muslims insist on popes apology

"Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi"------------------------------------------------------WORLD CAPITALS – A growing chorus of Muslim leaders worldwide were united Friday, September 15, in insisting on a clear-cut apology from Pope Benedict over his comments that showed how little he understands Islam and could hurt religious harmony.
"We demand that he apologizes personally, and not through (Vatican) sources, to all Muslims for such a wrong interpretation," said Lebanese Shiite scholar Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah, Reuters reported.
"While we strongly condemn and reject this talk ... we call for Muslim-Christian relations based on an in-depth scientific understanding of the mutual points of view, leaving aside sensational words," said Fadlallah.
Sheikh Hamza Mansour, who heads the Shura Council of the Islamic Action Front, Jordan's largest opposition party, said only a personal apology could rectify the "deep insult made by the provocative comments" to over 1 billion Muslims.
The head of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt called on Islamic countries to threaten to break off relations with the Vatican unless the Pontiff withdrew his remarks and apologize.
"The general guide (Mohammad Mahdi Akef) expressed his surprise that such comments should come from someone who sits at the summit of the Catholic Church and who has an influence over public opinion in the West," said a statement on the Muslim Brotherhood's official Web site, www.ikhwanonline.com.
In his speech at the University of Regensburg on Tuesday, Benedict quoted criticism of Islam and Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) by 14th century Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaeologus, who wrote that everything Muhammad brought was evil and inhuman, "such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached."
Benedict repeatedly quoted Manuel's argument that spreading the faith through violence is unreasonable, adding: "Violence is incompatible with the nature of God and the nature of the soul."
The pope's official spokesman later issued a response to the outcry, saying that Benedict respected Islam but rejected violence motivated by religion.
"It was certainly not the intention of the Holy Father to do an in-depth study of jihad and Muslim thinking in this field and still less so to hurt the feelings of Muslim believers," said Federico Lombardi, head of the Vatican's press department.
Ignorance
Akef said he is surprised that such comments should come from someone who sits at the summit of the Catholic Church.
Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, the head of the International Union for Muslim Scholars (IUMS), said the pope's words reflected ignorance of the basic tenets of Islam.
"The pope spoke about Islam without reading first its scriptures, the Noble Qur'an, and Prophet Muhammad's hadiths, but sufficed to cite a conversation between a Byzantine emperor and a Persian Muslim intellectual," said in a statement, a copy of which was sent to IslamOnline.net.
"The pope forgot that Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) came with a message that struck the right balance between this life and the Hereafter, between individual and society and between rights and duties," he added.
"Everything that Prophet Muhammad brought was good and by far surpassed the things brought by Christianity and Judaism," he continued.
Sheikh Qaradawi said Jihad in Islam is for self-defense and not to impose the Muslim faith on someone and the Noble Qur'an says: "There is no compulsion in religion."
"To say hat Prophet Muhammad brought evil and inhuman things like spreading faith by the sword is either a calumny or pure ignorance, in effect."
And the prominent scholar wondered: "Does the pope want to close the door on dialogue and new crusades to be readied?"
"We hoped that the pope would call for a constructive dialogue between all religions and civilizations to lay to rest clashes and feuds," he said.
Din Syamsuddin, chairman of Muhammadiyah, the second largest Islamic organization in Indonesia, echoed Qaradawi's statements.
"The Pope's statements reflect his lack of wisdom. It is obvious from the statements that the Pope doesn't have a correct understanding of Islam," Syamsuddin told Reuters.
The Pakistani parliament Friday also unanimously called on the pontiff to take back his words.
"This House demands that the pope should retract his remarks in the interest of harmony between religions," said the resolution passed by the National Assembly of the overwhelmingly Muslim country.
Crusade Language
Sheikh Qaradawi wondered: "Does the pope want to close the door on dialogue and new crusades to be readied?"
The comments also stirred anger in India with the head of the National Commission for Minorities saying the Pope sounded like a medieval crusader.
