January 29, 2008

2008Margaret Truman, American singer and author (born 1924)^[†]

Mary Margaret Truman Daniel was an American classical soprano, actress, journalist, radio and television personality, writer, and New York socialite. She was the only child of President Harry S. Truman and First Lady Bess Truman. While her father was president during the years 1945 to 1953, Margaret regularly accompanied him on campaign trips, such as the 1948 countrywide whistle-stop campaign lasting several weeks. She also appeared at important White House and political events during those years, being a favorite with the media.

2008An Egyptian court rules that people who do not adhere to one of the three government-recognised religions, while not allowed to list any belief outside of those three, are still eligible to receive government identity documents.^[†]

Religion in Egypt plays a significant role in the country's social structure and is institutionally supported by law. Islam is designated as the state religion of Egypt, although precise figures on religious affiliation are unavailable due to the exclusion of religious data from the 2018 census onwards. As a result, existing statistics are based on estimates provided by religious organizations and independent agencies. The majority of the population is believed to be Sunni Muslim, comprising approximately 90%, while the second largest religious group is the Coptic Orthodox Christian community, whose share is estimated to range between 5 - 15%. These figures remain controversial, with Christian groups asserting that census data have historically underrepresented their actual numbers.