Okay, every topic that has even remotely to do with the middle east keeps getting more general news put into it which removes focus from the original topic.
As such, I'm creating this thread as a general middle east and north africa topic. That means anything to do with the Arab Spring or Israel and Palestine should be kept to those threads and anything to do with more generic news (for example, new Saudi regulations on the number of foreign workers or the Lebanese elections next year, etc.) should be posted here.
I hope the mods will find this a clear enough statement of intent to open the thread.
A procrastination in of itself
So it basically boils down to theology, current interpretation of holy works has it as gender segregation being a good thing, thus people who follow said holy works should abide by that understanding. Did I get it right?
So here's the tricky bit, what about people who don't follow/believe those holy works, they have to follow the rules of religious law anyway? Specifically what's the logic behind the fact that people within Saudi Arabia who believe differently have to follow the current understanding but that those outside Saudi Arabia (like myself) don't? If it's that the people of Saudi Arabia have decided to have their laws be based around Islamic Holy Law than the follow up question is what if they change their mind on that?
edited 9th Mar '17 1:42:12 PM by Silasw
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?
Saudi Arabia launches girls' council - without any girls
Pictures released to mark the first Qassim Girls Council meeting showed 13 men on stage, and not a single female.
The women were apparently in another room, linked via video.
The male-dominated photos have been circulating widely on social media, after the meeting took place on Saturday.
It has been compared to another viral hit - an image of US President Donald Trump, surrounded by men, signing an abortion policy in January.
The Saudi launch was led by Prince Faisal bin Mishal bin Saud, the province's governor, who said he was proud of the conference and it was the first of its kind in the kingdom.
"In the Qassim region, we look at women as sisters to men, and we feel a responsibility to open up more and more opportunities that will serve the work of women and girls," he said.
The girls' council is chaired by Princess Abir bint Salman, his wife, who was not in the photograph.
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
... WTH is a "girl's council" in the first place?
Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
So, at least a few people in the Middle East are really taken with the Orange One after he nailed Syria.
http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-39526653
I mean, at least some people are saying "Guys, remember that he hates us? Right?".
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
In response to the United Airlines incident as well as the remarks of that CEO on Emirates, the Dubai airline made this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEevyPse3f8
EDIT: Royal Jordanian joined the fray, promising that they won't drag passengers away from the plane.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/news/article.cfm?c_id=7&objectid=11836361
edited 11th Apr '17 9:08:37 PM by general_tiu
Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?
More weirdness ensues: Iran election: Ahmadinejad registers despite Khamenei warning
Mr Ahmadinejad, a hardliner who served two terms between 2005 and 2013, filed paperwork for the 19 May poll at the interior ministry in Tehran.
Last year, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned him that such a move was "not in his interest and that of the country".
But Mr Ahmadinejad told reporters on Tuesday that had been "just advice".
Associated Press journalists who witnessed Mr Ahmadinejad register on Tuesday said election officials were "stunned" when he submitted the paperwork.
President Hassan Rouhani, a moderate who negotiated a nuclear deal with world powers in 2015, is yet to register but is widely expected to seek a second term.
More than 120 people, including six women, submitted their names on the first day of registration on Monday, according to local media.
Once the process ends on Saturday, the prospective candidates will be screened for their political and Islamic qualifications by the Guardian Council.
The clerical body will announce a final list of vetted candidates on 27 April.
Speaking after submitting his paperwork Mr Ahmadinejad said he was only helping his former vice-president, Hamid Baghaei, who registered alongside him.
Ayatollah Khamenei had indicated he did not want Mr Ahmadinejad to stand and it is unusual for anyone in the political establishment to go against the supreme leader's wishes. Those who do tend to pay for it.
Hardliners have made it clear they are angry and disappointed. Some have called Mr Ahmadinejad's move "unacceptable" and said it will spell the end of his political career.
All potential candidates have to be vetted by the Guardian Council and many observers believe Mr Ahmadinejad will not pass this hurdle.
But if he does, his entry into the race is likely to take some of the shine off the hardliners' preferred candidate, Ebrahim Raisi.