"The language used by the pope sounds like that of his 12th century counterpart who ordered the crusades," said Hamid Ansari, chairman of the National Commission for Minorities.
A member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board also slammed the pope's words, saying they were "nothing but blasphemy," and called on Muslims to "exercise restraint and not lose their cool."
In Turkey, the Anatolian state news agency quoted Ali Bardakoglu, the head of Ankara's Directorate General for Religious Affairs, as describing the Pope's words as "extremely regrettable".
"I do not see any use in somebody visiting the Islamic world who thinks in this way about the holy prophet of Islam. He should first rid himself of feelings of hate," NTV's website quoted Bardakoglu as saying.
Bardakoglu, whose directorate controls all imams in Turkey and sends imams to Turkish communities abroad, recalled atrocities committed by Roman Catholic Crusaders during the Middle Ages in the name of their faith against Orthodox Christians and Jews as well as Muslims

Al-Ahram World Open Squash Championship

Sensational Fightback Sees Palmer Win World Open Crown In Egypt

Australia's David Palmer came back from the dead to beat Frenchman Gregory Gaultier in a drama-filled final of the Al-Ahram World Open Squash Championship, played out on an all-glass court on the Giza Plateaux in Egypt, with the country's world-famous pyramids providing a stunning backdrop.
The PSA Tour's flagship event was back in the sport's most spectacular setting for the first time since 1999 – with the undoubted local hopes that Egypt's 'Prince of Squash' Amr Shabana, the world No1 and title-holder, would feature in tonight's climax.
But Shabana's defence crumbled in the previous round when France's bright new hope Gregory Gaultier – a 23-year-old from Aix-en-Provence who had never before reached a PSA Super Series final - pulled off a sensational upset to dethrone the champion in four games.
Belying his lack of experience on such a stage, however, Gaultier forged a two-games-to-love lead in the final against Palmer - the experienced 30-year-old world No2 who was making his third appearance in a world final, with a famous victory in 2002 in his adopted home town of Antwerp in Belgium to his credit.
Palmer, celebrating his 40th appearance in a PSA Tour event final, dug deep and hauled himself back into the match, winning the third game by the same 11-9 margin as the Frenchman had taken the earlier games, then forcing the fourth into a tie-break.
The Australian saved no less than five match balls against him before clinching victory in the game to level the match.
By now, the younger Gaultier was almost a spent force. Palmer duly enforced his advantage and wrapped up a remarkable 9-11, 9-11, 11-9, 11-10 (6-4), 11-2 victory in 103 minutes to claim the World Open title for a second time.
"I didn’t play my best squash today, that’s for sure, but if you think of the preparation I had this summer, I just went home for three months, I think that being away from it all for that whole period helped me to want to win again, and since the birth of my daughter Kayla, everything is different, I play for her, I play for Mel," a jubilant Palmer told www.squashsite.co.uk
A disappointed Gaultier was already looking ahead: "I’ve played a super tournament, even if I ended up with a loss. Now I need to go back to the drawing board, and start again on solid bases. Won’t be easy, but I hope that one day, I’ll win that World Championship title."
The match – which marks the 18th PSA Tour title of Palmer's career - was not only the longest of the tournament, but the longest World Open final in recent memory.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Gaultier Stuns Champion Shabana To Set Up World Open Final Against Palmer
Australia's No2 seed David Palmer and France's eighth seed Gregory Gaultier will meet in Wednesday's final of the Al-Ahram World Open Squash Championship after Palmer defeated former champion Thierry Lincou and Gaultier disappointed the packed local crowd when he upset Egypt's top seed and defending champion Amr Shabana in dramatic semi-finals on on the all-glass court set alongside Egypt's famous pyramids of Giza.
For Palmer, the 2002 champion, it will be his third appearance in the final – but for Gaultier, the fast-rising 23-year-old who has never before progressed beyond the event's third round and who today celebrated a career-high world No7 ranking, it will be his maiden appearance in any PSA Super Series event final.
