Articles posted by Middle East Voices
Middle East Voices is a unique social journalism project powered by Voice of America. The site, as a supplement to VOANews.com, is designed to present news, views and conversation to stimulate dialogue and understanding within, without and across man-made borders. On our platform, among other content, you will finds expert insights and community-submitted viewpoints on pressing political, economic, social and religious issues reshaping the Middle East and our world.
- Norwegian Major-General Robert Mood, chief of the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria, says his team stands ready to go into Tremseh, site of the latest massacre, only if there is a local ceasefire. - As Egyptians struggle with their political transition, many question the future of Egypt’s relationship with the United States—they say More »
- Joshua Landis, director of Center for Middle East Studies, at the University of Oklahoma says the defection of Syria’s ambassador to Iraq, Nawaf Fares, is significant because he is a Sunni. - Human Rights Watch researcher Samer Muscati speaks about an Iraqi draft law that HRW says would restrict free speech in violation of More »
- US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urges Egypt’s military and civilian authorities to work together to carry out a smooth political transition. - Demonstrators express their concerns after the Islamist-led Egyptian parliament reconvenes in defiance of orders by the military and Supreme Court. - The United Nations names today World Population Day 2012, and the More »
- The Olympic Games in London this summer are being held right in the middle of the Islamic holy month, Ramadan, creating special challenges for Muslim athletes from around the world. - Egypt’s new president briefly reconvenes parliament in defiance of the military, which dissolved the legislature last month based on a high court order. - More »
- Correspondent Al Pessin has returned to Tripoli to observe the election and shares with us, in one word, what the new government faces. He says the public is “exhilarated” by the nation’s first multi-party election in 60 years. - United Nations special envoy Kofi Annan says he and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have agreed More »
- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, at a Friends of Syria meeting, says it is “intolerable” that Russia and China continue to block a peaceful resolution of the crisis in that nation by backing President Bashar al-Assad. - The mood in Libya where three million people have registered to vote in the nation’s first More »
الانتخابات الليبية: الشعب الليبي ينتخب ممثليه لأول مرة خلال نصف قرن حوار صريح مع الدكتور عماد السائح نائب رئيس المفوضية الوطنية العليا للانتخابات في ليبيا: هل ستؤدي الانتخابات الليبية إلى تحقيق الوحدة أم إلى مزيد من النزاعات فيما بين أبناء الشعب الليبي؟ ما هي مهمة البرلمان الليبي الجديد؟ إلى أي حد يعتبر الليبيون صياغة دستور جديد للبلاد هاما More »
Egypt’s political awakening mirrors that of a young journalist as she reports first-hand the difficulties of her country on its path to democracy. The young woman’s coming of age is captured by Egyptian-American filmmaker Mai Iskander in her documentary Words of Witness. Join Women Rising host Frances Alonzo as she speaks with Mai about More »
- The head of the U.N. monitoring mission in Syria says time is running out to make any headway in resolving the crisis. - Algeria marks its 50th anniversary of independence from France. - And Sudan and South Sudan resume talks over securing their borders. Middle East VoicesMiddle East Voices is a unique social journalism project More »
- The violence continues to escalate in Syria and the international diplomatic efforts to end the conflict appear to be making little progress. - Reaction to Iran’s announced successful test firing of several missiles, including one that is capable of reaching Israel. - Traces of the radioactive poisonous element polonium is found in the belongs of More »
As Egypt struggles to get back on its feet after 16 rocky months of revolution and military rule, the country’s young Olympians are hoping to do the seemingly impossible under the circumstances, medal at the 2012 Olympics in London. That’s even tougher for pentathlete Aya Medany, 24. As if training for one event were More »
LONDON — Syrian authorities have built an “archipelago” of at least 27 torture centers, according to Human Rights Watch. In a report published Tuesday, the advocacy group says abuse at the centers constitutes a crime against humanity. “The kinds of torture that we are talking about are really appalling types of abuse,”said David Mepham, the More »
- Human Rights Watch issues a report accusing the Syrian government of torturing and abusing detainees at 27 facilities across the nation. - UN Human Rights Chief Navi Pillay says the continued arming of both sides in Syria is fueling violence and must be halted at all costs. - Bombings in several Iraqi cities kill at More »
As international efforts to shift the direction in Syria from armed conflict to political transition continue with little progress so far, the United Nations’ top human rights official warned Monday that the crisis risks escalating and that both sides are responsible for serious abuses. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay told reporters that More »
CAIRO – Two of the biggest challenges facing Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi are improving the economy and countering the entrenched interests of the nation’s military. The two are deeply entwined. Morsi is under pressure to move quickly to create some tangible improvement in the daily lives of his fellow Egyptians, who are suffering from high More »
- Syrian opposition members meet in Cairo to decide how to increase pressure on President Bashar al Assad. - The lead U.N. monitor returns to Damascus as a conference on limiting arms sales opens in New York - How will Egyptian President Morsi restore his country’s troubled economy? - Former Israeli leader Yitzhak Shamir is laid to More »
As the Arab world takes its next steps toward self-governance, understanding the priorities and aspirations of Egyptian women is of increasing importance. The Gallup Center for Muslim Studies in Washington D.C. released its newest study findings of transitioning Arab societies and their effect on women. The study found that women and men in the Arab More »
- UN humanitarian agencies are appealing for $193 million to help an anticipated 185,000 Syrian refugees until the end of the year. The agencies say the number of people fleeing to neighboring Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq is increasing daily. - The conflict in Syria has renewed attention to a new treaty on the global More »
Naglaa Ali Mahmoud, wife of Egypt’s president-elect Mohamed Morsi, shuns the title of first lady, preferring instead the idea of a servant to the nation. A sharper contrast to her predecessor, Suzanne Mubarak is hard to imagine. Both married future presidents while still in their teens, but the glittered, Westernized style of Mubarak proved alienating More »
The United States says escalating violence in and around Damascus is a result of President Bashar al-Assad assaulting the Syrian people and a sign that he is losing control of the capital. A bomb exploded near Syria’s main judiciary complex, known as the Palace of Justice, in central Damascus on Thursday, wounding three people. A More »
