Who Was Beloved Egyptian Blogger Bassem Sabry?

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A picture of Bassem Sabry, an Egyptian blogger and journalist, taken from his Twitter profile.

By Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai2014-04-30 16:43:41 UTC

In October of 2012, Bassem Sabry turned 30, and as many young, digital-savvy netizens do, he decided to blog about this important milestone.

His essay on what he'd learned about life was first published in Arabic on Al-Masry Al-Youm , and he then translated and re-published it on his own blog. Less than two years later, Sabry is dead.

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Sabry died in an accident in Cairo on Tuesday after he reportedly fell from a balcony under unclear circumstances. His funeral was Wednesday in Cairo. At the time of publication, no further details are available about his death.

Sabry rose to prominence during the Arab Spring and the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, when he became a respected analyst, writing for his blog, the middle-east news site Al-Monitor, The Huffington Post and The Atlantic, among others.

Among the outpouring of solidarity on Twitter, some of his more than 100,000 followers and friends linked to that essay as the perfect example of who Sabry was.

In his 3,055-word essay — titled "Eleutheria," the Greek word for liberty — Sabry managed to be funny, emotional, humble and insightful. He joked about failing to become an astronaut, as well as failing to marry Wynona Ryder — but no matter, she was caught for shoplifting so maybe that's a good thing, he noted.

He admitted that while growing up, he used to believe President Hosni Mubarak was a great president before finding out many in the world did not see it that way. Sabry also showed how he believed in getting people together, instead of dividing them, and how the best way to do it was peacefully.

I learned that mankind was one, that coexistence was possible, that we must ostracize the hate-mongers amongst us, that we can achieve with the pen and the word much more than what we can achieve with guns and loud angry rhetoric — and achieve that more rapidly as well — and that we must rise above our leaders, groupings, parties and governments and their interests.

Other than a writer and an activist, Sabry also worked as a strategist for the Dostour party, which was founded by exiled Nobel Peace Prize-winner Mohamed ElBaradei. Nearly all of the many eulogies written of him underline is how impartial and unifying Sabry was.

"At a time when Egyptians are beyond divided, the nation politically polarized past the point of crisis, he was one of the few that seemed able to unite," wrote Vox's Max Fisher, who considered Sabry a friend.

And at a time of crisis and uncertainty, Sabry seemed to remain an optimist.

In an excerpt from unpublished piece about the Egyptian elections that Sabry submitted to Fisher, who was at The Washington Post in May 2012, Saby warned about many causes of concern.

But he also wrote: "Believe me when I say that I remain hopeful. I truly remain hopeful not just out of a survivalist need to be hopeful, but also out of true conviction that there is so much to be hopeful for, and so much to be hopeful from."

His sudden death sparked a wave of solidarity online and on social media from all over the world.

"He once told me that dreamers could change the world. I know that he did his best to change the world around him to a better place," wrote another Egyptian blogger, known as Zeinobia, on her blog.

"I ask all the youth of the revolution to pray for mercy and forgiveness for…a noble person we have lost and desperately need," tweeted ElBaradei, according to Daily News Egypt .

His latest article was an optimistic take on the upcoming Egyptian elections for Al-Monitor . His last tweet was a retweet calling for blood donations.

On Friday, at 6:30 p.m. ET, a candle light vigil for Sabry will be held in New York City, by the John Lenon memorial in Central Park, according to Zeinobia.

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Topics: Egypt, egyptian revolution, US & World, World