Global Voices Online

“It just seems that those who are most critical of and most aggressive towards the “decaying west” appear to be, at the end of the day, the most desperate for its approval, at least subconsciously,” comments Yazan from Syria on statements made by politicians on safeguarding the Muslim culture from Western influences.

Recent Links also in Middle East & North Africa

Maghreb Blog reports that the sentence of Chakib Khayari, a human rights activist and whistleblower, has been upheld in a Casablanca court. Khayari is set to serve three years in prison for accusing high-level civil servants of aiding in drug trafficking.

Moroccan resident Ibn Ibn Battuta shares a list of nonfiction and travel books that keep him busy on the road in Morocco.

Iranian students in Paris criticized Iranian government and its repression policy against Iranian students and opposition in a meeting with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iranian president's advisor in Paris. Here are the films [fa].