north africa | Arabia Policy | Arabiapolicy.com

Bahrain Kuwait COVID-19 Apps Deemed Invasive

Posted on June 16, 2020June 19, 2020 by webmaster

On June 16, Amnesty International released a report by its Security Lab after testing eleven contact-tracing apps intended to assist governments in finding COVID-19 infections. Three countries stood out as having produced “alarming mass surveillance tools”: Bahrain, Kuwait, and Norway all used methods that the NGO considers “dangerous for human rights.”

“Bahrain, Kuwait and Norway have run roughshod over people’s privacy, with highly invasive surveillance tools which go far beyond what is justified in efforts to tackle COVID-19,” the head of Amnesty’s Security Lab stated. “Privacy must not be another casualty as governments rush to roll out apps.”

Norway stops app

Out of the three countries, one has already halted the use of its app. The Norwegian government made the decision hours after Amnesty International published the report. “The Norwegian app was highly invasive and the decision to go back to the drawing board is the right one,” Amnesty stated on their website.

The Norwegian app, Smittestopp, had not yet seen wide implementation but the invasive nature of the app’s design had prompted Norwegian data agency Datatilsynet to issue a warning. The agency said it would no longer allow Norway’s Institute of Public Health to access data generated by the app.

Camilla Stoltenberg, director of Norway’s public health institute, disputed the privacy claims and warned that the contact tracing app was needed in order to halt the local spread of coronavirus. “The pandemic is not over,” Stoltenberg stressed. The director’s concerns did not stop the government from halting the app and removing the data of its 600,000 users.

Privacy issues

The central issue with the Norwegian app is similar to those regarding Bahrain and Kuwait’s apps, as well as those of apps in development for the governments of France and the UK. The apps feature a constant stream of data reported on users and uploaded to a national database, allowing the government to know where its citizens are at all times.

A similar issue arose with Qatar’s contact-tracing app, which similarly captured and shared GPS data. Outside sources could have accessed this data as a security vulnerability had the potential to expose the information to over one million Qataris. Qatari officials say they have since fixed the issue.

The Bahraini and Kuwaiti apps both record GPS data into a centralized database instead of using a method based on Bluetooth, which would only activate when the user is in close proximity with an infected person. But Bluetooth is far from a flawless technology, prompting countries like France and the UK to opt for a similar method to that of Bahrain and Kuwait.

Surveillance

Amnesty International fears that governments could misuse the wealth of data recorded by the apps. Bahrain attempted to provide a positive incentive to stay home by using its app’s data to produce “Are You Home?” The national television show would offer families prizes for staying home during Ramadan, verified using data from the BeAware Bahrain contact-tracing app.

While the show’s idea to provide positive incentives for COVID-19 adherence is commendable, the use of a public health database for such entertainment is not. Allowing anyone but the most qualified public health experts to access the recorded data highlights the potential for abuse.

Bahrain also published online data that revealed much about the demographics and personal details of people infected by COVID-19.

The Kuwaiti app used similarly centrally recorded data with vulnerabilities for potential abuse. The Kuwaiti app even used proximity reports between phones and Bluetooth bracelets to ensure people carried their phones with them.

After Norway’s quick response to Amnesty International’s analysis, the question remains as to what action Bahrain and Kuwait will take to prevent misuse of their contact-tracing apps.

Exploring Portugal’s Muslim History

Posted on June 13, 2020 by webmaster

The presence of churches is inescapable in Portugal, a country that has centered its identity since the Middle Ages on a Christian heritage and where students continue to learn of the reconquest against Muslim “invaders.”

Missing in any meaningful way from this narrative however is the approximately 500 years of Muslim rule during which Christians, Jews, and Muslims lived together in relative harmony. Ignored too is the influence that this period continues to have on art and culture in the region once known as al-Andalus.

Tracing al-Andalus

In 711, Arab armies from North Africa led by Tariq ibn-Ziyad conquered large parts of Portugal and Spain to create a region known in Arabic as al-Andalous. Whilst Arabic invaders did not force conversion, historians believe that by the 10th century approximately half of the population had converted to Islam.

Following the reconquest in the 12th and 13th centuries, subsequent Portuguese kings gradually expelled Muslim and Jewish communities from their territory. In 1496, the decision by King Manuel I to expel all remaining Muslims and Jews resulted in the creation of Portugal as an exclusively Christian nation.

Despite its violent end, the influence of the Andalusian period is still identifiable in the Portuguese language today. Portuguese writer Adalberto Alves has identified 19,000 Portuguese words that originated from Arabic and recently arriving refugees report surprise at recognizing words in a language they expected to be completely foreign.

One of the most extraordinary examples of this influence is the Portuguese word “oxala.” Pronounced “oshallah,” it is derived from the Arabic word “inshallah” and has the same meaning, “God willing.”

