Global Voices » Anas Qtiesh

Syria: Regime Affiliates Try to Frame Muslim Brotherhood for Damascus Car Bombs

Anas Qtiesh — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 19:48:21 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Official Syrian media outlets yesterday published a statement allegedly issued by the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood (MB) taking responsibility for the twin car bomb attacks that caused heavy casualties on Friday. The statement came from an alleged MB website.

The statement was used by regime-aligned media as evidence that the MB was behind the atrocious attach, while the authorities claimed Al Qaeda was responsible for the attack shortly after the explosions took place. Several irregularities and inconsistencies in the regime's story prompted Syrian netizens to investigate the matter further.

The URL was one of the first reasons to raise suspicion; the website is new, created less than a month ago on 30 November, and is not blocked in Syria. The official website of the MB, which has been online for more than five years despite being blocked in Syria, is http://www.ikhwansyria.com. Furthermore, the language of the alleged statement was poor and had several outrageous grammar mistakes that is uncharacteristic of Islamic groups, which usually have a superb command of Arabic due to extensive study of the Qur'an.

The newly-created website also had a number of odd headlines that were highly charged with sectarianism that were unrelated to the video added under them, and had misspelled the name of the leader of the MB in Syria.

Checking the official website of the MB, one finds a long statement[ar] indicting the attacks and reiterating commitment to nonviolent forms of protest.

Syrian activists searched for the site's registration info using the whois domain lookup and found the website registered under a fake name and a poorly disguised phone number: only the country code was changed. Personal info can be faked when registering a domain, but you'll need a working email address to register a domain.

Searching for that email on Facebook, activists found it associated with a Syrian man in Aleppo, Emile Kas Nasrallah. They then sent him a friend request, which he approved. Checking his profile, they found that he was the son of Bassel Kas Nasrallah, an adviser of the Grand Mufti of Syria, Muhammed Bader Hassoun. Needless to say, Hassoun was appointed by Assad and is an advocate of the regime.

The above findings clearly show that the fake statement and website are easily traced back to regime affiliates. Many opposition members, activists, and protesters believe the regime is responsible for the explosions. They argue that only the regime benefits from those explosions that occurred only one day after an Arab League delegation of monitors was allowed into the country.

Since the activists broke the story, Nasrallah has tried to cover the traces and shut down the fake website. Activists had already took screenshots of all the info. Shortly after breaking the story, journalist Eiad Shurbaji, who had been arrested for sometime earlier this year, has said that he's been receiving countless death threats and threats of physical violence.

The fake statement and website initially fooled international media, including AP, to report the story of the MB claiming responsibility for the bombings. The coverage was later updated to mention that the MB denied any relation to the bombings.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Syria: Reactions to President Assad's Speech

Anas Qtiesh — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 15:36:33 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

President Bashar Al Assad finally made a speech on Wednesday 30 March, 2011, at the Syrian Parliament after days of postponement and anticipation. The president's arrival at the Parliament was met with thundering applause and chanting by the Members of Parliament, and his speech was often interrupted by an MP reciting poems of praise.

Billboard showing Syrian President President Bashar Al Assad, July 2010. Image by Flickr user sharnik (CC BY-NC 2.0).

Twitter users did not receive this well. @syrianrebels tweeted:

الشعب يريد إسقاط مجلس الشعب

The people want to bring down the Parliament

and Al Jazeera's Muhammad Basheer added:

الشعب يريد إسقاط النفاق

The People want to bring down hypocrisy

Wael Alwani, a Syrian student in Saudi chimes in:

للأسف أشعر بالخزي من مجلس الشعب هذا … انا سوري و هذا المجلس لا يمثلني … مجلس نفاق

Unfortunately I feel disgraced by this Parliament … I'm Syrian and this Parliament doesn't represent me … Hypocrisy Parliament

Ayman, a Syrian expat, announced his first hope for the anticipated reforms:

I hope reforms starts with sacking such an embarrassing Parliament

Syrian blogger and twitter user Sasa (@syrianews) offered suggestions to improve the situation:

4 things: stop chanting, STOP. stop blaming al jazeera. stop blaming foreigners. start announcing something, #basharspeech

Shadi Hamid tweets a short version of Assad's speech for those who missed it:

Short version Bashar speech: reforms maybe. Foreign conspiracies definitely. Satellite channels are bad #Syria

@AnonymousSyria commented:

A regime of resistance against reform, it's our responsibility to fix it, on Friday, not within 10 years like he's said! #Syria

And as the speech ended without offering any tangible reforms, Twitter users proceeded to express their frustrations and disappointment. Syriancitizen said:

فعلاً يابشار كنت خارج التوقعات جميعها. كنا نتوقع أن ترمي بالفتات وإصلاحات شكلية. أما مجرد خطبة عصماء وكفى!!!!!! #syria

Really Bashar you exceeded all expectations. We expected that you would throw us scraps and meaningless reforms, but all you had was a hollow speech!!!

