Veteran Egyptian opposition leader Gameela Ismail has declared her intention to run for president, becoming the first woman to seek the highest office in Egypt.
Ms Ismail, who leads the Constitution Party and is a critic of incumbent President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, said it had taken her weeks to decide whether to accept her party's nomination to contest the election.
“It was not an easy decision given the uncertainty shrouding the political scene and the insistence of the ruling regime to ignore demands by political forces and popular masses for a democratic election that's not tailor-made for a single person,” she said in a statement.
The date of the election is due to be officially announced on September 25 but unconfirmed media reports say the vote will take place in the first half of December.
Ms Ismail, 57, was a key figure in the 2011 uprising that forced long-time president Hosni Mubarak to step down. She started her career as a journalist, first as a reporter then a TV presenter. She is also a prominent defender of women's rights.
So far, the only other opposition leader to announce their candidacy is Ahmed Tantawy, an outspoken former politician who has been openly critical of Mr El Sisi's policies.
The others who have publicly announced their plans to contest the vote are supporters of the president, with their participation widely seen as an attempt to give the vote the appearance of a competitive race.
Mr El Sisi, who has been president since 2014, has yet to announce whether he will run for a third six-year term but he is widely expected to do so. He has already been addressing crowds of supporters in campaign-style rallies in which he defended his policies.
In the previous election, held in 2018, the only candidate to run against Mr El Sisi was an obscure politician who entered the race at the last minute and repeatedly declared his support for the Egyptian leader.
Ms Ismail's statement was scathingly critical of Mr El Sisi's government, which she accused of being undemocratic and lacking transparency.
“People want to end their exclusion from information and decisions and hold to account the officials responsible for the daily crisis,” she said. “We don't know why we borrow? Where the loans go? And why we have power cuts after we promised to export electricity?”
Egyptians will vote for their next president amid a crushing economic crisis.
The Egyptian pound has lost half of its value since March last year and a persistent dollar crunch is suppressing imports and hurting domestic industries. Inflation is at a record high, pushing millions into poverty.
Egypt is also saddled with more than $160 billion in foreign debt, which it is struggling to repay.
The government blames the dire state of the economy on the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, and has rejected criticism of its multibillion-dollar megaprojects, including the new $60 billion capital city in the desert east of Cairo and a resort city on the Mediterranean coast used as the summer seat of the government.
Ms Ismail and others have criticised the government's spending priorities and also called for the gradual withdrawal of the military from economic activity to allow the private sector to assume a greater role. Mr El Sisi says the use of the military was meant to ensure the timely completion of development projects.
“We are enduring the destructive consequences of policies in which we did not participate,” said Ms Ismail.
Commission promises fair elections
Ms Ismail's statement came only hours after the State Election Commission sought to reassure voters of the integrity and transparency of the coming vote.
Ahmed El Bendary, the commission's executive director, said authorities would view all candidates equally.
He also appealed to the relevant state institutions and media to “abide by objectivity and neutrality and afford all candidates equal opportunities to present their programmes to the Egyptian people”.
He did not say what measures the commission would take to ensure the compliance of these institutions.
“We emphasise that the commission will not show any hesitance to take all the legal measures against anyone who casts doubt about the integrity and transparency of the commission's efforts,” he warned. “The law will be implemented against anyone who seeks to deface that feast of democracy [the election].”
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Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 582bhp
Torque: 730Nm
Price: Dh649,000
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So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
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Which products are to be taxed?
To be taxed:
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.
Products excluded from the ‘sweetened drink’ category would contain at least 75 per cent milk in a ready-to-drink form or as a milk substitute, baby formula, follow-up formula or baby food, beverages consumed for medicinal use and special dietary needs determined as per GCC Standardisation Organisation rules
What is graphene?
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.
It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.
But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties.
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AT4 Ultimate, as tested
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How to come clean about financial infidelity
- Be honest and transparent: It is always better to own up than be found out. Tell your partner everything they want to know. Show remorse. Inform them of the extent of the situation so they know what they are dealing with.
- Work on yourself: Be honest with yourself and your partner and figure out why you did it. Don’t be ashamed to ask for professional help.
- Give it time: Like any breach of trust, it requires time to rebuild. So be consistent, communicate often and be patient with your partner and yourself.
- Discuss your financial situation regularly: Ensure your spouse is involved in financial matters and decisions. Your ability to consistently follow through with what you say you are going to do when it comes to money can make all the difference in your partner’s willingness to trust you again.
- Work on a plan to resolve the problem together: If there is a lot of debt, for example, create a budget and financial plan together and ensure your partner is fully informed, involved and supported.
Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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T20 World Cup Qualifier A, Muscat
Friday, February 18: 10am - Oman v Nepal, Canada v Philippines; 2pm - Ireland v UAE, Germany v Bahrain
Saturday, February 19: 10am - Oman v Canada, Nepal v Philippines; 2pm - UAE v Germany, Ireland v Bahrain
Monday, February 21: 10am - Ireland v Germany, UAE v Bahrain; 2pm - Nepal v Canada, Oman v Philippines
Tuesday, February 22: 2pm – semi-finals
Thursday, February 24: 2pm – final
UAE squad: Ahmed Raza (captain), Muhammad Waseem, Chirag Suri, Vriitya Aravind, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Alishan Sharafu, Raja Akifullah, Karthik Meiyappan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Zafar Farid, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Rahul Bhatia
All matches to be streamed live on icc.tv
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Most F1 world titles
7 — Michael Schumacher (1994, ’95, 2000, ’01 ’02, ’03, ’04)
7 — Lewis Hamilton (2008, ’14,’15, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20)
5 — Juan Manuel Fangio (1951, ’54, ’55, ’56, ’57)
4 — Alain Prost (1985, ’86, ’89, ’93)
4 — Sebastian Vettel (2010, ’11, ’12, ’13)
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MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FINAL RECKONING
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg
Rating: 4/5
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