi recalled the Italian ambassador from Cairo because of lack of co-operation from the Egyptian Government in the investigation.[89] The ambassador was sent back to Egypt in 2017 by the new Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni.[90]

    El-Sisi was re-elected in 2018, facing no serious opposition.[91] In 2019, a series of constitutional amendments were approved by the parliament, further increasing the President's and the military's power, increasing presidential terms from 4 years to 6 years and allowing El-Sisi to run for another two mandates.[92] The proposals were approved in a referendum.[93]

    The dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam escalated in 2020.[94][95] Egypt sees the dam as an existential threat,[96] fearing that the dam will reduce the amount of water it receives from the Nile.[97]

    In December 2020, final results of the parliamentary election confirmed a clear majority of the seats for Egypt’s Mostaqbal Watn (Nation’s Future) Party, which strongly supports president el-Sisi. The party even increased its majority, partly because of new electoral rules.[98]

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Portraits of the Ptolemies: Greek kings as Egyptian pharaohs. Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 0-292-77772-8. ^ a b "Egypt". Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs. Archived from the original on 20 December 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2011. See drop-down essay on "Islamic Conquest and the Ottoman Empire" ^ Kamil, Jill. Coptic Egypt: History and Guide. Cairo: American University in Cairo, 1997. p. 39 ^ El-Daly, Okasha (2005). Egyptology: The Missing Millennium. London: UCL Press. p. 140. ^ a b c Abu-Lughod, Janet L. (1991) [1989]. "The Mideast Heartland". Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250–1350. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 243–244. ISBN 978-0-19-506774-3. ^ "Egypt – Major Cities". Countrystudies.us. Archived from the original on 17 January 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013. ^ Donald Quataert (2005). The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1922. Cambridge University Press. p. 115. ISBN 978-1-139-44591-7. Archived from the original on 13 February 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2013. ^ "Icelandic Volcano Caused Historic Famine In Egypt, Study Shows". ScienceDaily. 22 November 2006. Archived from the original on 17 January 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013. ^ a b Izzeddin, Nejla M. Abu (1981). Nasser of the Arabs: an Arab assessment. Third World Centre for Research and Publishing. p. 2. ISBN 978-0-86199-012-2. ^ a b Baten, Jörg (2016). A History of the Global Economy. From 1500 to the Present. Cambridge University Press. p. 217. ISBN 978-1-107-50718-0. ^ Fahmy, Khaled (1997). All the Pasha's Men: Mehmed Ali, his army and the making of modern Egypt. Cambridge Middle East Studies. Vol. 8. Cambridge University Press. pp. 119–147. ISBN 978-0-521-56007-8. ^ Baten, Jörg (2016). A History of the Global Economy. From 1500 to the Present. Cambridge University Press. p. 220, Figure 7.4 "Numeracy in selected Middle Eastern countries", based on Prayon and Baten (2013). ISBN 978-1-107-50718-0. ^ Nejla M. Abu Izzeddin, Nasser of the Arabs, p. 2. ^ Baten, Jörg (2016). A History of the Global Economy. From 1500 to the Present. Cambridge University Press. pp. 217, 224 Figure 7.6: "Height development in the Middle East and the world (male)" and 225. ISBN 978-1-107-50718-0. ^ Anglo French motivation: Derek Hopwood, Egypt: Politics and Society 1945–1981. London, 1982, George Allen & Unwin. p. 11. ^ De facto protectorate: Joan Wucher King, Historical Dictionary of Egypt. Metuchen, NJ; 1984; Scarecrow. p. 17. ^ Jankowski, James. Egypt, A Short History. p. 111. ^ "Treaty of Lausanne – World War I Document Archive". wwi.lib.byu.edu. Retrieved 29 January 2020. ^ Jankowski, James. Egypt, A Short History. p. 112. ^ Collins, Robert O.; Collins, Professor of History Robert O. (29 May 2008). A History of Modern Sudan. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-85820-5. ^ "Egypt". The World Factbook. CIA. Retrieved 2 February 2011. ^ "ذاكرة مصر المعاصر – السيرة الذاتية". modernegypt.bibalex.org. Archived from the original on 14 August 2018. Retrieved 24 September 2018. ^ Aburish, Said K. (2004). Nasser, the Last Arab. New York City: St. Martin's Press. p. 252. ISBN 978-0-312-28683-5. ^ Kandil, Hazem (2012). Soldiers, Spies and Statesmen: Egypt's Road to Revolt. Brooklyn: Verso Books. p. 76. ISBN 978-1-84467-962-1. ^ Shlaim, Rogan, 2012 pp. 7, 106 ^ Samir A. Mutawi (2002). Jordan in the 1967 War. Cambridge University Press. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-521-52858-0. Archived from the original on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2015. ^ "The Emergency Law in Egypt". International Federation for Human Rights. Archived from the original on 1 February 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2011. ^ "Egypt – Emergency Law No. 162/1958". www.ilo.org. Retrieved 7 May 2022. ^ a b Egypt on the Brink by Tarek Osman, Yale University Press, 2010, p. 120 ^ Jesse Ferris (2013). Nasser's Gamble: How Intervention in Yemen Caused the Six-Day War and the Decline of Egyptian Power. Princeton University Press. p. 2. ISBN 978-0-691-15514-2. Archived from the original on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2015. ^ Amin, Galal. Egypt's Economic Predicament: A Study in the Interaction of External Pressure, Political Folly, and Social Tension in Egypt, 1960–1990, 1995 ^ Vatikiotis, P.J. (1991). The History of Modern Egypt: From Muhammad Ali to Mubarak (4. ed.). London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson. p. 443. ISBN 978-0-297-82034-5. ^ Cambanis, Thanassis (11 September 2010). "Succession Gives Army a Stiff Test in Egypt". The New York Times. Egypt. Archived from the original on 27 October 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2011. ^ Middle East International No 270, 7 March 1986, Publishers Lord Mayhew, Dennis Walters. Simon Ingram p. 8, Per Gahrton p.20 ^ Murphy, Caryle Passion for Islam: Shaping the Modern Middle East: the Egyptian Experience, Scribner, 2002, p. 4 ^ "Solidly ahead of oil, Suez Canal revenues, and remittances, tourism is Egypt's main hard currency earner at $6.5 billion per year." 