Lana Asfour

Asfour

Lana Asfour is a senior journalist at al-Araby al-Jadeed English. She has written for the BBC, New Statesman, the Times, Observer, NYRB, Granta, OpenDemocracy, Al Jazeera English, the Daily Star Beirut, the London Magazine and Glamour, among others.

Saudi women's activist and blogger Suad al-Shammari released

Suad al-Shammari, co-founder of a Saudi rights watchdog with blogger Raif Badawi, was released after three months in jail. She was arrested last October for "insulting Islam".

02 February, 2015

Politely crumpled suits: Prince Edward's Middle East tour

Review: “Cairo to Constantinople: Early Photographs of the Middle East”, showing at the Queen’s Gallery in London until 22 February 2015.

01 February, 2015

UK mosques host Open Day following Paris attacks

In the wake of the Paris attacks, British mosques open their doors to raise awareness and improve community relations.

01 February, 2015

UAE still allowing trade in 'conflict gold'

UN report says emirate's traders allow sale of gold mined from rebel-held areas of war-torn DR Congo, despite international efforts to stop the trade.

21 January, 2015

Lebanon's divorce and child custody laws 'discriminate against women'

A report by Human Rights Watch shows that Lebanon's personal status laws, which govern family issues such as divorce, are sexist and actively disadvantage women across all 18 officially recognised religious confessions.

19 January, 2015

Turkish-Israeli trade continues despite war of words

With top Turkish and Israeli leaders accusing each other of being "war criminals" and "anti-Semitic bullies", relations seem to be deteriorating. But trade continues as usual and the damage hasn't yet run deep.

15 January, 2015

UK launches Egypt trade mission despite human rights abuses

British government says increased foreign investment will allow Egypt to progress as a democracy and bring social justice to its people.

14 January, 2015

Unprotected and cold: Snowstorm Huda claims lives among displaced

Watch our special report on the plight faced by the region's most vulnerable people through the harsh winter weather.

13 January, 2015

Longlist announced for international "Arabic Booker" fiction prize

This year, 16 novels from 10 countries have been selected to compete for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction - and the longlist includes a record number of women authors.

12 January, 2015

Longlist announced for international "Arabic Booker" fiction prize

This year, 16 novels from 10 countries have been selected to compete for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction - and the longlist includes a record number of women authors.

12 January, 2015