SaudiSphere

Saudi Blogs

Check out Ahmed’s neat selection of the 10 Must Read Saudi Blogs.

I would like to thank Ahmed for including my blog in his list (where he rightly describe it as angry) and for introducing me and other readers to Saudi blogs of note.

Also, Usama Hussain's article about Saudi blogs is out: A new voice in conservative Arabia. The article sheds light on the diversity Saudi bloggers opinions and their struggle to be heard in a country where free speech is limited and controlled by state owned media.

Kareem Amer, how dare you insult the president and Islam?

Egyptian blogger Abdel Kareem Suleiman (pseudo name: Kareem Amer) was sentenced yesterday for four years in prison for the crime of insulting the president and inciting hatred of Islam.

After such a sentence, Arabs still wonder why they are at the bottom on the humanity list? I am telling you people, we are nothing more than a property of the state and the religious institutions, put your head down, walk straight and stay silent or you will face the consequences. And for people such as Kareem, he will remain a symbol of courage in the face of intimidation and despotism. This is not the end of the story for him for sure.

Keep the Net Gatekeepers Out

The Internet as we know it is threatened by corporate greed. Save the Internet and share the message.

What the Saudis are talking about?

Fedo is taking over Global Voices Online by storm. As the new editor of the Saudi section, he is covering what is going on the Saudi blogosphere. Check out his Saudi blogs roundup: What the Saudis are talking about? here. Great job fedo!  

Weblog Awards 2006

Nominees for the Best Middle East or Africa blog category include

Saudi Jeans

Aqoul

Rantings of Sandmonkey

The Sudanese Thinker

                                              vote   

          Don't forget, you can vote once in every 24 hours

And Now...

This is the greatest addition to the Saudi blogosphere in a really long time:
Adventures of a Lipstick Wahhabi

 Go get ’em!

An Arabic YouTube

Ikbis, the first Arab video sharing and social networking site was launched yesterday. Ikbis (which means click in Arabic) was founded by the same team which brought the itoot blogging community to the world. Congrats! Such a site was definitely needed.

The “W” is Out to Get Us

I do visit extremist websites from time to time, it reaffirms my belief that they are crazy. One of the most fun websites to check is the Saudi Religious Police’s official site (Arabic only since the muttawa believe that English is the language of Satan). We shouldn’t call them “religious police” though since they like the title: the Committee for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice better, let’s give them their due respect.

The Committee’s website has a section called “offense gallery” where they bolster their efforts to protect the faith.  Here is their latest discovery:

 

The infidels are insulting the name of Allah

A floor mat uses the letter “W” in “Welcome” to resemble the word “Allah”

Be aware!

Don’t worry guys we shouldn't take more of these conspiracies against our religion: Let’s ban the letter “W”

 

 

Update November 3:

Apparently, the attack of the “W” doesn't just stop at the floor mat, another product is viciously insulting Islam.

Arab News: A soap product was pulled out of the market two weeks ago after members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice expressed concern that a letter in the logo on the covering of the soap resembled the name of Allah. The letter ‘W’ in the name ‘Wadi’ resembled the name of Allah in Arabic.

Mahmood Blocked

                

Mahmood’s Den, one of the most prominent Arabic/Bahraini blogs, is now blocked by the Bahraini government. The Ministry of Information in Bahrain issued an official order to block Mahmood’s blog in addition to a list of other “undesirable” websites. Reporters without Borders issued a press release condemning the blockage and concerned Bahraini citizens are working on a petition. Censorship of leading Bahraini websites is taking place one month before parliamentary elections in Bahrain in a country which claims to be the most democratic in the region.  Support  Mahmood and write about this.

Update November 2nd: Mahmood's Den is now unblocked in Bahrain, Congrats!!

"Saudi Jeans" in the News... and the Dishonesty of Alarabiya

A new editorial about the notable Saudi blogger Ahmed Al-Omran (Saudi Jeans) is on Reuters today. Here are some highlights from the interview:

“And Islamist hardliners, or the "forces of darkness" as Omran's blog has dubbed them, have come out fighting against liberal trends in society, arguing there must be limits to change in the land where Islam was born and which contains its holiest shrines.

"They are visualising that if we change anything this whole country will be destroyed. They view people who call for changes as people who want to destroy the country and are against religion," said Omran, who admits that society remains deeply conservative in general.

But he added: "You've got this feeling that the day will come when everything explodes. But when it does, will we be able to handle the situation?"

Update: For those of you who can read Arabic, check out how Alarabiya website manipulated the Reuters interview in order to generate negative buzz about Ahmed’s opinions. I wish I had time to translate this, but just from the headline you can see how dishonest and unprofessional Alarabya is.

Reuters

 

مدون: الشباب السعوديون يشعرون بالملل

A blogger: Saudi Youth are Bored

Alarabiya

يرتدي الجينز بدل الثوب الأبيض ويهاجم رافضي التغيير

"سعودي جينز" يود تغيير حياة الشباب في السعودية

Replaces the white thob with Jeans and Attacks traditionalists

“Saudi Jeans” Aims at changing the lives of youth in Saudi Arabia.