Maghreb
Award-Winning Moroccan Film Takes Up Taboo of Extramarital Sex
French-Moroccan filmmaker Meryem Benm’Barek’s debut film, Sofia, paints a critical portrait of Moroccan society, challenging laws, throwing and taboos to the wind, and highlighting the contradictory values of Morocco’s various social classes.
Divided Libya: Who Can Speak for Peace?
Libya’s rival factions held a summit in Paris on March 29, 2018, in an effort to end the seven years of instability and strife that have followed former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi’s overthrow in 2011.
Elections in Libya Mired in Controversy
The leading political factions in Libya represented by Fayez al-Sarraj, President of the Presidency Council of Libya, Aguila Saleh, President of the House of Representatives (HoR), Khaled Meshri, President of the High State Council (HSC), and, General Khalifa Haftar, Commander of the LNA, agreed on May 29th in Paris to a UN supervised process for new elections by December 10th for president and parliament.
Nador’s Migrant Camps: A Human Catastrophe
Moroccan authorities spent the first week of Ramadan dismantling migrant camps in the north of the country.
High Abstention and High Stakes: Tunisia’s 2018 Municipal Elections
The first free municipal elections since former President Zin El Abidine Ben Ali’s ouster in 2011 were held in Tunisia on May 6, 2018.
In Defense of an Amazigh Identity: Singer, Poet and Politician Fatima Tabaamrant
Fatima Tabaamrant, born Fatima Chahou, is a Moroccan poet, singer, activist, and parliamentarian. A member of Morocco’s indigenous Aït Boubker tribe, Tabaamrant has dedicated her life to asserting her Amazigh identity through her music and her political engagements.
Social Unrest and the Challenges Facing the Maghreb
After the fall of Gaddafi and the collapse of Ben Ali’s regime, a new era was ushered in to the region. However, the calm that has followed the uprising does not necessarily imply smooth sailing for the nations of North Africa.