Eschewing the narrative of Europeans and Muslims as natural enemies, Alves has explored the ongoing influence of al-Andalus in Portugal and Spain. As a result of this work, which has highlighted contributions to poetry and art, many in Portugal are increasingly embracing Andalusian culture as a part of local history.

Celebrating examples of coexistence

Nationalist dictator Antonio de Oliveira Salazar furthered the conceptualization of Portugal as an exclusively Christian nation during the Estado Novo. Lasting from 1933 to 1974, the Estado Novo period depicted Muslims as the enemy and “the traces of Islamic history were erased,” explains anthropologist Maria Cardeira da Silva.

In the small town of Mertola in southeastern Portugal, archaeological work has highlighted how communities lived together and challenged dominant narratives of conquest. Claudio Torres, who founded of the archeaological Field of Mertola in 1978, suggests that trade was particularly important to the spread of Islam in the region.

As a result of centuries of interaction between Southern Europeans and North Africans, Torres believes the two groups “have a common past and a lot of cultural similarities. We are closer to northern Africa than we are to northern Europe.”

To that end the town of Mertola is embracing its history and in 2019 held its 10th Islamic Festival of Mertola. The annual festival highlights the influence that Islam and Muslim residents had on the region and draws performers and crowds from across the region.

As interest in Portugal’s Muslim history continues to grow, it serves as an anecdote to counter rising intolerance around the region and highlights the possibilities of peaceful coexistence.

Morocco Extends State of Emergency, Turkey Further Eases Curbs

Posted on June 10, 2020 by webmaster

There is hope at the end of the tunnel for Moroccans, after the government said it will begin gradually lifting the country’s three-month-long COVID-19 lockdown. The entire country will remain under a “sanitary state of emergency” but some restrictions will be lifted from Thursday, based on the number of infections in each prefecture or province.

In an exciting economic development for the North African country, commercial, industrial, and artisanal/handcrafts activities, as well as small businesses and weekly markets, are all authorized to reopen under the first stage of Morocco’s de-confinement plan. As for other measures, the country has been split into two zones with differing restrictions based on their COVID-19 case-load, Morocco’s Ministries for the Interior and Health announced on June 10.

From June 11, residents in “Zone One,” which includes tourist hot spots such as Agadir, Dakhla, and Chefchaouen will once again be able to move freely without a permit, exercise outdoors alone, access public areas (beaches, parks, gardens) and visit hair and beauty salons. Public transport will recommence at 50% of normal capacity, while other “state of emergency” conditions including a ban on gatherings of any size and compulsory mask-wearing will remain in place.

There will be little change to the confinement conditions for residents in “Zone Two,” which includes major populations and COVID-19 hotspots Rabat-Sale, Casablanca, Marrakech, Fez and Tangier. Residents will still require permission to move about for anything but essential purposes, businesses must close by 8 p.m., and public transport will operate at half capacity, as in Zone 1.

Cafes and restaurants (excluding takeaway and delivery), hammams, cinemas, theaters, and mosques must all remain closed until further notice. The country only reported 18 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, taking Morocco’s total number of cases to 8,455.

Erdogan Eases More Restrictions

Turkey, meanwhile, has seemingly entered the final stages of COVID-19 control measures. On Tuesday night, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lifted the stay-at-home order on people over 65 and children under 18 years, one of the few remaining virus curbs in place. After a large initial outbreak, case numbers have slowed and Turkey lifted most coronavirus controls, such as those on intercity travel, dining-in at restaurants, and accessing public places, on June 1.

Erdogan backed up the latest easing of restrictions with promises to kick-start the economy, and particularly get young Turks back to work by providing “normalisation support” for employers.

“We will support employment for young people under 25 and enable them to get (work) experience,” the strong-man president told national television.

On June 9, Turkey added 993 COVID-19 cases to its tally of 172,000, which includes 4,700 fatalities from the disease.

UN, GNA Respond to ‘Cairo Declaration’ on Libya Crisis

Posted on June 8, 2020June 8, 2020 by webmaster

Egyptian President Abdel Fatah el-Sisi announced on Saturday a new political solution to the Libya crisis, dubbed the “Cairo Declaration.” The proposal has been welcomed by a number of Arab and Western nations but rejected by the Government of National Accord, which is instead pushing ahead with military offensives east of Tripoli.

Libyan National Army (LNA) Chief Khalifa Haftar and Libyan House of Representatives Counselor Aguila Saleh joined el-Sisi in Cairo, and both backed the plan and agreed to a ceasefire starting on June 8. The GNA has yet to issue an official statement on the “Cairo Declaration” but in a clear rejection of the proposal, has continued to push eastwards from Tripoli, building on gains made against Haftar’s retreating forces in recent days.

