Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry meets with Mahmoud Al-Habbash, the Palestinian Chief Justice, and the Palestinian President's advisor for Religious Affairs and Islamic Relations. Meanwhile, the Israeli Supreme Court postponed its ruling regarding the evacuation of four Jerusalemite families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem. The court was expected to issue its final decision in the case today, but the session ended in a stalemate. The court judges proposed a settlement that defines the four Palestinian families as "protected tenants" and would not be able to evict them for decades to come. In return, the Israeli settlers asked the families to acknowledge their ownership of the land and the houses, a proposal that was totally rejected by the families.

BARCELONA: Barcelona president Joan Laporta has said talks over a new deal are progressing well with forward Lionel Messi. However, Barca have reportedly offered him a new five-year deal on a reduced salary which they hope will help them meet La Liga's financial fair play (FFP) requirements. "We're doing everything possible, and it's progressing well," Laporta told a news conference on Monday. "Leo wants to stay at Barca and we'll do all we can. "We want, if possible, for La Liga to be more flexible and other European leagues have been.

CAIRO – 2 August 2021: Egypt published the first pictures of LE 10 and 20 plastic notes that will be officially issued next November from the new printing press of the Central Bank of Egypt, in the New Administrative Capital. Plastic currencies are produced from polymer, and were first used as currency-making material in Australia in 1988. The process of withdrawing worn-out banknotes from the market is carried out through the supervision of the Central Bank, by withdrawing the damaged banknote from the market and replacing it with new banknotes. The state will resort to printing the 10 and 20 pounds of polymer material; because it is the most widely traded, as plastic money is characterized as 3 times the life span of its paper or bank counterparts. Egypt’s Plastic Currency

CAIRO – 2 August 2021: The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development highlighted Monday that given that the current fiscal year is the fourth/last year of the medium-term plan for sustainable development (18/2019 - 21/2022), the agricultural sector has been allocated 5.9 percent of public investments budget. That is equivalent to LE 73.8 billion, compared to about LE 43 billion spent in FY2019/2020, with an increase of LE39.5 billion. Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, explained that the agricultural sector and the related activities of cattle, pourtly, and fish production are the main source of food, as well as the inputs of the industrial sector. This sector is characterized by its wide geographical scope to include different governorates, and by absorbing the largest part of the workforce in rural areas. Its position in the national economy is also reinforced by the strength of its interconnectedness with other economic sectors, especially the sectors of transportation, storage, trade, and manufacturing.

CAIRO – 2 August 2021: The Egyptian Foreign Ministry launched on Monday the national report on combating terrorism for 2021 to review the state’s efforts and comprehensive approach to face the extremist ideology and terror. He added that the report touches on the legislative system to combat terrorism, including national legislation and its amendments that are consistent with Egypt's relevant international commitments. The report deals with the security efforts made to pursue terrorist organizations and undermine their ability to carry out attacks that affect the security and stability of the country. Also, the report also clarifies the efforts made to achieve sustainable development and raise the standard of citizens’ lives, taking into account the importance of the development dimension in preventing terrorism and extremism. Egypt is also keen to address the various aspects of this issue in its contacts with various countries of the world through bilateral frameworks, Fouad said.

Egypt’s Air Force is participating in Egyptian-Emirati joint air training drill “Zayed-3”, with Egyptian units having arrived Monday at the al-Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates. The spokesman for the Egyptian Armed Forces Gharib Abdel-Hafez on Facebook explained that the drill will feature several multi-task combat aircraft of various models, and comes as pat of an annual plan for joint exercises carried out by the armed forces with friendly countries. The training aims to hone the skills of the participating forces from both sides to reach the highest levels of eadiness to carry out joint tasks. It also aims to prepare them to manage air operations using the latest air weapons with high efficiency under various circumstances. The ultimate goal of the drill is in supporting and strengthening joint military cooperation between the Egyptian and Emirati armed forces through several joint exercises in various air, sea and land disciplines to hone the skills of the participating elements of both countries.

CAIRO – 2 August 2021: The selection process of candidates to join the recently launched "Intellect Imam" training program offered by the Ministry of Endowments has begun. The program aims to introduce Imams (Muslim clergymen) to other disciplines so they would be able to deliver preaches that cope with contemporary issues and reality. Candidates will sit for tests and interviews within the selection process as indicated by Minister Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa in press statements Monday.

Canada celebrated their first win over the U.S. in over 20 years after Jessie Fleming's 75th minute penalty settled the contest. The U.S, pre-Games favourites for the gold medal, went close to an equaliser when Carli Lloyd struck the bar with a header but Canada held on for a famous victory - and their first appearance in an Olympic final. The Americans have won the gold medal four times and have not lost to Canada for over 20 years. Sweden, who lost to Germany in the Rio final, fired an early warning with a Rolfo shot rattling the crossbar. The bronze medal game will be held in Kashima on Thursday with the gold medal match at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on Friday.

