· October, 2013

Stories about Middle East & North Africa from October, 2013

Meetup with Global Voices!

Rising Voices  31 October 2013

Throughout the months of November and December, we are organizing six global in-person 'meetups' led and facilitated by Global Voices members.

Yemen: An Owl Outside My Window

  30 October 2013

Yemeni blogger Abdulkader Alguneid finds an owl outside his window: He tweets the rare occurrence: بومة كبيرة خلف زجاج نافذتي، 1.30 بعد منتصف الليل. A big Owl, behind my glass window, 1.30 am pic.twitter.com/19WjfUelQ0 — abdulkader alguneid (@alguneid) October 30, 2013

Egypt: Urban Constitution Document

  30 October 2013

As the “50 member-committee” meets to amend Egypt's constitution, some civil society organizations and urban activists participated in producing what they called the “urban constitution document” [Ar]: We present this document to “50 member-committee” as a comprehensive suggestion for articles we see important in being added to the constitution. What's...

South Korean Tear Gas Being Used in Bahrain?

  29 October 2013

Bahrain interior ministry allegedly ordered 1.6 million teargas canisters to use against protesters, and South Korean company DaeKwang is believed to be one of the major suppliers. R. Elgin wrote in Marmot's Hole blog about the ironic history of tear gas– a notorious symbol of Korean government's clampdowns back in...

VIDEO: “No Woman, No Drive” Stuns Saudi Arabia

  26 October 2013

Today, October 26, was the day Saudi activists chose to protest against the driving ban on women in the Kingdom. As social networks were buzzing under increasing number of reports of women driving across the country, a brilliant a capella remake of Bob Marley's “No Woman, No Cry” spread at...

Bahrain: More Tear Gas Than People

  25 October 2013

With a total population of 1.3 million, Bahrain plans to purchase 1.6m canisters of tear gas. Here's how a group of activists plan to stop the shipment from South Korea.

Overwhelmed by Syrian Refugees, Bulgaria Seeks EU Aid

  23 October 2013

Bulgaria, as the closest EU country to Syria, is seeing more than its fair share of the average 5,000 refugees that are fleeing Syria every day. Unprepared and inexperienced in dealing with this influx of refugees seeking shelter, food and protection, Bulgaria has requested assistance and financial aid from the...

Gulf Cities: Cultural Capitals of the Arab World?

  23 October 2013

UAE commentator Sultan Al Qassemi argues that “some of the cities of the Gulf were transforming into cultural capitals of the Arab world as the traditional capitals of Baghdad, Cairo, Beirut and Damascus continue to suffer from civil strife.” He posts arguments in support and against this notion on his...

Saudi Clerics Protest Women Driving

  22 October 2013

‘A group of more than 100 conservative Saudi clerics gathered Tuesday at the Royal Court in Riyadh to protest against what they called “the conspiracy of women driving.”’ writes Ahmed Al Omran at Riyadh Bureau. Saudi women are planning to defy a ban on women driving in the absolute monarchy...

Egypt: “Morsi is Not Coming Back”

  22 October 2013

Former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi will not return to power, says Egyptian blogger Alya Gad, on Twitter. To make her message clear, she translates it in different languages: مرسي لن يعود – Morsi is not coming back – Morsi no va a volver – Morsi ne reviendra pas – Morsi...

About our Middle East & North Africa coverage

Mariam A.
Mariam A. is the editor for the Middle East & North Africa. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.