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Egyptian Expats Begin Vote in Presidential Elections

Egyptian men wear T-shirts with pictures of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as they wait to register their names for voting in the Egyptian presidential elections at a polling station set up in the Egyptian embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, 01 December 2023. (EPA)
Egyptian men wear T-shirts with pictures of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as they wait to register their names for voting in the Egyptian presidential elections at a polling station set up in the Egyptian embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, 01 December 2023. (EPA)
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Egyptian Expats Begin Vote in Presidential Elections

Egyptian men wear T-shirts with pictures of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as they wait to register their names for voting in the Egyptian presidential elections at a polling station set up in the Egyptian embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, 01 December 2023. (EPA)
Egyptian men wear T-shirts with pictures of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as they wait to register their names for voting in the Egyptian presidential elections at a polling station set up in the Egyptian embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, 01 December 2023. (EPA)

Egypt’s presidential elections kicked off on Friday with expatriates casting their vote in a three-day process.

Elections in Egypt will be held on December 10 to 12. The results will be announced on December 18.

Three candidates are running against incumbent President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is expected to win a third term, lasting six years.

Expatriates cast their vote at 137 Egyptian embassies and consulates in 121 countries.

Authorities have not disclosed the number of expats eligible to vote, but Minister of Immigration and Egyptian Expatriates Affairs Suha al-Gendy said earlier this week that she was confident of a heavy turnout.

Egypt boasts around 14 million expatriates.

A 2021 report from the Egypt’s Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics revealed that the majority of expats live in Arab countries followed by North America.

The candidates competing against Sisi are head of the opposition Social Democratic Party Farid Zahran, head of the liberal Wafd Party Abdel-Sanad Yamama and head of the liberal People’s Republican Party Hazem Omar.

Egypt’s state Middle East News Agency reported a heavy turnout on the first day of voting, especially in the Arab Gulf region.

Egypt’s Grand Mufti Dr. Shawki Allam had called on Egyptians abroad to vote in the election, saying it was a national duty.

The last presidential elections were held in 2018 with turnout of 24.3 million out of 59.1 eligible voters.

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Hemedti Issues Strict Orders to his Forces to Protect Sudanese People

People collect clean water provided by a charity organization to people in Gedaref in eastern Sudan on August 30, 2024. (AFP)
People collect clean water provided by a charity organization to people in Gedaref in eastern Sudan on August 30, 2024. (AFP)
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Hemedti Issues Strict Orders to his Forces to Protect Sudanese People

People collect clean water provided by a charity organization to people in Gedaref in eastern Sudan on August 30, 2024. (AFP)
People collect clean water provided by a charity organization to people in Gedaref in eastern Sudan on August 30, 2024. (AFP)

Commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, also known as Hemedti, issued on Saturday strict orders to his forces to protect civilians and ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid in line with the commitments his delegation made at the recent peace talks in Geneva.

In a post on the X platform, he said he issued an “extraordinary administrative order to all the forces” to protect civilians and facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid.

He called on all commanders to abide by the orders in line with international humanitarian law. Any violators will be held accountable.

The RSF has been accused of widespread violations against civilians in areas under their control. They have also been accused of committing massacres in Gezira state in central Sudan. The RSF have denied the accusations.

Hemedti announced in August the formation of a “civilian protection force” that immediately assumed its duties in the Khartoum and Gezira states.

According to head of the RSF delegation to the Geneva talks, Omar Hamdan, the force is formed of 27 combat vehicles, backed by forces that have experience in cracking down on insubordination.

Hemedti stressed last week his commitment to all the outcomes of the Geneva talks, starting with ensuring the delivery of aid to those in need.

The RSF and army agreed to open two safe routes for the deliveries and to protect civilians to ease their suffering after nearly a year and a half of war.

The mediators in Geneva received commitments from the RSF that it would order the fighters against committing any violations against civilians in areas under their control.

Meanwhile, aid deliveries continued through the Adre border crossing with Chad. They are headed to people in Darfur in western Sudan.

Fifty-nine aid trucks carrying aid supplies crossed from Chad to Darfur, said the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs on Saturday.

“The supplies are estimated to reach nearly 195,000 people in acute need in different parts of the country,” it added.

“About 128 aid trucks carrying supplies for an estimated 355,000 people are being prepared to cross into Sudan in the coming days and weeks to ensure a steady flow of supplies. Despite the surge of supplies through Adre, humanitarian partners have warned that ongoing rains and floods have damaged three major bridges in the region, limiting movements within Darfur,” it revealed.

“While progress has been made on the Adre border crossing, funding resources are depleting, and humanitarian funding is urgently required to sustain the supplies chain,” it urged.