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Retrieved 8 February 2013. ^ "Egyptian vote marred by violence". Christian Science Monitor. 26 May 2005. Archived from the original on 8 February 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013. ^ "United States "Deeply Troubled" by Sentencing of Egypt's Nour". U.S. Department of State. 24 December 2005. Archived from the original on 21 October 2011. Retrieved 8 February 2013. ^ "Egypt: Events of 2005". Egypt: Overview of human rights issues in Egypt. Human Rights Watch. 5 January 2006. Archived from the original on 14 November 2008. Retrieved 8 February 2013. ^ "Egypt torture centre, report says". BBC News. 11 April 2007. Archived from the original on 26 November 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2011. ^ "Egypt rejects torture criticism". BBC News. 13 April 2007. Archived from the original on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 3 November 2011. ^ "Anger over Egypt vote timetable". BBC News. 20 March 2007. Archived from the original on 29 November 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2011. ^ "NDP Insider: Military will ensure transfer of power". US Department of State. 30 July 2009. Archived from the original on 28 January 2011. ^ "Mubarak Resigns As Egypt's President, Armed Forces To Take Control". Huffington Post. 11 February 2011. Archived from the original on 22 March 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013. ^ Kirkpatrick, David D. (11 February 2010). "Mubarak Steps Down, Ceding Power to Military". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 11 February 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011. ^ "Egypt crisis: President Hosni Mubarak resigns as leader". BBC. 11 February 2010. Archived from the original on 11 February 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011. ^ Hope, Christopher; Swinford, Steven (15 February 2011). "WikiLeaks: Egypt's new man at the top 'was against reform'". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 March 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2011. ^ "The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces: Constitutional Proclamation". Egypt State Information Service. 13 February 2011. Archived from the original on 27 April 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2011. The Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces shall represent it internally and externally. ^ "Egyptian Parliament dissolved, constitution suspended". BBC. 13 February 2011. Archived from the original on 14 February 2011. Retrieved 13 February 2011. ^ Harris, Marty. "The Egyptian constitutional referendum of March 2011 a new beginning". www.aph.gov.au. ^ Memmott, Mark (28 November 2011). "Egypt's Historic Day Proceeds Peacefully, Turnout High For Elections". NPR. Npr.org. Archived from the original on 2 December 2012. Retrieved 8 February 2013. ^ "Egypt's new president moves into his offices, begins choosing a Cabinet". CNN. 25 June 2012. Archived from the original on 12 May 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2013. ^ "Mohamed Morsi sworn in as Egypt's president". www.aljazeera.com. ^ "Egypt unveils new cabinet, Tantawi keeps defence post". 3 August 2012. ^ "Rallies for, against Egypt president's new powers". Associated Press. 23 November 2012. Archived from the original on 29 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012. ^ "Egypt's President Mursi assumes sweeping powers". BBC News. 22 November 2012. Archived from the original on 22 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012. ^ Spencer, Richard (23 November 2012). "Violence breaks out across Egypt as protesters decry Mohammed Morsi's constitutional 'coup'". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 27 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012. ^ "Egypt Sees Largest Clash Since Revolution". Wall Street Journal. 6 December 2012. Archived from the original on 21 April 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2012. ^ Fleishman, Jeffrey (6 December 2012). "Morsi refuses to cancel Egypt's vote on constitution". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 8 December 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2012. ^ "Think Again: The Muslim Brotherhood". Al-Monitor. 28 January 2013. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2016. ^ Kirkpatrick, David D. (3 July 2013). "Army Ousts Egypt's President; Morsi Denounces 'Military Coup'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 4 July 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2013. ^ Holpuch, Amanda; Siddique, Haroon; Weaver, Matthew (4 July 2013). "Egypt's interim president sworn in - Thursday 4 July". The Guardian. ^ "Egypt protests: Hundreds killed after police storm pro-Morsi camps". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 15 August 2013. Archived from the original on 4 August 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014. ^ "Abuse claims rife as Egypt admits jailing 16,000 Islamists in eight months". The Independent. 16 March 2014. Archived from the original on 4 September 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014. ^ "Egypt sentences 683 to death in latest mass trial of dissidents". The Washington Post. 28 April 2014. Archived from the original on 20 June 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014. ^ "Egyptian court sentences 529 people to death". The Washington Post. 24 March 2014. Archived from the original on 5 August 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014. ^ "Egyptian court sentences Muslim Brotherhood leader to life in prison". Reuters. 4 July 2014. Archived from the original on 29 July 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014. ^ "Egypt constitution 'approved by 98.1 percent'". Al Jazeera English. 18 January 2014. Archived from the original on 19 January 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2014. ^ "Egypt's new constitution gets 98% 'yes' vote". the Guardian. 18 January 2014. Retrieved 25 November 2022. ^ "Egypt's El-Sisi bids military farewell, says he will run for presidency". Ahram Online. 26 March 2014. Archived from the original on 27 March 2014. 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    Read less
Stay safe
  •  
    Stay safe

