Middle East

Human Wrongs Watch Condemning the demolition by Israeli authorities of the homes of Palestinian Bedouins in the West Bank, a senior United Nations relief official on 7 January 2016 called on Israel to end such destruction and halt its plans…

A video of Arab and Jewish couples engaging in “forbidden” kisses has disappeared from Facebook, prompting claims of hacking and censorship.The video by TimeOut Tel Aviv features six couples doing the “forbidden deed”, was a response to an Israeli Ministry…

Execution of Nimr al-Nimr, Saudi Arabia and Iran: religious or political conflicts? Source : http://sayed7asan.blogspot.fr/2016/01/execution-dun-clerc-chiite-en-arabie.html Translated from French by Jenny Bright  “Since our birth, we are subjected to oppression, intimidation, persecution and terror, so that even the walls frightened us.…

Human Wrongs Watch 4 January 2016 – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian territories is resigning due to Israel’s failure to grant him access to the areas he is tasked with…

After Saudi Arabia executed Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr on Saturday along with 46 others, protesters in the Iranian capital of Tehran responded by torching part of the Saudi Embassy. On Sunday, Saudi Arabia responded by severing ties with Iran.…

Human Wrongs Watch By Catherine Shakdam* 3 January 2016 (RT) – Set up as a modern Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr’s death needs to be seen as a harbinger of war – a ploy that would allow…

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has offered Christmas felicitations to heads of state across the globe, expressing hope that the world will see peace and security. “On the eve of the New Year, I hope that we would see, through efforts…

By Katherine Mackenzie ABU DHABI, Dec 24 2015 (IPS) – The triumph of 19 women in what is being seen as a landmark and historical election in a largely traditional and conservative country is a massive gain for women. A…

Human Wrongs Watch Some 70 per cent of the over 1 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon now live below the Lebanese extreme poverty line, a big rise over 2014, and food insecurity is mounting, the UN on 23 December 2015…

In January, the Syrian government will – ostensibly – sit across the negotiating table from ‘the Syrian opposition’ to decide on the structure and make-up of a transitional government that promises to end the 5-year Syrian conflict. The ‘Syrian opposition,’…