Featured stories about Middle East & North Africa
Stories about Middle East & North Africa
How will Tunisia include its growing poor in an increasingly digital society?
At an age when they should be digital natives, many young Tunisians are starting life without the foundational skills to navigate an increasingly complex and digital world.
Anti-refugee rhetoric and the new far-right on Turkish social media
From openly racist statements from far-right political leaders to claims that news agencies are circulating disinformation to incite violence, social media is not making life safer for refugees in Turkey.
A brief overview of AI use in West Asia and North Africa
In general, using Artificial Intelligence technologies almost always allows for greater surveillance of individuals, and therefore, is especially concerning in authoritarian regimes.
Unfreedom Monitor Report: Access
Advox research into internet access, shutdowns and interruptions is now in a report. Read an excerpt and download the full pdf.
The plight of Kurdish journalists in their struggle for free expression
Kurdish journalists lack a recognized nation state and political recognition. They face opposition from their host countries, which attempt to erase their identity and suppress their freedom of expression.
Shimaa Samy discusses the challenges of being a journalist in Egypt today: an interview
Egyptian laws limit freedom of expression, with charges of blasphemy, incitement, spreading false news, destabilizing the country. Even "protecting family values" is often used as a pretext to suppress journalists.
Beyond Jordan’s TikTok Ban
Jordan's recent ban of TikTok has sparked concerns over freedom of expression and access to information. Concerns raised as part of a broader trend of governments restricting social media platforms.
In Turkey, the state resorts to censorship majeure
Rocked by a devastating earthquake, citizens in Turkey now have to also deal with censorship measures imposed by the state amid an outcry of public criticism.
Saudi Arabia: Call for release of two Saudi Wikipedians
A request for the release of doctors Osama Khalid and Ziad Al-Sufyani, who contributed to Wikipedia Arabic and were jailed in Saudi Arabia for 32 and 8 years, respectively.
Saudi Arabia: Government agents infiltrate Wikipedia, sentence independent admins to prison
The Saudi government infiltrated Wikipedia by recruiting the organization’s highest-ranking administrators in the country to control information about the country and prosecute those who contributed critical information about political detainees.
European Parliament’s Report on Pegasus spyware indicates involvement of North Macedonia companies
Pegasus and Predator spyware can allegedly extract all communications records from mobile devices. A European Parliament report and journalist investigations suspect wide illegal use in and outside of the European Union.
Governments are still free to use the Pegasus software without human rights safeguards in place
There is an urgent need to regulate the global trade in surveillance technology with the inclusion of human rights safeguards.
In Turkey, local court hands popular mayor a jail sentence
The court's decision is largely viewed as the ruling party's attempt to sideline any potential competition ahead of the general election in June 2023.
In Turkey, social media platforms become complicit in censoring media and freedom of speech
Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, and Facebook have become complicit in aiding the state to silence independent voices in Turkey, even at times when content is not political.
In Turkey, a football federation joins a list of institutions with powers to censor content online
Granting a football federation rights to censor content in the absence of a court order is yet another sign of a narrowing environment for freedoms.
Turkey throttles internet access following deadly explosion in Istanbul
"Those who impose a broadcast ban, supposedly so that the public does not panic, are scaring everyone more by suppressing all the media."
How Palestinian youth resisted Israeli occupation: With a haircut
A new generation that has become hopeless over the brutal realities of Israeli apartheid now leads the fight. Palestinians express sympathy for those youngsters but also support their resistance.
Turkish lawmakers ratify new disinformation bill
Aimed to combat fake news and disinformation, the 40-article legislation passed by Turkey's parliament, is a threat to freedom of speech say critics of the bill.
The world must hear the voice of Iranian women
The Iranian government is attempting to silence the online and offline voices of women and all dissidents through a brutal and ongoing crackdown.
Unfreedom Monitor report: Morocco
Advox research into digital authoritarianism in Morocco is now in a report. Read an excerpt and download the full pdf.