Dina Jaffary agrees with the general sentiment of people who watched the speech, she said:

surprisingly the one speech that should have been perfect among all his great speeches is the only bad one…#basharspeech

And Seleucid adds:

I am Syrian. My Country always makes me proud, especially when their leaders don't.

RevolutionistSY was fed up, he tweeted:

شباب انا رايح اسمع سميح شقير .. يا حيف بس يا حيف .. اكتفيت من هالمهزلة .. تصبحو ع وطن #Syria #15March

Guys I'm going to listen to Samih Shqeir.. O Shame, O shame .. I have had enough of this farce .. may you wake up to a homeland

He was referring to a song called O shame, dedicated for the martyrs of Daraa. The song is by Samih Shqeir, a Syrian singer renowned for his patriotic songs. The song is in the video below available with English subtitles (click on CC icon to display them).

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Syria: ‘Friday of Dignity' Protests Erupt Countrywide

Anas Qtiesh — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 19:21:31 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Massive protests broke in several cities in Syria today in response to calls for a “Friday of Dignity” after a brutal governmental crackdown left dozens of protesters dead in the southern city of Daraa and nearby villages.

Today the world was mesmerized by videos of Syrian protests many though would never happen, especially after an earlier call for protest on 5 February failed to bring anyone to the streets. The following video was taken in Hama–where in 1982 the Syrian Army massacred around 10,000 people to squash a Muslim Brotherhood uprising–and you can hear protesters chanting “Freedom!” and “we sacrifice our souls and blood for Daraa.”

Daraa in turn saw its largest protests to date. Protesters chanted “a traitor attacks his own people.”

Eyewitness reported and uploaded extremely graphic videos of a massacre in As Sanamayn, a town near Daraa, as people marched in an attempt to break the siege security forces had set up around Daraa entrances. At least 20 are reported dead.

Thousands protested in the main square in Homs declaring that there will be “no fear after today.”

Twitter user @AnonymousSyria ventured into the Grand Mosque in Aleppo where he managed to record security forces violently dispersing a protest attempt:

Meanwhile in Damascus, several protests took place in different locations in the city as well as nearby by suburbs and towns. In the video below, crowds gathering by Al-Rifai Mosque in Damascus chanted “God, Syria, Freedom only!” and demanded the government lifts the Daraa siege.

Damascus and a few other locations also witnessed pro-government protests and car processions. Government officials haven't commented publicly on today's protest yet and the Minister of Information assured the media that the situation is calm around the country. Several people were reportedly killed in Daraa, Latakia, Zabadani among others.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Syria: Reports of Mass Killings, and a Blogger and a Journalist Disappear

Anas Qtiesh — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 19:12:10 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

The crackdown on protesters in Daraa, Syria continues. At dawn a special army unit reportedly killed at least six people during an attack on Al Omari Mosque to disperse the protesters who have been using it as a gathering place and makeshift hospital.

Syrian national television reported that it was an armed gang that attacked ambulances and security forces and that they had guns, ammunition, grenades, and stacks of money hidden inside the mosque:

Syrians were quick to point out that the video is a bad fabrication at best. Al Omari Mosque was full of blankets and medical supplies and was dirty after the protests, as opposed to what was shown on Syrian television. Facebook users joked that the Syrian national TV segment was like a badly directed Syrian drama and that governmental claims hold no water.

Twitter users are also reporting that Khaled Elekhetyar, a Syrian journalist and blogger is unreachable, and his Facebook account has been hacked and used to post pro-Assad propaganda.

@ramiar tweeted:

@wissamtarif #Syria journalist Khaled Elekhetyar unreachable - meanwhile his fb account is hacked and spammed with pro-Asad propaganda..

Adnan Shami started a twitter account to report the following:

الصحفي خالد الإختيار غائب عن الإنترنت ولا يمكننا الاتصال به منذ أكثر من أربع وعشرين ساعة #syria

Journalist Khaled Elekhetyar missing from the internet and has been unreachable for over 24 hours.

