Stories about Arabic from October, 2009
Guadeloupe, Martinique: Soccer & Religion
A video showing an interview of the famous French soccer player Thierry Henry in which he expresses his affiliation to Islam, has caught the attention of Martinican blogger Bondamanjak [Fr/Fr...
Tunisia elections: Fairness and Impartiality !!?
Tunisian President Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali won a fifth term with 89.62 per cent of the over all votes. His party, the Democratic Constitutional Rally won 161 out of 214 parliament seats. Tunisian bloggers have their say in this post.
Syria: Hyperlink Podcast Caters to the Arabic Tech Crave
Hyperlink Podcast is received with enthusiasm among Syrian bloggers as one of the best technology podcasts available in Arabic. Created weekly by two Syrian blogging brothers, Mohammad and Beshr Kayyali, the podcast features a wide variety of technology topics and interviews with influential IT professionals. Syrian bloggers react to the site.
Israel: “Ordinary Racism” In Media Coverage
Approximately 20 per cent of the country's population, the Palestinian citizens of Israel (also known as Israeli Arabs) argue that they are discriminated against in many aspects of life. The media coverage of a recent road accident prompted a Palestinian blogger in Israel to comment.
Tunisia: Al Jazeera and France
From Tunisia, Farhat Al Tunisi remarks [Ar]: “The similarity between the news on Tunisia that the occupying French media and Al Jazeera broadcast has reached a point which makes you...
Saudi Arabia: Saudi Liberalism
Majid Al Hamdan [Ar], from Saudi Arabia, shares the story of Saudi liberalism in this post.
Morocco: A Lenient Sentence
In September, we learned about Zineb Chtit, the young Moroccan girl who was severely beaten while working as a maid. Last week, it was announced that Zineb's attacker Nawal Houmin, the wife of the couple who had hired her, was to be punished for the crime with a sentence of 3 years imprisonment and a $13,000 fine. Jillian C. York shares reactions from the blogoma.
Syria: 80 Year-Old Human Rights Activist Arrested
Omar Mushawah reported [ar] the arrest of Haytham al-Maleh, a Syrian lawyer and human rights advocate who also spent 6 years in prison in the period between 1980 and 1986...
Morocco: Education Under Bloggers’ Scrutiny
Torn between insistent calls for modernization and a powerful conservative drive; caught in an excruciating debate over which languages to include in its programs; overburdened by an opaque and centralized administration, the Moroccan education system has long been the target of passionate critiques, not least among bloggers.
Tunisia: Electoral Campaign Not on Track
Tunisia is gearing up for its presidential elections on October 25. The election campaign started on October 11, but not all political parties and politicians are able to join the fray. Read this post to find out why.
Tunisia: Watching Arab Media on HIV/AIDS
Zied Mhirsi is a Tunisian doctor and blogger, based in the USA, who is dedicated to fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS in the Middle East and North Africa. Last year, he started a blog to monitor Arab media coverage of HIV/AIDS.
Morocco: Blogoma participates in Blog Action Day
Moroccan bloggers expressed their concern for the environment on Blog Action Day 2009, which focused on climate change this year. Water scarcity and energy dominated the conversation, reports Anas Alaoui.
Lebanon: Right to Left
Lebanese NightS remarks: “It has always bothered me the very limited collection of RTL(right-to-left) blog templates/themes..whether it’s for Blogger, WordPress or Drupal or any other Blogging platform or CMS.”
Jordan: Arab Crunch Arabic Edition Out
Arabic readers have something to look forward to online – “the launch of “ArabCrunch Arabic Edition which will be the first Arabic blog that focus on tech start ups, entrepreneurship,...
Oman: Bloggers Swine Flu Dance Off
As part of their on-going online and offline initiative to raise awareness about the H1N1 virus, Omani bloggers organized a new roadshow event in which sanitizers and information leaflets were given to the visitors of a mall in Muscat. One blogger posted some footage on YouTube.
MENA: Where is Obama's Peace?
He's done it again and this time he has won the Nobel Peace Prize, much to everyone's surprise - including his own. US President Barack Obama's prize has sparked a serious debate in the Middle East and here's a round up of some of the reactions.
Egypt: No Accolades for Obama's Nobel Peace Prize
Egyptian bloggers and Twitter users welcomed US President Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize with shock and surprise: How can the president of a country waging wars against far away countries win a peace prize? Tarek Amr has more in this round up of reactions from Egypt.
Oman: Twitter Meet Up
Oman had its first Twitter gathering last night. More than 25 Twitter users attended the event and here are blog and Twitter reactions to how it went.
Egypt: Niqab Ban Stirs Controversy
Egypt's top leading Islamic leader, Sheikh Mohammed Tantawi told a 13-year-old student to uncover her face, saying it was not part of the religious obligations of Muslim women. A few days later, Egypt banned female undergraduates from wearing the niqab in the country's public universities. Bloggers join in the debate.
Jordan: Arabic TV Shows for Children
Jordanian Ahmad Humeid discusses television programmes available for children in Arabic in this post.
Will Egypt import Chinese Hymens?
An artifical hymen kit is now available in the market. Egyptian law makers have banned the product while bloggers continue to debate the cons and pros of this Chinese 'invention' - and question its morality.
