The newspaper’s earliest precedent was the Egypt Post, published daily in four pages in French starting on August 29, 1798, during the French campaign in Egypt and Syria. It included current events, court-martials, and French Army festivities. Inspired by this, the government of Ali Pasha decided to establish the Amiri Press. Although there was no official press policy on what to write, the leader wanted to keep abreast of local and foreign developments and ordered the publication of an official government newspaper.