Category Archives: Countries

Islam gets a Saudi facelift

Ethics, Gender and Sexuality, Islamic Law, Saudi Arabia

Under the Veil, Nip and Tuck Makes New Saudi Faces

Asharq Alawsat, March 8, 2009

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, (AP) — Does Islam frown on nose jobs? Chemical peels? How about breast implants?

One of the clerics with the answers is Sheik Mohammed al-Nujaimi, and Saudi women flock to him for guidance about going under the knife. The results may not see much light of day in a kingdom where women cover up from head to toe, yet cosmetic surgery is booming.

Religion covers every facet of life in Saudi Arabia, including plastic surgery. Al-Nujaimi draws his guidelines from the consensus that was reached three years ago when clergymen and plastic surgeons met in Riyadh to determine whether cosmetic procedures violate the Islamic tenet against tampering God’s creation. Continue reading Islam gets a Saudi facelift →

Iranians in The Mist

Contemporary Art, Film and Video, Iran, Journalism and Media, Literature

Demystifying Iran

by Noor Iqbal, Foreign Policy in Focus, July 29, 2009

Post-election turmoil in Iran has brought the country closer to the top of America’s foreign policy concerns. More importantly, though, it has piqued the interests of the American public. Green is the new black, Moussavi and Khamenei have become household names, and tweeting about Iranian politics has never been more popular.

But what is Iran like beyond its politics and the Western media hype? Iranian-born filmmaker Maryam Habibian tackles this question in her most recent documentary, The Mist. The film delves into the lives of young artists, poets, playwrights, and intellectuals in Iran whose creative energy flourishes alongside fundamentalist traditions. It explores the balance they reach between artistic expression and the limitations of a conservative political regime. Habibian shows her viewers another side to Iran, one that has been largely overlooked by conventional media. She is committed to showing her audience that a society cannot be defined solely by its political system and that when it comes to Iran, we are not facing a clash of civilizations.

Her film was recently screened in New York City as part of the NewFilmmakers Summer Festival.

NOOR IQBAL: What motivated you to make this film? Continue reading Iranians in The Mist →

Love Trumps Religion in Yemen

Gender and Sexuality, Judaism, Yemen


Yemeni Jews and Muslims talk at the village of Kharef, 50 miles, 80 kilometers, north of the capital Sanaa, Yemen, Monday, Dec. 15, 2008. Photograph by Mohammad al-Qadhi, AP

Complete Story of Jewish Liya’s Islam, Divorce and Marriage

Yemen Post, July 26, 2009

Over the recent period, the issues of Jewish minority have been hitting the titles in media outlets and their news is widely covered at local and international levels.

These news stories range from “Ninawa” embracing Islam and getting married to “Hani Saran”, forced migration of “Al Salem Jews” from Sa’ada and granting them apartments in the Sana’a Tourism City after being threatened by Houthis, killing incident of Masha Ya’aish at the hands of a former military pilot to the two-time marriage of “Liya” bint Sa’eed in a week and later her elopement with her Muslim husband to the nearby Arhab tribe and later on to the Al-Souk Al-Jadid in Amran’s Kharef area. Continue reading Love Trumps Religion in Yemen →

A Photographer among the Syrian Bedouin

Anthropology/Sociology, Photography, Syria


Morning Mist

A Life with a Bedouin family in Syria — from the Far East to the Middle East —

by Megumi YOSHITAKE, JAPAN

At the age of 15 the story of T. E. Lawrence [Lawrence of Arabia] captured my heart and mind. Ever since, I have yearned after deserts and been enchanted by the Arab world, and wanting to convey the essence of these places in my own way is what caused me to choose photography as my path.

I first visited Syria in 1987, and have spent part of every year from 1995 onwards living with a family of Bedouin in the Syrian Desert. Initially I was single, but visited again on my honeymoon after getting married and introduced my husband. I returned once more in 2004, this time bringing along my 16-month-old son. The time I have spent photographing the Bedouin — amounting to some 14 years — is unique among Japanese and rare even worldwide.


A Bedouin father and his daughter

To read the full story and look at the gallery of photographs, click here.

The Propaganda Value of a Detained Journalist

Anthropology/Sociology, Iran, Journalism and Media


A street in Tawila, a Kurdish village near the border with Iran. Iraq, 1950, Photo by Wilfred Thesiger

by William O. Beeman, New America Media, August 06, 2009

New America Media Editor’s Note: New America Media correspondent Shane Bauer is one of three Americans presumed to be detained by the Iranian government near the Iran-Iraq border last weekend. Commentator William O. Beeman writes that their situation raises profound political questions.

“In the wrong place at the wrong time” is an apt description for three Americans currently being detained in Iran. They will likely be released, but not before Iranian authorities have wrung maximal publicity over their situation, painting them as Western intelligence operatives. The process could take months.

The timing for this event could not be more inopportune. Iran is on high emotional alert. It is flush with righteous indignation and paranoia vis-à-vis Western nations. It has undergone a contentious election where opponents of President Ahmadinejad were accused of collaboration with Western powers. Understanding the current state of mind in Iran is crucial to predicting the fate of the three travelers. Continue reading The Propaganda Value of a Detained Journalist →

Terms of Engagement, Taliban Style

Afghanistan, Terrorism Issue

Taliban issues new code of conduct

Al-Jazeera, July 27, 2009

The Taliban in Afghanistan has issued a book laying down a code of conduct for its fighters.

Al Jazeera has obtained a copy of the book, which further indicates that Mullah Omar, the movement’s leader, wants to centralise its operations.

The book, with 13 chapters and 67 articles, lays out what one of the most secretive organisations in the world today, can and cannot do.

It talks of limiting suicide attacks, avoiding civilian casualties and winning the battle for the hearts and minds of the local civilian population.

James Bays, our correspondent in Afghanistan, said every fighter is being issued the pocket book entitled “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Rules for Mujahideen”. Continue reading Terms of Engagement, Taliban Style →