Salma Eissa is the ACLED-Religion Research Manager. Salma has an M.A. in Near and Middle Eastern Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, London. She has 10 years of experience in the Egyptian civil society and research and academia sectors, and has a keen interest in political analysis and trends and patterns of political violence in the MENA region. She is fluent in Arabic and English, and is based in Cairo, Egypt.
ACLED-Religion Overview
26 June-2 July 2021
Last week in the Middle East and North Africa, the Iranian government continued its campaign of targeting religious minorities in the country. In Bahrain and Israel, negative reactions to the celebration of LGBT Pride Month continued.…
ACLED-Religion Overview
19-25 June 2021
Last week in Yemen, pro-Houthi authorities announced several restrictive measures targeting personal freedoms. In Bahrain, a group of young anti-LGBT activists put up banners denouncing homosexuality. Celebrations of LGBT Pride Month were condemned by a small right-wing Jewish group in Israel.…
ACLED-Religion Overview
12-18 June 2021
Last week in North Africa and the Middle East, new leadership came to power Israel and Iran. In Iran, its effects are yet to be seen, though in Israel, the new government’s approval of a right-wing march led to heightened tensions in the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem.…
ACLED-Religion Overview
5-11 June 2021
Last week across North Africa and the Middle East, a far-right march reignited tensions in East Jerusalem, prompting clashes between primarily far-right Israelis and Palestinians. In Israel, ultra-orthodox (Haredi) civilians protested against the sale of non-Kosher cell phones.…
ACLED-Religion Overview
29 May-4 June 2021
Last week across the Middle East and North Africa, a lull in events was observed in the first week of June. In Yemen, morality-related events in connection to the selling, consuming, or making of alcohol were reported.…
ACLED-Religion Overview
8-28 May 2021
During the past month, a tumultuous Ramadan came to an end, but incidents of religious restrictions did not abate. