Nicola Abé

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It certainly says something about a country’s leadership when it decides to build the new capital city in the middle of the desert, a suburb of sand. That’s what the Egyptian government has announced its doing, and it says that they aren’t exactly enamored with the nation as it is; they look at chaotic Cairo and dream of dashing Dubai. The utopian quest seems a heated response to the booming population and unpredictable nature of the current capital, though it remains to be seen if a technocratic development in the dunes will be able to effect a cure for what elites believe ails the surrounding areas.

From Nicola Abé at Spiegel:

The Egyptian government has decided to build a new capital city east of Cairo, smack in the middle of the desert. “A global capital,” the building minister announced at a conference on the Red Sea in March. At the event, investors from the Gulf states, China and Saudi Arabia gathered around a model of the new metropolis, admiring the business quarter, with its Dubai-style skyscrapers, the small residential homes in greenbelts and the football stadium. The city is to be situated on 700 square kilometers of land, with an airport larger than London’s Heathrow. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi even wooed investors himself. He recently announced that construction would begin in January.

It is to be a capital created in accordance with the wishes of the country’s leadership elite. It may not fit well with the country as it currently exists, but it will conform to their visions of Egypt’s future — a planned, manageable city conceived from the top down in the same way the pharaohs once created the pyramids. The new Cairo will be a beautiful place, an “innovation center,” environmentally sustainable, with a high quality of life, city planners are pledging. They want it to be a city where people can breathe without having to cough.

The old Cairo is an ugly city, an affront to the senses. Even as you begin heading into the city from the airport, the buildings are already blackened from pollution. The cacophony of car horns is painful to the ears and during winter months, the smog hangs like thick fog over the Nile. The city suffers from thrombosis, with streets so crammed with cars they’re like clogged arteries. Yet women in high-heel shoes saunter along the banks of the Nile smiling. Even though the place seems unbearable, Cairo is loved.•

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Israelis may be at a tipping point, struggling under the twin burdens of a weak economy and endless war. Bibi Netanyahu, a perplexing and unpopular Rumsfeldian figure, has maintained power with nimble behind-the-scenes maneuvering and by playing the politics of fear. Of course, those fears aren’t baseless. Isaac Herzog, a candidate for Prime Minister approaching the center from the left, hopes to take Israel in a new direction. Nicola Abé and Juliane von Mittelstaedt interviewed him for Spiegel. An excerpt:

Spiegel:

The journalist Ari Shavit wrote that “People don’t like Bibi, but they sleep better when he’s in charge.” So they may be worried about the high prices, but they are really afraid of the existential threat posed by Hamas, Islamic State and Iran. Can you overcome this fear, especially in a country that has shifted to the right for the last 20 years?

Isaac Herzog:

Oh, I am not sure the country has substantially shifted to the right. Israelis are demanding peace, and they are demanding that the Palestinians don’t shoot at us. And, I think, they want to know that if I negotiate peace, I will not sell them out. That’s legitimate. However, Israelis are fed up with the prime minister’s politics of fear. They are fed up from hearing the same music again and again. He’s been prime minister for six years, and yet he has failed substantially in providing Israelis a decent economy and prospects for peace and security.

Spiegel:

Some people say that Labor can only win if it has a former general at its helm.

Isaac Herzog:

Netanyahu was a captain and I am a major in one of the country’s famous intelligence units. I don’t think that matters at all. This is old politics.

Spiegel:

Do you think the time of the macho politician is over? Is Israel ready for a softie in power?

Isaac Herzog:

I think so. And more than that, Israel is ready for a serious, considered and experienced leader. For something else.

Spiegel:

Netanyahu’s most important topic is Iran. He warns about the potential of an Iranian atomic bomb and doesn’t believe it will give up its nuclear program. Do you believe the ongoing negotiations could bring about a compromise?

Isaac Herzog:

Iran is a hateful regime that spreads hate. I think that the international community that is negotiating with Iran has to be stern. However, I think one needs to talk, in a quiet, professional manner, without any blame game, but with all options on the table. That is where I differ from Netanyahu.

Spiegel:

Are you in favor of an easing sanctions?

Isaac Herzog:

It think it has to be part of a process, when we know that they are liquidating their nuclear program.

Spiegel:

What about the other unsolved conflict — the one with the Palestinians? Why is the peace process playing virtually no role in your election campaign? Do you want to focus only on social issues and economy?

Isaac Herzog:

I want to be frank about this. The current situation with the Palestinians is one of the worst ever. Abu Mazen (President Mahmoud Abbas) has decided to act unilaterally against Israel, so there’s not much confidence among Israelis regarding the prospect of a negotiation process. But Livni and I are both identified with the peace process, and yes, we want to reignite that process. Because our great advantage is that we know much better than Netanyahu how to protect the interests of Israeli citizens.•

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