As Egypt prepares to swear in its fourth leader since 2011, a huge slice of $1.5 billion in US aid remains in deep-freeze amid fears the nation is sliding back into authoritarianism. Former general Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will be crowned as the next president on Sunday after three years of political turmoil since the ousting of long-time iron-fisted leader Hosni Mubarak. But far from welcoming Sisi as a step toward stability, some analysts are urging Washington to re-think its decades-old, military-based aid program amid concerns over human rights abuses and a crackdown on civil liberties.

Visitors from the Middle East have topped a ranking of tourist spending in the UK, with the average family likely to shell out a staggering $42,000 per trip.  People from the UAE, Egypt and other regional countries spend more in the UK than all other foreign nationalities, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics.

BP plans to invest $1.5 billion this year to increase its production of natural gas in Egypt, hit by an energy crisis following three years of political turmoil, the state news agency MENA said on Sunday.

With only two candidates, and a very likely winner, Egypt’s upcoming presidential election may not be the hottest of electoral races around.  But social media has found a way to spice things up by bringing a Hollywood star into the limelight.  Kevin Spacey has become the pick of many Twitter and Facebook users to become Egypt’s next president in a trending spoof campaign.

Last Saturday, May 3, was annual World Press Freedom Day. This year, the state of press freedom is especially grim; journalists face imprisonment, kidnapping, and death for doing their jobs. “Unfortunately, we really don’t have a lot to celebrate,” said Joel Simon, executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Former UK prime minister and crusader against the "Axis of Evil" Tony Blair delivered a speech Wednesday calling for Western powers to "take sides" in Middle East foreign policy and to move the issue of "religious extremism" to the top of their agenda.