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For Egyptians who oppose the Muslim Brotherhood, the run-off in last year’s presidential election posed an unenviable choice. Much as they might dislike Mohamed Morsi, the Islamist candidate, the key question was whether they disliked him enough to vote for his opponent, Ahmed Shafik.… Read more
A report issued by Human Rights Watch this week looks at abuse, torture and ill-treatment of people from marginalised social groups by the Lebanese Internal Security Forces. It is based on more than 50 interviews with people arrested for suspected drug use, sex work, or homosexuality over… Read more
Research by the Institute of Criminology at Cambridge University has discovered alarmingly high levels of support for 'honour' killings among Jordanian teenagers.
Such crimes are a particular problem in Jordan, where government efforts to discourage them have met… Read more
The Emir of Qatar's abdication this morning (see text of his speech) is widely seen as a milestone – and rightly so. It breaks the long-standing Arab tradition of leaders who cling to power until the drop, or are forcibly removed from office.
Sheikh Hamad came to power in 1995, removing… Read more
posted on Twitter following yesterday's attack" src="/sites/default/files/egypt-shia-killing_0.jpg" style="border-style:solid; border-width:1px; height:291px; width:388px" />
At least four Shia Muslims – including a prominent religious figure – were killed yesterday when a mob attacked homes in… Read more
Following my blog posts about the coming-out of Yemeni revolution activist Alaa Jarban (here and here) I received an email from another Yemeni who identifies as gay. I'm posting it below, with the sender's permission:
When I read Alaa’s coming-out news on… Read more
"In a dictatorship," the Sudanese-born intellectual Abdel-Wahab al-Effendi once remarked, "the role of the minister of culture isn't to protect culture, but to stifle culture and to protect the regime".
For 24 years, this was the role that Farouk Hosni performed in Egypt as the "… Read more
President Morsi's decree appointing new governors for 17 of the Egypt's 27 provinces has triggered a new wave of protests and further raised political tensions ahead of the mass demonstrations against Morsi which have been called by opposition groups for June 30.
Seven of the new… Read more
Metal music has a following in Saudi Arabia, despite accusations of Satanism. Picture: Saudi Gazette
In a country where superstition is rife and belief in black magic is
official government policy, the authorities need to demonstrate from time to time that they are actively combating the… Read more
A survey of people's attitudes towards homosexuality has shed some interesting (if predictable) light on the Middle East. The 39-country poll by the Pew Research Center found the Middle East and sub-Saharan African had lowest levels of acceptance worldwide.
In all the Middle Eastern countries… 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
