Stories about Middle East & North Africa from August, 2009
Saudi Arabia blocking Twitter pages of activists
Saudi Arabia’s Communication and Information Technology Commission (CITC) has recently blocked access to Twitter accounts of a blogger @Mashi97 and a human rights activist @abualkhair. The move comes after the role Twitter played in the recent post-elections uprising in Iran. Blogger Khaled al-Nasser told AFP that his tweets which included...
Egypt: the Influence of Facebook Events and Groups
Within the dynamic and expansive electronic media landscape in Egypt, Facebook became widely used by Egyptian citizens for different reasons and in several occasions, especially when it comes to shape the public opinion in opposition to the Egyptian government. For example, the Egyptian government recently announced, through the ministry of communication, a “Fair Usage Policy (FUB)” to be implemented in Egypt, aiming to limit the bandwidth consumed by internet users and determine specific downloadable amount.
Egyptian Government utilizes Electronic Media
Despite its attacks on online activists, especially on bloggers, in an attempt to combat utilizing electronic media for human rights and politics, the Egyptian government has begun using the same electronic tools, but for its own interests. Mr. Gamal Mubarak, son of current President Hosni Mubarak and the General Secretary...
Egypt: Security Officers continuous confiscating Digital Devices
The Security Officers escalates their attacks on online activists, specifically bloggers. Today 08 August 2009, the Egyptian Blogger Wael Abbas was stopped while his coming back from Beirut, and confiscated his CDs, flash memories and camera memory cards. It should be mentioned that this is the second time for Abbas...
The Egyptian Government and the detention of Internet activists
Many reasons and factors helped the emergence of electronic media in Egypt. For example, suppressing different media outlets, such as newspapers, TV channels and radio-stations, difficult procedures for founding new media bodies, censoring media content prior to publishing, different forms of repression targeting journalists, very narrow margin for freedoms and...
Iran: Leading reformist Abtahi on trial
Mohmmad Ali Abtahi, a leading blogger and former reformist vice president, was among dozens to protest the 12th June presidential election's result. A trial of the protestors is now underway in a Tehran court. In the court Abtahi, who appeared wearing prisoner's pyjamas, looked weak and seemed to have lost...
Iran: A leading blogger's trial begins
Mohammad Ali Abtahi, a leading blogger and reformist politican, was arrested several weeks ago after the protest against the 12th of June presidential election erupted. Abtahi, is one of leading reformist politicians whose trial begins today in Tehran.
Egypt: 2 Bloggers Released and Another Still Disappeared (podcast)
Two out of the three bloggers who were arrested on July 22, 2009 are now free. Abdel Rahman Ayyash and Magdy Saad were released after six days of arrest at Cairo airport, then sent to State Security Intelligence (SSI) headquarters at Lazoghly Square, (Cairo). In this podcast, blogger Abdel Rahman...
