Stories about Middle East & North Africa from January, 2009
Russia: LJ and “the Western Powers”
IZO writes that “the importance of the Russian LiveJournal blogosphere is leading the Western Powers to suck up to the leading bloggers and infiltrate the discussion sites.”
Trinidad & Tobago, U.K., Israel, Palestine: Objectivity?
In response to the BBC's decision not to broadcast an appeal for funds for Gaza, Notes from Port of Spain says: “Someone, somewhere, has been leaning heavily on this famously objective broadcaster, and it has caved in.”
Iran: A leading cultural site was filtered
Haftan, a leading Iranian site covering cultural and art news was filtered by Iranian authorities. Government did not explain any reason for this filtering.
Turkey: School Textbook Changes
Armenia: Higher Education & Sciences comments on changes to 8th grade school textbooks in Turkey which will deal with the massacre and deportation of much of the Armenian population in the Ottoman Empire in a more neutral way. The blog says that while the changes might seem negligible at first...
Armenia-Turkey: Are We Hrant Dink?
Following the second anniversary of the murder of Hrant Dink in Istanbul, Unzipped comments on a recent piece by Glendal News Press’ Patrick Azadian on the ethnic Armenian journalist who stood for peace, democracy and human rights in Turkey. The blog despairs the fact that nationalists are attempting to hijack...
Iran: The news that we don't hear in Tehran
Freekyboard, an Iranian blogger, says [fa] “we are not going to hear the following news in Iran: The Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at US President George W Bush is seeking asylum in Switzerland and Saudi Arabia pays one billion dollar to help reconstruct the Gaza Strip.”
Iran: BBC launches new Persian TV channel
The launch of BBC Persian TV on January 14, attracted praise, enthusiasm, suspicion, and in one word: attention! Iranian bloggers are expressing their opinions on this new channel, and they are as diverse as ever.
Saudi Arabia: Young activist faces social condemnation
Saudi Arabia is a conservative society, and when individuals act in ways that challenge convention, not only might they face harsh criticism, but so might their families. A young activist called Amna Fatani has experienced such condemnation recently, and some Saudi bloggers have offered her their moral support.
Iran: A Cemetery is in danger
Azarmehr writes that the Iranian authorities want to demolish Khavaran Cemetery altogether. The blogger adds that more than four thousand political prisoners were killed in 1988 and the bodies were dumped in places like Khavaran.
Iran: Gaza and internal affairs
Mohmmad Ali Abtahi,former reformist vice president, writes that a former reformist minister participated in a demonstration in support of Gaza. When extremists who support president Ahmadinejad saw him, they started to chanted slogans against former president,Mohammad Khatami and his government instead of Israel.
Iran: 6000 paintings in a film
Pars Arts writes about Reza Dolatabadi's Khoda,a five minute film comprised of more than 6000 paintings produced over two years. You can watch the film here.
Iran: Women activists support Shirin Ebadi
Kosoof, a leading photoblogger, says a group of women rights activists gathered to meet Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, with red roses in their hands to wipe off bad memories of slogans which were written against her outside the walls of her house and remind the positive effects of...
Egypt: Bloggers Divided over Geert Wilders
Amsterdam Appeals Court decided that Geert Wilders, Dutch MP, will be put on trial for his views on Islam. Wilders, and his movie had caused a huge anger wave last year, with both sides denouncing each other. While Perwin Ali thought he deserves to be tried, An Egyptian is blogging for his release.
Middle East: Boycott as a Political Weapon
Many people across the Middle East have decided to boycott Israeli and American products in response to the Israeli war on Gaza. Tarek Amr reviews what bloggers have to say about this.
Egypt: Al Jazeera or Al Arabiya
Zeinobia compares here between Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya news channels, elaborating on why she hates Al Arabiya more than Al Jazeera.
Egypt: Bye Bye Bush
“I admit…it feels very good that George W. Bush is no longer President of the United States of America,” writes The Arabist, from Egypt.
Egypt: Blogger Facing Lawsuit
“I spoke before about the Egyptian citizen Journalism blog from Port Said “El Hakika”. Its owner and blogger Tamer Mabrook was facing the first civil lawsuit against a blogger for defaming a corporation,” writes Zeinobia, from Egypt.
Maghreb Politics Review Launched
“Check out the first post at Maghreb Politics Review. I’ve added some people as contributors, if you want to be added as an editor or as an admin, let me know,” announces Algerian blogger The Moor Next Door.
Palestine: Coexisting?
Palestinians who choose to co-exist with Israelis “fare no better than any other Palestinian,” observes Ummkahlil, a Palestinian blogger, who lives in the US.
The Egyptian Bloggers Bookfair
With more than 15 new titles, Egyptian bloggers take the 2009 Cairo International Book Fair by storm. Marwa Rakha reports how bloggers are planning to organise group visits to make the most out of the annual show.
Saudi Arabia: A boycott that might work
Crossroads Arabia reports on a call by Saudi women to boycott lingerie shops that refuse their demand to hire women – an initiative backed by the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
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