It’s a slow news morning for Egypt in the international press. TechCrunch (of all outlets) is out with “Egypt and Thailand: When the military turns against free speech,” while a Reuters report about the detention of the author of a book critical of the economy is getting wide pickup. The House’s vote yesterday to extend the state of emergency for three more months is also getting attention.

Otherwise, it’s a mixed bag of nuts, with lots of attention in the UAE’s The National:

• The National released a photo gallery of tourists climbing the 2,285 meter-high Mount Sinai in “high spirit” to watch the sunrise and visit the monastery of Saint Catherine.

• Egypt holds promising opportunities in renewable energy, which will reduce dependency on fossil-fueled power plants, says ESI Africa.
• The capture of terrorist Hisham El Ashmawy could encourage more militants to join the insurgency group he headed, rather than incapacitate the group, Colin Freeman writes for the National.
• Russia’s growing role in the region signals the “return to a Cold War era in which Cairo was Moscow’s closest and most strategic Arab ally,” according to The National.