The Coronavirus Is Exacerbating Sectarian Tensions in the Middle East

The novel coronavirus is advancing across the Middle East, straining frail public health services and exacerbating preexisting political and sectarian tensions, both within states and between regional rivals.

Bahrain’s Rulers Last Chance to Save Their Country

AT THE height of Bahrain’s riots and protests in 2011 and 2012, some, including certain figures in the U.S. government, argued that Bahrain’s royal family had to give way to the protesters’ demands or be swept away by the tides of history. They were wrong.

Opinion | Saudi Arabia’s repression shouldn’t be rewarded with a World Cup

May 15 at 11:24 AM Minky Worden is director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch and oversees the organization’s work on human rights and sports. In 2010, when FIFA announced that the 2022 World Cup would be held in Qatar, there was an outcry over that country’s human rights record.

NCHR Occasional Paper Series #11 2019 – Norwegian Centre for Human Rights

This paper, Blurring the Line between Countering Terrorism and Countering Dissent: The Case of Saudi Arabia, is written by Dr Norman Cigar, a Research Fellow at the Marine Corps University, Quantico, VA, from which he retired recently as Director of Regional Studies and the Minerva Research Chair.

See also: Foreign Policy
Los Angeles Times

The Middle East’s Great Divide Is Not Sectarianism

The spectre of sectarianism haunts the Middle East. It is blamed for chaos, conflict, and extremism. It defines what is seen as the region’s principal fault line: Sunni versus Shiite. It has the power and elegance of a grand theory that seemingly explains all.

Papal visit boosts UAE effort to redefine concepts of tolerance

There is no doubt that the UAE is a leader in the Muslim world in promoting concepts of religious tolerance and prevention of religiously packages militancy. In hosting the pope as the star of an inter-faith dialogue organized by the UAE-sponsored Council of Elders, entitled International Interfaith Meeting on Human Fraternity in the United Arab Emirates, the UAE hopes to cement its position as the icon of Muslim tolerance.

A struggle for rule of law: Detained Bahraini footballer catapults Thailand to centre stage

The arrest by Thai authorities of Mr. Al-Araibi, acting on an Interpol red notice arrest warrant issued despite the fact that he had been granted political asylum in Australia, raises questions about the effectiveness of Interpol safeguards against exploitation of its powers.

Bahrain’s Unending Shia Repression

by Emile Nakhleh Amid the Saudi-caused horrific human tragedy in Yemen and the ongoing investigation into the premeditated murder of Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, …

Life sentence for Bahrain opposition leader

Sheikh Ali Salman was accused of spying for Qatar after Bahrain cut ties with the rival state.

See also Amnesty International.
See also ADHRB.
See also NY Times.
See also BIRD Number 212.

Saudi-UK media tie-up: Targeting the non-Arabic-speaking Middle East

Long satisfied to attempt to dominate pan-Arab media and battle it out with Qatar’s state-owned Al Jazeera television network, Saudi Arabia has now set its hegemonic sights on influencing the media landscape of the non-Arabic speaking greater Middle East.