Virginia Bonet Morell, Correspondent (Europe) VATICAN CITY - Last Sunday, Pope Francis commented on the situation of the war in Syria during the traditional weekly blessing in the Vatican City. In front of thousands of pilgrims, he condemned the use of chemical weapons and called for negotiations between the two sides of the civil war. Finally, he declared that he would lead a worldwide day of fasting and prayer for peace on September […]
Diksha Dwivedi, Correspondent (Politics) It all started with the Arab Spring in recent times — Jasmine revolution in Tunisia in 2011 followed by Egypt revolution and so this story continues in the rest of the world. There is sudden realisation among citizens, of the rights they have been deprived of by their respective governments for many centuries. Moreover, there has been a sudden outburst of courage among the weaker sections of society — common people […]
Stewart Hume, Correspondent (Music) TUNIS – The Arab spring has been reported and studied extensively in the last couple of year. In many cases it is used as an example of how a revolution conducts itself in the 21st century. The focus of reporter and academics alike has often been on the use of new technology to organise protests. However, this utilisation of new technology has also been used to create and spread music […]
Joanne Faulkner, Editor (Asia – Middle East & Central) DAMASCUS- As we enter April, the two year Syrian civil war is rapidly seeing rising casualty figures. In a month which is now being dubbed by some as ‘bloody March’, the crisis saw its deadliest month of the conflict in which more than 6,000 people are reported to have died, a third of whom are believed to have been civilians. The rising dead are a […]
Joanne Faulkner, Editor (Asia – Middle East & Central) SANAA – As thousands of separatists protests in the southern cities, President Hadi has addressed the nation, raising concerns about Yemenis using violence to express their dissent. There are reports that police have shot and killed a protestor in the South where protestors are calling for two independent Northen and Southern states. The separatists say that leaders from the South have been excluded from the […]
Joanne Faulkner, Editor (Asia – Middle East & Central) MANAMA- There is more unrest between the government and the people of Bahrain as the second anniversary of the Shia-led uprising was met with violence. The simmering insurgency continues and protests against the Monarchy have become increasingly frequent. Police fired tear gas at those protesting at a funeral after a teenager was killed in the demonstrations. A policeman was also killed in the widespread clashes. […]
Joanne Faulkner, Editor (Asia – Middle East & Central) ABU DHABI – The United Arab Emirates in trying 94 people accused of attempting to seize power, stating that the group have links to Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood and have receiving financial backing from the group. This has spurred a flurry of complaints from human rights organisations who claim this is the latest ordeal in a crack down by the UAE of peaceful activism. Last year […]
Joanne Faulkner, Editor (Asia – Middle East & Central) DAMASCUS - In a televised speech, Syrian President al-Assad made his first public address in six months, in which he denounced his opponents and said he will help protect Syrians from the ‘terrorists”. In the speech, which was billed as an unveiling of a new peace plan, Assad rallied his troops to a vetted audience of over a 1,000 and said that his regime is welcome to talks with […]
Joanne Faulkner, Editor (Asia – Middle East & Central) DAMASCUS – The Syrian conflict is now approaching its second year. For 21-months, Syrians have endured unimaginable violence, in which more than 44,000 lives have been lost and 2.5m Syrians have fled their homes, as the damage only continues to escalate. The UN has now launched a $1.5bn appeal to help the millions of refuges, the numbers of which have nearly doubled since March this […]
Joanne Faulkner, Editor (Asia – Middle East & Central) KUWAIT CITY – In stark contrast to the rest of Middle East, Kuwait seems like a mirage of prosperity. Apart from a prosperous oil industry, it has a free media and a more lenient outlook towards religious practices. So when one hears of protests in Kuwait, it is hard to believe such a wealthy and prosperous nation could have trouble at all. However, the trouble […]