    Emergency numbers

    Police: 122 Ambulance: 123 Fire Department: 180 Highway: 136 Natural gas: 129

    Others from Yellow pages

    Overall, Egypt is a safe and friendly country to travel in. Unless you are visiting Sinai, have something against the local government or are overly disrespectful against Islam, you can freely move around in Egypt and its cities without many concerns. Travelling in Egypt is very much similar to Morocco, Jordan, Palestine or Turkey.

    Egyptians on the whole are very friendly—if you are in need of assistance, they will generally try to help you as much as they are able. However, be aware of potential scams especially in overly touristy areas.

    Female travellers

    Egyptian men will make compliments to women; do not take offence if they do this to you. Men should not be worried, either; if they do this to your partner/daughter, it will be nothing more than a compliment, and hopefully won't go any further than that.

    Be warned that some men may inappropriately touch you. Don't be afraid to create a scene and don't feel the need to be polite; most Egyptians are hugely ashamed of this highly sensitive issue, and bystanders may come to your aid if prompted. No Egyptian woman (or any woman for that matter) would put up with rotten behaviour like that.

    One way to deter harassers: loudly say "haraam aleik" (lit. shame on you) or the simpler phrase "imshi" (lit. go away or get lost)

    Political unrest

    Egypt is a politically troubled country. Protests against the government can occur at any time and they can sometimes turn violent. It is believed that Abdel Fattah el-Sisi's government is much more stricter than that of his predecessor, Hosni Mubarak.

