Protests in Egypt

As the death counts continue to rise with the fighting in Egypt, Egyptian expats in the United States are feeling the strife. It’s unclear if the expats will ever be united with friends and family.

Egypt’s president, Mohamed Morsi, wants his decisions to be above judicial review. He said as much in a decree that he issued recently. And while he’s backed off somewhat in the face of mounting political pressure, opposition groups are returning to a familiar place to try and assert their own power.

A court decision that could unravel the entire process is running underneath Egypt’s march toward presidential elections next month. But in recent days, the country’s presidential election commission has disqualified several leading candidates, raising questions about the process itself.

Sheikh Hazem Salah Abu Ismail, an outspoken critic of the former Egyptian regime and a proponent of the Arab Spring revolution, is among the most popular candidates for Egypt’s presidency. But new information has emerged, that his mother might have obtained U.S. citizenship, which would disqualify him from running for office.

Protesters in Egypt have won a concession form the country’s military rulers. In the wake of four days of violent protesters, the country’s presidential elections will happen no later than next June.