A friend of Khaled who wishes to remain anonymous said:

Spoke to him last time around 10pm on 21 march..he was organizing the protest for 22 march in front of Palace of Justice..when we last spoke (10pm the day before the supposed to be protest) he looked scared and concerned for security of the people he knew…last FB msg he wrote was around 10am (you can check on his profile) on 22, protests were supposed to start at 12pm, then silence, his phone always shut down and now these strange messages on his FB profile which really seems to have been hacked or something…

Mohammad Al Abdallah is also reporting that a Syrian Blogger known as Ahmad Abu Al-Khair (@ahmadtalk on Twitter) who was briefly arrested recently has been arrested again:

Urgent: Security forces arrests blogger Ahmed Abu El-Kheir in #Damascus#Syria #mar15

And the harrowing reports from the events in Syria keep trickling through the enforced media and communication blackout. @1SecularSyrian tweeted:

Hero Soldier Khaled Al-Masri killed by his fellow soldiers for refusing to participate In storming Omari Mosque yesterday #Daraa #Syria

Blogger Yassin Sweha comments:

ﻣﺎ ﻳﺤﺪﺙ ﻓﻲ ﺩﺭﻋﺎ ﻻ ﻳﻤﻜﻦ ﻭﺻﻔﻪ ﺑﺎﻟﺠﻨﻮﻥ، ﻓﺎﻟﺠﻨﻮﻥ ﺍﺑﺪﺍﻉ، ﻭ ﻻ ﺍﺑﺪﺍﻉ ﻓﻲ ﻗﺘﻞ ﺍﻟﻨﺎﺱ ﺑﻞ ﺳﺎﺩﻳﺔ #Syria

What's happening in Daraa can't be described as madness; Madness is creativity, and there's no creativity in killing people but only sadism.

Reports of a brutal crackdown are non-stop. The next video was recorded yesterday and it shows plainclothes security agents arresting people randomly from the streets:

This story is ongoing and will be updated as details become available.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Syria: Implementing Ushahidi to track protests

Anas Qtiesh — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 10:54:22 +0000

Syrian Revolution Map is a new Ushahidi instance launched in Syria to track ongoing protests in several cities based on citizen reports of protests, security patrols, dangerous locations, clashes, and anticipated gatherings. Six protesters have reportedly been killed in Daraa, and dozens have been arrested. The website is in Arabic (some English and French) and allows people to send reports using email, twitter, or a form. The site also enables users to sign up for notifications of reports within 20 Km (12 miles) of any location.

Syria: Protests Across the Country, 6 Reported Killed in Dara'a

Anas Qtiesh — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 19:04:03 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Syria is the latest country to join the wave of erupting protests across the Middle East. While previous calls for protests on 5 February failed, a renewed call to take to the streets on 15 March managed to bring several hundred people to the streets in multiple cities including the capital, Damascus, and Aleppo. While the numbers might be small, this constitutes a very important precedent in Syria where anti-government protests are unheard of, and any sign of dissent is squashed with an iron fist.

On 16 March, around 150 protested in front of the Ministry of Interior demanding the release of prisoners of conscience, whose families also took part in the protests. The protesters were violently dispersed and around 38 people were arrested.

The caption reads: ‘15 March 2011. Free Syria. 48 years of injustice and dictatorship.'

Today, larger protests have occurred across the country. The largest thus far occurred in Dara'a, 100Km(60 Miles) south of the capital Damascus. Deadly force has been used against protesters and reports say that 6 people have been and around 50 are injured.

Syrian blogger @Okbah reports on Twitter:

مصدر دكتور في مستشفى درعا يؤكد لمحمد العبد الله وصول ستة قتلى للمستشفى وخمسين جريحا. والصور قريبا#Syria #Daraa

A doctor in Dara'a Hospital confirms to Mohammad Al Abdallah that six people have arrived dead and 50 wounded. Photos soon.

The following video shows the protest in Dara'a, in which people are chanting “The protector is the thief.”

@Okbah adds:

عشائر درعا تهدد بحرق كل مقار الأمن والجيش في المدينة ان لم يحاسب الرئيس قتلة أبنائها اليوم #Syria #Daraa

The tribes in Dara'a threaten to burn all the headquarters of the army and security forces in the city if the president doesn't hold accountable those who killed the their sons today.

A Syrian activist who goes by the nickname Malath Aumran confirms destruction is already in process:

Call from a friend: attacking on Atef Najeeb office, the chief of political security department in Derra #Syria

From the US, Syrian activist Ammar Abdulhamid said:

#Syria: it's officially a revolution. Clashes هn #Deraa #Homs #Damascus #Banyas #Hassakeh #DeirAzzor #Hama, etc#March15 إنها الثورة

The video below shows fire engines being used to spray protesters with water:

A Syrian Revolution page on Facebook is reporting that several helicopters have been spotted in the skies of Dara'a, and according to them the city is under security lock down and thousands of army forces are deployed. Also according to the page, 6 security forces cars have been burned, and the authorities are trying to hide the bodies of those who were killed in the crackdown.

