How Arab News helped support one Saudi woman’s dreams

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Updated 20 April 2020
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How Arab News helped support one Saudi woman’s dreams

  • Lina Almaeena was teen editor in chief of the Jeddah Girls Gazette
  • Her 1995 article ‘Wild Female Dreams’ envisioned more freedoms

JEDDAH: “Wild Female Dreams” is the title of my article as a teen editor in chief of the Jeddah Girls Gazette in 1995. Writers and contributors were dynamic high-school friends and family members. My uncle Tariq was our mentor and publisher. 

It took 25 years for all my teenage dreams to come true. My first dream turned into reality on June 24, 2018, when women were allowed to drive, not just their cars but also the country’s development. It was one of the most liberating feelings I have ever experienced, simple as it may have seemed to women living outside the Kingdom.

I dreamt in my article about women in the police force, only to see in 2018-2019 women progress as far as joining security services, drug enforcement and military jobs, with possible ranks from private soldier to sergeant in the army’s branches of ground, navy and air defense.

My third dream, as simple as it may have seemed, related to the sense of modesty for women. In the 1990s, there were no women in retail, and salesmen dominated female apparel outlets. The campaign in 2008, headed by Reem Assad and aimed at replacing salesmen with women in lingerie shops, made waves and eventually victory was achieved by a royal decree in 2011.

My fourth dream was to buy tickets to attend a local match in Saudi Arabia. That came true in January 2018 when I attended the first local match in King Abdullah Aljohara Stadium between Alahli Club and Al-Batin FC. It was an ecstatic feeling with beautiful and respectful cheering crowds, eroding certain segments’ fears regarding a possible catastrophe with women attending games in stadiums. 

My fifth dream was to switch on the TV and watch girls play basketball. That came true in 2017 when Jeddah United women’s basketball team participated as the first local team under the Saudi Arabian Basketball Federation in the fourth Arab Club tournament in Sharjah, the UAE, and winning the tournament’s sportsmanship award.

As I reflect 25 years later on the Jeddah Girls Gazette article, I realize I had listed six dreams, of which the last long-awaited one came true in August 2019: The lifting of a travel ban for women without a male guardian. Even though the travel permit was not a personal issue, I still felt the relief for many women of all ages with various circumstances. Widows who had to get permission from their sons was an ironic example.

Twenty-five years may seem like a long time, but in the context of women’s evolution, and considering the young age of Saudi Arabia as a country united in 1932, it is considered a fast pace. I say that now since all restrictive walls have fallen.

That is not how it felt years ago, with continuous frustrations and limitations, especially as a teenager. But women have endured and struggled for decades all over the world; in Saudi Arabia, it took less than five years since the announcement of our Vision 2030 reform plan on April 25, 2016, for transformation to take place.

A famous Japanese proverb states that a vision without an action plan is a daydream, but an action plan without a vision is a nightmare. I am proud and humbled to say we have one of the most promising and empowering visions. Vision 2030 has enabled 50 percent of the population to play an active part in nation-building. 

That is not to say women did not contribute prior to that. If I just look at my immediate family, my mother Samar Fatany was one of the first TV and radio presenters in the Ministry of Information in the 1970s.

During her 35 years at the ministry, she was the chief broadcaster of the English section at the Jeddah Broadcasting Station, a columnist for Arab News and the Saudi Gazette, and a participant in many local and international conferences. She also has four publications to her name, the last titled “Modernizing Saudi Arabia,” published in 2013. 

Times have changed, indeed. It was only in 2013 that women joined the Shoura Council. I am honored to have joined the 2016 second term for women on the council as I strive to recommend reformist legislation and participate in a friendship committee that communicates with parliamentarians around the world.

Reflecting on all my dreams, and on this occasion of the 45th anniversary of Arab News, the newspaper known as the “Green Truth” played a huge role in female empowerment. It was one of the first papers that hired women in a mixed environment. It was the only local paper that was happy to cover our first women’s street basketball tournament in 2006-2007, when all other publications politely refused. 

If I were to ask myself what my dreams are today, I would say I dream of more women actively participating in decision-making in Saudi Arabia and the globe. I dream of world peace, I dream of a green planet, but above all in these times, I dream of a healthy planet, conquering COVID-19 and having treatments available for all illnesses.

As we experience the curfew, I also get to do something I was never able to do in the past. I ride my bike safely around my neighborhood before the 3 p.m. curfew and visit the mini-market next to my house. 

