Emad Mekay

Egypt

Middle East Correspondent at IBA Global Insight

Articles

Israel tightens its grip on the West Bank

3 weeks ago | ibanet.org | Emad Mekay

Children react, on the day of an Israeli raid in Tammoun, near Tubas, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, 15 May 2025. REUTERS/Raneen Sawafta The International Criminal Court has opened a probe into potential violations, but progress has been slow, hindered in part by political resistance and diplomatic friction. UN officials have been unequivocal.
US President is making indelible mark on the Middle East

Feb 24, 2025 | ibanet.org | Emad Mekay

An Israeli military vehicle stands during an operation near Jenin Camp, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, 24 February 2025. REUTERS/Raneen SawaftaUS President Donald Trump’s Middle East policy will create winners and losers. Global Insight assesses the impact on the region and the potential for further instability. US President Donald Trump’s Middle East policy is quickly shaping up. It represents a sequel of sorts to the approach he took during his first term in 2017–2020.
Gaza's Elusive Victories | International Bar Association

Jan 31, 2025 | ibanet.org | Emad Mekay

The 2023 Gaza war erupted with leaders of both Israel and Hamas vowing to rewrite the rules of the decades-old conflict once and for all. Each unveiled a list of ambitious yet similar goals: deal the other side a decisive blow, change realities on the ground to their advantage and claim glory along the way. But after 16 months of ferocious fighting, both sides staggered away bruised and humbled, scraping only marginal victories from their initial lofty agendas.
Comment and analysis: Syria finally overthrows Assad

Jan 15, 2025 | ibanet.org | Emad Mekay

Wednesday 15 January 2025 When the Arab Spring swept the Middle East in 2011, Bashar al-Assad took extreme measures to hold onto power, but his brutal dictatorship has come to a sudden end. Global Insight assesses the major implications for the region. Having seen two long-time dictators overthrown in Tunisia, and Egypt’s popular revolts, a group of teenagers in the Syrian city of Daraa graffitied a warning to their own ruler: ‘Your turn [to fall] has come, Doctor’.
Israel on collision course with the United Nations

Dec 1, 2024 | ibanet.org | Emad Mekay

Israel has taken several measures targeting UN-affiliated officials and agencies to protest what the country’s officials say are unmistakable signs of bias against their country. But international law experts say the measures risk widening the rift between Israel and the UN which has been the backbone of the international law since 1945.
Heat waves are pounding Egypt, and often there’s no AC

Jul 22, 2024 | bostonglobe.com | Vivian Yee |Emad Mekay

CAIRO — Egyptian summers have always been hot. But it has not always been this hot, with temperatures barely dipping below 100 degrees in Cairo since May, testing tempers and massacring houseplants. And it has never been this hot at a time when the government has imposed power cuts on most of the country for more than a year, plunging millions into sweaty, un-air-conditioned misery for hours each day.
Heat Waves Are Pounding Egypt, and Often There's No A.C.

Jul 21, 2024 | nytimes.com | Vivian Yee |Emad Mekay

Egyptian summers have always been hot. But it has not always been this hot, with temperatures barely dipping below 100 degrees in Cairo since May, testing tempers and massacring houseplants. And it has never been this hot at a time when the government has imposed power cuts on most of the country for more than a year, plunging millions into sweaty, un-air-conditioned misery for hours each day.
Israel’s northern border | International Bar Association

Jul 21, 2024 | ibanet.org | Emad Mekay

Interceptions of rockets launched from Lebanon to Israel over the border, 27 June 2024. REUTERS/Ayal MargolinFor now, Israel and Hezbollah are engaged in a subdued conflict. Global Insight assesses the likelihood of a full-blown conflict. Low-grade hostilities now underway between Hezbollah and Israel may actually be aimed, ironically, at preventing both sides from slipping into a taxing all-out confrontation that could plunge the already fraught Middle East further into a downward spiral.
Haj deaths shine light on illegal industry

Jun 24, 2024 | telegraphindia.com | Emad Mekay |Vivian Nereim

While pilgrims with permits are transported around the holy city of Mecca in air-conditioned buses and rest in air-conditioned tents, unregistered ones are often exposed to the elements Emad Mekay, Vivian Nereim Cairo Published 25.06.24, 05:15 AM Representational image File image More than 1,300 people died making the Islamic pilgrimage of Haj in Saudi Arabia this month, the vast majority of whom the Saudi government said did not have permits.
Heat deaths in Mecca shine light on underworld pilgrim industry

Jun 23, 2024 | smh.com.au | Emad Mekay |Vivian Nereim

In interviews with The New York Times, Hajj tour operators, pilgrims and relatives of the dead said the number of undocumented pilgrims appeared to have been driven up by rising economic desperation in countries such as Egypt and Jordan. An official Hajj package can cost more than $7500 or $15,000, depending on a pilgrim's country of origin - far beyond the means of many hoping to make the trip.