Mohamed ElBaradei Removed from List of Nobel Prize Winners in Egyptian Textbooks

Egypt’s media has been outraged since news came out that former vice president Mohamed ElBaradei’s name was removed from the list of Nobel Prize winners in fifth grade Egyptian textbooks. ElBaradei won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005 as the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency. The list in the Arabic book also includes the late president Anwar El Sadat and physicist Ahmed Zewail.

Beshir Hassan, Ministry of Education spokesperson, confirmed that ElBaradei’s name and photo were removed due to parents’ requests, which began last year during former Minister of Education Moheb ElRafei’s tenure. Hassan claimed it had nothing to do with politics but that parents believed the content was beyond a fifth grader’s awareness. The ministry has been accused of trying to alter Egypt’s written history. Hassan also stated that the situation is unacceptable and promised further investigation.

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