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Last week's parliamentary elections in Algeria, which saw the regime strengthen its hold on power, have been broadly welcomed by western governments.
Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, said the elections were "a welcome step in Algeria's progress toward democratic reform", and… Read more
Last night's presidential sparring match in Egypt proved a huge success – at least for the TV companies who managed to spin it out to four-and-a-half hours with a barrage of lucrative advertising.
As for the candidates – who knows? The debate itself began with handshakes but inevitably descended… Read more
Ahmed Ouyahia, Algerian prime minister
The Algerian election campaign reached a climax (of sorts) at the weekend with a disastrously misjudged speech by prime minister Ahmed Ouyahia, who attacked the Arab Spring as "a plague" which is sweeping the region. Its effects can be… Read more
Election workers in Syria. Photo posted by Lyse Doucet of the BBC (@bbclysedoucet).
To describe today's parliamentary election in Syria as "cosmetic" would probably be over-generous. Nobody expects it to change the political reality and it's unlikely to change appearances… Read more
The Assad regime issued an emphatic denial this morning that it is planning to invite the Dalai Lama for an official visit to Syria.
On the face of it, the idea of Assad hobnobbing with the Tibetan Buddhist leader is preposterous – not least because it would infuriate the Chinese… Read more
The offending article (larger version here)
Student Mohamad Sibai was in Hamra Street, Beirut, when he witnessed a "disturbing" sight. So disturbing, in fact, that he could scarcely believe what he had seen: "I couldn’t get that image out of my head for the whole day."
The sight… Read more
Shokri Ghanem, the man in charge of Libya's highly corrupt oil industry during the last five years of Gaddafi's rule, was found dead yesterday – floating in the river Danube near his home in Vienna. His family have suggested that he fell in the river after suffering a heart attack,… Read more
There's great excitement in Saudi Arabia. The whole kingdom is rejoicing. Everyone is thrilled, delighted, jubilant, esctatic and absolutely over the moon – at least, if you believe the Saudi Gazette:
There was universal acclaim for King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,… Read more
Libya's largest oil refinery, in Ras Lanuf, has been closed since the uprising against Colonel Gaddafi and will remain closed for at least another month while the company that operates it is restructured,
the Tripoli Post reports.
Behind this rather bland announcement is a controversy… Read more
Events in Yemen over the last few days provide a sharp reminder that despite the resignation of President Saleh and the installation of President Hadi in a one-candidate "election", the Saleh regime remains largely in place. It won't go without a struggle and is still capable of obstructing the… 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
