State-run newspapers Al-Ahram and Al-Akhbar lead with short news items about Minister of Interior Affairs Habib el-Adly's first meeting with leaders of Sinai tribesmen, during which he spoke of the government's increased attention to Sinai's development. Development of the region, which is a top priority of the government, entails certain requirements (namely security) in order to encourage investment, the minister said. Both papers also reported on President Hosni Mubarak's meeting with his Yemeni counterpart Ali Abdullah Saleh, in which they discussed the outcome of the five-way summit held in Tripoli, the Middle East peace process, and indirect Palestinians-Israeli negotiations under American sponsorship. Al-Akhbar provided an account of statements made by Minister of Education Ahmed Zaki Badr during a press conference at the Press Syndicate on the method of gradingThanaweyya Amma (the last two years of high school) exams. The bonus for exams invigilators is to be doubled, he announced. Badr also mentioned violations dating back ten years concerning the missing annual bonuses of employees of Educational Establishments Authority, who recently went on strike. Al-Ahram features an interesting interview with Mahmoud el-Zahar, co-founder and a leader of Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas. In response to questions about a recent clash between el-Zahar and the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, el-Zahar said, “I didn't undermine the Egyptian Foreign Ministry. When I said that the Palestinian reconciliation issue is no longer controlled by the Foreign Ministry, I meant that another authority is hosting us in Cairo and this refers to another means of coordination among Egyptian ministries and authorities." El-Zahar also asserted his respect for both Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit and his official spokesperson Hossam Zaki. El-Zahar, interviewed by Al-Masry Al-Youm on Friday, had previously implied that Egypt's stance toward the Palestinian question is not determined by the Egyptian Foreign Affairs Ministry, but by "other authorities." In that interview he also criticized Abul Gheit of “issuing provocative statements." Independent newspaper Al-Dostour meanwhile leads with several stories relating to Bedouins in Sinai and the alleged bombing there of a natural gas pipeline connecting Egypt with Jordan and Syria. Bedouins denied any connection with the explosion. The paper also features interviews with two of the "most wanted" Bedouin in Sinai. Al-Shorouq reports on a global press conference to be held tomorrow by Bedouins in el-Mahdiyya village, Sinai, to “explain the dimensions of their case and clashes with police.” The case of the Mercedes bribe taken by an Egyptian official is also given space in Al-Shorouq, with an American diplomat quoted as saying that “the US will have to reveal his name, sooner or later.” The paper also reports on the government's intention to restructure fuel prices based on a planned survey of gas consumption according to different demographic categories. This may lead to those driving certain types of cars receiving subsidized gasoline while owners of luxury cars would pay higher prices. As for ongoing conflict between Nile basin countries, an official from the Foreign Ministry told Al-Shorouq that Sudan hasn't suspended its membership within the Nile Basin Initiative but only its activities, and that Egypt is considering following Sudan's lead until the consequences of signing the Entebbe framework agreement have been discussed. “What Sudan did is normal, as cooperation cannot be continued,” said the official.
