Sami Sharaf, a confidant of Egypt's late leader Gamal Abdel Nasser, has died. He was 94.
Official media reports said Sharaf died on Monday of an unspecified illness that affected him several months ago.
Sharaf's funeral took place on Tuesday at a mosque that sits on the side of Cairo's famous Salah Salem highway, a thoroughfare named after an army officer and a comrade of Abdel Nasser's. The mourners were led by the late leader's son, Abdel Hakim Abdel Nasser.
Born in 1929 in Cairo, Sharaf was one of six children born to an Edinburgh-trained surgeon who died in 1953. Sharaf was a graduate of Egypt's military academy, where he was instructed by Nasser.
He served in the artillery corps before he became one of the founders of Egypt's General Intelligence Directorate after the 1952 revolution that toppled a 150-year-old hereditary monarchy and turned Egypt into a republic that later embraced a socialist ideology.
Sharaf was named an aide to Nasser in 1955 before he became the Egyptian leader's private secretary and close confidante. He was appointed minister for presidential affairs just months before Nasser died in 1970.
Nasser's successor, Anwar Sadat, arrested Sharaf in 1971, along with dozens of other Nasser loyalists, whom he accused of plotting to overthrow his government. Sharaf was sentenced to life in prison but was pardoned in 1981, only months before Sadat was assassinated at a military parade in Cairo.
Sharaf chronicled his years of service as Nasser's secretary in a seven-volume memoir published after Sadat's death. It contained scathing criticism of Sadat's policies, including the shift into an alliance with the US that replaced Cairo's close ties with Moscow during the Nasser years.
He criticised Sadat for dismantling Egypt's state-controlled economy and replacing it with a system that left the poorer people at the mercy of market forces and gave rise to corruption.
Years and Days with Gamal Abdel Nasser confirmed Sharaf's media nickname as "Nasser's black box", a reference to his place at the heart of the Egyptian leader's inner circle.
The book touches on momentous events such as the 1956 Suez crisis and Egypt's stunning 1967 defeat at the hands of Israel.
The memoir, however, has been seen by many as a biased account of the era, casting Nasser in a positive light although in his later years in power, he oversaw Egypt's national and Arab nationalist dreams being crushed by the 1967 defeat.
Mohammed Fayeq, another former director of Nasser's office described Sharaf’s death as “a huge loss for the Nasserist ideology”.
"What distinguished Sharaf the most was his loyalty and faithfulness to his country and Gamal Abdel Nasser," he added.
"He never left his office to go home before making sure that the president had gone to sleep.”
Honeymoonish
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Company%20profile
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Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
UAE squad
Esha Oza (captain), Al Maseera Jahangir, Emily Thomas, Heena Hotchandani, Indhuja Nandakumar, Katie Thompson, Lavanya Keny, Mehak Thakur, Michelle Botha, Rinitha Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Siya Gokhale, Sashikala Silva, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish (wicketkeeper) Udeni Kuruppuarachchige, Vaishnave Mahesh.
UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – First ODI
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
Like a Fading Shadow
Antonio Muñoz Molina
Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2a)
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Kamindu Mendis bio
Full name: Pasqual Handi Kamindu Dilanka Mendis
Born: September 30, 1998
Age: 20 years and 26 days
Nationality: Sri Lankan
Major teams Sri Lanka's Under 19 team
Batting style: Left-hander
Bowling style: Right-arm off-spin and slow left-arm orthodox (that's right!)
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
The%20specs
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UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (c), Chamani Senevirathne (vc), Subha Srinivasan, NIsha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Esha Oza, Ishani Senevirathne, Heena Hotchandani, Keveesha Kumari, Judith Cleetus, Chavi Bhatt, Namita D’Souza.
About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company%20profile
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The Florida Project
Director: Sean Baker
Starring: Bria Vinaite, Brooklynn Prince, Willem Dafoe
Four stars
Timeline
1947
Ferrari’s road-car company is formed and its first badged car, the 125 S, rolls off the assembly line
1962
250 GTO is unveiled
1969
Fiat becomes a Ferrari shareholder, acquiring 50 per cent of the company
1972
The Fiorano circuit, Ferrari’s racetrack for development and testing, opens
1976
First automatic Ferrari, the 400 Automatic, is made
1987
F40 launched
1988
Enzo Ferrari dies; Fiat expands its stake in the company to 90 per cent
2002
The Enzo model is announced
2010
Ferrari World opens in Abu Dhabi
2011
First four-wheel drive Ferrari, the FF, is unveiled
2013
LaFerrari, the first Ferrari hybrid, arrives
2014
Fiat Chrysler announces the split of Ferrari from the parent company
2015
Ferrari launches on Wall Street
2017
812 Superfast unveiled; Ferrari celebrates its 70th anniversary
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
SPECS
Mini John Cooper Works Clubman and Mini John Cooper Works Countryman
Engine: two-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 306hp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: JCW Clubman, Dh220,500; JCW Countryman, Dh225,500
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