This image shows a helicopter landing at Daraa's municipal stadium

It's common practice for the security and army forces also to break into hospitals and force doctors to forge the cause of death on death certificates to make the documents say that those who were killed died in traffic accidents.

We will continue reporting on this story as updates become available.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Syria: Facebook and YouTube Unblocked, Among Others

Anas Qtiesh — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 17:20:52 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Internet in Syria has been heavily censored for years. Seemingly harmless sites like Facebook, YouTube, and Wikipedia Arabic have only been accessible through proxies and various circumvention software. Syrian users even set up Facebook groups and mailing lists to share info on the latest working proxies, and they have generally succeeded in staying one step ahead of government censors.

Today, Forward Magazine broke exciting news that thousands of Syrian were waiting to hear; “Syria lifts Facebook ban.” Syrian tweeps were ecstatic with the news and raced to announce–as well as verify–their new-found freedom. Their pleas “Mr. President, tear down this wall” have finally been heard; the wealth of information, networking opportunities, and funny cat videos provided by the previously blocked sites is now one step easier to reach.

Image by Flickr user Azraiman

Abdulsalam Haykal, a Syrian entrepreneur and influential media figure, announced some insider info about a directive to lift the ban:

To be made public soon. #Facebook will be officially unblocked in #Syria as of today.

Basel Hamadeh confirms:

#Facebook, #youtube and #Blogspot has confirmed to be open in #Syria ISP's is processing the request right now ! :)

Adnan Homsi adds another discovery to the unblocked list:

و الويكيبيدا العربية كمان , شكلنا اخدنا وش و كترنا :P

Arabic Wikipedia as well, we're almost getting a little bit too comfortable there :P

Some users however were unable to see the changes, but tweeps were quick to ease their frustration. Wael Orabi tweeted:

@Seleucid it's a matter of time, ISP needs to update their systems. by tomorrow it's gonna be applied to everyone

Similarly, Bashar Kokash explains the process:

@MazenMS maybe not all ISPs unblocked it yet, I'm using STE connection now and it's really unblocked

Seleucid is overjoyed with the news, and he thinks lifting the ban is a largely influenced by the pro-democracy protests in Egypt:

I can't believe I'm witnessing something this beautiful :'). Thank you #Jan25, thank you. #Syria

He adds:

لك الله حيو شعب مصر! فكوا حجب سوريا!!!!

May God bless the people of Egypt! They unblocked Syria!!!

Eventually he continues to welcome an open Youtube, and asks the US government to match the move by removing the sanctions that block Syrians from accessing any and all software developed by US companies no matter how harmless it is, and he concludes by analyzing the significance of the latest developments in the country:

Open youtube changes your world… I'm not joking.

Syria has freed us of all restrictions. Now it's time for the US to follow suit.

What we're witnessing in Syria right now is the death of the old guard. Might have bigger implications than a simple unblock.

Photo by Flickr user Azrainman made available by Creative Commons 2.0 Generic (CC by 2.0) license.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

Syria: Internet Users Race to Support Egyptian Protesters

Anas Qtiesh — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 21:44:46 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage of Egypt Protests 2011.

Baladna daily homepage hacked. Egyptian protests news posted.

As protests to take down the Mubarak regime in Egypt rage on, Syrians are rushing to aid the protesters in every way they can. Damascus Bureau reported that hackers took over the website[ar] of Baladna Daily and left a message saying: “We will not allow a media blackout in regards to what's going on in Egypt. Here are some headlines about what's happening in Egypt.”

Maurice Aaek, a blogger and journalist, is dumbfounded[ar] to see state-run dailies publishing misinformation about the motives and demands of the protesters:

عددت البعث جميع مطالب الجماهير (من الاحتجاج على الأوضاع الاقتصادية إلى طرد السفير الاسرائيلي ووقف تصدير الغاز) دون المرور على المطلب الأساس الذي تنادي به الجماهير المحتشدة منذ يومين وهو رحيل الرئيس المصري حسني مبارك.

Al-Baath listed all the demands of the crowds (from protesting the economic conditions to the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and ceasing the export of natural gas) without mentioning the core demand of the crowds who have been protesting for two days which is that Husni Mubarak, the Egyptian President, must step down.

A few Syrian bloggers dedicated their blogs[ar] to distribute news about the protests, and a group of them came together to create a blog[ar] for the sole purpose of publishing the latest protests' news around the clock. Ahmad AbulKheir posted instructions[ar] on how to access Facebook and Twitter using HTTPS and a Firefox addon called https-everywhere, after the sites were allegedly blocked in Egypt in an attempt to stop the outpour of updates.