All I can think about is the last two questions in my article “Wild Female Dreams.” Can these dreams be reality? Can the impossible be possible? The answer is a double YES. But we will need a newspaper to document this, and what better one than Arab News to do so. Happy 45th anniversary and many more anniversaries to come.

• Lina Almaeena is a member of  the Shoura Council, co-founder of the Jeddah United Sports Co., and on Forbes’ list of Most Powerful Women in the Middle East. She is also a member of the Top 20 Young Leaders of the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) Region.


TikTok CEO to fight US ban law

Updated 24 April 2024
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TikTok CEO to fight US ban law

WASHINGTON: TikTok’s chief executive said on Wednesday that the company expects to win a legal challenge to block legislation signed into law by US President Joe Biden that he said would ban the popular short video app used by 170 million Americans.

“Rest assured — we aren’t going anywhere,” CEO Shou Zi Chew said in a video posted moments after Biden signed the bill that gives China-based ByteDance 270 days to divest TikTok’s US assets or face a ban. “The facts and the Constitution are on our side and we expect to prevail again.”

Biden’s signing sets a Jan. 19 deadline for a sale — one day before his term is set to expire — but he could extend the deadline by three months if he determines ByteDance is making progress. Biden is seeking a second term against former President Donald Trump.

In 2020, Trump was blocked by the courts in his bid to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat, a unit of Tencent, in the United States.

Chew added: “Make no mistake — this is a ban on TikTok.” He emphasized that TikTok would continue to operate as the company challenges the restrictions.

Driven by widespread worries among US lawmakers that China could access Americans’ data or surveil them with the app, the bill was overwhelmingly passed late on Tuesday by the US Senate. The US House of Representatives approved it on Saturday.

The four-year battle over TikTok is a significant front in a war over the internet and technology between Washington and Beijing. Last week, Apple said China had ordered it to remove Meta Platforms’ WhatsApp and Threads from its App Store in China over Chinese national security concerns.

TikTok is set to challenge the bill on First Amendment grounds and TikTok users are also expected to again take legal action. A US judge in Montana in November blocked a state ban on TikTok, citing free-speech grounds.

The American Civil Liberties Union said banning or requiring divestiture of TikTok would “set an alarming global precedent for excessive government control over social media platforms.”

However, the new legislation is likely to give the Biden administration a stronger legal footing to ban TikTok if ByteDance fails to divest the app, experts say.

If ByteDance failed to divest TikTok, app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet’s Google and others could not legally offer TikTok or provide web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications or TikTok’s website.

The bill would also give the White House new tools to ban or force the sale of other foreign-owned apps it deems to be security threats.

Democratic Senator Ron Wyden said he was concerned the bill “provides broad authority that could be abused by a future administration to violate Americans’ First Amendment rights.”

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said on Monday that President Joe Biden was “pushing” for a ban on TikTok and would be the one responsible if a ban were imposed, urging voters to take notice.

Biden’s re-election campaign plans to continue using TikTok, a campaign official said on Wednesday. Trump’s campaign has not joined TikTok.

Biden signed legislation in late 2022 that barred US government employees from using TikTok on government phones.


Advertising network MCN launches influencer practice in Mideast

Updated 24 April 2024
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Advertising network MCN launches influencer practice in Mideast

DUBAI: Regional advertising group Middle East Communications Network has launched a dedicated influencer practice in the Middle East, North Africa and Turkiye to help clients across the group’s agencies, including FP7McCann, MullenLowe, UM, and Weber Shandwick.

Rami Gholmieh has been appointed to lead the practice as the regional director of influencer marketing, while Razan Zahra will serve as director of influencer relations.

“At the heart of our influence practice lies a commitment to two fundamental principles: effectiveness and efficiency,” Gholmieh told Arab News.

“The challenge lies in creating balance between leveraging channels to encourage content sharing and investing into paid promotions. Ultimately it requires a nuanced approach, tailored to the specific objectives and audience dynamics of respective brands.”

The practice takes a “de-siloed” approach to help agency brands across the group deliver influencer marketing campaigns, according to MCN.

L: Rami Gholmieh, regional director of influencer marketing. R: Razan Zahra, director of influencer relations.
L: Rami Gholmieh, regional director of influencer marketing. R: Razan Zahra, director of influencer relations.

The influencer marketing industry is rapidly growing, with 76.9 percent of marketers saying influencer marketing is a top priority, and 46.2 percent increasing budgets last year, according to a 2023 survey.