    ...Read more
     
    Stay safe

    Emergency numbers

    Police: 122 Ambulance: 123 Fire Department: 180 Highway: 136 Natural gas: 129

    Others from Yellow pages

    Overall, Egypt is a safe and friendly country to travel in. Unless you are visiting Sinai, have something against the local government or are overly disrespectful against Islam, you can freely move around in Egypt and its cities without many concerns. Travelling in Egypt is very much similar to Morocco, Jordan, Palestine or Turkey.

    Egyptians on the whole are very friendly—if you are in need of assistance, they will generally try to help you as much as they are able. However, be aware of potential scams especially in overly touristy areas.

    Female travellers

    Egyptian men will make compliments to women; do not take offence if they do this to you. Men should not be worried, either; if they do this to your partner/daughter, it will be nothing more than a compliment, and hopefully won't go any further than that.

    Be warned that some men may inappropriately touch you. Don't be afraid to create a scene and don't feel the need to be polite; most Egyptians are hugely ashamed of this highly sensitive issue, and bystanders may come to your aid if prompted. No Egyptian woman (or any woman for that matter) would put up with rotten behaviour like that.

    One way to deter harassers: loudly say "haraam aleik" (lit. shame on you) or the simpler phrase "imshi" (lit. go away or get lost)

    Political unrest

    Egypt is a politically troubled country. Protests against the government can occur at any time and they can sometimes turn violent. It is believed that Abdel Fattah el-Sisi's government is much more stricter than that of his predecessor, Hosni Mubarak.

    Publicising negative opinions about the government can cause trouble with the authorities. In some cases, people have been arrested for voicing strong opinions against the government on social media.

    In other words, keep your political opinions to yourself.

    Terrorism

    Terrorism is a safety concern, and the country's terrorist groups have an unpleasant record of specifically targeting Western tourists and the places they frequent. However, lately the focus seems more on the minority of Coptic Christians than on tourists. The Egyptian security forces remain on a very high level of alert.

    Realistically, the odds of being affected by terrorism are statistically low and most attacks have only succeeded in killing Egyptians, further increasing the revulsion the vast majority of Egyptians feel for the extremists. The government takes the issue very seriously only when it harms them financially and tourist sites are heavily guarded, though with the level and proficiency of Egyptian police leaving a lot to be desired. For example, if you take a taxi from Cairo to Alexandria, you will be stopped at a checkpoint before leaving Cairo. They will on occasion ask where you are going, and on occasion communicate with the checkpoint at Alexandria to make sure you reach your destination within a certain time period. The same goes for most trips into the desert, particularly in Upper Egypt, which is probably best avoided due to rising religious tensions that seep below the surface and whilst appearing safe has the capacity to erupt without a moment's notice. During different branches of your drive, you may be escorted by local police, who will expect some sort of financial payment if you are travelling in a taxi or private car. Generally, they will travel to your destination with you, wait around until you are finished, and usually stay behind at one of the next checkpoints often as they have nothing else to do and because tourists are seen as $ signs. The best example of this is when you travel from Aswan to Abu Simbel to visit the Temple of Ramses II. An armed tourism police officer will board your tourist bus and escort you until you arrive at Abu Simbel, and after your tour, he will ride on the same bus with you back to Aswan, again because it's part of his job and without the tourists there would be no jobs and there would be no reason to ensure security for their own people as they don't represent a financial figure to them.

     
     
    Mounted police on camels in Giza

    There are also many tourism police officers armed with AK47s riding on camels patrolling the Giza plateau. They are there to ensure the safety of the tourists since the Pyramids are the crown jewels of all the Egyptian antiquities. They are very poorly maintained with no forthcoming investments from within Egypt, only outside investment given by countries and historical groups that cannot bear to see the ruin the local government is letting these sites of wonder become. Some tourists may find it exciting or even amusing to take pictures with these police officers on camel back; however, since they are all on patrol duty, it is not uncommon for them to verbally warn you not to pose next to them in order to take a picture with them, although anything is possible for financial payment.

    Drugs
    Travel Warning  WARNING: Egypt treats drug offences extremely severely. The death penalty is possible for those who are convicted for drug trafficking.

    Unauthorised consumption can result in up to 10 years in prison, a heavy fine or both. You can be charged for unauthorised consumption as long as traces of illicit drugs are found in your system, even if you can prove that they were consumed outside the country. You can also be charged for trafficking if drugs are found in bags that are in your possession or in your room, even if they aren't yours and regardless of whether you're aware of them - therefore be vigilant of your possessions.