Of course, Twitter played a main role in displaying support and relaying information and calls for action. Omar Mushaweh reported some intriguing plans in Syria:

"Syrian activists call for a protest in front of the Parliament on February 5th.

And Yassin rather poetically tweeted:

Three moments we must experience in a lifetime: Sunrise after a week of rain, the birth of a child, and witnessing the downfall of a tyrant.

This post is part of our special coverage of Egypt Protests 2011.

Syria: State Media Propaganda In Regards To Tunisia and Egypt

Anas Qtiesh — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:14:24 +0000

Syrian Blogger Maurice Aaek found[ar] that state-run media in Syria is publishing false information and half-truths about the protests in Tunisia and Egypt. He found that Tishreen daily left out the reason Ben Ali left leaving it open to interpretation, and that Al-Baath daily stated that the protests in Egypt are demanding the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador, completely leaving out the demands that Mubarak must step down.

Egypt: Utilizing Technology to Demand Accountability on Torture, Police Brutality

Anas Qtiesh — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 17:39:51 +0000

The unfortunate emergency law in Egypt suspends personal rights and gives security forces unlimited power to unlawfully arrest, interrogate, and persecute anyone with unfavorable views. Perpetrators of police brutality and torture often go unpunished, but Egyptian bloggers and and tech savvy youth are not standing idly by.

Photo documenting police brutality courtesy of Torture in Egypt blog. Used under a Creative Commons 2.5 NC-ND license.

The Torture in Egypt blog acts as a hub for individuals and initiatives concerned with torture and police brutality. It offers the latest news and reports, videos, victim testimonies, court records, case documents, NGO statements, confessions of retired high ranking police officials, and links to books and papers covering the topic. It also offers to help any human rights researchers and activists and provides them with resources that inform their work.

A recent tragic incident ended up with death of Khalid Saeed, an Egyptian citizen who was beaten to death in Alexandria by two police officers. Egyptians were outraged and heavily organized online demanding that his killers be held accountable for their acts. Bloggers penned dozens of posts, a Facebook page was created, and Twitter users tried to get Saeed's name to trend on Twitter in an attempt to raise awareness. Several protests were organized, including a silent protest outside the Ministry of Interior demanding justice. This pushed political parties to issue official statements on the matter. Many blogs still carry a banner reminding the readers that anyone of them could be the next Saeed.

Wael Abbas, the blogger and activist behind Misr Digital, made a name for himself by publishing leaked videos of instances of torture committed by police officers, some very graphic in nature. Abbas has also live-streamed protests from the streets of Cairo. He often publishes documents and images exposing corruption or forgery. His worked has earned several international awards and TV appearances on Al Jazeera and BBC. He was recently named as one of the 100 most influential Arabs by Arabian Business Magazine.

Interactive Torture Map

Other remarkable uses of technology include a Flickr photo pool named Piggidpedia موسوعة الجلادين, which contains over 250 photos of police officers, some of whom are accused of having committed breaches of human rights. The group is managed by a number of Egyptian bloggers, and all contributions and images are open to the public. Torturemap.info provides an interactive custom map of torture reports in different locations in Egypt. It also allows users to report on any new instances of torture in an effort to provide a visual representation of these abuses. This also makes it easier to search for various torture and brutality crimes committed in any given location or city in Egypt.

These bloggers, activists, and techies have managed to use freely available tools and online services to internationally embarrass the Egyptian government and pressure it into action against those abuses. By doing so they have set a shining example for organizations and individuals working on promoting transparency and accountability in the MENA region, and around the world.

Tech and Transparency in MENA: A Long Way to Go

Anas Qtiesh — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 20:32:57 +0000

Overview of the index of perception of corruption, 2009. (The highest perception of corruption is colored red, and lowest is colored green.) Source: Wikipedia

According to Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, the vast majority of countries in the Middle East and North Africa region score very poorly to various degrees. The often oppressive and hostile policies towards activists and organizations that are involved with civil society and governance (including those that promote transparency and accountability) and the mediocre integration of technology in governance, administration, and everyday life in general have resulted in a negligible use of available technologies and the tools and platforms they provide to promote accountability and institutional integrity.

Major Challenges

Legislative hurdles often stand in the face of NGOs and activists working to promote transparency. For instance, while the constitutions of Syria and Egypt grant the freedom of expression and the establishment of civil society organizations that focus on social or political issues, an Emergency Law in place since the sixties suspends those rights under the pretense of national security and gives unlimited power to the security apparatus to persecute individuals and organizations deemed unfavorable by the authorities. Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, and Egypt comprised half of the Committee to Protect Journalists' 2009 list of the 10 Worst Countries to be a Blogger, which is one indicator of the respective countries' hostility towards online activism and the use of technology to raise issues of corruption and accountability.

