Arab Spring

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Arrested at 13, He Faced Execution. Now He's Free

Murtaja Qureiris, said to be youngest Saudi prisoner for political protest, reportedly out of prison

(Newser) - Update: Murtaja Qureiris is now a free man. Human rights activists say the 21-year-old, who was arrested in Saudi Arabia at age 13 after being accused of participating in Arab Spring protests three years earlier, has been released from prison, reports CNN . Qureiris, who once faced the death penalty for...

Tunisia's President Sparks Concern for Democracy

Parliament is dissolved, prime minister and other top officials are fired

(Newser) - Troops surrounded Tunisia's parliament and blocked its speaker from entering Monday after the president suspended the legislature and fired the prime minister and other top members of government, sparking concerns for the North African country's young democracy. In the face of nationwide protests over Tunisia's economic troubles...

UK Student 'Terrified' After Hearing Fate in UAE

Matthew Hedges, who says he's innocent, has been sentenced to life for spying

(Newser) - It took about five minutes, without an attorney present, for the UK's Matthew Hedges to learn his fate Wednesday in the United Arab Emirates: He's been sentenced to life in prison on spying charges. Per the New York Times , UAE Attorney General Hamad Al Shamsi accused Hedges of...

Mubarak Goes Home for First Time in 6 Years

Release follows his acquittal on charges he ordered protesters killed

(Newser) - Ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is back at home, free following his release from custody after six years of legal proceedings, reports the AP . Mubarak left the Armed Forces hospital in Cairo's southern suburb of Maadi Friday morning and went to his house in the upscale district of Heliopolis...

After 'Smiles and Winks,' Egypt's Mubarak Is Free

Though it's not clear whether he'll leave the military hospital where he's spent 6 years

(Newser) - Egypt's top appeals court issued a final ruling Thursday that effectively acquits former President Hosni Mubarak on charges of killing protesters during the 2011 uprising that ended his nearly three-decade reign, the AP reports. The Court of Cassation rejected an appeal by prosecutors, allowing an acquittal verdict from 2014...

Surprise Peace Prize Winners Helped Build a Democracy

Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet a surprise winner

(Newser) - Pope Francis and Angela Merkel were among the early favorites, but this year's Nobel Peace Prize has gone to a group that hasn't been in the headlines as much: the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet. "After the Arab Spring in Tunisia in 2010-2011, the Quartet paved the way...

Mubarak to Court: 'My Conscience Is at Rest'

Former Egyptian president's retrial is expected to be decided in a few weeks

(Newser) - With his retrial drawing to a close, former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was wheeled into a courtroom in a hospital bed yesterday to testify about the 2011 killings of protesters, reports Reuters . Not only did the 86-year-old, who wore blue prison garb, say history would vindicate him, he said his...

Egypt Death Toll Hits 638
 Egypt Death Toll Hits 638 
Aug 15, 2013 5:25 PM CDT

Egypt Death Toll Hits 638

Families seek loved ones as Muslim Brotherhood tries to regroup

(Newser) - Weeping relatives in search of loved ones uncovered the faces of the bloodied, unclaimed dead in a Cairo mosque near the smoldering epicenter of support for ousted President Mohammed Morsi, as the death toll soared past 600 today from Egypt's deadliest day since the Arab Spring began. World condemnation...

Clashes Kill 23 as Morsi Deadline Looms

Egypt braces for showdown

(Newser) - Overnight clashes between supporters and opponents of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi left at least 23 people dead, most of them in a single incident of fighting outside Cairo University, but many fear much greater bloodshed lies ahead. With a military deadline for a resolution to the country's political crisis...

Overreaction? UAE Jails Dozens in 'Coup Plot'

Activists say mass trial was just designed to clamp down on dissenters

(Newser) - More than 65 suspects accused of plotting an Islamist coup in the United Arab Emirates received prison sentences of up to 15 years today in a mass trial that underscored the widening crackdowns on perceived Arab Spring-inspired dissent across the Gulf Arab region. Rights groups have accused the UAE of...

