Judge Tarek Bitar, the second judge to lead the complicated and thorny investigation, canceled the questioning of a former military intelligence general, scheduled for Monday. Families of the victims of the explosion have already demanded an international probe, not trusting the Lebanese investigation. Lebanon is known for a culture of impunity that has prevailed for decades, including among the entrenched political elites. She said the repeated lawsuits and challenges to the judge prove that those officials are implicated in the explosion. On Friday, former Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk, who was also implicated in the probe, filed a motion to dismiss the judge.

In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khaled al-Anany held an extensive meeting with more than 60 Egyptian ambassadors and consul generals to represent Egypt abroad. The Saturday evening meeting was held at the Police Museum in the Salah al-Din Citadel, attended by more than 60 Egyptian ambassadors, consuls general and their wives, who were chosen as delegates to represent Egypt abroad before they traveled to take up their positions. These ambassadors will also serve to help encourage more flow of tourism into the nation, he added, alongside their important political involvement. Anany presented a review of several important issues his ministry is currently working on, which includes a media strategy to promote tourism in Egypt prepared in order to launch an international campaign to promote Egypt across three years, starting in the last quarter of 2021. Egypt is now hard at work to create an integrated tourism product to allow tourists to better enjoy their unique experiences at Egypt, he said, such as by merging cultural tourism with recreational tourism.

Facebook is putting a hold on the development of a kids’ version of Instagram, geared toward children under 13, to address concerns that have been raised about the vulnerability of younger users. Yet the development of Instagram for a younger audience was met with broader opposition almost immediately. Facebook faced similar criticism in 2017 when it launched the Messenger Kids app, touted as a way for children to chat with family members and friends approved by parents. Mosseri said that Instagram for kids is meant for those between the ages of 10 and 12, not younger. While work is being paused on Instagram Kids, the company will be expanding opt-in parental supervision tools to teen accounts of those 13 and older.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned that illegal encroachments on the Nile River have become an unprecedented issue which may require the army’s involvement if necessary. During the inauguration of the Bahr al-Baqar wastewater treatment plant, Sisi said “If it takes army deployment to recover state assets, we’ll do so.”Sisi demanded that the Interior Ministry remove encroachments on state lands within six months, even if it takes the army to intervene. “Encroachment on agricultural land is not allowed at all,” he warned. “The governorate, the Ministry of Irrigation and the Director of Security have to follow up in order to stop and prevent the encroachments, within six months… and if necessary, the army will descend.”Addressing the Egyptian Minister of Defense, Mohamed Zaki, he said that the army and all equipment shall be deployed if necessary to ensure that state’s bridges return to working order.

President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi while inaugurating Bahr Al Baqar Wastewater Treatment Plant in Port Said on September 27, 2021. TV screenshotCAIRO – 27 September 2021: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi set Monday a 6-month ultimatum to efface any encroachments on Nile River mainstream and canals so their width would be back to what it was 30 years ago. The president also tackled the problem of encroachments over the Nile mainstream and canals underlining how the previously deteriorating conditions of canals were negatively impacting farmers. Those plants garnered three titles from Guinness World Records, and they are the World’s Largest Water Treatment Plant; World’s Largest Sludge Plant; and, World’s Largest Ozone Generator. "The cost of reclaiming 100,000 in Sinai is around LE2 billion because of digging irrigation and wastewater canals, extending them beneath the Suez Canal, and introducing necessary infrastructure," the president stated.

Liverpool official website listed the top ten scorers in Liverpool’s history, with Mohamed Salah ranking 10th and replacing Sam Raybould. He scored the match’s third goal, which ended in a 3-3 draw. Salah raised his score to 131 goals in 210 games with Liverpool, occupying the tenth place in the club’s historical scorers list. His 131 goals included 17 penalty kicks, 100 goals in the English Premier League, 27 goals in the Champions League, and four goals in the FA Cup. West Ham is the team that received the highest number of goals from the Egyptian striker equal to nine goals.

CAIRO - 27 September 2020: The Health Ministry said Sunday night that 680 new coronavirus cases were detected, upping the total number of confirmed cases since the outbreak in the country to 301,625. Health Minister Hala Zayed revealed Sunday that the ministry's blood plasma donation centers nationwide had received as many as 4,400 donors since July 14. In mid-July, the minister announced a national project to establish blood plasma donation centers for medicine production as a part of a presidential initiative to achieve self-sufficiency in plasma derivatives. Other plasma donation venues include the regional blood transfusion centers in Cairo’s Dar El-Salam and Abbasiya districts, Alexandria, Gharbiya and Minya, the spokesman added. Healthy adults over the age of 18 may donate their blood plasma if they had not donated within the last three months, Megahed pointed out.

