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23rd October 2010
A symposium was held in Beirut earlier this month under the auspices of the Florida-based International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association – basically aimed at promoting Lebanon as a "gay" tourist destination.
Some members of Lebanon's LGBT community were uneasy about it (to say the least) and it… Read more
23rd October 2010
A group of Egyptian professors yesterday won an historic legal battle to have state security forces removed from university campuses – though it is doubtful whether the government will abide by the ruling.
Al-Masry al-Youm newspaper says human rights organisations welcomed the decision by the… Read more
22nd October 2010
In what must surely be the least credible news of the day, a senior official of Egypt's ruling National Democratic Party announced that Hosni Mubarak will be the party's candidate in next year's presidential election. Another six-year-term would take the ailing leader up to the age of 89.
The… Read more
22nd October 2010
Once again, all the Arab countries are in the bottom two-thirds of the annual Press Freedom Index compiled by the Paris-based Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF).
This year, tiny Comoros (not in the Middle East but a member of the Arab League) gets the highest ranking in 70th place (out of 178),… Read more
20th October 2010
I have been looking around Saudi news websites for some mention of the court case in London yesterday where His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Nasser al Saud was convicted of murderinghis "manservant", but I can't see anything in Arab News, the Saudi Gazette or al-Arabiya. If it has been… Read more
20th October 2010
Following the attack on a privately-owned TV station in Kuwait on Sunday, Reuters reports that two members of the royal family have been called for questioning by the public prosecutor.
The station, Scope TV, has accused Sheikh Faisal al-Malik al-Sabah, who is Kuwait's ambassador to Jordan, and his… Read more
18th October 2010
An angry mob stormed a privately-owned television station in Kuwait on Sunday. The group, said to number at least 150, smashed windows and overturned furniture at Scope TV. About 10 people were reportedly injured.
The Kuwait Times says the station accused the attackers of being under the guidance… Read more
17th October 2010
The Yemeni authorities say they have arrested Saleh al-Raimi, who was wanted for financing al-Qaeda activities in Yemen. Raimi, a 33-year-old Yemeni living in Saudi Arabia, was captured at Sana'a airport on Friday when he arrived from the kingdom,according to the interior ministry.
Meanwhile, the… Read more
17th October 2010
Arab states account for almost half of the worst performers in the World Economic Forum's latest survey of the Global Gender Gap.
As in previous years, four Nordic countries – Iceland, Norway, Finland and Sweden – top the list.
The best-performing Arab country – the UAE – is ranked at number 103 (… Read more
16th October 2010
Chile is a long way from the Middle East, perhaps in more ways than one. As I watched the rescue of the miners earlier this week, a question came to mind which has been niggling me ever since: What if the accident had happened in one of the Arab countries? How would the authorities have handled it… Read more
ARAB ART ONLINE: Susan Hefuna: Al Sabr Gamil (Patience is Beautiful) 2007. Ink stained on wood 140 x 170 cm. More information | Click to enlarge
