By complaining of my weekly dilemma, as a columnist, I am inviting the reader to share the emotional and mental process involved in choosing a topic, gathering the information required to tackle it, subjecting it to an analytical lens, and readably fitting the results into approximately 800 words. It is a difficult task but, believe it or not, an enjoyable one – once I find a thread that pulls events, backdrop and foreground details into a coherent structure.
The past week happens to have been a particularly eventful one, full of developments with multiple regional and global ramifications. The list includes the ongoing war against Gaza despite the ceasefire. The number of Palestinian civilians being killed by the day has not diminished from the levels we have seen throughout the past two years. So not even the first point of the agreement – stopping the killing – has materialised, for reasons each side blames on the other.
Therefore, mediators have begun to think about forming a regional and international security force to take over the management of Gaza’s affairs and relief operations, and to prevent the resumption of fighting. These forces would also be tasked with the disarmament of Hamas, which, like other “jihadist” factions in the region, is determined not to comply.
But conflict is not confined to the Middle East. The US, for instance, is in a state of one-sided, asymmetric war – not unlike the situation in Gaza – using its advanced military might to strike Venezuela. The pretext cited is a “global” campaign against drug trafficking to the US.
Narcotics are shipped northwards from many different parts of South America, but the American military operations have homed in on vessels alleged to be carrying narcotics, while US officials threaten to strike the cartel command centres in Venezuela. No one is fooled. Trump’s Washington has revived the old habit the USA had thought it had kicked: regime change.
While Venezuela lies within the sphere of the Monroe Doctrine, which reserves the whole of South America for US hegemony, the same does not apply to Nigeria in Africa. For that oil-rich country, to overcome this, Trump unveiled a new principle: protecting Nigerian Christians against Boko Haram. The Crusades are back.
American headline-making extended to yet a third continent this week: Asia, where Trump and Xi Jinping held an extraordinary meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea. The two presidents agreed to set aside their economic disputes over tariffs and boost bilateral trade. The first result was the resumption of US soybean exports to China – to the relief of US farmers and the delight of Chinese soy consumers.
Major US-related events were not limited to foreign policy. Domestically, the election of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York came as political earthquake. The young, 34-year-old politician defied strong opposition from Republicans and from President Trump, personally. His victory was reminiscent of Barrack Obama’s entry into the White House as the first African-American president.
In this case, however, Mamdani’s roots are Muslim, South Asian, and African, while his wife is of Syrian origin. It is a combination that is nearly impossible to find in any other state but New York, which also happens to have the world’s largest Jewish community outside Israel.
Meanwhile, just over a week has passed since what is likely to be remembered as one of the most significant events in modern history: the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum. GEM, as it is known internationally, is truly the great “Jewel in the Crown”, the magnificent diamond radiating its multifaceted splendour.
Its beauty is timeless, never-fading and forever breathtaking. It was singer Hakim who said, before travelling to the US, that the only place to live in Cairo is by the Nile or near the Pyramids. I could not agree more, which is why I chose to live near the latter. Today, I can glimpse the glimmering jewel and the tips of the Pyramids every morning. On the opening night, beneath a sky bathed in dazzling colours, the GEM revealed itself in its full brilliance, turning that evening into a celebration of beauty.
But perhaps most striking of all was the sight of the many visitors – Egyptians and tourists, children in tow – flocking to this modern edifice so deeply steeped in antiquity. Such a thrilling and joyful moment is not a frequent occurrence in Egyptian life, especially not one on such a scale of cultural richness, creativity, and exuberance. We must indeed celebrate.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 13 November, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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