Apart from the legislative hurdles, many countries in the region suffer from low Internet penetration or weak infrastructure and slow connection speeds. According to Internet World Stats, Internet penetration in the Middle East and North Africa is 29.8 percent — a little above the world average of 25.6 percent. Penetration in the countries ranges from 1.1 in Iraq and 1.8 in Yemen to 75.9 percent in the UAE and 88 percent in Bahrain. Weak infrastructure does not help the adoption of tech tools in promoting transparency: the vast majority of Syrian users are still using dial-up connections, and the Lebanese Internet was recently ranked as having the second worst upload speed globally.

Currently, many of the local chapters of Transparency International and other organizations and activists that share the same focus and goals work under the constant risk of scrutiny and persecution of the local authorities. Some of them operate unlicensed in countries that do not allow such organizations or make it extremely difficult to acquire licensing. The most prevalent form of technology adoption is still the most basic — creating a website that holds introductory information about the organization and some resources and articles covering transparency news from around the world.

Success Stories

Despite the aforementioned hurdles, concerned activists and organizations have made some impressive steps utilizing different technological platforms. In 2007, Morocco was buzzing with news about an anonymous activist that went by the name Targuist Sniper; he recorded several videos of identifiable police officers accepting money bribes from drivers of passing trucks and potential smugglers and then uploaded the videos to YouTube, where they were a major hit and received over a million views. Threatening comments were left on his YouTube profile warning him to stop or else, and unfortunately, local police officers to responded to the videos with mass punishment of the residents of his area hoping that would stop him. Eventually, the videos led to the arrest of nine corrupt policemen and the transfer of others. Targuist Sniper is no longer active, but he has demonstrated that an individual assisted by technology can have a huge impact in exposing corruption.

Another distinguished effort is the Sharek961 project in Lebanon. Sharek961 is an Ushahidi-based platform that “empowers Lebanese citizens to promote transparency by sending in eyewitness reports on all election-related incidents or issues” online, by email, or via SMS. Sharek961 received dozens of reports during the 2009 elections season in Lebanon and anonymously published those citizen reports alongside news reports, blog posts, photos, videos and tweets in one place, on an interactive map.

In order to create more remarkable success stories like these, it is important to assist local organizations and activists promoting transparency and fighting corruption in obtaining the technological means and expertise and legal assistance according to their needs in their respective countries. There is a lot of potential in the region, and positive outcomes can be maximized by offering the appropriate form support where needed.

Syria: Lash Out Continues Against Israel's Raid on Gaza Aid Convoy

Anas Qtiesh — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 08:22:23 +0000

A protest in Boston - Photo by Anas Qtiesh

The deadly Israeli raid on the aid convoy headed to Gaza to break the blockade has once again brought the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza into the limelight. The political and public outcry has been remarkable and has generated a heated global debate on what had happened. Syrian and Palestinian bloggers are making sure they're not left out.

Gazan blogger Abu el Sharif from Ahzan Shajar el Batata blog tries to maintain a positive outlook on the matter, he says [ar]:

بس جميل اللي صار…الشعور ان الواحد مش لحالو…انو لسة فيه ناس بتدور عليك…و عدم وجودك بعني إشي لإلهم…
يا خسارة انو لازم مأساه تصير عشان الناس تاخد بالها !

What has happened generates a good feeling that we are not alone… that there are people who still care about us … that our existence - or lack thereof - means something to them…
What a shame that a tragedy has to happen in order for people to start paying attention!

Syrian Yassin sarcastically comments [ar] on the official Israeli position in regards to why they killed some of the activists aboard the flotilla:

مرّة أخرى.. فعلتها إسرائيل

و كيف لا تفعلها؟ تعرّضونها, هي المسكينة, للاستفزاز و تريدونها ألا تفعلها؟ […] تريدون أن تمرّ السفن العزلاء بناشطيها و مساعداتها و أعلامها و نواياها و هتافاتها من أمام الكيان الصهيوني بدون أن ينقضّ عليها؟ تستفزّون ثم تستنكرون العواقب؟ إنكم تظلمون إسرائيل يا عالم!

Once again, Israel has done it

And how wouldn't she? You subject the poor thing to provocation and you want her not to do it? […] Do you want the unarmed ships carrying activists, aid, flags, intentions, and cheers to pass in front of the Zionist entity without being attacked? You provoke and then deplore the consequences? You're being unfair to Israel, people.