It was a fine display by the young Frenchman who had only once before beaten the in-form Shabana, the 27-year-old from Giza who has topped the world rankings for the past six months and boasts three PSA Tour titles this year.
After taking the first two games, Gaultier lost his way in the third game as Shabana turned on his racket magic and reduced the deficit. But Gaultier could still sense victory and duly regained his focus in the fourth game to charge to a majestic 11-5, 11-7, 2-11, 11-9 win.
When Palmer, the world No2 from Lithgow in New South Wales, took a two-games-to-love lead against Lincou, the world No3, he must have thought back to May when he reached the same position against the Frenchman in the final of the Liverpool 08 Open – and went on to lose in five!
Indeed, after a tie-break in the second which ended in Palmer's favour, Lincou survived the third game tie-break to force the match into a fourth game. But Palmer was not about to let history repeat itself, and maintained his composure to record an impressive 11-2, 11-10 (2-0), 10-11 (0-2), 11-5 win – a victory which brings the career head-to head tally between the two to six wins apiece!
Gaultier, from Aix-en-Provence, has faced Palmer four times on the PSA Tour since November 2003 - but, despite taking the experienced 30-year-old former world number one to five games in their last two meetings, has never yet beaten the Australian. Victory at the pyramids would surely signal the arrival of the French number two!
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Gaultier Denies Egyptian Double In Giza
The giant-killing run of 18-year-old Egyptian Ramy Ashour came to an end on the all-glass court alongside the pyramids of Giza when Frenchman Gregory Gaultier denied hosts representation in both semi-finals of the Al-Ahram World Open Squash Championship in Egypt.
Gaultier, the 23-year-old eighth seed from Aix-en-Provence, is currently enjoying an excellent run of form – after reaching the final of the English Open last month and winning the European Individual Championship crown for the third year in a row in June.
Unseeded Ashour, who recently became the first man in history to win the World Junior Championship title for a second time, took his unexpected place in the last eight after upsetting tenth seed Lee Beachill in a marathon five-game second round match.
Gaultier, who stopped the Egyptian teenager in the first round of the event almost twelve months ago, was too strong for the local hero in the sport's iconic Giza setting, winning 11-10 (3-1), 11-9, 11-2 in 44 minutes.
"I played Ramy in Hong Kong, and that was quite easy, but a year later, he has improved immensely," Gaultier told www.squashsite.co.uk afterwards. "But today, I came on court to play and beat him, not to get to the semi-final of the World Open. That’s all I saw. My opponent. Nothing else. And I wanted to stay on court as short as possible."
Now in his first World Open semi-final, the Frenchman will face another Egyptian - favourite Amr Shabana, the title-holder. The pair have met three time before – all during last year – with world number one Shabana holding a 2/1 advantage.
In the earlier match on the second day of quarter-final action by the pyramids, David Palmer triumphed in the all-Australian battle with Anthony Ricketts, the second seed from Lithgow in New South Wales - recovering from a game down to beat the No5 seed from Sydney 9-11, 11-3, 11-6, 11-7 in 70 minutes.
Palmer, the 2002 champion now in the semi-finals of the championship for the fourth time, meets 2004 champion Thierry Lincou in a repeat of the Liverpool 08 Open final in May in which the Frenchman fought back from two games down to clinch the title. The Giza semi-final will be the pair's 12th PSA Tour meeting since 1999, with Palmer no doubt setting his sights on levelling the head-to-head tally to six-all.
from: http://www.squash.org/
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real jews against real terrorists

NETUREI KARTA
Neturei Karta opposed the establishment of and retain all opposition to the existence of the so-called "State of Israel"!
Neturei-Karta is the Aramaic term for "Guardians of the City. The name Neturei-Karta originates from an incident in which R. Yehudah Ha-Nassi (Rabbi Judah the Prince) sent R. Hiyya and R. Ashi on a pastoral tour of inspection. In one town they asked to see the "guardians of the city" and the city guard was paraded before them. They said that these were not the guardians of the city but its destroyers, which prompted the citizens to ask who, then, could be considered the guardians. The rabbis answered, "The scribes and the scholars," referring them to Tehillim (Psalms) Chap. 127. (Jerusalem Talmud, Tractate Hagiga. 76c).
