Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni has again rejected the cultural normalization with Israel in light of the "Israeli violations and aggressions against the Palestinian people and the Arab world." The rejection of normalization with Israel is a collective decision from all Egyptian intellectuals and thinkers and not an individual decision, the Egyptian minister said yesterday in a press release.
He denied what has been published by the independent Al-Balagh Al-Gadeed daily that he has secretly visited the Israeli ambassador in Cairo and contacted a number of Israeli officials to support him as a candidate for the UNESCO top post. Hosni said he would file a report to the Public Prosecutor against the daily.
The minister described what has been published by the daily as "cheap work doing harm to the national and Arab interests and serving Israel."
With regard to the US stance on his nomination for UNESCO, Hosni said: " Israel plays a major role in deceiving the US, as it transfers untrue image of him to the US administration," pointing out that the United States "is a big state and must deal with all matters transparently and neutrally without any bias for any party at the expense of another."
Hosni added that he is the only Arab candidate for the post and that he is "the closest to win", pointing out that many states "made verbal and written approval for his nomination.
The Egyptian minister said he "agreed with an international public relations firm to launch his promotional campaign during the coming period," noting that he will visit a number of African countries in the coming period to get their support. The first visit will be paid to Libya.
The Minister of Culture added that he is qualified for the UNESCO, as he has long experience to play this role.
