Leila Al Haddad in Raising Yousuf, who is making her long trek home from the US to Palestine, and is now stuck in Egypt, waiting for the border to her country to reopen. The experience makes her feel “very alone; no one cares, no one knows, no one bothers to...

Mustafa from Beirut Spring has posted some banners on his site for people to print and wave at a huge rally planned in Lebanon tomorrow as part of assassinated Christian government minister Pierre Gemayel's funeral.

Freedom for Egyptians reports that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak rejected a request to ban the Niqab (full face cover for women) in his country.

Iraqi Ihath, who lives in Canada, posts an insightful link to a master's dissertation which focuses on “how the reporting of the American-led war on Iraq in 2003 was effecting Iraqis living in Canada.” Ihath admits the study left her crying on several occasions.

Bahrain has banned demonstrations, gatherings and rallies in ‘sensitive’ locations, but Chanad Bahraini thinks that the list is too long. He says the ban may be because workers are holding strikes in their work places, calling for pay rises and better working conditions.

Palestinian-Jordanian blogger Haitham Sabbah tells us about the plight of a Palestinian refugee who is looking for a lawyer/s to help her “present a case, or cases, against the State of Israel and private individuals and organizations, for damages, because of human rights abuses and many other crimes perpetrated against...

Lebanese Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was killed in a terrorist attack in Jdeideh in Beirut, Abu Kais reports minutes after the attack. Follow the link for more updates as more details about the assassination emerge.

Arabisc: One Blogger Arrested..1000s More to Go!

There doesn't seem to be a week passing by without Egyptians and its bloggers rocking the boat and taking the virtual limelight in our part of the world. This week the huge ripples in the Nile are being caused by no other than Egyptian Culture Minister Farooq Hosni, who has...

Egypt's Culture Minister Farooq Hosni is being investigated, following comments he has made on the Hijab or head scarf, reports The Big Pharoah. The Big Pharoah himself is however unruffled and goes on a rampage, berating the religious symbol and saying the religion was “in dire need of reform.”

Zany who writes for The View from Fez, Morocco, posts part of a paper which highlights plans to increase the number of women candidates in Parliament. Mohammad V University law professor Mohamed Mouaquit, who prepared the study for the Democratic Association of Moroccan Women, states political representation of women in...

Lebanese Mark who lives and works in Kuwait had to fly into Dubai for urgent business. Although he didn't like his hotel, traffic and the fact that an exhibition he wanted to visit was closed by the time he had finished his work, he found items he really wanted but...

The abuse of domestic maids is on the rise in Jordan, reports Black Iris. So far 10 maids have committed suicide this year in the country which has about 38,000 registered maids from abroad in addition to 60,000 illegal domestic workers.

In the United Arab Emirates, police first arrest men accused of sexual harrassment and then start questioning them, writes Lou Lou in her blog Renderings of Me. There is zero tolerance for any type of sexual harrassment in UAE which is something that deserves respect, she adds.

An Arab version of both YouTube and Flickr on one site, called Ikbis, is gaining popularity in the Arab world, writes Mustapha from Beirut Spring. A video of a Lebanese girl belly dancing in her room is among the most watched videos in the site, which has sparked the interest...

The Week That Was in Bahrain

For a small constitutional monarchy, with a population of about 700,000, Bahrain's blogosphere is sure never short of new topics for discussion and debate. This week's new topics include the arrest of two activists, a rally to push authorities to probe what is now commonly referred to in Bahrain as...

Arabisc: Culprits, Democracy and the Rule of Law

Choosing links from 22 different Arab countries for translation is no easy feat..for however much you try and be selective, you cannot be doing the region and its bloggers any justice. Today I have selected the following links, each highlighting a different woe Arab bloggers have to deal with. Our...

Arabisc: Best Blog Awards Winners and Recurring Nightmares

Arabic blogs are making their mark on the international blogging scene, with more writers and commentators taking to their keyboards and enjoying the thrill of the instant publication of their ideas away from government censorship, newspaper censorship and self-censorship! The BOBS – Best of the Blogs Awards 2006 highlighted a...

The Week That Was in Bahrain

With the Godfather of Bahraini bloggers Mahmood Al Yousif out of the way and sick in hospital – possibly recuperating from his head-on collision with authorities over the blocking of his blog – his prodigies were out to play this week! First and foremost I would like to extend a...

Arabisc: Egyptian Blogger Arrested While Arab Bloggers Debate Unity Issues

With most Arab countries waging a war on the Internet, Egypt decided to score brownie points with its bloggers by arresting yet another online writer. Egyptian blogger Alaa Abd El Fattah, who has himself enjoyed a stint behind bars, reports to us his colleague's ordeal. أمرت نيابة محرم بك بالإسكندرية...

Arabisc: How did Arab bloggers react to Saddam Hussein's verdict?

While Arab bloggers writing in English jumped on the opportunity to comment on Saddam Hussein‘s death sentence, those writing in Arabic seemed to be slower to react. Among the few commenting on the story making the headlines yesterday and today, Batir Wardam from Jordan, says what is more important than...

The Week That Was in Bahrain

Freedom of expression in Bahrain received yet another slap in the face this week with a government ban on what is the kingdom's most famous blog. The Ministry of Information issued a gag order, blocking Mahmood Al Yousif’s blog, among a handful of other sites for breaking publication laws. The...