Crime, Cairo and old school days occupy the minds of Twitter users

Sarah Khamis peaks into the Arabic social media world to see what is trending.

The planned new capital for Egypt is a hot topic for the Arabic-language social media. Amr Abdallah Dalsh / Reuters

A niqab-associated crime was trending for much of this week. People have also been talking about the New Cairo project, which was unveiled at an investment conference in Egypt last weekend. Nostalgia about school days was coursing through the veins of Twitter users as well – it’s been a busy few days on social media.

Capital crime

There has been a lot of discussion about a recent incident involving a niqab-clad woman who attempted to rob a currency exchange shop in Abu Dhabi. The woman, who is from the Philippines, was apprehended and subsequently confessed to Abu Dhabi Police.

@ibahzad Ibrahim tweeted with a photo showing a female officer inspecting the suspect at the crime scene and wrote: “Even though she was a (criminal), Abu Dhabi Police treated her with respect.”

@_tameh0 tweeted explaining what was meant by the use of the ghost word, which is a reference to the so-called Reem Island “ghost” attack last year in which an American nursery schoolteacher was murdered: “Ghost means anonymous, if she was wearing a mask we would’ve said masked women. No one should be sensitive about this.”

New name for Cairo

A conference in Sharm El Sheikh last weekend brought with it a succession of announcements regarding Egypt’s future, including the unveiling of a multibillion dollar plan to build a “new” Cairo. The declaration prompted plenty of debate among Twitter users about how much the project would cost and what it should be called.

@cnnarabic tweeted: “Twitter turned abuzz about this new capital name for Egypt hash tag and Dhahi Khalfan insists on naming it CC.”

@mo61827425 Mohammed argued the project seemed ill thought out and noted that the reported total cost of the project appeared to vary greatly. Figures ranged from $50 billion up to $100 billion.

@KhaledMShedid wrote: “What should we call the new capital? I suggest The Nirvana.”

@OmarBedaya suggested that the authorities call it “Al Isteqlal, which means independence or Al Shohadaa, which means martyrs.”

School days

And finally, nostalgia and a longing for school days appeared to be a running theme on social media this week. Many Twitter users felt moved to remember the highs and lows of their years in education.

@Pwvd_tr Abdulla proudly declared: “I never cheated in my exams.”

@MohamadAlZaabi said: “Would you believe it if I told you guys that for four years I was first in school.”

@Linaa_ad shared a funny story: “Each time we had a birthday party at school the principal would come and ask what we were doing. We would tell her that we’re having a hijab party.”

@com111n also offered up a little light relief with this amusing anecdote: “One day I hid under my desk, I was waiting for my friend to come so I could scare her. When I heard someone coming I jumped up, but it was the teacher and I got embarrassed.”

Sarah Khamis is The National’s social media editor

On Twitter: @SarahKhamisUAE