Stories about Middle East & North Africa from April, 2014
‘There Was No Palestine'?
A number of Twitter users are challenging the common Israeli discourse that Palestine never existed through the hashtag: #there_was_no_Palestine.
Tunisia: ‘I Too Set a Police Station on Fire’
Tunisian netizens have taken to social media to denounce the judicial prosecution of 2011 revolution protesters accused of "setting police stations on fire".
VIDEO: Iranian Students’ Protest During Conservative Politician's Speech
Students at Iran's Amirkabir University in Tehran chanted slogans supporting Mir Hussein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, leaders of the pro-democracy Green Movement.
Iran:Remember Jailed Gadget Bloggers
Electronic Frontier Foundation, in an article,talks about jailed gadget bloggers, who used to run one of the best websites in Iran for gadget news,Narenji.There is an online petition to support Narenji's bloggers.
Algeria's Opposition Report Threats, Intimidation Following President's Reelection
An amendment to the country's constitution had allowed President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who has been in power since 1999, to run again.
Who Benefits from Trafficking Women from Madagascar to the Middle East?
Aaron Ross reports on his investigation in the heart of the ongoing human trafficking of young women from Madagascar to Middle Eastern countries: For some enterprising businessmen, the collapse heralded a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. So-called placement agencies sprang up in Antananarivo and other cities across Madagascar, promising the good life in...
Iran’s New Wave of Women Fashion Designers
For years, Iran's young women preferred foreign, mostly western clothing brands. That's starting to change.
Syrian Dad Appeals to British Foreign Office to Reunite Him with His Son
Wael Zain, a Syrian in London, turns to Twitter to draw attention to the plight of his five-year-old British son, who has been stranded in Syria for three years.
Syria: “Two Years Later, We are All So Terribly Wrong”
In a must-read post on Facebook, Syrian Hiba Diewati reflects on the situation in her country, on the third anniversary of the Syrian revolution.
Egyptian Turns to YouTube to Object to Compulsory Service in Egyptian Army
An Egyptian activist has turned to YouTube to spell out his objection to the mandatory military service in the Egyptian army, compulsory for men aged between 18 and 30. In an email sent to Global Voices Online, Adam writes: I am Egyptian conscientious objector against serving in Egyptian Army because...
An African Tale of The First Love Story Ever Told
The website Histoire Africaine/African History [fr] narrates the tale of the oldest love story ever told, the story of Osiris and Isis [fr] and explains what makes it stand out [fr] from the other love stories. Osiris was the king god of Egypt and Isis his queen. Set, his brother, murdered...
Syria: Life As It Was Before the Invention of the Light Bulb
With the power supply in whole swaths of the country cut off by government authorities, Syrians get used to treating electricity as both a luxury and metaphor for their struggle.
Arab World: Farewell Gabriel Garcia Marquez
"My heart is sad tonight," tweets Jordanian Shaden Abdelrahman after learning of the death of Colombian Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
Syria: From Inventor to Laborer
The story of Ismail al-Shimali exposes the Baathist mechanisms of diminishing any possibility for scientific or cultural development in Syria.
Tunisian Blog Launches Whistleblowing Platform
Tunisian award-winning collective blog Nawaat has launched its own whistle-blowing platform: Nawaat Leaks.
“Blogs are the Vinyl Records of the Internet”
An article in Washington Post talks about “the decline of Iran's blogestan”. Several bloggers tweeted the last sentence of this article: #Blogs are the #vinyl records of the Internet. See @Kamangir @maasalan http://t.co/bd6NKrrTpR … — fredpetrossian (@fredpetrossian) April 13, 2014 Read more here.
GV Face: What Ever Happened to Iran's Bloggers?
Maybe blogging is not over, but just somewhere else? Arash Kamangir and Laurent Giacobino introduce an extensive study of the Persian blogosphere.
Jailed Iranian Blogger's Letter Speaks of Torture
The blogger known as Siamak Mehr writes an open letter from a small cell with 40 inmates. He is serving a 4-year sentence for writing a blog.
Lullabies of the World: What's Your Favorite?
Lullabies aren't just for babies, they're for grown ups too. Submit your favorite sleepy tunes to PRI's new app, The World's Lullabies.
Syria: My Mother, Alive
Syrian blogger/activist Marcell Shehwaro remembers her martyred mother, "who believed in love, beauty, family and the right of Syrian mothers to live a life free from fear and anxiety."
Muslims Don't Lie .. Ever
Despite warnings, that jumping on the April Fool's bandwagon would lead to hell, netizens across the Arab world, used the day to criticise their governments.
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