Alexandria International Film Festival opens

The 14th annual Alexandria International Film Festival opens Wednesday with the participation of twelve Arab and foreign countries.

The festival's chairman, film critic Farouk Tawfeeq, said seven Mediterranean countries will compete in the official competition, which includes the Egyptian film "Kalam Mamnoo," the Moroccan movie "Aouhstam," and "El-Roweif 54" from Tunisia.

The festival chief said there would also be a great number of films from the US, France and Italy.

The organizers plan a ceremony to honor the late Spanish poet Lorca and will pay a special tribute to the late Egyptian star Farid Shawqi.