Carl in Cairo

  Voilà, another entry where the news will be meatier than the description of my day.  Cynthia came home after being released from the hospital.  She's been taking it easy on the living room couch and I've been trying to be as helpful as I know how.  Other than that, I got through a quarter of a paper for Migration and Development, tweaked my thesis proposal, and corresponded with some sources for my thesis research in the States.

News:

The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt supports Hizbullah in row with Cairo.  While the Egyptian government is pointing fingers abroad at the likes of Iran, Qatar, etc., the largest (and officially illegal) opposition party is embroiling itself in the tension by expressing its disagreement with the administration.  With the president vowing that Egypt will "hit with an iron fist anyone who messes with its national security", it is unclear whether the government will ramp up pressure on the Brotherhood as well.

Coptic Church provides conversion certificate to Muslim-born Christian.  This is unprecedented in a country where conversion is no easy process if not formally banned.  The convert is trying to get his identity documents changed to reflect his new beliefs.

American president Barack Obama's envoy says that the two-state solution is the only solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  Meanwhile, word is spreading that Egypt is threatening to abandon its role as mediator between Hamas and Fatah. American Secretary of State Clinton is not optimistic that the two factions will reach a unity deal in the near future.