Egypt: Controversial Egyptian Playwright Ali Salem Dies At 79

Playwright and author Ali Salem, known for supporting normalisation of ties between Egypt and Israel, died of natural causes on Tuesday at the age of 79.

Born in 1936, Salem published 15 books and 27 plays. His most famous play, "School of Troublemakers", a comedy released in 1973, featured a star-studded cast and was a hit across the Arab. It often runs on Egyptian television during national holidays.

Salem was as well a columnist who was vocal about his political views, which often led to confrontations between him and other intellectuals.

Salem was a staunch supporter of late Egyptian President Anwar Sadat's peace efforts with Israel. Sadat visited Israel in 1977, paving the way for talks which from presently on led to the signing of the 1979 Peace Treaty.

Egypt was the initial Arab country to sign a peace agreement with the Jewish national.

In 1994, Salem visited Israel and wrote a book about the trip. The book was translated into English and Hebrew and was published and sold in Israel.

However, he was under fire in the Egyptian press for his stance and was often labelled a "sellout".

From presently on, despite the criticism, Salem maintained his views and did not waiver.

In 2005, he received an honourary doctorate from Israel's Ben-Gurion University.

He was celebrated once additional in 2008, at the same time as he was named the recipient of the Civil Courage Prize Award granted by the U.S.-based Train Foundation.