Stories about Middle East & North Africa from January, 2009
Palestine: “They used our clothes as a toilet”
Bloggers in Gaza are gathering information about what happened during the recent Israeli attacks. In this update, we hear from families whose homes were looted and left covered with faeces...
Iran: Bloggers mobilize for animal rights
A number of bloggers are supporting an initiative by Iran-based blogger Mino Saberi, to defend the rights of dogs, birds, cats, and other creatures of the Earth. The mistreatment of...
Egypt: Hijacked ship will be blown up
A few weeks after confirming the hijacking of an Egyptian ship by pirates of Somalia, Zeinobia reminds us again with the current status. On one hand, according to the crew's...
MENA: Reflections on Obama's Al Arabiya Interview
It came as a surprise to many people that US President Barack Obama gave his first formal interview as president to an Arab television channel. Some were optimistic with Obama's...
Egypt: “Kleenex” Literature at the Cairo International Bookfair
With more than 15 new titles, Egyptian bloggers took the 2009 Cairo International Book Fair by storm. Conventional writers label bloggers' literature as “Kleenex” Literature. Marwa Rakha reviews reactions from...
Erin Brockovich wanted in Egypt
Egyptian Blogger sued for slander and looses. Zeinobia wrote about Tamer Mabrouk who blogs from Port Said and who published a report supported by photography showing how “Trust Chemical Industries”...
Israel: Where is Mahmoud al-Zahar?
Senior Hamas official Mahmood el-Zahar is no where to be seen. Gilad Lotan tunes into to the whispers making rounds on the blogs about his possible whereabouts.
Bahrain: Bloggers united against decision to block websites
Bloggers in Bahrain are fuming at a decision by the country's Minister of Information to block access to scores of websites, as well as prevent access to proxy sites which...
Arab World: “We Stopped Saying Israel…”
A message on Twitter calling upon Arabs to stop saying Israel has snowballed into a movement across the Arab world, in this latest twist of the ongoing online war following...
Egyptians are Going Local
Inji, an avid Egyptian blogger and young economist who is distraught by the numerous emails and SMS messages calling for boycotting products, decided to “boycott the boycott” and take it...