Latest news with #MinistryofEuropeandForeignAffairs
Middle East
13-05-2025
- Business
- Middle East
OPEN// Egypt, France discuss strengthening coordination on development challenges in int'l forums
CAIRO, May 13 (MENA) - Personal Representative of the President to the G20 and BRICS and Assistant Foreign Minister Ragy El-Etreby discussed with Ludovic Pouille, the Director for Economic Diplomacy at the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, coordination between Egypt and France regarding advancing constructive ideas and proposals in international forums which address development issues and challenges facing developing countries, including middle-income nations such as Egypt. This came during a session of talks held by both officials to review prospects for cooperation between Egypt and France on international economic issues of mutual priority, where they agreed on the need for enhancing collaboration within the frameworks of the G20 and G7. The president's personal representative expressed the Egyptian government's hope for the G7, during France's presidency of the group next year, to achieve greater convergence in viewpoints between development partners on one side and developing countries on the other. This includes challenges related to food and energy security, international trade rules, supply chains, maritime navigation and climate change. Furthermore, the discussions between the two sides addressed the need to rectify the growing imbalances in the global financial system, particularly with regard to enhancing development financing tools and appropriate mechanisms to manage debt crises. They both agreed that these issues are especially critical in light of the current global context marked by unprecedented geopolitical and trade tensions and a noticeable decline in levels of international cooperation and trust in global institutions. Etreby stated that the discussions reflected a shared understanding between the two parties on the importance of working jointly on all these issues. This cooperation will also extend to Egypt's participation in G20 meetings and summits, he pointed out. According to him, the meeting with Pouille came within the context of the continuing positive development of relations between Egypt and France across various fields, building on the significant outcomes of the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to Egypt last April, during which both countries agreed to elevate their bilateral relationship to the level of strategic partnership. (MENA) R E E/
Euronews
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Euronews
Funniest internet reactions to first American pope Leo XIV
The papal conclave is over and a new pope has officially been announced: Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, now known as Pope Leo XIV. The 69-year-old is the first-ever American pope, having been born in Chicago, Illinois. And as you can imagine, the internet wasted no time in commenting on the moment, with reactions that verged from humorous to plain dumb – especially when it came to the MAGA crowd, who weren't best pleased that the new pope didn't speak in English for his first speech. For the sake of sanity, we won't focus on the terminally stupid takes and opt for the sanity-restoring tomfoolery, with a great deal of social media users taking the late Pope Francis at his word when he said 'There is faith in humour' and letting their Chicago pride shine. The Chicago mayor, Brandon Johnson, posted: 'Everything dope, including the Pope, comes from Chicago! Congratulations to the first American Pope Leo XIV! We hope to welcome you back home soon.' Others referenced Chicago's famous deep dish pizza, joking about whether Rome would be able to accept that particular kind of culinary heresy, while some referenced the celebrated Chicago-based TV show The Bear. Here are some of our favourite reactions to the new pope: "Smart play for the Vatican to go with an American Pope to avoid tariffs" Some homework will be required... No truer word has been spoken. For those not familiar, Malört is an American brand of bäsk liqueur, a type of brännvin flavored with anise that was introduced in Chicago in the 1930s. Spoiler: it's disgusting. Impressive run, it has to be said. The odds look good. It's mustard and pickles all the way now. Which is no bad thing. Pope Chuck does have a certain ring to it... Is it too late to make a change? Looks... sturdy. The horror... The horror... This take will not fly. And deep dish pizza is not pizza. To quote Jon Stewart, in one of his finest rants: 'It's a casserole.' Pope Mush the Dainty. It did go by awfully quickly, didn't it? Franco-Algerian writer Kamel Daoud is the target of two international arrest warrants issued by Algerian authorities in connection with the controversy surrounding his novel 'Houris', which won the Goncourt Prize in 2024. Daoud became the first author of Algerian descent to win the Goncourt Prize – the most prestigious award in French literature. France has been informed of the two arrest warrants, a spokesperson for the French Foreign Ministry said. 