The name was given to a group of Orthodox Jews in Jerusalem who refused (and still refuse) to recognize the existence or authority of the so-called "State of Israel" and made (and still make) a point of publicly demonstrating their position, the position of the Torah and authentic unadulterated Judaism.
The group was founded in Jerusalem, Palestine in 1938, splitting off from Agudas Yisroel. Agudas Yisroel was established in 1912 for the purpose of fighting Zionism. Gradually lured by money and honor they sold out to the "Golden-Calf" (see Exodus, XXXII) of Zionism. Those who wanted to maintain their faith and continue the struggle against Zionism, dissociated themselves from Agudas Yisroel and associated parties.Over the years, a number of Neturei Karta activists and followers settled outside of Palestine. Some of the reasons that these individuals abandoned the country in which they and their families had lived for many generations (having lived there many years prior to the establishment of the illegitimate so-called "State of Israel") include; ideological refusal to live under the illegitimate heretical "Israeli" regime, them being exiled by the Zionist government for their insistence of remaining independent of the illegitimate heretical regime or them being unable to live a normal family life due to them and their families being persistently harassed, repeatedly incarcerated and many times even physically tortured by the Zionist police and agents. This dispersion resulted in the emergence of various Neturei Karta establishments on the broader international scene. These establishments include synagogues, educational institutions, publishing houses and organizations. The establishments in New York include three synagogues in Brooklyn (Boro Park and Williamsburg), three upstate, and organizations include the Friends of Jerusalem in NY, NY.
Neturei Karta is not - as is often alleged - a small sect or an extremist group of "ultra-orthodox" Jews. The Neturei Karta have added nothing to nor have they taken anything away from the written and oral law of the Torah as it is expressed in the Halacha and the Shulchan Aruch. The Neturei Karta are fighting the changes and inroads made by political Zionism during the past one-hundred odd years. Guided by the rabbis of our time and under the inspiring leadership of the late Reb Amram Blau, the Neturei Karta refuse to recognize the right of anyone to establish a "Jewish" state during the present period of exile.
There are those who wish to play down the Neturei Karta and its' Torah-true beliefs. This has been attempted many a time by stating that the Neturei Karta is a minority group and that compared to other Jewish groups the Neturei Karta aren't even noticeable in terms of number.
The name Neturei Karta is a name usually given to those people who regularly pray in the Neturei Karta synagogues (Torah Ve'Yirah Jerusalem, Torah U'Tefillah London, Torah U'Tefillah NY, Beis Yehudi Upstate NY, etc.), study in or send their children to educational institutions run by Neturei Karta, or actively participate in activities, assemblies or demonstrations called by the Neturei Karta. Although it is true that the number of families which could be classified as Neturei Karta members or activists per-se is relatively small (several thousand), the number of Orthodox Jews who believe in the anti-Zionist ideology which Neturei Karta is known for, number in the hundreds of thousands.
Neturei Karta oppose the so-called "State of Israel" not because it operates secularly, but because the entire concept of a sovereign Jewish state is contrary to Jewish Law.
All the great rabbis who in accordance with Jewish Law opposed Zionism at its inception did not do so merely due to consideration of the secular lifestyles of the then Zionist leaders or even for their opposition to Torah heritage and rejection of its values and practices, but due to the fact that the entire concept of a Jewish state is in direct conflict with a number of Judaism's fundamentals.
Condemnation of and segregation from anything connected to or affiliated with the so-called modern day "State of Israel" is based on the Talmud, the key fundamental doctrine of the Oral Tradition handed down by G-d to Moses on Mt. Sinai. The Talmud in Tractate Kesubos (p. 111a), teaches that Jews shall not use human force to bring about the establishment of a Jewish state before the coming of the universally accepted Moshiach (Messiah from the House of David). Furthermore it states that we are forbidden to rebel against the nations and that we should remain loyal citizens and we shall not attempt to leave the exile which G-d sent us into, ahead of time.
