It’s almost two weeks since the latest Arab Human Development Report was published and, after the initial burst of news items which basically summarised its content, considered views are beginning to emerge.
The theme of the 2009 report, as I noted last week, is “human security” – a people-centred… Read more
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30th July 2009
I always thought there was something wrong with Fox News’s Middle East coverage. Now I know why.
Posted by Brian Whitaker, 30 July 2009
30th July 2009
“Marhaban bikum,” says the elegantly dressed newsreader. She’s not wearing a headscarf and she sounds like a highly educated Arab. Her name, if I’ve deciphered it correctly, is Chiang Lu, and she’s presenting the TV news in Arabic – from Beijing.
The main news of the day is President Hu Jintao’s… Read more
29th July 2009
It’s a sobering thought that despite all the turmoil in Yemen there are people who look to it as a haven of safety.
Almost a quarter of a million Somalis have fled their homes since May 7 to escape fighting in Mogadishu and up to 12,000 of them have gathered in the northern town of Bossasso, hoping… Read more
29th July 2009
It’s Wednesday and I’m still flabbergasted by the review of Bruce Bawer’s latest book that appeared in the New York Times at the weekend.
The book is called Surrender: Appeasing Islam, Sacrificing Freedom – so you needn’t read further to get the general drift. It’s part of that scaremongering genre… Read more
28th July 2009
This video contains images, as they say on TV, “that some viewers may find disturbing”. Or amusing. Either way, the YouTube clip is causing a stir in Saudi Arabia because it’s said to show male employees of SABB (part of the giant HSBC banking corporation) having a knees-up in Riyadh.
For Saudis… Read more
27th July 2009
I happened to be watching Moroccan television in July 1999 when the programme was interrupted. A newsreader appeared, announced the death of King Hassan and burst into a flood of tears. My Moroccan companion looked startled ( since the death was unexpected) but remained totally dry-eyed – which I… Read more
27th July 2009
Crown Prince Sultan of Saudi Arabia has sent a cable of congratulation to Sultan Qaboos of Oman on the anniversary of his country's Renaissance Day. The Crown Prince wished the Sultan permanent good health and happiness, and his people steady progress and prosperity.
Sultan Qaboos has sent a cable… Read more
26th July 2009
It’s beginning to look as if the Red-Dead Project – an imaginative (some would say fanciful) scheme to channel water from the Red Sea into the Dead Sea – may one day come to fruition.
The Jordan Times reports that Egypt has dropped its reservations to the project, which was jointly agreed upon in… Read more
26th July 2009
Last week I mentioned a fascinating article on The Long Slumber blog called The crisis of Arab masculinities. Well, the same blog has now come up with another one: Hymen: the Arabs’ finest fetish. It begins ...
Contrary to common belief, fetishes do not just exist in the tents of West African witch… 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
