Gamal al-Ghitani

Gamal al-Ghitani (Arabic: جمال الغيطانى, IPA: [ɡæˈmæːl el ɣeˈtˤɑːni]; 9 May 1945 – 18 October 2015) was an Egyptian author of historical and political novels and cultural and political commentaries and was the editor-in-chief of the literary periodical Akhbar Al-Adab ("Cultural News") till 2011.

Gamal al-Ghitani was born in Juhaynah, Sohag Governorate in Upper Egypt and moved with his family to Cairo as a child.

He continued to write on the side and was imprisoned from October 1966 through March 1967 for his critical commentary on the regime of Gamal Abd el-Nasser.

In 1969 he switched careers and became a journalist for the Egyptian newspaper Akhbar El Yom ("The Day's News").

Gamal al-Ghitani was married to the Egyptian journalist Magda El-Guindy, editor-in-chief of Al-Ahram's children's magazine "Alaaeddin".