World
Egyptians launch online campaign for Gamal Mubarak as president
![Egyptians launch online campaign for Gamal Mubarak as president Egyptians launch online campaign for Gamal Mubarak as president](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/2011413131327238738_20.jpeg?resize=1200,675)
Campaigners launch Twitter hashtag and Facebook page calling for Gamal, son of former President Hosni Mubarak, to run for president in April 2024.
Social media users in Egypt have launched an online campaign in support of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s son as a candidate in the presidential elections scheduled for April next year.
The hashtag “Gamal Mubarak” has been trending on Egyptian Twitter spaces for several days, with social media users sharing old videos of Mubarak, the son, in a show of support for his candidacy in the presidential race.
Campaigners also launched a page on Facebook under the same name in support of Mubarak’s candidacy.
In a post on Twitter, one social media user claimed that the only solution to Egypt’s political and economic crises was Gamal Mubarak as president.
قلتها منذ سنوات وما زلت أقولها: حل الأزمة السياسية والاقتصادية في مصر هو ترشح السيد جمال مبارك في الانتخابات الرئاسية وأن يصبح رئيسا لمصر فهو بخبرته وقدراته وعلاقاته الدولية قادر على تحقيق الانتقال إلى حكم مدني ومصالحة وطنية وطفرة اقتصادية. جمال مبارك هو الحل✌️🇪🇬#جمال_مبارك #مصر pic.twitter.com/lNOM0n27eE
— Sameh Abou Arayes سامح أبوعرايس (@SamehArayes) July 8, 2023
TRANSLATION: “I said it years ago and I will say it again. The solution to Egypt’s political and economic crises is for Gamal Mubarak to run for the elections and become president. With his experience, capabilities and relations, he will be able to transition Egypt towards civil rule, national reconciliation and economic growth. Gamal Mubarak is the solution.”
Another social media user posted on Twitter saying either Mubarak or Ahmed Tantawi, a former MP and Karama party leader, who announced his bid for the 2024 presidential election in February, would be better than President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
أنا مع ترشح #جمال_مبارك او #احمد_طنطاوي لرئاسة الجمهورية لأنه في كل الحالات هايكون ارحم من الكناس اللي ماسك البلد دلوقتي .. اللي منفضنا ومش مخلينا عارفين ناخد نفسنا ومش ملاحقين حتى نكفي بيوتنا . pic.twitter.com/Vl7oKITN39
— gaberelathrat (@GaberElathrat) July 8, 2023
TRANSLATION: “I support the candidacy of Gamal Mubarak or Ahmed Tantawi for the presidency, because either of them will be better than the one leading the country now.”
According to the 2019 Egyptian constitution, el-Sisi can run for a third six-year term in 2024.
Despite rumours of Mubarak contesting, he has not made any official comment. But in a 2006 interview with Egyptian talk show host Lamis el-Hadidy, Mubarak said he had neither intention nor desire to run for president.
In response to a tweet by controversial Egyptian businessman Ashraf al-Saad, Alaa Mubarak challenged al-Saad in a now-deleted post to predict the upcoming president. Some saw the response as an indication that Mubarak might run for president.
Earlier this month, al-Saad posted on Twitter a 2013 TV interview clip where he had predicted el-Sisi would become the next president.
Public divide
While some Egyptians have shown strong support for the younger Mubarak to run as president, others have been critical of the possibility, raising concerns over his 2015 release from prison.
Gamal and his brother Alaa were released less than four years after they were first arrested along with their father in April 2011 – a few months after Hosni Mubarak stepped down in February 2011 in the face of a popular uprising.
Security officials said at the time of their release that the two – businessman Alaa and Mubarak’s one-time heir apparent Gamal – along with their father, still faced a retrial on corruption charges. Separately, the two sons also faced trial on insider trading charges.
Mubarak, who ruled Egypt for almost 30 years, was released from prison in 2017 and died at the age of 91 in 2020. He was widely believed to have been grooming Gamal to succeed him.
Controversial Mubarak legacy
Throughout his rule, Mubarak was a stalwart United States ally, a bulwark against armed groups, and a guardian of Egypt’s peace with Israel.
But to the hundreds of thousands of young Egyptians who rallied for 18 days of unprecedented street protests in Cairo’s central Tahrir Square and elsewhere in 2011, Mubarak was a relic, a latter-day pharaoh.
Mubarak had been sentenced to life in prison in 2012 for conspiring to murder 239 demonstrators during the 18-day revolt.
An appeals court ordered a retrial and the case against Mubarak and his senior officials was dropped. He was finally acquitted in 2017.
After his arrest in April 2011, Mubarak spent much of the nearly six years he was in prison in hospitals. Following his release, he was taken to an apartment in Cairo’s Heliopolis district.