The growth and evolution of the industry is partly the reason why MCN chose to launch a dedicated practice now despite influencer marketing having been around for years.

With “the evolving dynamics of consumer engagement and brand interactions combined with new platforms and changing consumption patterns, a dedicated and fully integrated practice within the broader ecosystem is required to create tailor-made solutions for our clients,” the company said.  

As the digital and social media landscape becomes more complex, MCN’s influencer practice aims to help brands by “understanding the social voice, (acquiring) knowledge of real-time cultural insights, (and) possessing platform expertise, the ability to co-create, and journey awareness,” concluded Gholmieh.


Eurovision Song Contest host Sweden braces for anti-Israel protests

Updated 24 April 2024
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Eurovision Song Contest host Sweden braces for anti-Israel protests

  • Event organizer European Broadcasting Union has resisted calls for Israel to be excluded due to its war in Gaza
  • Contest will take place in Malmo from 7-11 May and is expected to draw 100,000 visitors

MALMO: Sweden said it plans to host a dazzling Eurovision Song Contest, watched by 200 million people worldwide, but visitors face heightened security amid planned protests over Israel’s participation and a new geo-political backdrop since Sweden joined NATO.
The contest, the world’s biggest of its kind, takes place in Malmo from 7-11 May and is expected to draw 100,000 visitors to Sweden’s third-largest city which has a large Muslim population. Organizers plan a special tribute to Swedish pop group ABBA, who won Eurovision 50 years ago this year. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes the contest, has resisted calls for Israel to be excluded due to its war in Gaza. Controversy over the conflict has already hit various cultural events across Europe. Much focus is expected to be on Israeli contestant Eden Golan and her song Hurricane, as multiple large pro-Palestinian protests are planned outside the venue in Malmo. Israel was permitted to compete after it agreed to modify the lyrics of its original song “October Rain” which the EBU said made reference to the Oct. 7 Hamas onslaught in Israel.
EBU brands Eurovision a non-political event and insists that the contest is between public service broadcasters, not governments.
Still, it banned Russian in 2022 from Eurovision after several European public broadcasters called for the country to be expelled following its invasion of Ukraine.
Sweden is hosting the annual competition for the seventh time, after Swedish singer Loreen won last year’s competition in Liverpool with her song “Tattoo.”
Ebba Adielsson, executive Eurovision producer from Swedish broadcaster SVT, promised “some smashing shows.” She ruled out an ABBA reunion but said the event would celebrate the group’s 1974 win with their song “Waterloo,” a victory that launched the band onto the international stage.
Swiss contestant Nemo is the favorite to win this year, according to bookmakers, followed by Croatia’s Baby Lasagna, Joost Klein of the Netherlands, and Italy’s Angelina Mango.

’HIGH THREAT-LEVEL’
Visitors from 89 countries expected in Malmo will have to pass through airport-like security checks when entering venues around the city.
“There’s a high threat level combined with a lot of people,” said Per-Erik Ebbestahl, Malmo’s security director.
Organizers face the risk of protests escalating into violence, heightened terror threats in the country, and increased tensions with Russia after Sweden’s NATO membership.
In central Malmo there are official posters for Eurovision but also protest banners replicating the same colorful design, with the word Eurovision replaced by ‘genocide’ and the words: “Israel out of Eurovision or Eurovision out of Malmo.”
Orwa Kadoura, a Palestinian living in Malmo and one of the organizers of the protests, said the Israeli delegation was “here to represent Israel and their government, which is committing acts of genocide right now.”
Israel rejects any accusation of genocide in Gaza during its war against Hamas.
Police say security will be tighter compared with when Sweden last hosted the event in 2016.
“The situation around the world is complex, and also the security for Sweden is different,” said Petra Stenkula, Malmo police chief. “We are ready for anything that can happen.”
Sweden joined NATO in March, two years after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine forced it to rethink its national security policy. Russia has threatened to take unspecified “political and military-technical counter-measures” in response.
Gang crime in Sweden’s biggest cities, including Malmo, has also been a problem for years, fueled by the drug trade.
Eurovision begins on May 7 with the first semifinal, followed by a second semifinal two days later and the final on Sat. May 11.


Sky News report reveals Israel’s involvement in mass grave in Gaza

Updated 24 April 2024
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Sky News report reveals Israel’s involvement in mass grave in Gaza

  • Evidence suggests IDF bulldozed graves after taking control

LONDON: An investigation by Sky News suggests Israel is likely responsible for the mass grave discovered at a hospital in Gaza’s southern city of Khan Younis over the weekend.

