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Bahrain in the Shadow of Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United StatesCNN: There are disturbing accounts from major human rights organizations about abuses in Bahrain and the systematic state violence that has been unleashed on the opposition movement against the monarchy of the Al-Khalifa family.And yet Bahrain has not become the story because the movement for social justice, government

Iranian Viewpoint: Omanis Urge Reform While Saudis Denounce Bahrain CrackdownMassive anti-government demonstrations took place in Oman and Saudi Arabia today. In Oman's southern port city of Salalah, thousands of demonstrators demanded better wages and jobs, saying the government's promised reforms are not enough. In Saudi Arabia's eastern city of Qatif, hundreds protested in solidarity with

Punished for Sex

contributed by Meredith Morrison

Saudi gets 5 years, 1,000 lashes for TV sex talk
Comments by ‘sex braggart’ led to hundreds of complaints from viewers

AP Associated Press

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - A Saudi court on Wednesday convicted a man for publicly talking about sex after he bragged on a TV talk show about his exploits, sentencing him to five years in jail and 1,000 lashes, his lawyer said.

Click here to read the entire article on MSNBC.

In Saudi Arabia, Even a Genie can Violate Human Rights

An interesting article from the BBC News website, 'Also in the News':

Saudi 'genie' sued for harassment

A family in Saudi Arabia is taking a "genie" to court, accusing it of theft and harassment, reports say.

They accuse the spirit of threatening them, throwing stones and stealing mobile phones, Al Watan newspaper said.



The family have lived in the same house near the city of Medina for 15 years but say they only recently became aware of the spirit. They have now moved out.

A local court is investigating. In Islamic theology, genies are spirits that can harass or possess humans.

'Get out of the house'

"We began to hear strange sounds," the head of the family, who come from Mahd Al Dahab, told the Saudi daily. He did not want to be named.

"At first we did not take it seriously, but then stranger things started to happen and the children got particularly scared when the genie started throwing stones."

He added: "A woman spoke to me first, and then a man. They said we should get out of the house."

A local court says it is trying to verify the truthfulness of the claims "despite the difficulty" of doing so.

Many Westerners know the term genie from the tale of Aladdin and the magic lamp, or the 1960s American sitcom, I Dream of Jeannie.

But the BBC's Sebastian Usher says genies, or jinn, in Islamic theology can be a lot more sinister.

They are believed to be normally invisible but with the ability to assume human or animal form, and are often said to be motivated by revenge or jealousy.

There is a lingering belief in genies in the Muslim world that predates Islam, our correspondent says.

Click here to see the article on the original website.