Many Egyptians who lived through Mubarak’s time in power view it as “a period of autocracy and crony capitalism”. His overthrow led to Egypt’s first free election, which brought in President Mohamed Morsi.
Morsi lasted only a year in office after mass protests in 2013 led to his overthrow in a coup by then-defence chief General el-Sisi, who is now president.
Over the past decade, Mubarak-era figures were gradually cleared of charges, and laws limiting political freedoms raised fears among activists that the old regime was back.
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/np-logo.png)
World
Trump FBI pick Kash Patel clears Senate panel, headed for confirmation vote
![Trump FBI pick Kash Patel clears Senate panel, headed for confirmation vote Trump FBI pick Kash Patel clears Senate panel, headed for confirmation vote](https://www.reuters.com/resizer/v2/I2UPMCJKAVMHZOY35PZAC6VHXE.jpg?auth=dce3da9a1e29837fcaf834668bb7b932dbf2c312b283cc38f82198f6e0669f6a&height=1005&width=1920&quality=80&smart=true)
World
Russia claims Trump, Putin talk brought world from 'brink of Apocalypse,' EU warns of 'dirty tricks'
![Russia claims Trump, Putin talk brought world from 'brink of Apocalypse,' EU warns of 'dirty tricks' Russia claims Trump, Putin talk brought world from 'brink of Apocalypse,' EU warns of 'dirty tricks'](https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/01/zelenskyy-putin-trump.png)
Russia’s deputy chairman of the Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, on Thursday claimed that the recent discussion held between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin brought the world back from the “brink of the Apocalypse.”
“It just so happened at some point that the U.S. appointed itself the country-in-chief on our planet with the exclusive right to wage a hybrid war against our people, to mete out justice and grant pardons. It was a grave mistake, which nearly wiped humanity off the face of the earth,” he said, without mentioning that the West united behind Ukraine against Russia after Moscow launched the biggest invasion of a European nation since World War II.
“This is a lesson that must be learned by the arrogant American elites and the so-called deep state,” he continued. “The quicker our adversaries realize this, the better.
“If they don’t… the Doomsday Clock will keep on ticking towards midnight,” he added, threatening nuclear escalation.
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters from the White House after he spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on ending the war with Ukraine on Feb. 12, 2025. (AP/Alex Brandon)
UKRAINE ADVOCATES TEAR INTO HEGSETH FOR GIVING RUSSIA ‘CONCESSIONS’ AT START OF PEACE TALKS: ‘BIGGEST GIFT’
Trump once again prompted geopolitical shock waves following his Wednesday call with Putin when he said in a Truth Social post that peace talks will start “immediately” – comments that came just hours after U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said it was unrealistic that Ukraine would be allowed to join the NATO alliance.
European leaders were quick to react with concern to comments from both Washington and Moscow, including EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, who told Fox News Digital, “It’s not wise to surrender Russia’s key demands before the negotiations even start.”
“Any peace agreement requires the full involvement of both the Europeans and the Ukrainians to succeed,” she continued. “Quick fixes are just dirty deals.
“Putin only responds to strength. Ukraine is resisting Russia’s invasion, and they have our full support. A bad deal for Ukraine is a bad deal for America and will embolden China,” Kallas said.
Kallas’ comments came after she met with NATO defense ministers, who similarly came out in support of Ukraine and issued warnings to Washington.
Lithuania Defense Minister Dovile Sakaliene said NATO leaders are facing “difficult discussions” with “two obvious choices.”
“Whether we decide to fall under the illusion that Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin are going to find a solution for all of us – and that would be a deadly trap,” she said. “Or we will, as Europe, embrace our own economic, financial and military capacity. And we will be the ones who will be deciding what will happen in Europe and in Ukraine with the United States.”
![North South Summit](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/12/1200/675/north-south.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis of Greece attend a press conference in Saariselka, Finnish Lapland, Dec. 22, 2024. (Lehtikuva/Antti Aimo-Koivisto via Reuters)
In addition, Estonia Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur warned, “We have to understand that there will be no peace without Ukraine.
“It cannot be so that someone will come and say when to talk. It has to be Ukraine,” he added.
Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Thursday said Putin would be “pleased” to welcome international leaders, including Trump, to Moscow in May.
European leaders reacted with apparent concern to Trump’s and the Kremlin’s comments and said there can be no peace agreement without direct EU and Ukrainian involvement.
SOME CRITICS WORRIED TRUMP WOULD HAVE UKRAINE GIVE UP TOO MUCH FOR PEACE AGREEMENT WITH RUSSIA
Similarly, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said, “There can’t be any negotiations about Ukraine without Ukraine being at the heart of it.”
