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Sisi Assigns Head of His Office to Run General Intelligence Service

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi/AFP
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi/AFP
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Sisi Assigns Head of His Office to Run General Intelligence Service

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi/AFP
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi/AFP

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi appointed on Thursday head of his office Abbas Kamel as the new acting chief of the country’s General Intelligence Service (GIS), until a new chief is named to replace Khaled Fawzi.

A presidential decree issued on Thursday did not detail the reasons behind sacking Fawzi, who led the office of GIS chief since 2014. However, local news outlets predicted that Fawzi had health problems and was currently under medical treatment.

Fawzi’s sacking came few days after a report was published by the New York Times, alleging that it obtained recordings of phone calls where an alleged Egyptian intelligence officer is heard instructing talk show hosts to convince their audience to accept Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

Egypt later denied the report.

Other unidentified reports spoke on Thursday about the intersection of roles and conflicts between state security apparatus, particularly in the department of public information.

The decision to sack Fawzi is considered the second highest shake up that lately touched a sensitive position in Egypt.

Last October, Sisi named a new armed forces chief of staff and announced changes in key security positions.

Kamel is Sisi's chief of staff. He also was the president’s assistant when Sisi was head of the military intelligence in Egypt.

In a separate development, the Egyptian president held talks in Cairo Thursday with Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn over the expansion of cooperation at the economic level between the two countries.
Following their meeting, Sisi announced “establishing an Egyptian industrial zone in Ethiopia,” in addition to cooperation at the level of agricultural investments.

Sisi expressed concern over the lack of progress in negotiations of the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

“Based on our recognition of the importance of the continuity of the technical studies of GERD, Egypt is suggesting the participation of the World Bank at the tripartite discussions on GERD as a neutral [actor],” Sisi said.

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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)

Italy plans to send an ambassador back to Syria after a decade-long absence, the country’s foreign minister said, in a diplomatic move that could spark divisions among European Union allies.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking in front of relevant parliamentary committees Thursday, announced Rome’s intention to re-establish diplomatic ties with Syria to prevent Russia from monopolizing diplomatic efforts in the Middle Eastern country.

Moscow is considered a key supporter of Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has remained in power despite widespread Western isolation and civilian casualties since the start of Syria’s civil war in March 2011.

Peaceful protests against the Assad government — part of the so-called “Arab Spring” popular uprisings that spread across some of the Middle East — were met by a brutal crackdown, and the uprising quickly spiraled into a full-blown civil war.

The conflict was further complicated by the intervention of foreign forces on all sides and a rising militancy, first by al-Qaida-linked groups and then the ISIS group until its defeat on the battlefield in 2019.

The war, which has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country’s pre-war population of 23 million, is now largely frozen, despite ongoing low-level fighting.

The country is effectively carved up into areas controlled by the Damascus-based government of Assad, various opposition groups and Syrian Kurdish forces.

In the early days of the conflict, many Western and Arab countries cut off relations with Syria, including Italy, which has since managed Syria-related diplomacy through its embassy in Beirut.

However, since Assad has regained control over most of the territory, neighboring Arab countries have gradually restored relations, with the most symbolically significant move coming last year when Syria was re-admitted to the Arab League.

Tajani said Thursday the EU’s policy in Syria should be adapted to the “development of the situation,” adding that Italy has received support from Austria, Croatia, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Cyprus and Slovakia.

However, the US and allied countries in Europe have largely continued to hold firm in their stance against Assad’s government, due to concerns over human rights violations.