Middle East & North Africa

News 9 November 2020

Selfies and Sharia police

After countrywide protests and pandemic lockdowns, Iranian Instagram has taken a decidedly political turn. The authorities are taking note.

Longreads 19 October 2020

Travel influencers, meet authoritarian regimes

The influencer industry has grown to be cozy with some unsavory governments, but its clout might not be as effective as it once was.

News 21 September 2020

Designed in Minecraft, built IRL

In Gaza, citizens are imagining what public spaces could be, and then actually building them.

News 27 August 2020

WhatsApp school is now in session

After the catastrophic blast in Beirut this month, more than 55,000 students were left without classrooms. For them and many others, Lebanon’s “WhatsApp schools” are the only solution.

Longreads 11 August 2020

Delivery wars

Local shops in Turkey have been transporting groceries for centuries. Getir promises to bring them to your doorstep in 13 minutes or less.

News 6 August 2020

(Not so) free encyclopedia

After a gay Egyptian activist committed suicide, her profile was published in 18 languages. But Arabic Wikipedia deleted it.

موعد الحلال 28 July 2020

“تطبيقات المواعدة الإسلامية”: إعادة تخطيط للزواج دون الخروج على التقاليد؟

بعدما كانت تطبيقات التعارف قديماً تُنتَقد بشدة بذريعة تشجيعها على المجون وتهديدها البناء الأسري في المجتمع، باتت تطبيقات التعارف الإسلامية اليوم في مكانة جيدة ومثيرة، تقودها شركات ربحية تحاول التخلص من التقاليد القديمة في الخطبة والزواج

News 7 July 2020

(Online) open house

With everyone in the UAE stuck at home, real estate companies have turned to virtual reality to help people buy new ones.

Feature 26 May 2020

Can a former model predict your future? A million Turkish users say yes

Meet the flamboyant founder behind the app that’s disrupting the centuries-old tradition of coffee fortune-telling.

Been There, Built That 12 May 2020

Randi Rahbar: “What do I do with a credit card in a country like Iraq?”

The founder of ShopYoBrand on connecting Iraqis with the world through her e-commerce platform