'We are following and will continue to follow developments in this situation closely,' said Christophe Lemoine, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, stressing that France was committed to freedom of expression. The author, who is a French citizen and resides in France, is accused of having used the story of a survivor of a massacre during the Algerian civil war without her consent – an accusation he denies. Last November, an Algerian court accepted an initial complaint against the writer and his psychiatrist wife for using the story of a patient in the writing of his novel 'Houris'. Two appeals were lodged against Daoud and his wife, who treated Saâda Arbane. One complaint came from Arbane, a survivor of a massacre during the civil war in Algeria (1992-2002), who accused the couple of using her story without her consent. The other is from the National Organisation of Victims of Terrorism. On learning that these arrest warrants had been issued against him, the writer's lawyer, Jacqueline Laffont-Haïk, said that Daoud would contest them with Interpol. 'The motives behind these Algerian warrants can only be political and part of a series of procedures aimed at silencing a writer whose latest novel evokes the massacres of the black decade in Algeria,' said Laffont-Haïk. 'Houris' is a dark novel set partly in Oran about Aube, a young woman who has been mute since an Islamist slit her throat on 31 December 1999. The book is banned in Algeria, as the country prohibits any work evoking this period of civil war. Indeed, 'Houris' contravenes an article of the Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation, which prohibits the evocation of the "wounds of the national tragedy" - the expression used to describe the civil war that pitted Islamist groups against the Algerian army from 1992 to 2002, killing 200,000 people and leaving thousands more missing. Kamel Daoud previously claimed that the story was 'public' in Algeria and that his novel 'does not recount (the) life' of Saâda Arbane. 'This unfortunate young woman claims that this is her story. While I can understand her tragedy, my answer is clear: it's completely false,' wrote Daoud in an article for the French publication Le Point last December. 'Apart from the apparent wound, there is nothing in common between this woman's unbearable tragedy and the character Aube. The wound is not unique. Unfortunately, it is shared by many other victims,' continued Daoud, who accused the plaintiff of being 'manipulated to achieve an objective: to kill a writer and defame (his) family.' Daoud's publisher, Gallimard, has denounced the 'violent defamatory campaigns orchestrated (against the writer) by certain media close to a regime whose nature is well known.'
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Algeria issues two arrest warrants for Franco-Algerian writer Kamel Daoud
Franco-Algerian writer Kamel Daoud is the target of two international arrest warrants issued by Algerian authorities in connection with the controversy surrounding his novel 'Houris', which won the Goncourt Prize in 2024. Daoud became the first author of Algerian descent to win the Goncourt Prize – the most prestigious award in French literature. France has been informed of the two arrest warrants, a spokesperson for the French Foreign Ministry said. 'We are following and will continue to follow developments in this situation closely,' said Christophe Lemoine, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, stressing that France was committed to freedom of expression. The author, who is a French citizen and resides in France, is accused of having used the story of a survivor of a massacre during the Algerian civil war without her consent – an accusation he denies. Last November, an Algerian court accepted an initial complaint against the writer and his psychiatrist wife for using the story of a patient in the writing of his novel 'Houris'. Two appeals were lodged against Daoud and his wife, who treated Saâda Arbane. One complaint came from Arbane, a survivor of a massacre during the civil war in Algeria (1992-2002), who accused the couple of using her story without her consent. The other is from the National Organisation of Victims of Terrorism. On learning that these arrest warrants had been issued against him, the writer's lawyer, Jacqueline Laffont-Haïk, said that Daoud would contest them with Interpol. 'The motives behind these Algerian warrants can only be political and part of a series of procedures aimed at silencing a writer whose latest novel evokes the massacres of the black decade in Algeria,' said Laffont-Haïk. 'Houris' is a dark novel set partly in Oran about Aube, a young woman who has been mute since an Islamist slit her throat on 31 December 1999. The book is banned in Algeria, as the country prohibits any work evoking this period of civil war. Indeed, 'Houris' contravenes an article of the Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation, which prohibits the evocation of the "wounds of the national tragedy" - the expression used to describe the civil war that pitted Islamist groups against the Algerian army from 1992 to 2002, killing 200,000 people and leaving thousands more missing. Kamel Daoud previously claimed that the story was 'public' in Algeria and that his novel 'does not recount (the) life' of Saâda Arbane. 'This unfortunate young woman claims that this is her story. While I can understand her tragedy, my answer is clear: it's completely false,' wrote Daoud in an article for the French publication Le Point last December. 'Apart from the apparent wound, there is nothing in common between this woman's unbearable tragedy and the character Aube. The wound is not unique. Unfortunately, it is shared by many other victims,' continued Daoud, who accused the plaintiff of being 'manipulated to achieve an objective: to kill a writer and defame (his) family.' Daoud's publisher, Gallimard, has denounced the 'violent defamatory campaigns orchestrated (against the writer) by certain media close to a regime whose nature is well known.'
