Blog archive all
13th September 2009
"Operation Scorched Earth" against the Houthi rebels in Yemen has been going on for a month now, with no end in sight. The government media continues with its vague reports of military successes and "heavy losses" inflicted on the rebels (the latter may well be true).
The military are said to be "… Read more
13th September 2009
A shocking report in the Observer by Afif Sarhan and Jason Burke:
Sitting on the floor, wearing traditional Islamic clothes and holding an old notebook, Abu Hamizi, 22, spends at least six hours a day searching internet chatrooms linked to gay websites. He is not looking for new friends, but for… Read more
12th September 2009
The Economist is the latest publication to raise serious questions about the future of Yemen.
It says (rightly, I think) that much of the reason for the Houthi rebels' success lies with the Yemeni army: "Its aerial bombing and artillery fire have proved better at enraging locals than at subduing… Read more
12th September 2009
Four men in two cars were stopped near the US embassy in Sanaa on Tuesday and found to have in their possession nine grenades, a machine gun, 296 bullets, five detonators, a siren device as used by ambulances and 20 fuel containers.
According to a security source they were just passing through and… Read more
12th September 2009
The Arabist blog makes some interesting observations about jihadist groups in North Africa and elsewhere who have recently been persuaded to renounce violence. It comments: "Even if they eschew violence, the ideology of these groups remains extremely radical, intolerant, bigoted ..."
I made a… Read more
11th September 2009
There's a rumpus in Egypt over reports that police in various parts of the country have arrested more than 150 people for publicly breaking the fast during Ramadan.
Unlike some Muslim countries, Egypt has no specific law against fast-breaking and the wave of arrests seems to be the work of some… Read more
11th September 2009
The idea that suicide bombers are insane or religious fanatics is challenged by some controversial new research that has been reported over that last few days in a variety of publications, from Yale Global in the US to the Daily Star in Lebanon and the Daily Times in Pakistan.
The article is by… Read more
9th September 2009
The Israeli human rights organisation, B’Tselem, today issues itsfindings on the number of Palestinians and Israelis killed during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza. The figures, which it says are the result of “months of meticulous investigation and cross-checks” sharply conflict with those published by… Read more
9th September 2009
The head of Egypt’s first independent trade union, Kamal Abu Eita, was questioned by a prosecutor yesterday and could face charges “of disseminating false information and defaming the reputation of the country’s state-controlled union leaders”.
Abu Eita was one of the founders of the independent… Read more
8th September 2009
Socotra, Yemen’s exotic island outpost in the Indian Ocean, witnessed its first-ever riot on Sunday when hundreds of people took to the streets protesting about “an acute shortage of wheat and flour”.
The Yemen Post says they hurled stones at one of the Economic Corporation's stores and police… 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