Local authorities reported uncovering 283 bodies in the mass grave within the courtyard of Nasser Hospital after the Israel Defense Forces withdrew from the area on April 7.

Israel’s military dismissed claims of burying bodies there as “baseless” but confirmed that it had “examined” some bodies during a two-week operation at the hospital.

Analysis of satellite imagery and social media indicates that Palestinians buried their dead in mass graves during Israel’s siege of Nasser Hospital and that the IDF bulldozed these graves after taking control.

Prior to the Israeli army’s takeover of the hospital compound in its full-scale operation in February, staff had been forced to bury hundreds of bodies in makeshift graves near the hospital’s main building due to the impossibility of reaching nearby cemeteries.

The IDF began exhuming and examining bodies buried in the compound based on intelligence sources indicating the presence of bodies belonging to Israeli hostages.

The army said the examination “was carried out respectfully while maintaining the dignity of the deceased.

“Bodies examined, which did not belong to Israeli hostages, were returned to their place,” the IDF added.

However, Sky News’ Data and Forensic team discovered evidence indicating extensive damage to the sites caused by the army’s examination.

Footage uploaded a few days after the IDF left Nasser Hospital showed significant destruction at the southeastern corner of the complex, where some of the mass graves had been dug.

Another video revealed that bulldozer operations in the area caused an arm to be visible, partially buried in a mound of earth.

Satellite images confirmed that the damage occurred while Israeli forces were occupying the complex between Feb. 15 and 22.

The UN’s human rights chief expressed horror at the discovery and announced an investigation into claims that some of the bodies had their hands bound and were stripped of clothing.

Earlier last week, other mass graves were found at Al-Shifa, the largest medical facility in the coastal enclave.

The discovery led the Hamas-run government to accuse Israel of digging the graves “to hide its crimes.”

Since the conflict began, with retaliatory acts toward Hamas fighters killing and kidnapping 1,200 Israelis, Tel Aviv has launched a bloody, full-scale operation into the Gaza Strip that has resulted in the deaths of over 34,000 people, mostly women and children.


US police arrest Jadaliyya co-editor Sinan Antoon during pro-Gaza demonstration at New York University

Updated 23 April 2024
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US police arrest Jadaliyya co-editor Sinan Antoon during pro-Gaza demonstration at New York University

  • Antoon was arrested along with other NYU faculty members while attempting to protect demonstrating students from the police
  • NYU students were calling for a ceasefire in Palestine's Gaza Strip

LONDON: US police officers on Monday arrested Sinan Antoon, the co-editor of Jadaliyya magazine, during a pro-Gaza demonstration at New York University in Manhattan.

The Arab Studies Institute publication announced in a post on X that Antoon, an associate professor at NYU, was arrested with other faculty members while trying to protect protesting students, who were reportedly calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Antoon is an Iraqi-American poet, novelist, literary translator and academic. He was born and raised in Baghdad before moving to the US after the 1991 Gulf War. 

The Israeli onslaught on the besieged enclave has since Oct. 7 killed at least 34,000 Palestinians, displaced some 1.9 million, and injured more than 75,800 people, according to Gaza’s health authority.

Confirming Jadaliyya’s announcement, human rights attorney Noura Erakat wrote on X: “NYPD is arresting faculty on their campuses for protecting their students.

 “The academy is imbricated with the state and the military industry intent on war in blatant abrogation of its mission and any semblance of independence. What a gross betrayal.”

On Monday, officers from the New York Police Department moved in on NYU demonstrators after a deadline expired for people to clear an area of the campus, the Financial Times reported.

This came hours after New York’s Columbia University, where more than 100 people were arrested last week, announced it would switch to online classes in an attempt to defuse pro-Palestine protests.

The arrests at the NYU campus are part of a string of US police clampdowns on university students across the country protesting against the war on Gaza.

Local authorities claimed the clampdowns came amid scrutiny over “antisemitism” on US university campuses. 

US police also arrested at least 47 pro-Gaza demonstrators at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.

The Columbia University clampdown, the first of its kind in three decades, triggered protests on other US campuses, including at Brown University, Berkeley, Princeton, Northwestern, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Emerson College in Boston.

In addition to calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, the protesting students also reportedly called for divestment of the university’s funds from companies linked to Israel.