Enjoy the editor's picks of Ahram Online's features in 2015, which examined a host of social, economic and political issues that captured public attention in Egypt during the year.
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Egypt's 'war on atheism' (14 January)
While the taboo on discussing atheism has weakened, state and religious authorities continue to treat it — and atheists — as a disorder, and even a threat to national security
By Passant Darwish
Mosque, Church and Synagogue in Cairo's Religious Complex (Photo: Al-Ahram)
Suicide rates increase: Reflection of new realities in Egypt (20 January)
Less religiosity, mounting daily life pressures, and lack of help cited among the reasons for what is believed to be a rise in suicidal tendencies in Egypt
By Sherif Tarek
In September, a driver hung himself from a billboard on the Cairo-Ismailia highway. He had reportedly been struggling to make ends meet (Photo: A still from a video)
The resurrection of the fearful Copt (13 April)
Four years after the January revolution that gave Egypt's Copts hope of full inclusion, the old equation, in which the Church directed Coptic affairs in return for allegiance to the government, is back in place
Pope Tawadros II leads Good Friday Mass prayers in Abbassiya's cathedral, Cairo, Egypt, Friday, April 10, 2015 (Photo: Coptic Orthodox Church Spokesperson official Facebook page)
Veil or no veil, Egyptian women are often stigmatised, or worse (28 April)
Calls for women to take off their veils at a demonstration in Cairo initiated debate over Islamic attire for women in Egypt
A photo that went viral on social media of Nehal Kamal, a girl who claims she was assaulted when she decided to take off her Islamic veil (Photo: A public Facebook post)
Renovating Cairo's Downtown: Contested visions of the heart of the city (7 June)
Renovation plans for Cairo's Downtown are underway, revealing fault lines in the city centre's identity
By Salma Shukrallah
Talaat Harb square after the recent renovations (Photo: Randa Ali)
Egypt's Ramadan still has a Chinese flavour (9 June)
An April decree bans importing imitations of traditional Egyptian handicrafts, including Ramadan lanterns. But is it enough to revive local handicraft businesses?
By Lamia Hassan
A workman makes a traditional Ramadan lantern known as 'fanous' ahead of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Cairo (Photo: Lamia Hassan)
Cairo's tuk-tuk drivers defiant despite ban (12 September)
Popular with some residents, viewed with suspicion by others, and a long-time bugbear for authorities, tuk-tuk drivers defend their livelihood
By Menna Alaa El-Din
File Photo: Archive photo of Tuk-tuk in Egypt (Photo: Al-Ahram)
For Syrian refugees: All roads lead to the sea (16 September)
For Syrian refugees in Egypt, often the risk of death by drowning is worth taking, compared to their prospects if they stay
By Dina Ezzat
Refugees wait at the closed border station between Serbia and Hungary in Horgos, Serbia, Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2015( AP)
One year after Sovaldi: Why Egypt needs billions to beat Hepatitis C (20 October)
Egypt will be on track to beat the decades-old epidemic 'within 10 to 15' years if it allocates the necessary funds
By Deya Abaza
File Photo: Queue in the health insurance Egypt Hepatitis C (Photo: Al-Ahram)
Egypt's medicine shortage: Fact, exaggeration or confused perceptions? (16 December)
Though many patients in Egypt are finding it difficult to obtain certain drugs, the Chamber of Pharmaceutical Industries has downplayed the extent of 'a perceived drug shortage'
By Marina Barsoum
A doctor buys face masks at a pharmacy in Cairo June 9, 2009. (Photo: Reuters)
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