Fighting has centered on the strategic coastal town and former ISIS stronghold of Sirte but the GNA, with Turkish militia and weaponry support, is unlikely to stop there. They have the Libyan National Army (LNA) now firmly on the back foot and Libya’s oil fields in their sights.

“Now what do you have right to the east of Sirte, you have the most strategic area of Libya,” Libya expert Jalel Harchaoui told the Associated Press (AP News).

“You have effectively a series of oil terminals capable of exporting everyday more than 6,000 barrels a day,” he said. The oil revenue would be a boost to the UN-recognized GNA, which has been cut off from the country’s main source of wealth since the country essentially split in two and developed parallel governing structures in 2015.

UN Responds

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has called for all sides of the conflict to seek a political solution and immediate ceasefire, declaring “any war among Libyans is a losing war,” in a statement issued late Saturday.

UNSMIL did not comment directly on the “Cairo Declaration,” but welcomed “calls by international and regional actors in recent days for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Libya.”

“A political solution to Libya’s longstanding crisis remains within grasp and the Mission, as ever, stands ready to convene a fully inclusive Libyan-led and Libyan-owned political process,” UNSMIL said in what appears to be a thinly-veiled swipe at el-Sisi’s announcement.

The UN also denounced the uptick in violence over recent days, noting fighting around eastern Tripoli and Tarhouna has displaced some 16,000 people. It called for an investigation into the “deeply disturbing” discovery of a number of dead bodies at a Tarhouna hospital and encouraged all conflict participants to respect the rule of law and international humanitarian law.

“We have also received numerous reports of the looting and destruction of public and private property in Tarhuna and Alasabaa which in some cases appear to be acts of retribution and revenge that risk further fraying Libya’s social fabric,” UNSMIL added.

Choosing Peace over Military Gains

The Egyptian peace plan has received support from a number of Arab states including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Jordan. In the past 24 hours, Russia, the US, France, and Greece have also welcomed the Egyptian solution, while Germany and the UK have praised Haftar’s commitment to a political solution but called for all talks to be UN-led.

Despite Haftar and Saleh’s apparently genuine commitment to a ceasefire and political solution to the conflict, it seems that the GNA, led by Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj and backed by Turkish troops and Qatari funds, is much more interested in territorial gains than sparing civilian lives or securing a peaceful future for Libya.

Sarraj has called on his troops to “continue their path,” and Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha said the GNA will not consider negotiating until it has taken Sirte and the nearby Al Jufra Airbase. With Haftar’s troops on the back foot, it remains to be seen if the GNA will show restraint and look towards a political solution or continue the bloodshed that has torn Libya apart for years.

Read also: Egypt’s Peace Plan for Libya Gains Ground in Arab World

Domestic Tourists Fill Egypt’s Reopened Hotels

Posted on May 31, 2020May 31, 2020 by webmaster

Select Egyptian hotels have reopened to domestic tourists since May 15, with occupancy capped at 25% to try and revive the nation’s large and struggling tourism industry. The plan appears to be working and the hotels are nearly at full occupancy, according to one official.

The first stage of Egypt’s plan to kick-start its tourism sector, hard hit by the coronavirus crisis, is proving a success despite the country’s recent spike in new cases. An anonymous tourism ministry official told Reuters that the 78 hotels licensed to reopen are currently operating at 20-22% occupancy.

The hotels permitted to reopen are mainly along Egypt’s Red Sea coast, popular with local and international visitors, but some city hotels such as the Helnan Palestine, the Hilton, and the Four Seasons have also reopened in Alexandria but with a 10% occupancy cap. Another 173 hotels have also applied to reopen and will find out if they are permitted to do so this week.

If hotels can respect the 25% occupancy limit and safety controls like keeping workers onsite for 60 days and COVID-19 testing, permissible occupancy rates will increase to 50%, Chairman of the Alexandria Chamber of Tourism Ali al-Manesterly told Egypt Independent on May 29.

“If the hotel does not adhere to regulations, however, their license will be revoked and the hotel will be unable to receive guests,” Manesterly said.

International flights to Egypt have been suspended since March, and authorities have not outlined when and under what conditions foreign tourists will be permitted to return. In the meantime, Egyptians seem to be making the most of the newly opened hotels and they are nearing capacity, according to an official.

The Egyptian government and tourism operators are keen to get the sector back up and running post-COVID-19, the latest blow to an industry marred in recent years by terrorism attacks and the 2011 revolution.

The industry was geared for a big year in 2020 as the security situation continues to improve and the country’s long-awaited Grand Egyptian Museum was scheduled to open its doors to the public in October 2020. Despite struggling to stay on foreign tourists’ radars, the sector contributes around 15% of GDP and is an important source of foreign currency for Egypt.

On Friday, Egypt chalked up the grim milestone of recording over 1000 new cases of COVID-19 in 24 hours. The country has recorded 23,449 cases and 913 deaths from COVID-19 to date.

Tag: north africa