Egypt’s first democratically elected president has been jailed since being deposed in 2013 by his defense minister Abdel Fatah el Sisi who is now the country’s president.

Egyptian authorities have declared a state of emergency in Mohamed Moursi’s birthplace El Adwah where he will be buried today according to Muslim practice.

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatar’sEmir Sheikh Tamin Bin Hammad Al Thani have both referred to Moursi as a martyr.

Members of the now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, that he led to victory in 2012 elections, describe his death a murder, saying he was denied medical treatment in prison for diabetes and high blood pressure.

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It’s blaming Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates for fomenting riots and violence that’s cost at least 37 lives.

Saudi Arabia and the the UAE want to exclude Turkey from the international Muslim community.

They offered Sudanese President Omar Al Bashir generous aid if he cut ties with Ankara.

They also made their aid to Sudan conditional on it turning its back on Iran and Qatar.

Al Bashir, who’s an Islamist, refused.

Highly placed advisers in in the ruling Sudanese National Congress say Saudi and UAE support for the protests against a tripling of the bread price and fuel and food shortages is designed to make Al Bashir reconsider.

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There’s a message for flat-broke South African Airways: hang in there!

It runs in parallel with Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan’s warning that the airline must clean out corruption if it hopes to survive.

And it supersedes the call by Finance Minister Tito Mboweni that that company, which has not made a profit since 2011, must go to the wall.

The latter is perfectly right in saying no bank or enterprise would get involved with SAA in its current financial state.

But Mboweni’s been repudiated by President Cyril Ramaphosa because, he says, closing the airline would necessitate immediate repayment of its R22 billion debt. This would enormously damage the fiscus.

There’s speculation that Ramaphosa’s remarks have turned his new finance minister into a lame duck: a political has-been who is allowed to say what he wants because he  is only serving his time until after next year’s election.

In fact, Mboweni might have been directed to throw a stone into the bush to see what reaction he could provoke from SAA staff and trade unions who have a veritable bottle of bitter pills to swallow if survival is the option.

These range from exposing the corruption within their ranks to accepting marginal salary increases at best.

My introductory message is based on African aviation predictions.

If SAA can survive it can pick itself up on the approaching boom in African air travel.

IATA figures show the increase in air traffic between sub-Saharan Africa and China will run at 11% over the next decade which will place it among the fastest growing routes on the planet.

Projected traffic between South Africa and China is pretty much in line with this.

China is projected to buy 7690 new aircraft by 2037 with a staggering price tag of $1,2 trillion.

This makes the contest between Airbus and Boeing  for sales to China the most interesting aviation battleground.

US President Donald Trump’s trade war with China is doing Boeing no favours  in this dogfight.

Just this week, Airbus executives are in Beijing talking about the sale of 180 Airbus A320s at price of $18 billion dollars.

If it does get to contest the skies tomorrow, SAA will face new competition.

As US voters cast their ballots in the midterm elections, the Airbus 330-800, which will be the warhorse in that battle, made its maiden flight in Toulouse.

The wide-bodied liner with a capacity of 257 passengers is powered by Rolls Royce Trent 7000 engines that are quieter than their predecessors and 14% more fuel efficient.

Air Mauritius, Air Senegal and RwandAir have firmed up their orders for the new aircraft.

The nascent Uganda Air has signed a memorandum of understanding for two A330-800s.

Nigeria that has taken an on-off approach to reinstating a national carrier could add to the competition

However, there is plenty for everyone. 

The dearth of road and rail infrastructure makes air travel between African countries –  and particularly the  movement of perishable goods – indispensable as their population grows to 1,4 billion.

Ethiopian Airlines, which has a fleet more than twice the size of SAA’s, will indubitably remain the continental giant and an example the South African carrier should emulate wherever possible.

It’s major competitors are not SAA, Kenya Airways and Egyptair but Qatar, Emirates and Turkish Airlines.

Its growth has come from a protected regulatory  framework, the cross subsidization of airport revenue and concessionary fees at Ethiopian airports.

Competitive pricing has enabled it to make the frankly substandard Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa a hub competing with Singapore, Istanbul and Dubai.

The bulk of Ethiopia Airlines’ planes are wide-bodied liners from the Boeing and Airbus range. 

The fleet is constantly updated with planes being  exchanged every six-and-a-half years.

Somehow SAA has to change its message from “ah, if only”  to becoming the Little Red Engine saying: “I think I can.”

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Tunis authorities say the ban will last until UAE meets international law and agreements.

There was a public outcry in Tunisia after UAE authorities barred Tunisian women.

Human rights groups called it racist.

The Gulf country cited security considerations for targeting women from that North African country.

UAE Foreign Minister Anwar Gargash insists his government highly values Tunisian women and respects them.

The restrictions on them have been lifted.

Tunisia has strong links with Qatar which has been ostracized by  Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt for allegedly backing terror groups in the region.

Qatar strongly denies the charge.

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One of the worst terror attacks in recent history left more than 300 people dead

The international community has stepped in to help Somalia after the explosive -laden truck was detonated outside a hotel in Mogadishu.

US and Qatari planes carrying humanitarian supplies have landed in Mogadishu.

Turkey and Djibouti have sent medical personnel and supplies.

30 wounded Somalis have been flown to Turkey for medical treatment.

Kenya will also take Somali patients to their hospitals and in Nairobi people are queuing to give blood which is what Somali authorities say is the most immediate and urgent need.

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The media network’s calling it part of a ruthless campaign against freedom of speech and expression, in order to muzzle the voice of the free press.

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Ibrahim Helal, former director of news at Al Jazeera’s Arabic channel, and journalist Alaa Sablan, were sentenced along with President Mohamed Moursi for allegedly leaking state secrets to Qatar.

Al Jazeera denounces, condemns, and entirely rejects the verdict.

The network finds the sentence incriminating to the profession of journalism, which all international laws and legislation seek to protect, and to all journalists, who should be enabled to report with objectivity, professionalism, and integrity.

Acting Director General of Al Jazeera Dr Mostefa Souag says the sentence  is considered a failure for the justice and court system in Egypt; a country classified as one of the most dangerous places for journalists to work in.

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