Jews are not allowed to dominate, kill, harm or demean another people and are not allowed to have anything to do with the Zionist enterprise, their political meddling and their wars.
Neturei Karta forbid any participation with the so-called "State of Israel" or any of its subsidiaries. Neturei Karta followers do not participate in "Israeli" elections nor do they accept any aid from "Bituach Le'Umi" (Social Security), and the educational institutions of the Neturei Karta reject any form of financial support from the so-called "Va'ad HaYeshivos" (equiv. to Department of Education).
The Zionist state employs a set of chief rabbis and uses religious parties to ornament their state with a clerical image. They study the Torah with commentaries altered to clothe the words with nationalistic nuances. Our rabbis have countless times proclaimed that it matters little which individuals or parties govern in the Zionist state because the very establishment and existence of the state itself is to be condemned and to be deplored.
The true Jews remain faithful to Jewish belief and are not contaminated with Zionism.
The true Jews are against dispossessing the Arabs of their land and homes. According to the Torah, the land should be returned to them.
Neturei Karta deplore the systematic uprooting of ancient Jewish communities by the Zionists, the shedding of Jewish and non-Jewish blood for the sake of Zionist sovereignty and the Neturei Karta favor a peaceful transition from the present Zionist rule to a non-Zionist entity.
According to Judaic Law the Torah has the last word. There is no such thing as a majority of Jews who happen to be Jewish by birth who can alter Torah Law in any way. In fact even the greatest rabbi or as Maimonides writes, "even the greatest prophet" [referring actually to an authentic prophet], has no right to distort or amend even one letter of the Torah.
Rabbi Blau stated shortly before his death that the acceptance by the United Nations of the Zionist state as a member state constituted a grave injustice to the Jewish people. Neturei Karta hope that this great error will be corrected at the earliest opportunity. The Neturei Karta regret that the Zionist state has usurped the holy name of Israel and that the Zionists so often pretend to speak in the name of the Jewish people and assume the right to act on our behalf. Only those rabbis who have not been affected or influenced by the poison of Zionism, can be considered the spiritual leaders of today's Jewry.
The world must know that the Zionists have illegitimately seized the name Israel and have no right to speak in the name of the Jewish people!from: www.nkusa.org

Egypt bids farewell to Mahfouz

Egypt yesterday bid farewell to Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz, who died on Wednesday, with military funeral procession from Al-Rashdan Mosque in Cairo. Mahfouz had been in hospital since mid-July after he fell during a midnight stroll and injured his head. Mahfouz's body, draped in the national flag, was borne on a horse-drawn gun carriage and accompanied by military cadets who carried flowers and the prizes Mahfouz won during his 70-year writing career
President Hosni Mubarak and Mahfouz's family led the mourners. Earlier in the day, a public memorial service was held for Mahfouz in the Hussein district of Old Cairo in accordance with the late novelist's wishes.
Scores of black-clad Egyptians and media people paid tribute to the much-loved writer, who died at the age of 95. Of his 50 novels, “The Cairo Trilogy”, published between 1955 and 1957, brought Mahfouz to the forefront of the Arab literary scene. The 'Trilogy' depicts traditional urban life and tells the story of a family who lived through the first half of the 20th century when Egypt was under British occupation and later became an independent monarchy. The three novels introduced the character Si-Sayed, the domineering patriarch, who became an icon in Egyptian culture.
As Mahfouz's body arrived at the Hussein Mosque under tight security, mourners rushed towards the coffin in a gesture of deep affection for the first Arab writer to receive the Nobel Prize for literature.