Euronews
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
Algeria issues two arrest warrants for Gouncourt winner Kamel Daoud
Franco-Algerian writer Kamel Daoud is the target of two international arrest warrants issued by Algerian authorities in connection with the controversy surrounding his novel 'Houris', which won the Goncourt Prize in 2024. Daoud became the first author of Algerian descent to win the Goncourt Prize – the most prestigious award in French literature. France has been informed of the two arrest warrants, a spokesperson for the French Foreign Ministry said. 'We are following and will continue to follow developments in this situation closely,' said Christophe Lemoine, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, stressing that France was committed to freedom of expression. The author, who is a French citizen and resides in France, is accused of having used the story of a survivor of a massacre during the Algerian civil war without her consent – an accusation he denies. Last November, an Algerian court accepted an initial complaint against the writer and his psychiatrist wife for using the story of a patient in the writing of his novel 'Houris'. Two appeals were lodged against Daoud and his wife, who treated Saâda Arbane. One complaint came from Arbane, a survivor of a massacre during the civil war in Algeria (1992-2002), who accused the couple of using her story without her consent. The other is from the National Organisation of Victims of Terrorism. On learning that these arrest warrants had been issued against him, the writer's lawyer, Jacqueline Laffont-Haïk, said that Daoud would contest them with Interpol. 'The motives behind these Algerian warrants can only be political and part of a series of procedures aimed at silencing a writer whose latest novel evokes the massacres of the black decade in Algeria,' said Laffont-Haïk. 'Houris' is a dark novel set partly in Oran about Aube, a young woman who has been mute since an Islamist slit her throat on 31 December 1999. The book is banned in Algeria, as the country prohibits any work evoking this period of civil war. Indeed, 'Houris' contravenes an article of the Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation, which prohibits the evocation of the "wounds of the national tragedy" - the expression used to describe the civil war that pitted Islamist groups against the Algerian army from 1992 to 2002, killing 200,000 people and leaving thousands more missing. Kamel Daoud previously claimed that the story was 'public' in Algeria and that his novel 'does not recount (the) life' of Saâda Arbane. 'This unfortunate young woman claims that this is her story. While I can understand her tragedy, my answer is clear: it's completely false,' wrote Daoud in an article for the French publication Le Point last December. 'Apart from the apparent wound, there is nothing in common between this woman's unbearable tragedy and the character Aube. The wound is not unique. Unfortunately, it is shared by many other victims,' continued Daoud, who accused the plaintiff of being 'manipulated to achieve an objective: to kill a writer and defame (his) family.' Daoud's publisher, Gallimard, has denounced the 'violent defamatory campaigns orchestrated (against the writer) by certain media close to a regime whose nature is well known.' Sotheby's has postponed an auction of jewels associated with Buddha's remains after the Indian government demanded the sale be halted. The Piprahwa gems, which the auction house said dated back to around 200 B.C., were scheduled to go under the hammer on Wednesday. Sotheby's had said in February that their discovery ranked "among the most extraordinary archaeological discoveries of all time". India's Ministry of Culture said in a Facebook post that it had issued a legal notice to Sotheby's Hong Kong to demand the immediate halt of the sale, accusing the auction of violating 'Indian laws, international norms and UN conventions.' In its letter to Sotheby's Hong Kong dated Monday, posted on Facebook, it said the auction involves sacred Buddhist relics that constitute the inalienable religious and cultural heritage of India and the global Buddhist community. It demanded the repatriation of the relics to the Indian government and a public apology from the auction house and Chris Peppé - the great-grandson of British estate manager William Claxton Peppé, who excavated the relics. The gems for auction were found buried together in reliquaries with the corporeal relics of the historical Buddha and discovered in northern India in 1898, the auction house said. The nearly 1,800 gems, including rubies, sapphires and patterned gold sheets, were excavated at the Piprahwa village near the Buddha's birthplace and have been attributed to a clan linked to the religious figure. The Indian government warned in the letter that failure to comply would result in legal actions and public advocacy campaigns highlighting the auction house's role 'in perpetuating colonial injustice and becoming a party to unethical sale of religious relics.' Sotheby's announced the postponement in a statement, acknowledging the matters raised by the Indian government and saying it was done with the agreement of the consignors. 'This will allow for discussions between the parties, and we look forward to sharing any updates as appropriate,' it said. Some of Sotheby's webpages about the auction were no longer available. The Indian Ministry of Culture said on Facebook on Wednesday it was 'pleased to inform' that the auction was postponed after its intervention.