The Central Bank of Egypt on Sunday unveiled the new rainbow-colored designs for ten and twenty-pound plastic currency notes, with users on social media such as Twitter unamused by the colorful currency. Several informed sources assured that these rainbow colors serve a purpose to prevent counterfeiting. The sources stated that the new plastic money will reduce the costs of printing the traditional currency, as it is made of polymer that is harmless to the environment and has twice the lifespan of the paper currency. An official source with the Central Bank of Egypt assured that the models circulated for pictures of plastic currency are preliminary and not the final designs. Actor Nabil al-Halafawy commented on the issue when asked for his opinion on Twitter, saying: “This step towards plastic money was long overdue.

CAIRO - 2 August 2020: Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad said Egypt is set to host the International Conference on Climate Change of 2022 to represent the African continent. Speaking to Sada Al Balad TV channel on Sunday, the minister reiterated that the State is keen on prioritizing the climate change issue, pointing out that Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli has directed to form the national council of climate changes. She further noted that every year, a certain region is chosen to host the conference, and in 2022, it will be the turn of Africa to host the conference. Egypt has submitted a letter to host the COP 27 and coordinated with the African group, the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change (AGN) and the council of African environment ministers, she said. The summit also aims at maximizing the co-benefits of a food systems approach across the entire 2030 Agenda and meeting the challenges of climate change.

According to the ODA-SDG map, 18 development partners provided funds worth $1.4 billion, representing 5.6 percent of the current financing portfolio. These in addition to bilateral development partners, namely Germany, the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), France, Switzerland, the United States of America, Canada, Italy, and Japan. For instance, the financing from the World Bank amounted to $530 million to develop the health system, improve the quality of health care services and manage the demand for health services and family planning. The map promotes transparent and effective communication with stakeholders and citizens to learn about the national development efforts made through international partnerships. The book documents Egypt’s pioneering experience in international cooperation and development finance, crafting a model for other emerging and developing countries.

Egypt has announced that it has finalized the first phase of construction for 633 water storage facilities, with a capacity of 266.34 million m3. It explained that 160 dams, 307 artificial lakes, and 39 protection bridges, 93 barriers and artificial canals have been implemented, as well as the repairing and construction of 34 flood waterholes in preparation for the torrential rain season. The second phase currently underway will see the construction of up to 13 dams, 48 ​​artificial lakes, 118 protection bridges, and 29 pacification basins. The Egyptian Ministry of Irrigation, in coordination with the concerned agencies and authorities, is preparing to confront the rainy seasons. The Egyptian Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation revealed an increase in rainfall rates at the sources of the Nile, pointing out that the level of water in the High Dam lake is expected to increase by the beginning of August.

Egypt’s economic and social development plan for the fiscal year 2021/22, which was approved by the House of Representatives, predicted that remittances from Egyptian expatriates will rise to about US$30 billion, compared to US$25.2 billion in 2018/19, marking an increase of US$4.8 billion within four years. Here are the approximations of expat remittances from FY 2018/19 to FY 2021/222018/19: US$25.2 billion2019/20: US$27.8 billion2020/21: US$28 billion2021/22 (expected): US$30 billion. Egyptian expat remittances are considered a key source of hard currency, alongside the Suez Canal and the country’s tourism sector.

FILE - Late Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser at the Suez Canal in 1956CAIRO – 2 August 2021: On August 2, many important events took place. The victory of the Carthaginian army led by Hannibal over the Roman army in the Battle of Cannae. 1776 - The United States Declaration of Independence is formally signed. 1790 - The first census was conducted in the United States, and the population at that time was 3,929,326. 1956 - The French Parliament declares its opposition to Egypt's nationalization of the Suez Canal, and France joins the United Kingdom and Israel.

Egyptian Olympic wrestling team player Mohamed Metwally defeated his Cuban opponent 4-0 in the quarter-finals of the Tokyo Olympic Games, and qualifies for the semi-finals in the Men’s Greco-Roman 87kg category. Metwally previously defeated Belarusian Kiryl Maskevich 9-1 in round of 16 and qualified for the quarter-finals in the 87 kg category. On Monday, Egyptian diver Mohab Mohymen qualified for the semi-finals of the 3-meter dive at the Tokyo Olympics. He scored 66.30 points in the second attempt, 79.20 points in the third attempt, 54.25 points in the fourth attempt, 69.00 points in the fifth attempt, and 76.50 points in the sixth attempt. Mohymen had qualified for the Tokyo Olympics after winning the gold medal in the African Olympic qualifiers for the 3-meter springboard dive.