Old Cairo inspired many of Mahfouz's writings. Mahfouz was born in the nearby district of Gamalya in 1911. He spent most of his time at el-Fishawi café, which is a few meters from the mosque where Egyptians went to pray for him for the last time. Mahfouz won the Nobel Prize in 1988. Nearly half of Mahfouz's novels have been made into films that have been distributed throughout the Arabic-speaking world.
He wrote more than 100 short stories, many of which have been translated into English. Most of his works are set against the backcloth of the bustling city and portrayed a unique brand of 'Egyptianness' at a time when a national identity was taking shape.Throughout his life, the author was actively interested in politics and a staunch defender of tolerance. His novel, Children of Gabalawi (1959) was banned by Egypt's Islamic Al-Azhar University on the grounds that it violated Islamic principles by including characters who represented God and the Prophets.
The book, which was published in Lebanon and later translated into English, enraged an Islamic fundamentalist group, who said Mahfouz should be killed for blasphemy.In 1994, a young member of the group attacked Mahfouz and stabbed him in the neck.Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar Sheikh Mohamed Sayyed Tantawi was at the funeral to pay homage to Mahfouz. He praised Mahfouz's efforts in making Egyptian literature known to the rest of the world. Grand Mufti Sheikh Ali Gomaa said Mahfouz loved Egypt and was “faithful to his country”. In one corner of the old mosque stood Mahfouz's wife and two daughters who prayed for the great writer.
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More about Mafouz
Naguib Mahfouz1911 - 2006
Naguib Mahfouz was born in Gamaliya, Cairo on December 11, 1911. The family lived in two popular districts of the town, al-Jamaliya and al-Abbasiya which have provided the backdrop for most of his writings.
His father was a civil servant, and Mahfouz eventually followed in his footsteps. In his childhood, his mother often took him to museums and Egyptian history later became a major theme is many of his books. He graduated from Faculty of Arts, Philosophy Department, Cairo University in 1934. By 1936, having spent a year working on an M.A., he decided to become a professional writer.
He worked as a journalist at Ar-Risala, and contributed to Al-Hilal and Al-Ahram.Before turning to the novel, Mahfouz wrote articles and short stories. His first published book was a translation of James Baikie's work on ancient Egypt. His first collection of stories appeared in 1938. In 1939, he entered government bureaucracy, where he was employed for the next 35 years.
From 1939 until 1954, he was a civil servant at the Ministry of Endowments, and then worked as Director of the Foundation for Support of the Cinema, the State Cinema Organization. In 1969-71, he was a consultant for cinema affairs to the Ministry of Culture.
Mahfouz's early works, Abath al-Aqdar (1939), Radubis (1943), and Kifah Tibah (1944), were historical novels that were written as part of a larger unfulfilled project of 30 novels. Inspired by Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832), Mahfouz planned to cover the whole history of Egypt in a series of books. However, following the third novel, Mahfouz shifted his interest to the present, the psychological impact of the social change on ordinary people.
Mahfouz's major work in the 1950s was The Cairo Trilogy, which the author completed before the July Revolution. The novels were titled with the street names Palace Walk, Palace of Desire, and Sugar Street. Mahfouz set the story in the parts of Cairo where he grew up.
They depict the life of the al-Sayyid Ahmad Abd al-Jawad and his family over three generations in Cairo from World War I to the 1950s, when King Farouk I was overthrown. With its rich variety of characters and psychological understanding, the work connected Mahfouz to such authors as Balzac, Dickens, Tolstoy, and Galsworthy. Mahfouz ceased to write for some years after finishing the trilogy.
He started publishing again in 1959, now prolifically pouring out novels, short stories, journalism, memoirs, essays, and screenplays.
The Children of Gebelaawi (1959) portrayed Gebelaawi and his children. Gebelaawi has built a mansion in an oasis in the middle of a barren desert; his estate becomes the scene of a family feud which continues for generations. Whenever someone is depressed, suffering or humiliated, he points to the mansion at the top of the alley at the end opening out to the desert, and says sadly, "That is our ancestor's house, we are all his children, and we have a right to his property.
