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Amid all the discussion of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab and his activities prior to boarding flight 253 for Detroit, the fact that he spent three years in London studying mechanical engineering has attracted relatively little attention.
A degree in engineering has no obvious connection with terrorism… Read more
Algeria's new internet censorship has got under way with the blocking, for the first time, of a political website. Le Quotidien d'Algerie reports (in French) that the opposition website Rachad is no longer accessible from within the country.
The Algerian government had earlier… Read more
Mauritanian journalist Hanefi Ould Dehah has reportedly begun a hunger strike in protest at his continued detention after completing a jail sentence.
Ould Dehah, editor of the Taqadoumy news website, was serving six months for "indecency" but since his sentence expired on 24… Read more
Saudi police have detained more than 40 people for questioning in connection with last months flooding disaster in Jeddah. They include current and former officials as well as contractors and engineers, and others in the property business.
According to the Saudi Gazette, eight people were… Read more
Al-Hurra, the little-watched TV station established by the Bush administration to win hearts and minds in the Middle East, has been granted another $112 million by Congress to keep it going through the coming year. Total cost so far: $650 million.
Writing for the Huffington Post, James Zogby of the… Read more
"The gap between Arab governments and internet activists is widening day after day," the Cairo-based Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) says in a report issued last week.
The report includes useful information about the current state of play between the authorities and internet… Read more
Marc Lynch at foreignpolicy.com notes the lack of interest shown by the Arab media in the Detroit plane bomb affair. He writes:
The Arab media's indifference to the story speaks to a vitally important trend. Al-Qaeda's attempted acts of terrorism simply no longer carry the kind of persuasive… Read more
It seems increasingly likely that Abd al-Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the northern rebels in Yemen, is dead.
He was reportedly injured in an airstrike on December 17 and is said to have died later from his wounds. According to the latest reports, he was secretly buried on Saturday in al-… Read more
Why, you might wonder, is the Virgin Mary apparently spending so much of her time at the moment in Cairo?
The Coptic Pope, Shenouda III, has an explanation: "The Virgin Mary loves Egypt, where she stayed for three-and-a-half years when Jesus was a child," he told worshippers in his weekly… Read more
Once again, there are conflicting reports about the latestairstrike in Yemen directed against al-Qaeda.
Yemeni officials say at least 30 suspected militants were killed when they gathered for a meeting at Rafadh in Shabwa province yesterday.
The Yemen Observer says the strike… 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
