Remembering Carrie Fischer on Star Wars Day



Today is May, 4 and it’s Star Wars Day. So don’t be surprised if some people around you gather together, make Star Wars cakes or simply say to you: ‘May the 4th be with you!‘. On this special once-a-year celebration, I can’t help but think of Carrie Fischer, the legendary actress who played Princess Leia who died last year. ... More

Kantaka and the Meroe Pyramids in Sudan



Today, Sudan may be known for the genocide in Darfur by its infamous dictator President Omar al-Bashir, the deadly conflict in the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile… If you read this blog and know my commitments through The MagkaSama Project, you already know the horrific situation many Sudanese are living.  But what you may not know, is that Sudan is a ... More

Wided Bouchamaoui (UTICA) : “Nous avons fait quelque chose d’extraordinaire” (Tunisie)

Dans une interview vidéo pour Geopolitis publiée sur le site de la Radio Télévision Suisse, Wided Bouchamaoui, présidente de l’Union tunisienne de l’industrie, du commerce et de l’artisanat (UTICA), organisation qui a reçu le prix Nobel de la paix 2015 (j’en avais parlé dans ce post: 2015 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the ... More

Bootstrap and the geometry underlying all quantum theories



Last month I read a very interesting article on Quanta Magazine (an editorially independent online publication launched by the Simons Foundation to enhance public understanding of science -a must read) about Physicist Geoffrey Chew. At 92, he’s now retired and was a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Here is what the article says ... More

L’exposition ‘Sous le Jasmin : histoire d’une répression en Tunisie’ d’Augustin Le Gall à Paris



La torture en Tunisie est aujourd’hui encore un sujet grave et difficile. L’exposition photographique « Sous le Jasmin : histoire d’une répression en Tunisie » du photographe Augustin Le Gall sera présentée dans le cadre du Festival international du film des droits de l’homme (FIFDH). L’organisation mondiale contre la torture ... More

2015 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet



This is a fantastic news! The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2015 is to be awarded to the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet “for its decisive contribution to the building of a pluralistic democracy in Tunisia in the wake of the Jasmine Revolution of 2011.” National Dialogue Quartet in #Tunisia wins ... More

Sunrise in Djerba, Tunisia



Famous Tunisian journalist and 2011 Peace Nobel Prize nominee Lina Ben Mhenni (whom I’ve been following since 2011 and her coverage of the Tunisian Revolution through her blog A Tunisian Girl -add to you favorites and share-) posted on Twitter a beautiful picture of a sunrise over Djerba. I retweeted it, and here it is below… Thanks Lina, you ... More

Bardo Museum attack: priorities and promises

There was shock and dismay yesterday after gunmen killed tourists in rampage at the national Bardo Museum, a jewel of Tunisian heritage. At least 20 people have been killed during a three-hour siege and hostage situation. The attack came a day after Tunisia announced a major seizure of weapons from jihadi groups, triggering speculation that the museum ... More

South Sudan and Sudan; news roundup about the complex, intertwined situation

In 2012, I wrote about Al-Bashir: Sudan: divide and rule, the winning strategy. A year before that, as South Sudan celebrated its independence, I was carefully optimistic in South Sudan: Render unto southern Sudanese that which is theirs. And in December last year, on the beginning of the South Sudan civil war, I paraphrased an article by Daniel Howden ... More

Djerbahood: Street Art in the heart of Erriadh on the Island on Djerba, Tunisia



What happens when the favorite place from my childhood (Djerba) meets with the street art from my teenage years? You get Djerbahood. When a friend told me: ‘I’ve seen something from Djerba, first sit down and then click on this link!‘, I was intrigued. Then I was stunned. I wouldn’t have imagined something like Djerbahood could ... More