Egypt Protesters: Morsi Is Out Tomorrow

Demonstration death toll rises

(Newser) - Egypt's renewed protests have escalated, with eight people now reported dead as crowds stormed the headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood in Cairo. Windows have been smashed and some demonstrators threw gasoline bombs, the AP reports, taking furniture and documents away with them. Countrywide, protesters are in the millions, with...

2013 Might Change the World
 2013 Might Change the World 
OPINION
Jun 28, 2013 12:28 PM CDT

2013 Might Change the World

'Economist' editorial says both democracies, dictatorships better be wary

(Newser) - Might 2013 turn out to be an epochal year in world history? The editors at the Economist wouldn't be surprised, citing ever-growing protests on multiple continents. The demonstrations have different origins—bus fares in Brazil, development in Turkey, austerity in Europe, "pretty much everything" in the "perma-protest"...

Turkey PM Not Exactly Trembling Over Protests

Recep Tayyip Erdogan responds by leaving for 4-day foreign tour

(Newser) - One of Turkey's biggest labor groups has thrown its weight behind the huge anti-government protests shaking the country . The Kesk trade union confederation has declared a two-day strike, accusing the government of committing "state terror" in trying to crush the protests, which are now in their sixth day,...

Mubarak Re-Emerges, Looks Healthier

He makes first appearance in a year in court case

(Newser) - Things seems to be looking up for ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. He made his first public appearance in about a year today and looked noticeably healthier, maybe even a little cocky, according to several media accounts. Mubarak showed up for the start of his retrial on charges that he...

Borders Closed as Libya Braces for Anniversary

Many fear violence Islamists will target historic treasures

(Newser) - The start of the revolution that led to the overthrow of Moammar Gadhafi will be commemorated in Libya on Sunday, and the country is bracing itself for what may come. Bloomberg reports that foreigners have been exiting Libya in anticipation; the borders with Egypt and Tunisia have been closed; and...

Assad: Syria Can Handle 'Any Aggression'

As Ehud Barak confirms Israel was behind Wednesday's aggression

(Newser) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says his military is capable of confronting any "aggression" that targets the country. The comments by Assad are the first since an Israeli airstrike on Wednesday that US officials say was targeting a convoy of anti-aircraft weapons inside Syria bound for Hezbollah. Assad's remarks...

Assad's Wife Pregnant
 Assad's Wife Pregnant 
Jan 29, 2013 12:37 AM CST

Assad's Wife Pregnant

Syrian leader's wife expecting 4th child, Lebanese paper says

(Newser) - Bashar al-Assad has taken time out of his schedule extinguishing thousands of lives to create a new one, at least according to a Lebanese paper sympathetic to the Syrian leader. The paper mentioned the pregnancy of Assad's wife, Asma, in an article that described the leader as confident of...

Egypt Tumult Rages a 5th Day
 Egypt Tumult Rages a 5th Day 
Jan 28, 2013 7:46 AM CST

Egypt Tumult Rages a 5th Day

Opposition rejects Morsi's call for a dialogue

(Newser) - Despite President Mohamed Morsi declaring a state of emergency yesterday, protests are raging in Cairo and other parts of Egypt for a fifth consecutive day today, the New York Times reports. Marchers in Port Said, one of three provinces where Morsi declared a curfew, said they no longer recognize his...

Egypt Marks Anniversary of Protests With ... Protests

Protesters accuse Morsi of subverting democracy

(Newser) - Two years after protests began in Cairo that would lead to the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, protesters are once again gathering in Tahrir Square, reports the AP . Led by liberals and secularists, the protesters are now demonstrating against President Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood, which they accuse of threatening...

Egypt Orders Mubarak Retrial
 Egypt Orders Mubarak Retrial 
Jan 13, 2013 6:15 AM CST

Egypt Orders Mubarak Retrial

Could present political peril for successor Mohammed Morsi

(Newser) - A court granted Hosni Mubarak's appeal of his life sentence, today ordering a retrial of the ousted Egyptian president on charges that he failed to prevent the killing of hundreds of protesters during the uprising that toppled his regime nearly two years ago. The judge also overturned the conviction...

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