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Arabic press review: Syria bans interaction with a list of Facebook pages

Meanwhile, a report reveals that 21 Egyptian prisoners died in jail this year and a survey finds that one in two Jordanians thinks of emigration
Zeina Shahla, a Syrian journalist, checks her twitter at a cafe in the capital Damascus on 1 March 2021. (AFP)
Zeina Shahla, a Syrian journalist, checks her Twitter messages in Damascus on 1 March 2021 (AFP)

Syrian government lists banned Facebook pages 

Syrian authorities listed a group of Facebook pages that citizens are prohibited from following due to them being "managed from abroad," Damascus-based outlet Majesty News reported

The department of combating cybercrime issued a memo containing the names of 20 Facebook pages that it said were run from places that included Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Israel, and Mexico. 

Those who follow or interact with posts from the listed pages could face prosecution, the memo said.

The banned pages include some run by anti-government groups as well as websites affiliated with businessman Rami Makhlouf.

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The US-sanctioned business tycoon was once a close ally of President Bashar Al-Assad, but the two fell out in 2020 over financial disputes. 

21 Egyptian prisoners died in jail this year: Report 

At least 21 deaths among hundreds of other violations were recorded in Egyptian jails in the first half of 2022, a human rights report said in a report according to the new New Arab

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El Nadim Against Violence and Torture said it documented 732 violations of human rights in prisons and official detention centres in Egypt in the six months, including 21 deaths. It could be asserted that most of them were caused by medical neglect and poor conditions in prisons, it said. 

In the report, the centre said it recorded 24 cases of torture, 72 cases of deliberate medical negligence, 168 cases of enforced disappearance, and 75 cases of violence committed by the state, among others. 

Out of the 21 deaths, 10 were due to medical negligence, two were while the persons were "missing," and four were due to torture. 

In its 2021 annual report, El Nadim documented 1,530 different violations, including 55 cases of death in custody, 48 cases of torture and 201 cases of medical negligence. 

Half of Jordanians think about immigrating

A survey has found that almost half of Jordan's population think about emigrating from the country, the Ammon website reported.

The Arab Barometer network based at Princeton University said 93 percent of those who wish to emigrate from Jordan attribute the reason to economic conditions, while 6 percent want better education opportunities and only 1 percent cite security reasons. 

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According to the report, most of those asked preferred North America as their destination, with 35 percent wishing to go to the United States and 30 percent Canada.

Other destinations cited included Germany,  Turkey, the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The poll also showed that about 56 percent of those wishing to leave Jordan had a university education, while 43 percent had a secondary school education or less.

*Arabic press review is a digest of news reports not independently verified as accurate by Middle East Eye.

Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.