Abdel Fattah el-Sisi

Egypt said Jan. 8 it is to hold parliamentary elections from March 21 but analysts said the new legislature will offer no meaningful opposition to President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's iron-fisted rule.
      
The elections, which will be held in phases culminating on May 7, will be the first since Sisi overthrew his Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi on July 3, 2013.
      

An Egyptian court is to deliver a verdict on April 21 in the trial of ousted president Mohamed Morsi and 14 others charged with inciting the killing of protesters, judicial officials said Jan. 8.
      

Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas

Many Orthodox Christians throughout the world on Wednesday celebrated Christmas with liturgies and prayers.

The Christmas service in Moscow' Cathedral of Christ the Saviour was led by Russian Patriarch Kirill, and attended by worshipers, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev among them.

The Middle East entered the new year with a new balance of power.

Two weeks ago, Qatar and Egypt started normalizing their relations. This reconciliation, however, affects not only these two countries, but also the wider region to a great extent and implies a newly emerging equilibrium.

Three Al-Jazeera journalists faced Jan. 2 the prospect of at least several more weeks in prison after Egypt's top court granted them a retrial in a case that sparked international uproar.
      

Ankara wants to repair its relationship with Cairo, but Egypt needs to take steps "to end human rights violations" against its people, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said, noting there has been attempts to establish a dialogue between two countries.

Turkey’s bilateral ties with Egypt could “normalize if the country properly returns to democracy, if the Egyptian people’s free will is reflected in politics and social life,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tanju Bilgiç said.

Egyptian and Qatari intelligence officials met in Cairo to discuss a possible reconciliation as part of Saudi efforts to broker an end to the 18-month standoff over Doha's support of the Muslim Brotherhood, security sources said.

Turkey should mend fences with Egypt, as the rest of the world sees Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi's government as "normal," Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç said in an interview with Al Jazeera.

Egyptian and Turkish football pitches are set to re-emerge as battlegrounds between ultras and authoritarian leaders in a life-and-death struggle that involves legal proceedings to brand the supporters as terrorists and efforts to undermine their widespread popular base.