Stories about Middle East & North Africa from April, 2012
Algeria: Tributes Paid to Late President Ahmed Ben Bella
Following the death of Ahmed Ben Bella, Arab netizens have remembered the man who was Algeria's first president.
Tunisia: Relief at Lifting of Protest Ban
Tunisian netizens have expressed their relief at the lifting of the ban on protesting on Habib Bourguiba Avenue, but some have vowed not to let the matter rest. Salah Almhamdi reports.
Iran: Detained web developer under pressure
Reporters Without Borders says Iranian authorities have put detained Iranian web developer Mohammad SoleimaniNia under pressure to have his skills for running ‘The National Internet’. Iranian government have already talked about launching a network inside called ‘The National Internet’. RSF has urged for immediate release of Mr. SoleimaniNia who has been...
Egypt: Advocating for Residents of Informal Neighbourhoods
Architect and researcher Omnia Khalil, has published this presentation as a part of Egyptian urban action [Ar], an exhibition and workshop scheduled for 4 July, 2012. It concerns advocating for the residents of informal neighbourhoods and highlights urban deterioration, forced evacuation and urban challenges in Egypt. In this video [Ar]...
Tunisia: Mixed Reactions to Hacking of Prime Minister's Emails
On April 8 Anonymous Tunisia hacked the emails of the Tunisian prime minister Hamadi Jebali. The movement dubbed it "Operation Touche pas à ma Tunise" ("Get Your Hands Off My Tunisia") which is part of the broader "Operation Tunisia Back".
Iran: Instagram users to lose access
A few hours after announcement on Facebook acquisition of famous mobile application Instagram, Iranian users are complaining about losing access to their older photos on the service. Mehrdad, based in Tehran, says [Fa]: ‘I can not load any image older than a couple of days without anti-filter tools’.
Tunisia: Martyrs’ Day Clashes Leave Many Wounded
Tunisia's netizens and activist community were shocked on April 6, by the police response to a planned protest to mark Martyrs' Day. It came a day after a smaller protest by jobless young people was attacked by the police.
Iran: Electronic Curtain in Animation
Here is a video cartoon, portraying what Iranian users face in Iran for connecting to the Internet. The video invites online users around the world to follow #ConnectIran tag on twitter.
Worldwide Concern Over Critical State of Bahraini Activist
Netizens around the world have expressed their great concern over the deteriorating state of Bahraini human rights activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja. The Bahraini authorities sentenced him to life imprisonment last year, and he has been on hunger strike since February 8, 2012 to draw attention to his detention.
Syria: Activist Rima Dali Arrested in Damascus for Calling for End to Killing
"Stop the killing. We want to build a Syria for all Syrians." These were the words on the banner that Rima Dali held in front of the Syrian Parliament in Damascus on Sunday, April 8 just before her arrest.
Tunisia: Police Use Tear Gas and Batons to Disperse Jobless Protesters
On April 7, 2012 the Union for Unemployed Graduates staged a protest in downtown Tunis. When the protesters attempted to break a ban on demonstrating on Habib Bourguiba Avenue, the capital's main avenue, police used tear gas and batons to disperse them.
Lebanon: Palm Sunday and Easter Celebrations
In Lebanon two Christian celebrations took place on April 8, 2012 as churches following the Gregorian calendar celebrated Easter Sunday and churches following the Julian calendar celebrated Palm Sunday.
Tunisia: Anger at Protest Ban on Main Street of Tunis
Tunisian netizens have expressed their anger at a ban on protesting on Habib Bourguiba Avenue in Tunis, the capital's main street and the Tunisian equivalent of Cairo's Tahrir Square.
Israel: Tweeting the Passover Seder
The Jewish holiday of Passover began on the night of Friday April 6, and millions of Israelis gathered for the Seder, the traditional ritual feast. The Seder is infamous as an occasion when one is forced to spend time with disagreeable family members. Israeli Twitter users, known for their sense of humor and cynicism, could be counted on to tweet their Passover Seder experiences.
Kuwait: Bedoon Light Candles for Freedom
As a protest against discriminatory state policies and arbitrary arrests, the stateless community in Kuwait (Bedoon) decided to light candles in their houses and post pictures of them on Twitter.
Mali: A War, a Declaration of Independence and Conflicting Objectives
Things have been moving rapidly in the civil war that is tearing Mali apart. On Friday, April 6, Tuareg rebels of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) proclaimed the “Independence of Azawad.” In this crisis that threatens to sweep across the entire Sahel region, several actors with conflicting objectives are playing a dominant role.
Iran: 86-year-old mother of political prisoner write a letter to Regime's Leader
According to news sites and blogs,86-year-old mother of an Iranian political prisoner and former MP wrote a letter to Ali Khamenei, Islamic Republic's Leader. Ghasem Sholeh Sadi's mother compare Khamenei to Iran's shah and criticized his policy.
Iran: “We must boycott national internet”
Anidshehnovin says [fa] that we should boycott Iranian government's national internet because using it means being trapped by intelligent services in Iran. National internet will take off in June according Iranian government. Read more here.
Global Voices Podcast: The Good and Bad of Online Campaigns
In this edition we have company in the voice of co-host Yazan Badran, a Global Voices author from Syria based in Japan. The topic this month is global social media campaigns: the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Mali: An Introduction to the Tuareg Population
The blog of the Tuareg movement Temoust Survie publishes a post (via information from l'Express [fr]) that provides [fr] a brief introduction to the Tuareg culture : “we are a nomadic people living from farming and trade. The Tuaregs are estimated to be about 1.5 million in a region that spans across Mali,...
Egypt: Muslim Brotherhood versus SCAF – the Fall of the Masks?
“A million men march to demand the fall of Ganzouri's cabinet” read the official newspaper of the Freedom and Justice Party after events that have left the Egyptian population baffled. How did the close relationship between Egypt's military council and the nearly controlling political majority lead to a “bad breakup”?
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