Lebanese authorities have been increasing their reliance on insult and defamation laws to silence journalists, activists, and others critical of government policies and corruption, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.
The Criminalization of Peaceful Speech in Lebanon
Leaders Arrested Ahead of Disputed Presidential Elections
Security Forces Using Excessive Force to Clear Streets
Join our campaign! Help free the real champions behind the lifting of the driving ban. Take action today and call on car companies to support the release of the detained Saudi women activists.
Despite state-sponsored repression and social stigma LGBT people in the Middle East and North Africa are finding ways to speak out and combat discrimination.
Metal towers of lights reached out of the sea and flames belched into the midnight sky as the Aquarius reached Bouri Field, the largest oilfield in the Mediterranean, about 65 nautical miles north of Libya. I had been sitting cross-legged on deck of this rescue ship, listening to a group of West African men telling unbearable stories of captivity and brutality in Libya, the country they had just fled. Amadou concluded, to earnest nods all around, “God left Libya a long time ago.”
“What will happen to us?” “Will they fingerprint us?” was the constant refrain as we watched a human wave of asylum seekers and migrants from Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan crossing the Serbia-Hungary border.
