Egyptian traveller Ahmed Haggagovic has made it to the North Pole for the third time. Only this time is different. Haggagovic has reached the farthest end of the north pole, “imagine standing [literally] atop the world,” he wrote. Each time the traveller went to the North Pole he hoisted the Egyptian flag. This time, however, “we can say that our flag is hovering over the world,” he continued. “Many people tried to put me down. ‘It's easier to travel during the summer,' they said. But when you have a dream that you strongly believe in you will do everything you can to make it come true. I thank God I made it although the temperature had reached -51 degrees Celsius.” Maya Morsi: The Women Council's new head UNDP employee Maya Morsi was elected as the new head of Egypt's National Council for Women on Monday in a procedural session at the council headquarters. The session was headed by Prime Minister Sherif Ismail and former head of the council Mervat Al-Tellawi. Morsi previously worked as the United Nations Women Country coordinator and the Regional Gender Practice team leader in the UN Development Programme started in March 2013. She holds a bachelor degree from the American University in Cairo and an MBA from London City University. She is an expert in different fields, including international treaties, human rights and women's empowerment. The National Council of Women was founded by presidential decree in 2000 and headed by former first lady Suzanne Mubarak until her husband, Hosni Mubarak, was deposed after 25 January Revolution. Morsi succeeds Al-Tellawi, who was the head of the council for almost four years, after being elected in February 2012. Thirty appointed members took part in electing a chief from among council members. “I have two ways to deal with the issue of corruption in the Interior Ministry: either to cry over spilt milk, focus on the corruption of previous senior employees and hold the state responsible for punishing them or to discuss the root cause of the issue: we have a clear crime and a culprit, but we cannot hold him accountable because of legislative deficiencies. A message to my honourable friends in parliament: please make the legislative amendments a top priority if you want to combat corruption.” Mahmoud Saadeddin, Al-Youm Al-Sabei African development “President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi sent a message to the world from Addis Ababa calling for cooperation to combat the devastating danger of terrorism. He pointed to the importance of strongly supporting the countries facing terrorism as the fall of these states could have negative repercussions on the security and stability of the whole world.” Elham Abul-Fath, Al-Akhbar “During his participation in the African summit, Al-Sisi underlined the importance of finding ways to increase available resources to implement the ambitious programmes and projects ratified by previous summits, taking into account that implementing the 2063 agenda is the strategic vision for comprehensive development across the continent.” Al-Ahram Civil Service Law “Whoever thinks without bias will realise that parliament's rejection of the Civil Service Law is its best decision. While it appears to oppose the state's administrative body, rejecting the law is in the interest of the state's national security. Besides, whoever follows that law, which affects one third of the population, will see that it lacks the explanatory memo that should be attached to every law. Thus, it was difficult for MPs to understand it. Meanwhile, there is a strong lobby asking the MPs to reject it.” Salah Montasser, Al-Ahram Remembering a revolution “The celebration of the anniversary of a revolution in any country is a sign of stability. It also indicates that the different parties and political powers agree on the sublime values that were expressed through that revolution even if they differ in their political visions, programmes or revolutionary concepts. The 25 January Revolution will remain, like the 1919 Revolution, a decisive high point in Egypt's modern history whether we accept it or not.” Amr Al-Shobaki, Al-Masry Al-Youm Egyptian Essence: 100 hotels closed “The number of closed hotels and tourist reports in Sharm El-Sheikh, Taba and Nuweiba has reached 100. This, in addition to hotels closed in Hurghada and Marsa Alam, according to a group of investors and businessmen in the tourism sector.” Al-Shorouk Facebook “What attracts my attention is that the empty argument that 25 January was a conspiracy indicates a futile wish to return to the past. Some people tend to forget that, without 25 January, there cannot have been 30 June and that any attempt to impede the momentum of the society is bound to fail. The lesson of the MB is not remote.” Hani Raslan “After the military regime gave up its attempt to reach a Palestinian reconciliation, Qatar came to the forefront. The Egyptian sponsor of the talks decided to stop hosting Fatah and Hamas because of its differences with the latter. And this concealed negotiations to hold meetings between the two parties to resolve all pending issues including the formation of a national unity government.” Nader Fergany Twitter Muftah @MuftahOrg #Egypt›s parliament is where the real news is made these days. Bel Trew @Beltrew Italy urges #Egypt to find Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old Italian student who went missing on Jan 25 in centre of Cairo. The Big Pharaoh @TheBigPharaoh Top trending hashtag in Egypt is @islamgawish , cartoonist arrested for “managing an unlicensed page”! Shaima @ShaimaStreet Okay correct me if I am wrong, but @islamgawish has been arrested for going online and using the Internet, right?
