Rethinking Egypt News Today

Almost a week into the Israel-Hamas war, sparked by Hamas’ massive Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel and seizure of over 150 hostages, the death toll continues to mount, reaching more than 2,700 Israelis and Palestinians. Israel is carrying out punishing airstrikes and preparing for a possible ground invasion, as its new unity government vows to “crush Hamas.” It has completely sealed off Gaza, with no deliveries of food, water, or fuel and no electricity, and the U.N. is warning of an imp...

Several countries in the MENA region have been facing financial crises of unprecedented gravity. The MENA Commission on Stabilization and Growth Report describes how debt ratios started rising after the Arab Uprisings as fiscal policies became more expansionary, and how this was further precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ukraine war, and the rise in global interest rates. The financial crises are especially acute in Lebanon, Egypt, and Tunisia, where external shocks have exacerbated deep...

World Water Day, observed annually on March 22, draws awareness to issues of scarcity, sustainability, and safety of global freshwater resources. The security and reliability of water resources are constantly challenged by concerns over adequate availability, sufficient access to clean water, and the consequences of diminished and unsafe water supplies (e.g. to health and food security).

The 2022 U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP27) will convene in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, from November 6 to 18.

Mirette F. Mabrouk is an MEI senior fellow and founding director of the Institute's Egypt Studies program. She was previously deputy director and director for research and programs at the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East at the Atlantic Council. Formerly a fellow at the Project for U.S. Relations with the Middle East at the Brookings Institution, Mabrouk moved to D.C. from Cairo, where she was director of communications for the Economic Research Forum (ERF). Before being appointed as...