Drama, gossip, the first wives , and the first deaths, the road to the presidential Egyptian elections has been mired in controversy. Here's a reminder of some of the defining moments leading up to the hotly anticipated presidential elections. Gone are the days of 99% in favor of Mubarak , this time there are real candidates, real votes and the chance for Egyptians to finally have their say . From communists to Islamists, this time round, there have been rich pickings , but will Egyptians be overwhelmed by the choice ...

As the Egyptian presidential elections are fast approaching (due May 23-24) we are inevitably hearing from our Egyptian celebrities. These local hot-shots have managed to find themselves involved or dragged into the Tahrir fray before now. Some artists seem to be voting in the interest of stability for Egypt, keeping their votes, as far as possible, loyal to the old guard. Even those, as 'dog-listed,' Ilham Chahine have not shirked away from the political spotlight that found them blacklisted by the masses last year for their show of support for ...

The second season of the pan-Arab hit talent contest Arabs Got Talent , already underway, has been causing more than its fair share of buzz lately. Just ahead of today's final auditions rounds, we bring you the juiciest auditions so far . We've been spoilt for choice in creative talent stakes at this early stage of the game. From 'Lord Gaga' to a Tunisian revolutionary female poet, here's a reminder of what's already passed , whether as Arab talent history or through to the next round. Not without a few ...

Last week, the notorious US pastor with the same old mission, but different excuse for defiling Islam's holy book with fire, returned to our headlines and screens. Pastor Terry Jones was back with a burning vengeance because an Iranian Christian cleric on death row was not pardoned. Jones received a fine from the fire department, and a written notice that burning books is bad for the environment. In (dis) honor of his repeat offense against Islam and Muslims, we think back to all the crimes against Islam that have fueled ...

May 1, the day of the working man, and woman of course, is upon us. In the Middle East, the 1st of May, 2012, 'Labor Day' is a chance to shift our attention to the working class man or woman (leaving Mona Eltahawy crying misogyny aside), as we tip our hats off to the daily work that surrounds us. May 1 is a national holiday in more than 80 countries, offering workers some deserved respite and often a long 'bank holiday' weekend break, and is marked by many members of ...

Al Bawaba brings you a round-up of Arab celebrity news - spanning politics, performances and poetry tours. Find out what sultry Lebanese 'Beauty Queen', Haifa, has been getting up to, and catch up with the achievements, antics and interviews of classic artists as well as new-found talent to have emerged from the TV talent show circuit. Soulful Syrian singer, Waed Albahri, Syrian actress , Dima Qandalaft , Lebanese singer, Nikola Saade, poet Khalid Al Dhanhani, Tunisian Amani Swissi and UAE's latest voice, Mansour Zayed are featured. Please leave your comments!

Did you know these 'Western' uber-successful billionaire businessmen were of Arab extract? All male, this selection of exhorbitantly rich gents have featured year in year out in the Forbes wealth index lists, and are often the biggest fish - in dollar terms- in the global pond, let alone their domestic pools. If they're American, they were not necessarily born in the USA , but realized their American dreams nontheless when they became filthy rich! If they're from the UK, they were not always thoroughly British born and bred. All of ...

We are proud to announce a list of Western stars and luminaries of the entertainment and art world who have something of the Arab within! Part Arab, many generations ago or just a single remove away, we expose the closet Arabs and the all out Arab-embracing celebs. Most descend from the Levant region between Syria and Lebanon, but there is the occasional Iraqi, Jordanian or Palestinian lurking within this gallery of Arab blood. Did you know that the following famous people had Arab origins? Here's a selection of Hollywood acting ...

After quite the build up, and biding our time with the ' funniest' Egyptian potential candidates for President , here's the real deal, with the top ten, big guns, in the presidential race, 2012. Ten serious contenders for the title of Mr. Presidient of Egypt, as the electoral commission approves the final presidential candidates. Still, it's not over til the 'fat lady sings' or in this case, the forces that be who sit on the electoral commission. Just yesterday, t en from Egypt's 23 presidential candidates were barred from running ...

In case you haven't heard of the latest buzz in the Wikileaks saga that spawned a whole trend of exposing high-level hacked documents , we bring you Stratfor, the Global Intelligence (GI) files . This email trove of 5 million gathered from the Stratfor database has caused the latest spy drama to leak out of our security conscious world. Stratfor , is a private intelligence firm based in Austin, Texas with both domestic and foreign ties to intelligence in the military, corporate, and government sectors. It is precisely because of ...

On the occasion of the Western Church's Easter weekend, starting this Good Friday, we think about Easter time and its traditions in the food department throughout the Arab world. Arabs have food to suit every occasion as well as season . Much of the Arab world, including Lebanon, Iraq and Syria, celebrate Easter with the Western world, which falls on April 8th this year, that is Easter Sunday. Palestine and Jordan, as well as Egypt tend to mark their Eastern Easter the week after, which in the case of 2012 ...