Syria’s leading independent human rights group, The National Organization of Human Rights in Syria issued it’s 2006 Annual Report in late-March. Among the highlights, according to an English-language translation provided to World Politics Review by the group’s spokesman Ammar Qurabi, was this assertion about media freedoms in Syria: Press and media freedoms made no progress in Syria this year. Indeed, these freedoms saw a clear decline through systemizing the mono-dimension throughout all media sources, and returning to the usage of totalitarian approach in the detention of writers and journalists … Syrian authorities have full control over mass media such as [...]
If you were reading the blog last week (see “What About KSM?” and “Cuban and American Military Officials Meet Regularly“), you know that WPR Senior International Editor Guy Taylor paid a visit to Guantanamo Bay. We’ll be featuring more of Guy’s reporting from that trip soon in our pages. In the meantime, however, check out this story he filed for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which, among other issues, examines the question of whether Gitmo’s prison facilities will be shut down anytime soon. Here’s an excerpt: . . . with public and political debate raging over whether the Guantanamo prison ought [...]
The announcement from Lebanon, where the final edition of Star Academy was staged, came just after midnight Friday in Iraq, according to the BBC, which reported that Iraqi Shada Hassoun was this year’s winner. Hassoun burst into tears and fans stormed the stage as the announcement was made in the Middle East’s version of the popular music show American Idol, according to NPR. Star Academy is broadcast live from Lebanon and is seen throughout the Middle East. “Middle East: Beyond the Bombs, An Exploding Pop Culture,” a World Politics Review exclusive last August, detailed the popularity of the show produced [...]