    Cannabis and other narcotics are banned and carry heavy penalties. However, hashish in particular is common, even among Egyptians; it is seen to some extent as a part of Egyptian culture and is generally considered much less objectionable than alcohol. Many Egyptian clerics regard it makruh (permitted but disapproved of) rather than haraam (forbidden). Many Egyptians who recoil at the idea of drinking alcohol think nothing of using hashish; it is commonly used on festive occasions in rural areas in some parts of the country and in many Sufi rituals nationwide. The police may use possession of hashish as a pretext for arresting and beating up people, but their targets are typically locals, not tourists. So long as you do not antagonise the security forces or otherwise attract their attention, foreigners are unlikely to be punished for private consumption of cannabis within Egypt. But bringing the stuff in or out of the country, or flying domestically with it, is likely to end badly.

    Egypt, like the Gulf States, has clamped down on legal painkillers, even when they're accompanied by a prescription and are for the traveller's own use. Check their embassy website for the current list of what's not allowed. It's unclear how rigorously this will be enforced. But probably, as in other matters, unobtrusive personal use will be OK; get slurry on vodka and Tramadol and you could be in trouble.

    Traffic

    Traffic in Egypt is reckless and dangerous. Pay particular attention when crossing the road.

    Scams and hassle

    Scams and hassle are the main concern in Egypt, especially in Luxor. Visitors often complain about being hassled and attempts at scamming. While irritating, most of this is pretty harmless stuff, like attempting to lure you into a local papyrus or perfume shop.

    Be aware that many Egyptians who start a conversation with you want your money. Typically, you will be approached by a person speaking fluent English, German or Russian who will strike up a conversation under social pretences. He (and it will always be a he) will then attempt to get you to come along for a cup of tea or similar at his favourite (most-paying) souvenir shop. This could also happen outside museums, etc., where the scammer will try to make you believe the "museum is closed" or similar. If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Demand prices for everything, because if you say "I thought it was free" after the fact you are in for a vicious argument.

    Hassling, while never dangerous, could also be annoying, especially in the main tourist areas. There is no way to avoid this, but a polite la shukran (no thanks) helps a lot. Apart from that, try to take hassling with a smile. If you let yourself be bugged by everyone trying to sell you something, your holiday won't be a very happy one.

    Potentially more annoying are taxi drivers or others getting a commission fee to lead you to their hotel of choice, of course paying commission fees for each guest they receive. Firmly stand your ground on this. If they insist, just ask to be dropped off at a street or landmark close to the place you are heading to. This scam is especially common among taxi drivers from the airport.

    Gay/lesbian

    Gay and lesbian visitors should be self-aware and refrain from overt and public displays. While a few gay bars had been able to operate semi-openly in major cities in pre-revolutionary times, the situation has deteriorated and members of gay baths or gay wedding parties were being targeted for prosecution for "debauchery" in 2014.

    Egypt is an Islamic and conservative country. Any display of homosexuality is considered strange, weird, disrespectful and may lead on most occasions to hostile reactions. Depending on the situation and the place and time, it could be anything from weird looks to physical abuse. Therefore, gays and lesbians should be discreet while in Egypt.

    The gay scene in Egypt is not open and free like in the West. Gays have been arrested by the police and detained and even tortured in Cairo in the past for engaging in homosexual activity. Human rights groups have condemned such actions and the Egyptian government has been under pressure from different sources to stop this treatment of homosexuals. The most famous arrests were in 2001 on a boat called the Queen Boat located on the Nile River in Zamalek district. Further arrests have occurred since then, but the exact situation of homosexuals in the last few years is uncertain.

    There are no official gay places for cruising or meeting other people.

    Crime

    Pick pocketing was a problem in the past in Egypt's bigger cities, particularly Greater Cairo. Many locals therefore opted not to carry wallets at all, instead keeping their money in a clip in their pocket, and tourists would be wise to adopt this as well. On the upside, violent crime is rare, especially for tourists, and you are highly unlikely to be mugged or robbed. If, however, you do find yourself the victim of crime, you may get the support of local pedestrians by shouting "Harami" (Thief) but do not pursue because it's the easiest way to get lost and most criminals carry pocket knives; if the crime happens in a tourist area you'll find a specially designated Tourism Police kiosk.

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