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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 005264 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KPAO EG
SUBJECT:  BLACK DAY OF TERRORISM: EGYPTIAN MEDIA THEMES, 
JULY 4 TO 10 
 
 
¶1.  Summary:  The Egyptian media roundly condemned the 
murder of Egyptian envoy to Iraq Ehab Al-Sharif and the 
London bombings.  "Black Day of Terrorism" was one leading 
newspaper's headline.  All media outlets covered remarks by 
the Mufti of the Republic labeling Al-Sharif's killers as 
"thugs" who "now face the wrath of God."  While some 
commentators blamed U.S. policy for the violence in Iraq 
with one former Egyptian ambassador even alleging that 
Israel and the U.S. were behind his abduction - other 
commentators directed their wrath toward those who killed 
Al-Sharif and "distort" the image of Islam.  Much of the 
commentary about the London bombings took place in the 
context of remarks about Al-Sharif's murder.  The media 
reported on a recent spate of poisoned watermelon cases, 
reportedly from pesticide use, with some commentators 
singling out the former Minister of Agriculture for blame. 
End summary. 
 
¶2.  Egyptian envoy to Iraq murdered - coverage:  "Black Day 
of Terrorism" was the banner headline on July 8 in leading 
pro-government daily Al-Ahram (circulation: 750,000), which 
featured extensive coverage of the murder of Ehab Al- 
Sharif, Egyptian envoy to Iraq.  The July 8 headline of 
pro-government Al-Akhbar (circulation: 800,000) read 
"Religious Crime:  Zarqawi's Group Kills Egyptian 
Ambassador to Iraq."  All pro-government newspapers quoted 
the Mufti of the Republic Ali Gomaa saying on July 7, "It's 
a crime and the Ambassador is a martyr."  The following 
day, during Gomaa's Friday sermon broadcast live on 
Egyptian TV, the Mufti said that Al-Sharif's killers were 
"thugs" who "now face the wrath of God, who will strike 
them down!"  Independent, anti-American weekly Al-Osboa 
(circulation: 50,000) led with the headline "They Killed 
Him!" in its July 10 edition.  Opposition Al-Wafd 
(circulation: 70,000)  printed on July 10 a front-page 
cartoon showing an Egyptian woman in white being bit on the 
hand by a dog from a village labeled "Iraq" under the title 
"Assassination of the Egyptian Ambassador in Iraq." 
Egyptian TV's Channel One changed its regularly scheduled 
programming on July 8 and 9 and, instead, aired "Al-Irhabi" 
("The Terrorist"), a film produced in the 90s at the height 
of Gamaa Islamabad violence in Egypt.  (Note:  The film 
portrays an Egyptian terrorist involved in the murder of 
innocent tourists, showing how he and his colleagues are 
brainwashed and misunderstand Islamic Sharia law.  When the 
terrorist is injured, a kind Christian physician treats him 
and soon, the terrorist repents and leaves his terrorist 
cell.  For this, his former colleagues kill him.  End 
note.) 
 
¶3.  Egyptian envoy to Iraq murdered  commentary:  A former 
Egyptian ambassador appeared on the popular TV program Al- 
Bayt Baytak ("Make Yourself at Home") on July 10 arguing 
that the U.S. "convinced" the GOE to send an ambassador to 
Iraq and that the GOE was "totally responsible" for Al- 
Sharif's death.  Al-Ahram's new Editor-in-chief, Osama 
Saraya, mourned Al-Sharif's death in a July 9 commentary, 
remarking that the "crime" would not prevent Egypt from 
supporting Iraq.  However, echoing an all-too-familiar 
refrain in the Egyptian press, Saraya reiterated that "the 
Americans are responsible for the uncontrollable violence 
in Iraq," concluding that the U.S. war on terror "has only 
increased terrorist crimes worldwide."  Former pro- 
government Akhbar Al-Youm (circulation: 1,000,000) Editor- 
in-chief Ibrahim Saeda denounced Al-Sharif's murder on July 
9, avoiding assigning any blame in his commentary and 
argued that Egypt should lead the way for other Arab 
countries by appointing another ambassador.  Another former 
Egyptian ambassador -- Ahmad Al-Ghamrawi, former ambassador 
to Afghanistan -- alleged to IslameOnline.net and Egyptian 
TV that Al-Sharif "was kidnapped by a foreign body to pit 
the Egyptians and Iraqis against one another," suggesting 
the Israeli Mossad and the CIA as suspects.  Liberal 
columnist Abdallah Abdel Salam, writing in Al-Ahram on July 
9, criticized "those who do not adopt a clear-cut position 
on terrorism and claim that the West is launching a crusade 
against 'Arabs' and Muslims," emphasizing that terrorism 
must be condemned "loud and clear  and anyone who excuses 
it is an accomplice to the crime." 
 
¶4.  London terror attacks:  "A New September 11 in London" 
was the headline on Al-Wafd's July 8 front page. The former 
Editor-in-chief of pro-government Al-Gomhouriya 
(circulation: 500,000) condemned the London bombings in a 
July 8 column, yet another columnist writing in the paper 
that day condemned the U.S. for "the spread of terrorism." 
The bombings were widely condemned in other pro-government 
newspaper commentaries on July 9, with one Al-Ahram 
commentator writing that "Muslim preachers who adopt lame 
excuses for the London bombings distort the image of Islam 
abroad far more than terrorism itself."  The bombings were 
mentioned and condemned on the weekend's talks shows, but 
in the context of a discussion about the murder of Egyptian 
envoy to Iraq Al-Sharif. 
 
¶5.  Poisoned watermelons:  The independent print media 
continued to report on cases of pesticide-tainted 
watermelons on the market.  The Ministry of Health had 
announced to the media last week that just over 300 cases 
of watermelon poisonings had been reported.  The Minister 
of Agriculture, interviewed by Al-independent daily Masry 
Al-Youm (circulation: 20,000), blamed his predecessor for 
allowing dangerous pesticides on the market.  Meanwhile, on 
July 10 the Editor of Al-Osboa, which profiled poisoning 
cases on its front page the previous week, appeared on 
Egyptian satellite Dream TV to accuse the former Minister 
of Agriculture of "poisoning Egyptians." 
 
CORBIN