Egyptian soprano Fatma Saeed participated in Global Citizen Live performances in the French capital Paris alongside international stars such as pop singer Billie Eilish, New Zealand pop-rock star, Lorde, the South Korean team BTS and Britain’s Elton John. The head of the National Council for Women Maya Morsi uploaded a short video showing Said standing in front of thousands of people in the audience saying: “I am very proud that I am Egyptian.”In her comment on the video, Morsi wrote, “Egyptian soprano Fatma Said.. standing in front of thousands in Paris.. soft power… Fatma, We are all very proud of you.”The ceremony is part of a project launched by the global non-profit advocacy organization Global Citizen, which aims to eliminate discrimination and extreme poverty by 2030. The 24-hour live broadcast was received by the Sydney Opera in a global broadcast that includes dozens of international artists. It seeks to combat all forms of discrimination and extreme poverty. The concert supports societal goals and humanitarian messages through the Global Citizen Live program through five goals: ending the hunger crisis, resuming learning for all, protecting the planet, promoting equality and combating all forms of discrimination.

CAIRO – 27 September 2021: On September 27, the world celebrates Tourism Day, under the slogan "Tourism to Achieve Comprehensive Growth". The World Tourism Organization approved the celebration of the World Tourism Day in 1980. September 27 was chosen as it coincides with the anniversary of the establishment of the statutes of the World Tourism Organization. As part of celebrating the World Tourism Day, the World Tourism Organization called for uploading photos of tourist sites on social media, as celebrating this day targets promoting awareness of the social, cultural, political and economic value of sustainable tourism. It is also worth mentioning that the timing of the World Tourism Day comes at the end of the peak tourist season in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of the season in the Southern Hemisphere.

CAIRO – 27 September 2021: Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said that his meeting with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres tackled various regional and global issues including the developments in Libya, Yemen and Syria. Both officials also discussed latest developments on Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam [GERD], especially after the UN Security Council statement, Shoukry added. He noted in his statements that Egypt’s vision was presented at the United Nations General Assembly through the speech delivered by President Sisi. On Saturday, Shoukry meet with Guterres in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly’s (UNGA) 76th session. During the meeting Shoukry affirmed the need for a legally-binding agreement on the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

The Cairo governorate plans to establish bike paths in the city center in preparation for the operation of 600 bicycles, through 30 fixed stations that will be distributed in downtown streets. The Cairo governorate conducted several experiments in cooperation between the General Traffic Directorate and the Roads Directorate, to draw bike paths at a width of 1.7 meters. Identifying tracks began on the Talaat Harb, Qasr al-Nil, Mostafa Kamel and July 26 streets at a length of two km in the first phase. The 30 stations will comprise 600 bicycles, at a cost of US$1.5 million or equivalent to approximately LE 25 million. A mobile application will be created so that citizens can identify the bicycle path, he added.

KYIV, Sept 27 (Reuters) – Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko warned on Monday of a joint response with Russia to military exercises involving troops from NATO member countries in neighboring Ukraine. Ukraine began joint military exercises with U.S. and other NATO member troops last week, while Russia and Belarus held large-scale drills that alarmed the West. read moreLukashenko said he had discussed the situation in Ukraine with Russian President Vladimir Putin several times, and the Kremlin said on Monday that expansion of NATO military infrastructure in Ukraine crossed a red line for Putin. read more“You see, they are dragging NATO troops there, to Ukraine. Three migrants died on the Polish side of the border and one more just inside Belarus this month.

On Monday, State Grid Corp pledged to ensure basic power supply and avoid electricity cuts. read moreThe power crunch has hurt production in industries across several regions of China and is dragging on the country’s economic growth outlook, analysts said. The National Energy Administration (NEA) has told coal and natural gas firms to ensure sufficient energy supplies to keep homes warm during winter. read moreLiaoning province said power generation had declined significantly since July, and the supply gap widened to a “severe level” last week. Last week, major coal producers in China met to try and resolve shortages and curb price increases.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Monday inaugurated the Bahr al-Baqar wastewater treatment plant, the largest of its kind in the world, at a cost of about LE20 billion and a production capacity of 5.6 million cubic meters per day of triple-treated water. This water will be transferred to the lands of North Sinai to contribute to the reclamation of 400,000 feddans, as part of the national project to develop Sinai and enhance the optimal use of the state’s water resources. The Bahr Al-Baqar drainage meanders for 190 km from South of Cairo through governorate of Qalyubia, Dakahlia to Sharqia, and from the governorate of Ismailia to the governorate of Port Said. According to government reports, the drainage water treatment plant comes as a component of the project to establish Bahr al-Baqar drainage water system, which is one of the most important projects of the Sinai Peninsula Development Program.

The Railway Authority will raise train ticket prices gradually in accordance to a timeline, the Vice President of the Railways Authority Mohamed Hussein announced on Sunday. Hussein confirmed that the railways are still incurring losses, despite the increase in ticket prices and the development process that is taking place in the authority. “There are losses, of course, because the travel tariff does not match the costs, taking into account the social dimension of citizens,” he said. During a telephone interview with Khairy Ramadan and Karima Awad, on the “Cairo Talk” program, he explained that the losses are not a shortcoming in the railway system, but the authority taking into account the financial situation of citizens. He added that the losses will gradually decrease with the development of trains, railways and signals.