Egypt Today
10-02-2025
- Business
- Egypt Today
ICT Minister meets with global ministers to discuss AI governance, emphasizes Egypt's AI-related commitments
Cairo – February 10, 2025: Amr Talaat, Egypt's Minister of Communications and Information Technology, reaffirmed the country's commitment to advancing global artificial intelligence (AI) governance during his participation in the Ministerial Coordination Meeting of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI). Additionally, Talaat outlined Egypt's efforts to address the impact of AI on the job market, emphasizing the country's focus on providing digital skills training to workers. These initiatives aim to equip individuals with the skills necessary to meet the evolving demands of the economy. Moreover, he underscored Egypt's commitment to enhancing cybersecurity for AI systems, focusing on privacy protection and preventing data breaches. The meeting was held at the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs in Paris, as part of the ongoing Artificial Intelligence Summit. The meeting focused on the comprehensive approach adopted by the GPAI in AI governance, aiming to explore future cooperation opportunities with countries across different regions and strengthen international coordination in the AI field. Participants included senior officials such as Jelena Begovic, Serbia's Minister of Science, Technological Development, and Innovation; Aysen Atchieveri, Chile's Minister of Science, Technology, Knowledge, and Innovation; Zhaslan Madiev, Kazakhstan's Minister of Digitalization, Innovation, and Aerospace; and Audrey Blonk, Deputy Director of Science, Technology, and Innovation at the OECD. During the meeting, Talaat outlined Egypt's latest advancements in AI governance, including Egypt's launch of the second version of its National Artificial Intelligence Strategy in January 2025. This updated strategy focuses on six main pillars. The first of these is governance, ensuring the ethical and responsible use of AI while addressing issues such as transparency, algorithmic bias, and privacy protection. The second pillar involves data governance, which aims to develop robust frameworks to ensure the safe and ethical use of data in AI technologies. Another critical pillar is infrastructure, which aims to expand cloud computing services, implement digital transformation projects, and provide high-performance computing applications. Talaat also emphasized the importance of fostering an innovative ecosystem by supporting startups and nurturing innovation. The technology pillar, which focuses on the development of new AI models and algorithms, including deep learning applications, is crucial for improving the quality of life and enhancing the efficiency of various sectors. Lastly, the strategy prioritizes the development of AI skills through capacity-building programs. These initiatives are designed to equip workers with the necessary skills to thrive in an AI-driven economy. Talaat also underscored Egypt's active role in international AI forums, noting that Egypt is the first African nation to adopt the OECD's AI principles. The country is also contributing to the OECD's AI Working Group, underscoring its commitment to international collaboration. Talaat emphasized Egypt's interest in fostering regional cooperation in AI, particularly within the Arab and African regions, through the Arab League and the African Union. He also discussed Egypt's efforts to address the challenges posed by AI technologies, such as algorithmic bias, transparency, and accountability, in alignment with international initiatives. The minister called for increased global investments in innovation to address the challenges related to the high costs of AI infrastructure. He also advocated for more research in the field of AI within both Africa and the Arab region. During his visit, Talaat is scheduled to meet with officials from French companies to discuss investment opportunities in Egypt's communications and information technology sector, as well as with representatives from international institutions to explore potential areas of cooperation.
