Eye on North Africa
This column highlights analyses and comments on politics, culture, economy, trending topics and relations in and between Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia.
Tunisia's draft constitution is born!
Tunisia has finally witnessed the birth of a much-desired, finely-tuned, newly-shaped constitution draft. The ruling coalition – Ennahda, Ettakatol and El-Motamar...
Disappointed revolutionaries
A young Tunisian fruit seller challenged the entire Arab world with his self-immolation in the town of Sidi Bouzid. Your Middle East has visited the place where...
Interview with Tunisian calligraffitist El Seed
“I don’t think artists are any more free than under the Ben Ali regime, but I think that there are new socially accepted ways of appreciating art now,...
Launch of first online community radio in Morocco
Morocco’s first online community radio E-joussour, is now available. The word “joussour” means “bridge” in Arabic and is a platform...
Moroccan Islamic party promotes peaceful co-existence
Like other countries in the Middle East, Morocco witnessed a popular movement that fell short of a revolution. But citizen demand for government reform did lead...
Hollande seeks strong ties with Rabat
Breaking with a decades-long tradition of having Morocco as the first destination for a French President’s first official visit to North Africa, Francois Hollande’s...
Free speech on hold in Tunisia as rapper faces jail
On 21 March, a Tunisian court sentenced rapper Ala Yacoubi (aka Weld El15) to two years in prison in absentia, over an anti-police song and video, Boulicia Kleb published...
Building schools for Morocco's rural poor
“School attendance alone is not sufficient. High-quality and diversified education is our objective. Just going to school doesn’t make children educated.” This...
Which way will Tunisia go?
"Such has been al-Nahda’s performance – and that of their secular coalition partners – that the popularity of the secular parties are on a roll."
Marching in Marrakech
The flight from Europe is short on this February afternoon in 2013 and yet, when I leave the airport in Marrakech, the scenery has completely changed. Instead of...
Dancing as resistance (VIDEO)
With the assassination of Chokri Belaid, violence has returned to the streets of Tunis. Conservative Islamist forces target artistic freedom. But an initiative of...
Algeria’s spring: A challenging future
Once the average citizen sees that the oil wealth is truly theirs, they will have every incentive to protect it rather than joining some fringe groups such as Al-Qaeda,...
Political assassination in Tunisia: silence would have been more tragic
"Can the murder of Belaid reunite Tunisians?"
Cappuccino and gunfights in a yet to be stable Libya
Although crude production in Libya is back to pre-war levels, there is a long way to go before being a stable, prospering country. This becomes particularly apparent...
Algeria: the future looks bright… or does it?
While Algeria has managed to stop the first tremors of what could have been its Jasmine revolution, will the country live up to what is still shaking the Muslim...
Voices from Tunisia two years after the revolution
Tunis-based photojournalist Sophia Baraket reflects on post-revolution Tunisia and portraits ordinary citizens and their views.
Attacks on diplomats raise concern for investment climate in Libya
A weekend attack on an Italian diplomat in Libya caused no casualties but dealt a body blow to the government's efforts to woo foreign investors to rebuild the...
Ben Ali's luxury toys now up for grabs
Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali kicked off viewing on Saturday for an auction of thousands of luxury items once owned by ousted dictator Zine El Abidine...
Casablanca’s first tramway line inaugurated
On December 12, Morocco’s King Mohammed VI officially opened Casablanca’s first tramway line, which is aimed to reduce traffic, air pollution and drive...
Tunisia’s economic outlook – signs of recovery but risks remain high
Tunisia's ruling Troika has been much criticized for its inability to turn around the dire situation. But there are reasons for hope as well as concern, writes Naim...
Graffiti in Tunisia: art or crime?
“Graffiti is not a Crime” is the name of a campaign and Facebook page launched to support the two young Tunisian students and Graffiti artists Oussama...Charting dangerous waters: Algeria’s challenges
Algeria is the only North African state that so far has remained more or less unaffected by the broad sweep of the Arab Spring. But the calm may be deceptive, writes...
Mouloud Mammeri: Kabyle poet of Algeria
On 5th July, Algeria will celebrate its independence anniversary, marking half-a-century of being set free from the convulsions of a deep, protracted, bloody and...Algerian islamists accused of receiving funds from abroad
There is rising tension across the Algerian political spectrum ahead of the upcoming elections, writes William Bauer. Election times in Algeria are always sensitive....Morocco’s successful post Arab Spring drive to increase tourism
Morocco offers a seamless, exciting and unforgettable experience of a cultural crossroads between East and West. Now, the country is aiming for more than just European...Algeria’s Necessary Black Market Economy
Recently at an International Business conference in Algiers, the Algerian minister for Trade – Mustapha Benbada - made a startling statement. He said that...Libya – an inside view before and after Gaddafi
In 2000, Rhiannon Smith moved to Libya to work as a Senior Tutor with a British firm that was aiming to foster economic development in the country through English...
Q&A with the Moor Next Door
Kal Ben Khalid is an analyst and writer focusing on Maghreb politics and security issues. His academic interests include post-colonial Algerian and Mauritanian elite...North Africa: Open For Business?
The Arab Spring has engendered turmoil and change across North Africa, compounded in some cases by civil strife and political uncertainty. Libya has been shaken...
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Five inspiring Arab fashion designers
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Saudi opens luxury rehab centre for Al-Qaeda militants
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Atiaf Zaid Alwazir: The flawed media narrative on Yemen
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The ties that bind Obama to Bush run across the Middle East
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Why don’t men cover their faces?
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The Narcicyst and Omar Offendum: Our internationality is our nationality