Via Recta blog expands the criticism of Israeli practices and policies. In a post titled “Israel's Moral Bankruptcy“, Philip I said:

Note that it is the same language and tactic that Israelis have used since 1948 to justify their ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people. They occupy their lands destroy their homes, cage them and starve them then bleat to the world about being under threat from the people they torment.

An Watan (on a homeland) blog also criticizes Arab regimes who aid Israel in enforcing the Gaza blockade [ar]:

من سيلجم الصُّهيونيّ … ، العربيُّ في القرب ليسَ أفضل حالا … ، فالأخوة في مصر لا حولَ لهم ولا قوة في مواجهةِ نظامِهم المتآمر والمستمر في قفل المنفذ الوحيد معبر رفَح .. وبناء جدار الفولاذ المقدس .. ونسف كل الأنفاق التي كان يصِل عبرها بعض الغذاء والدواء لأبطالِ غزة

Who will stop the Zionist… The neighboring Arab is no better… Brothers in Egypt are helpless against their conspiring regime that continues to lock down the only crossing, the Rafah crossing; building the sacred wall of steel; and demolishing all that tunnels that food and medicine was delivered through to the heroes of Gaza.

Syria News Wire blog celebrates the Syrian activists that were captured aboard the ships and later returned home:

They survived piracy on the open seas, a murderous attack by Israeli commandos and unlawful detention in an Israeli jail. Now, the Syrians on the Gaza aid flotilla have returned home to a hero’s welcome.

Maysaloon takes the time to comment on the hazards that activists are facing, and reminds them that their Internet firewalls do not stop live bullets. He says:

Twittering, blogging and wearing rubber bracelets with the Palestinian flag are nice in San Francisco or London but bullets don't see these things.

Reactions continue to pour in from around the world. To stay updated on the various reactions in the blogospheres and social media platforms, you can follow Global Voices Online's Israel Flotilla Raid 2010 special coverage page.

Levant: Bloggers start warming up for World Cup 2010

Anas Qtiesh — Tue, 18 May 2010 15:51:13 +0000

The World Cup will kick off in about three weeks and bloggers across the Levant have already been busy using their keyboards and camera shutters trying to capture the hysteria that engulfs the world once every four years.

Syrian and Lebanese national teams have never qualified to the World Cup finals, yet that does not stop people from being hardcore fans and showing their admiration to their favorite teams in any way possible. While Lebanese blogger Rami from the +961 blog was content with certain aspects of the football fever, he was not impressed by some of what his compatriots are doing. He says:

people are getting those mini flags for their cars and balconies, it might seem silly but it’s cool as long as it makes people deviate a bit from the political discussions.

Still, it really is pathetic when you get a flag that is more than 1 meter in width or length! I’m pretty sure you could have put that spent money for a better use!

Photo courtesy of +961 blog

From Syria, Nasdaq on the other hand was occupied with analyzing the different reasons people get behind a certain team, highlighting religion as a factor[ar]:

تطالعنا الأخبار كل فترة حول إسلام احد اللاعبين بالتالي زيادة شهرته في العالم الإسلامي وتوجه الناس لتشجيعه وتشجيع فريقه وحمل صوره و و و فقط لأنه أصبح مسلماً و لذا تشجعه .

Every once in a while we hear that a player became a Muslim thus making him a star in the Islamic world, where people start cheering for him and his team in droves and carrying his pictures, etc. Only because he became a Muslim and only for that.

And he goes on to comment on the “resourcefulness” of the Syrian youth who can't afford to pay for premium channels so they decode them and watch the games for free instead:

طبعا لا احد يشك بقدرة الشباب السوري على تجاوز كل المعيقات التي تظهر أمامه – عدا المعيقات الرسمية - للوصول إلى أهدافه ، منذ أن كانت مجموعة محطات ART بأوج قوتها قام بعض الشباب باختراق شيفرة الترميز للبطاقات، ومع دخول الجزيرة الرياضية وغيرها تحركت مواهب الشباب وأصبح لدينا جيش من خبراء فك التشفير الذين لم يدرسوا في الجامعات ولم يقرأوا كتب في هذا المجال ، وربما تغلبوا على مهندسين في كسر الشيفرات الصعبة ومشاهدة قنوات رياضية مشفرة ومجانا .

Of course no one doubts the abilities of Syrian youth to overcome all the hurdles that are in the way, apart from governmental ones, to achieving their goals. Ever since ART channels were in full swing some guys were able to decode their cards and by the time Al Jazeera Sport was launched we had an army of decoding experts who did not study it in universities nor learn about it in books, and perhaps they're more capable than engineers in deciphering codes and watching premium sports channels for free.

