· July, 2008

Stories about Syria from July, 2008

Israel: Olmert to Resign Following Kadima Primary

  31 July 2008

Ehud Olmert said yesterday that he will not stand for the Kadima primary in September. According to Al Jazeera English, Olmert said: “I have decided I won't run in the Kadima movement primaries, nor do I intend to intervene in the elections.” Bloggers had a strong reaction to Olmert's resignation.

Lebanon: Syria and Israel

  31 July 2008

“How much groveling (toward Israel) can advocates and propagandists for the Syrian regime do in one week? The answer is: plenty. And please: tell the Syrian regime not to speak on behalf of all Arabs when they promise peace and normalization with Israel. And remember that Sadat had promised them...

Syria: Forgotten Prisoners and Real Heros

  30 July 2008

An Egyptian prisoner is still being held in an Israeli jail, according to reports being posted by bloggers, in the aftermath of the Prisoner swap between Israel and Hezbollah. Razan Ghazzawi reflects on what the Syrian bloggers had to say about this and the exchange of prisoners in general.

Syria: Why plastic surgery?

  28 July 2008

Maysaloon expresses frustration at the desire amongst some Arabs to have plastic surgery, saying, “Not only do they wish to live like people in the West but they are desperate to look like them as well.”

Syria: Nudity and Moral Decay

  21 July 2008

How much nudity on television can be considered as art, and how much of it contributes to moral decay? Syrian blogger Emad [Ar] tries to answer this question in the following post.

MENA: Reactions to the Mediterranean Summit

  14 July 2008

As over 40 leaders from the Mediterranean region gather in France for the inauguration of the new Union for the Mediterranean, the blogosphere is filled with mixed feelings. Jillian York checks up on the Middle Eastern and North African communities, bringing us reactions from Morocco to Syria.

Syria: Police Kill 25 in Sednaya Massacre

  7 July 2008

The Syrian Human Rights Committee (SHRC) announced that a massacre had occurred on July 5 at the Sadnaya military prison, west Damascus. At least 25 detainees had been killed by the Syrian police, according to SHREC that received phone calls from inside the prison during the massacre. The detainees started...

Kurdistance: Where Have All the Bloggers Gone?

  6 July 2008

Where have all the Kurdish bloggers gone?, asks Deborah Ann Dilley, in this post that revisits the beginnings of Kurdish blogosphere coverage on Global Voices and examines the whereabouts of the Kurdish voice on the internet.

Israel: Earth-Friendly Middle East

  3 July 2008

Help Karen Chernick build a list of environmentally friendly blogs in the Middle East. In “Green News from the Blogosphere,”, this Green Prophet author opines: “The truth is that although borders may physically and ideologically separate us, one of the things that we all share is that we are citizens...