Why are we starving? What have we done?" The book was banned throughout the Arab world, except in Lebanon. In the 1960s Mahfouz further developed its theme that humanity is moving further away from God in his existentialist novels.
In The Thief and the Dogs (1961) he depicted the fate: a Marxist thief, who has been released from prison and plans revenge. Ultimately, he is murdered in a cemetery.
Mahfouz left his post as the Director of Censorship and was appointed Director of the Foundation for the Support of the Cinema. He was a contributing editor for the leading newspaper Al-Ahram and in 1969 he became a consultant to the Ministry of Culture, retiring in 1972. He has been a board member of Dar al Ma'aref publishing house.
Most of his novels have been serialized in Al-Ahram, and his writings also appeared in his weekly column, 'Point of View'.
In the 1960s and 1970s Mahfouz started to construct his novels more freely and use interior monologue. In Miramar (1967) he used a form of multiple first-person narration.
Four narrators, among them a Socialist and a Nasserite opportunist, represent different political views. In the center of the story is an attractive servant girl. In Arabian Nights and Days (1981) and in The Journey of Ibn Fatouma (1983) he used traditional Arabic narratives as subtexts. Akhenaton, Dweller in Truth (1985) is about conflict between old and new religious truths.
Mahfouz, called the "Balzac of Egypt", has written some 40 novels and short story collections, screenplays, and several stage plays. In his work, Mahfouz has described the development of his country in the 20th-century.
He has combined intellectual and cultural influences from East and West, his own exposure to the literature of non-Arabic culture began in his youth with the enthusiastic consumption of Western detective stories.
Mahfouz's stories are almost always set in the heavily populated urban quarters of Cairo. He had focused on 'the little man', who has to deal with the modernization of society and the temptations of Western values.
In his own country, his characters have become household words, and he is widely considered a spokesperson not only for Egypt but also for a number of non-Western cultures. Before the Nobel Prize only a few of Mahfouz's novels had appeared in the West. Jacqueline Onassis was among those people, who brought early translations to the English-speaking readers.
In 1994, Mahfouz was stabbed in the neck with a kitchen knife. Two Egyptian Islamic militants were sentenced to death in 1995 for attempting to kill him.
Early in the morning on August 30, 2006, Naguib Mahfouz died at Police Hospital in Agouza.Selected works:
• Abath al-Agdar, 1939 - Mockery of the Fates• Radubis, 1943• Kifah Tibah, 1944• Khan al-Khalili, 1944• Al-Qahirah al-Jadidah, 1946 - New Cairo• Zuqaq al-Midaqq, 1947 - Midaq Alley –• Al-Sarab, 1949• Bidayah wa-Nihayah, 1949 - The Beginning and the End.• Al-Thulatiya, 1956-57 - The Cairo Trilogy; Bayn al-Qasrayn (1956) - Palace Walk - Quasr al-Shawq (1957) - Palace of Desire - al-Sukkariyah (1957) - Sugar Street• Children of Gebelaawi, 1959 - Children of the Alley• Al-Liss wa-al-Kilab, 1961 - The Thief and the Dogs• Al-Summan wa-Al-kharif, 1962 - Autumn Quail• Al-Tariq, 1964 - The Search• Al-Shahhadh, 1965 - The Beggar• Thartharah fawq al Nil, 1966 - Adrift on the Nile• Miramar, 1967• Al Maraya, 1971 - Mirrors• Al-Hubb taht Al Matar, 1973• Al-Karnak, 1974• Qualb al-Layl, 1975• Hadrat al-Muhtaram, 1975 - Respected Sir• Malhamat al-Harafish, 1977 - The Harafish• Layali alf Laylah, 1981 - Arabian nights and days• Rihlat ibn Fattumah, 1983 - The Journey of Ibn Fatouma• Akhenaten, Dweller in truth, 1985• Hadith al-Sabah wa-al-Masa, 1987• Echoes from an autobiography, 1994The arabic site of Mahfouz