Lolitto comments by saying that she's cheering for the Italian team and the reply comes swiftly from Nasdaq:

You're a girl, so it's only normal that you're cheering for Italy. When my nana (grandmother) was young, she also cheered for the Italian team and they were even more handsome than they are now according to her.

And Independence ‘05 blog , from Lebanon, publishes more photos of the “flag industry” that flourishes due to World Cup:

Flags for sale in Beirut - Courtesy of Independence '05

Courtesy of Independence '05

And like the others, she dwells a little on the reasons of the somewhat excessive expressions of excitement for world cup, but reaches the same conclusion:

the result? It's FUN FUN FUN.

Syria: Commemorating Martyrs' Day

Anas Qtiesh — Sat, 08 May 2010 16:39:05 +0000

Traveling towards God (الرحيل إلى الله)[ar] blog writes about a Syrian village's annual tradition of putting flowers on martyrs' graves on Martyrs' Day that's commemorated in Syria and Lebanon on May 6 of every year.

Lebanon: ArabNet discussed the future of Arabic web in English

Anas Qtiesh — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 17:58:42 +0000

Photo Courtesy of Roobee

Arabnet 2010 is a tech conference that was held in Beirut on March 25 and 26. The conference is the first international conference for the Arab web industry, bringing together leaders from across the MENA, Europe and Silicon Valley to discuss cutting-edge trends and emerging opportunities. While many of the participants considered it a success, there was a major criticism that kept people talking and writing about it days after the conference was concluded. The problem was that while the conference supposedly focused on Arabic web, it adopted English as its official language and the website, discussions, and presentations were all in English.

Bent Masreya [ar] who was one of the official bloggers of the conference commented on her blog saying:

لماذا يتحدث المؤتمر بالإنجليزية رغم أن المؤتمر عن الإنترنت في العالم العربي؟ […] يبدو أنه سؤال حير الكثيرين من الذين رددوه على تويتر، البعض اعتبره إهانة للغة العربية، أو تقليل من قيمتها، والبعض اعتبره تعبيرا عن عجز الكثيرين من المتحدثين العرب عن التحدث بعربية سليمة.

Why does the conference speak English while it is about internet in the Arab World? […] It looks like a question that puzzled the lot who were repeating it on Twitter. Some considered it an insult to the Arabic language, or a disregard to its value, while others considered it a display of the inability of many Arabs to speak proper Arabic.

Global Voices Online's own Alloush[ar] weighed in, expressing his disappointment and shock:

بداية المؤتمر تحدث عن الفجوة بين الشرق و الغرب وأنه هنا ليحقق خطوة ما لسدّ هذه الفجوة، طبعاً لا أدري كيف نردم الفجوة في ظل عدم ايمان القائمين على المؤتمر وهم نخبة المبدعين العرب، وهم غير مؤمنين بلغتهم

For starters, the conference talked about the gap between East and West and that its aim to achieve a step towards closing that gap. Of course, I don't know how we can close the gap while the conference's organizers, who happen to be the elite of Arab creative minds, don't believe in their mother tongue.

Not Green Data blog defends the decision to use English saying:

English is the de facto language for businesses nowadays, and if you really want to attract the likes of “Y Combinator”, “Reid Hoffman”, and “Benchmark Capital” you have to market your startup in English.

Many others commented on the blog: some like Ziad Nasser focused on the success, while others like Arabinator continued to criticize the shortcomings of Arabnet and listed dozens of tweets[ar] from people sharing his frustrations.

Mohamad Sahli goes beyond merely criticizing the conference for using English or ignoring the Maghreb countries (Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Morocco, and Mauritania) and he announces plans of his own[ar]:

حتى لا يبدو كلامي مجرد اعتراضات جوفاء دون توفير البديل، أقول: منذ فترة وأنا أرغب بتنظيم مؤتمر مثل Le Web، في المغرب، حول الويب العربي. الآن قررت أن يكون ذلك شهر يناير 2011. لا أملك أي خبرة، لا كاريزما ولا دفتر عناوين مليء بهواتف التنفيذين الكبار في الشركات العالمية. لكني سأفعلها

Just so my words don't sound like hollow criticisms which don't provide an alternative I say: for a while I wanted to organize a conference like “Le Web” in Morocco about the Arabic web. So far I've decided that it's going to be in January 2011. I don't have any experience, no charisma, nor an address book filled with the phone numbers of top executives in international corporations, but I'm going to do it.

Despite the controversy over ArabNet 2010, many look forward toward ArabNet 2011 hoping that it would bring further innovation into the Arabic-speaking web and manage to overcome the issues that hampered its first iteration.