It will also be damaging to President Rouhani - especially with poorer voters who have yet to feel the effects of promised economic improvements following the nuclear deal, and could be swayed by Mr Ahmadinejad's populist rhetoric and promises to bring back subsidies to help people cope with inflation.
Bastard has guts taking on the Supreme Leader like that. Wonder if the Guardian Council will put a stop to his campaign before it starts?
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Saudi Arabia was elected to the UN Women's Rights Commission. *Facedesk*
Money is one hell of a motivator.
Si Vis Pacem, Para Perkele
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Need some aspirin for that headache? I know I do.
So Algeria just had an election and Bouteflika's party lost a lot of seats, though the other members of the coalition gained.
Iran's presidential election went uncommented upon?
Anyhow, according to my local radio, Rouhani was re-elected in the first round, by about 60%.
"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
I don't see many news sources commenting about it either. I know that Trump's shenanigans may get more viewership, but Rouhani (the reelected president) was the man who made the Iran nuclear deal go through.
NPR was covering the election all this week. Sounded eerily familiar to the US election last year, in terms of Iranian people's sentiments.
Glad to know Rouhani won though.
Isn't it usually known that the candidate favoured by the Ayatollah (who was not Rouhani, natch) tends to not perform well in recent times?
I mean, that's probably not the main factor. Corruption and the economy seem to be the major issues in Iran, followed by foreign policy (maybe they thought that electing a hardliner would make conflict with the West more likely?).
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
The Ayatollah and IRGC are the problem. Not the presidents.
Si Vis Pacem, Para Perkele
Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?
Found a story on it:
Iran election: Hassan Rouhani wins second term as president
Out of more than 40 million votes cast, he received 57%, defeating his main rival, a conservative cleric.
In his first remarks after winning the poll, Mr Rouhani said on Twitter (in Persian): "Great people of Iran, you're the winners of the election."
The president received close to 23 million votes, Interior Minister Abdul Reza Rahmani Fazli said on state television.
His main challenger, former prosecutor Ebrahim Raisi received 38.5%, or 15.7 million votes - not enough to take the election to a second round.
Voting time had been extended by five hours on Friday, until midnight, amid an unexpectedly high turnout of about 70%.
Election officials said the extensions to voting hours were due to "requests" and the "enthusiastic participation of people".
Turnout has been unprecedented. In Tehran, five million people turned out to vote - twice as many as in 2013.
President Rouhani ...in recent years and particularly during the last several weeks of campaigning, promised to expand individual and political freedoms and make all those centres of power, like the Revolutionary Guard, accountable.
Mr Rouhani, 68, promised a moderate vision and an outward-looking Iran, and tied his success to the success of the nuclear deal brokered between Iran, the US and other countries in 2015.
edited 20th May '17 8:31:30 AM by CenturyEye
Look with century eyes... With our backs to the arch And the wreck of our kind We will stare straight ahead For the rest of our lives
Robot police officer goes on duty in Dubai. They are mostly intended to be used for citizens to report crimes, pay minor fines, and as general info kiosks.
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-40026940
Honestly, I'm not sure that this is anything more than a novelty. Wouldn't it be cheaper to train officers to be multilingual and have booths for the other stuff?
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
I think it ends up being cheaper because the robot won't take bribes.
And if it does; well then they might have bigger problems on their hands.
Oh, bother.
Something like that could probably only work in places like Dubai which is not exactly a crime-ridden place.
Disgusted, but not surprised
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
And here I was expecting Japan would be the pioneer in such applications of robotics.
Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
They often create and innovate cutting edge technology, but they never make it to application or it takes a long time.
Si Vis Pacem, Para Perkele
My apologies for the late reply. Real life got in the way for a few days back when this was posted, long enough that I forgot about the whole thing.
I get that ending gender segregations goes against currently held beliefs, what I don't understand is what the argument is in favour of the gender segregation and why gender segregations is superior to non-segregated events.
The long version would most probably be a Wall of Text that I am almost certainly going to screw up in some way or the other, largely because while I do try my best to avoid blindly following the edicts of my religion, I don't make a habit of memorizing every single argument for every single thing that I ask for.
edited 9th Mar '17 1:28:51 PM by MarqFJA
Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.