Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

Credit Steve Barrett

International correspondent Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson is based in Cairo and covers the Arab world for NPR from the Middle East to North Africa. Her reports can be heard on NPR's award-winning programs including Morning Edition and All Things Considered.

In 2006, Nelson opened the NPR Kabul Bureau. During the following three and a half years, she gave listeners an in-depth sense of life inside Afghanistan, from the increase in suicides among women in a tribal society that sees them as second class citizens, to the growing interference of Iran and Pakistan in Afghan affairs and the impact of Western policies in the region. For her coverage of Afghanistan, she won a Peabody award, Overseas Press Club award and Gracie in 2010.

Nelson came to NPR in 2006, after spending more than two decades as a newspaper reporter. She served as Knight Ridder's Middle East Bureau Chief from 2002 to 2005 where she specialized in covering Iran. As a reporter for the Los Angeles Times, Nelson was sent on extended assignment to Iran and Afghanistan following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Nelson spent three years as an editor and reporter for Newsday and was part of the team that won the 1997 Pulitzer Prize for covering the crash of TWA flight 800. She also spent time at the the Orange County Register covering Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

A graduate of the University of Maryland, Nelson speaks Farsi, Dari, and German. She is married to long-time reporter Erik Nelson and they have a son.

Egyptian Comedian's Case Raises Free Speech Concerns

By Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

Originally published on Mon April 30, 2012 11:31 am

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Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

One of the Arab world's most popular comedic actors is facing jail time in Egypt after a judge ruled he insulted Islam in some of his past film roles. The case worries those already concerned about the growing influence of Islamists in Egypt. NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson has that story from Cairo.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

3:06 pm

Thu April 26, 2012

At Last, Egypt Settles On Presidential Candidates

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Credit Khaled Desouki / AFP/Getty Images

Amr Moussa, the front-runner in the Egyptian presidential race, speaks during a press conference in Cairo on Apr. 22. The country's election commission said Thursday that Moussa and 12 other candidates are eligible to compete in next month's election.

Credit Amr Nabil / AP

Ahmed Shafiq, who served as prime minister under Hosni Mubarak, will be allowed to take part in Egypt's presidential race. The country's election commission said Thursday that he is eligible, one day after he had been ruled ineligible. In this photo, he's shown speaking at a news conference in February 2011.

By Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

Originally published on Thu April 26, 2012 5:27 pm

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After months of anticipation, and just a few weeks before the voting, Egypt now has a list of 13 officially approved presidential candidates.

Amr Moussa, the former secretary-general of the Arab League, is one of the 13, and he is ahead in most opinion surveys in advance of the May 23-24 election.

And in a reversal, Egyptian election officials agreed Thursday to let one of Hosni Mubarak's former prime ministers run for president.

4:13 pm

Mon April 23, 2012

Egyptians Warily Await Final Slate Of Candidates

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Credit Amr Nabil / AP

During a demonstration at Cairo's Tahrir Square last week, veiled Egyptian women hold posters supporting Muslim cleric Hazem Abu Ismail, an ultra-conservative preacher who was disqualified from running for the presidential elections on technical grounds.

Credit Khaled Desouki / AFP/Getty Images

Amr Moussa, the former Arab League secretary-general and Egyptian foreign minister, is currently considered the front-runner in Egypt's presidential election. Here, he speaks during a press conference in Cairo on Sunday.

By Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

Originally published on Mon April 23, 2012 6:39 pm

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Egypt's election commission is expected to announce the final list of candidates this week for next month's presidential elections. But which candidate will win is far from clear.

A recent Egyptian poll shows nearly 40 percent of voters have no idea who to support. Another 30 percent who had decided will be forced to select someone else because their preferred candidates were among the 10 barred by election officials recently.

As a result, Egyptian voters who were once excited about the prospect of their first free presidential election are growing frustrated.

3:42 am

Wed April 18, 2012

Egypt's Banned Candidates Don't Go Quietly

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Credit Khalil Hamra / AP

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood presidential candidate Khairat el-Shater talks to reporters in Cairo on Tuesday. The elections commission has disqualified 10 presidential hopefuls, including el-Shater.

Credit Khaled Desouki / AFP/Getty Images

Egyptian military police stand by as a protester holds a placard in support of Salafist presidential candidate Hazem Abu Ismail at a demonstration outside the High Presidential Election Committee building Tuesday in Cairo. Ismail and nine other candidates have been disqualified from the race.

By Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

Originally published on Wed April 18, 2012 7:48 am

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Egyptian election officials upheld their ban of nearly half of the presidential candidates running in next month's contest. Among them are two leading Islamist candidates and the intelligence chief for former President Hosni Mubarak. The decision radically alters the race for a post that will shape Egypt's political landscape.

Minutes after official news outlets announced the election commission ruling, candidate Hazem Abu Ismail took to the airwaves to denounce it as a conspiracy.

2:12 pm

Mon April 2, 2012

Once-Thriving Egyptian Port Suffers After Soccer Riot

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Credit AP

Egyptian soccer fans clash with riot police following a match between the hometown Al-Masry team and Cairo's Al-Ahly at the soccer stadium in Port Said, Egypt, on Feb. 1.

Credit AP

On March 24, Egyptians hold a poster with a photo of Belal Mamdouh, a teenager who was killed during clashes between soccer fans and Egyptian soldiers following the ban of the Port Said soccer team.

By Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

Originally published on Mon April 2, 2012 4:12 pm

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The Egyptian city of Port Said is the northern gateway to one of the world's key shipping lanes, the Suez Canal connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea. With its ornate buildings and clean streets, the sprawling city has one of the highest standards of living in Egypt.

But this year, Port Said has become known for something more sinister: It was the site of Egypt's deadliest soccer riot.

Many of the city's officials and residents say the tragedy has destroyed Port Said's reputation and left them in financial trouble.

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9:02 am

Sun April 29, 2012