Seven European leaders from the U.K., France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Spain and the EU released a joint statement on Wednesday and insisted that they should be part of any negotiations on Ukraine’s future.
“Our shared objectives should be to put Ukraine in a position of strength,” the statement said. “Ukraine and Europe must be part of any negotiations.”
![Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a press conference](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/06/1200/675/Zelenskyy-7.png?ve=1&tl=1)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed he spoke with President Trump on Feb. 13, 2025, about ending the war with Russia. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier this week said he would be willing to exchange the land Ukraine has seized in Russia for the land occupied by Moscow’s troops in its eastern regions.
The Ukrainian president said he also spoke with Trump following his call with Putin on Wednesday about a “lasting, reliable peace.”
World
Hamas says three captives to be released amid ceasefire deal collapse fears
![Hamas says three captives to be released amid ceasefire deal collapse fears Hamas says three captives to be released amid ceasefire deal collapse fears](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2025-02-13T133417Z_889410639_RC2OTCAP7RUB_RTRMADP_3_ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS-GAZA-CEASEFIRE-AID-1739455841.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)
Hamas says it will release captives according to timeline set out in truce after fears agreement would not hold following Israel’s violations.
Hamas says it is committed to the release of captives held in Gaza according to a timeline set out in a ceasefire, days after fears arose that the truce would not hold following Israel’s violation of the agreement.
In a statement released on Thursday, Hamas said it “confirms continuation in implementing the agreement in accordance with what was signed, including the exchange of prisoners according to the specified timetable”.
Hamas spokesperson Abdul Latif al-Qanoua also confirmed to the Anadolu news agency that the group will release captives on Saturday if Israel adheres to the terms of the ceasefire.
“The [Israeli] occupation has violated the agreement multiple times, whether by preventing the return of displaced people or blocking the entry of humanitarian aid,” he said. “If Israel does not adhere to the terms of the agreement, the prisoner exchange process will not take place.”
A Palestinian source quoted by AFP news agency said on Thursday that mediators had obtained from Israel a “promise … to put in place a humanitarian protocol starting from this morning” that would allow construction equipment and temporary housing into the devastated territory.
The Hamas statement added that talks being held this week in Cairo aimed at overcoming an impasse in implementing the deal had been “positive”.
Later on Thursday, Israel said Hamas must release three living captives on Saturday or Israel will return to war.
This week, the agreement with Israel has come under severe strain.
Hamas warned it would delay the next release of captives scheduled for Saturday due to Israel violating the truce by shooting Palestinians in Gaza and not allowing the agreed-upon number of tents, shelters and other vital aid to enter the besieged enclave.
Israel responded by saying that if Hamas failed to free captives according to the schedule, it would resume its war.
Since the ceasefire went into effect on January 19, Israeli forces have killed at least 92 Palestinians and wounded more than 800, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss the ceasefire with mediators Egypt and Qatar.
Egyptian state-linked media said heavy equipment and trucks carrying mobile homes were ready to enter Gaza from Egypt on Thursday. The AFP news agency shared images showing a row of bulldozers on the Egyptian side of the border.
However, Israel later said they would not be allowed to enter through the crossing.
“There is no entry of caravans or heavy equipment into the Gaza Strip, and there is no coordination for this,” Omer Dostri, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, wrote on X, adding: “No goods are allowed to enter the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing.”
Hamas has previously accused Israel of holding up the delivery of heavy machinery needed to clear the vast amounts of rubble across the enclave.
United States President Donald Trump had warned this week that “hell” would break loose if Hamas failed to release “all” the remaining captives by noon (10:00 GMT) on Saturday.
If fighting resumes, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said: “The new Gaza war … will not end without the defeat of Hamas and the release of all the hostages.”
“It will also allow the realisation of US President Trump’s vision for Gaza,” he added.
Trump, whose return to the White House has emboldened the Israeli far right, caused a global outcry over his proposal for the US to take over the Gaza Strip and move its 2.3 million residents to Egypt or Jordan.
The Gaza truce, currently in its first phase, has seen Israeli captives released in small groups in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli custody.
-
Politics1 week ago
Tulsi Gabbard confirmation fate to be tested with key committee vote
-
Technology1 week ago
Trump’s first 100 days: all the news affecting the tech industry
-
News1 week ago
'Beyond betrayal.' Venezuelans in Florida are angry at Trump immigration policy
-
World1 week ago
Montenegro pursues values-driven EU enlargement process
-
World1 week ago
Trump says US will ‘own’ Gaza in redevelopment plan
-
News1 week ago
Congressional Democrats to Trump: Changes can't be done in secrecy
-
Politics1 week ago
CIA offering buyouts to its entire workforce: report
-
Education1 week ago
Trump’s Orders Could Drain Millions From Universities, but Few Protest Openly