Luxor4u

Turkey To Take Over Egypt.

Its a incoherent and difficult to believe story but therefore an al Ahram staple.

29 Arrests have been ordered (no names given as is always the case in Egypt) of persons who were apparently planning a Turkey takeover in co-operation with the Security Service of the Government of Turkey. Really. Apparently its a Turkey/Brotherhood thing.

Reflecting the low IQ of the major who ‘wrote up’ this story it contains allegations of phone calls to many Egyptians to get public opinion, money laundering and little else.

The specific things they are accused of don’t include bombs and guns.

Seems to me that they were useless at their ‘job’ or on another job. What idiot just changes money and makes phone calls to bring down a government. I pity the scapegoats who might be rounded up to make this story look edible - maybe they will use film extras instead.

Al Ahram says that it is quoting the Government of Turkey owned news agency MENA on this matter.

No such story appears on MENA.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent ... -susp.aspx

I think that when they are writing up such big stories they should find an Egyptian with a good talent for fiction – particularly plot and consistency. I imagine the jails are full of them.

Stories like this have effects which favor the obvious candidate. An alternative view is that its mayhem and bedlam in the big house at the moment.

In the same edition they run a story about how Egyptian-Turk relations can enter a new golden era. http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent ... ween-.aspx so when the new released fiction writer does his job he needs to plan carefully in which edition the positive and negative earthquake exposes will be placed. Timing is everything and always stick to a standard plot.

MENA is an excellent agency for news on Egypt, in fact better than the locals. Its pretty balanced, very detailed but you have to log in and give them information some might not want to do. An example of their detail is the story that the President is in Luxor today proclaiming the industrial and commercial revolution he has created. Al Ahram has no such story.

MENA is widely used whereas the Egyptian State Information Service is ignored.

Turkey doesn’t care – it has new diplomatic and large commercial deals with Sudan and Ethiopia. I’m not aware that the rich Turks have made any significant, or even insignificant, investments in Egypt in the last 8 years. Turkey's interests are to stay away. At no stage in the past few generations has Turkey had any interest in controlling Egypt. Why would Turkey want control of something that can't control itself and isn't worth much. As a prosperous country, a member of NATO, with strong but fragile relations with Europe and USA and with no commercial interests in conflict with Egypt this al Ahram story is worse than absurd. Turkey has no motive or need for such a plan. However it does like sticking it to Sisi - but that's a somewhat personal issue.

Al Ahram says that it is quoting the Government of Turkey owned news agency MENA on this matter.

I think you mean they're quoting MENA, the Egyptian news agency.

I can't see that MENA covers it but, as you say, you have to sign in to get at their news output. No thanks.

Pity...as there seems to have been some reaction to the BBC onslaught.

"President of Human Rights Deputies: The BBC's report is false, scandalous and baseless
The head of the Human Rights Committee in the House of Representatives Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee of the Free Egyptians Party Alaa Abed, the report broadcast by....."

Maybe Al Ahram will pick it up soon.

I made a huge mistake worse still I can't work out how I made the mistake. - thanks for correcting me, its good for my character.

In their story they said this: "Turkey, state-run news agency MENA reported.". That got me off on the wrong foot.

Does this mean that the State Security Service Major who writes al Ahram's story/fiction is even more stupid than me? God save Egypt.

A quick google search finds no Turkey MENA.

I still find its coverage much wider than the wrag and its reporting more factual. Still saying that something is better than al Ahram is saying nothing - or everything.

The story is not running on the front page today - some stories run for days - usually heroic economic/building achievements.

I'm surprised you didn't respond to my implied major point - burlesque, fantastical government press releases designed to create, at a minimum, anxiety that will have a positive voting outcome. Also, there might be manic madness in the palace. Maybe not responding is prudent.

Al Ahram reported :

"Egypt's Prosecutor-General Nabil Sadek ordered on Wednesday 29 suspects detained for 15 days pending investigation into charges of engaging in espionage with Turkey, state-run news agency MENA reported."

Perhaps they have a different slant on English down under...or you are, as you suggest, losing your mind

MENA is definitely an Egyptian State owned and run news agency....and quite a good one. Not that they are up against any stiff opposition.

They tend to make less obvious errors in their news coverage than, say, Al Ahram but it would be naive to expect any information from them which doesn't fit the government's narrative. Having said that, they are ranked well for accuracy and fact-checking.

Sorry I didn't comment further. Must be getting prudent in my old age

I obviously have a problem with commas - as if that was my only problem.

I eventually tracked down the Turkish news agency - in a vain attempt to find out about my mistake.

Its pretty glamorous, covers stories on Egypt not in the foul rag, well written and appears balanced. Not bad. Its Anadolou.

Try this for an argument. If Egyptians and Turks were arrested by Egypt over a Turkish conspiracy would Turkey run a story. It might not. Alternately it might run a brief story in a covert defense of Turkey and attack Egypt with something to draw off the scent/distract from the truth - shall we say, Egyptian perversity. This possible defensive/diversionary/distraction media management strategy 101might work. Anadolou had no story nor any story related to it. Indeed over a two week period many of its Egypt stories were positive and at worst boring.

Therefore I guess that there is a 50% chance the whole story is made up - as well as artlessly constructed at the detail level. The tenor of the story was Turkey is the dangerous active enemy. Who knows for certain.

I found it contrasting, given poor diplomatic and personal relations between the two countries, that the media coverage in A. was generally positive. I think this is evidence of how twisted Egypt's view of the world is - although some - including academics and journalists - would regard it as paranoid. Again the reality inside Egypt is quite different to the actual world.

Your colonial ribbing was untypical - and a bit commonplace. Moliere, or at a pinch Sheridan, used to be better models for a kindly knifing. Alas there is little other deft wit in English literature.