Ahmed Naji

Novelist and Writer.
Born in Mansoura, Egypt 1985 and currently living in the USA. Author of Rogers (2007), Using Life (2014), Tigers for my room (2019), Happy Endings (2023), Rotten Evidence which was written in prison (2020).
https://ahmednaji.net/

Latest stories

Artwashing at the Pyramids

Culture_

Behind Art D’Égypte’s exhibitions at the Pyramids lies a web of state patronage, Delaware tax breaks and artwashing—until an artist boycott forced a rare retreat.

Ahmed Naji_ 22-10-2026

Artwashing at the Pyramids

The chimera of global recognition and the reality of Arab literary decay

Culture_

Independent publishers aren't distorting Arabic literature, they're finding its most daring work. The real distortion happens before translation, in what Arab writing has become.

Ahmed Naji_ 25-6-2026

The chimera of global recognition and the reality of Arab literary decay

Jackals and Jackasses: A Gulf Story

Viewpoints_

It is not condescension; it is contempt. A searing critique of how Gulf “cultural specificity” is routinely weaponized to normalize racism, tribalism, and the kafala system.

Ahmed Naji_ 30-5-2026

Jackals and Jackasses: A Gulf Story

Abdelaty not jailed for quacking like a duck

Viewpoints_

Abdelaty’s imprisonment reveals how fear—not morality—drives state censorship, silencing expression and pushing creators into exile.

Ahmed Naji_ 3-12-2025

Abdelaty not jailed for quacking like a duck

From dates to oil, the Arab project of slavery

Viewpoints_

From the slave trade in dates and pearls to oil and the kafala system, the Gulf’s legacy of exploitation reveals a modern model of feudal power.

Ahmed Naji_ 10-9-2025

From dates to oil, the Arab project of slavery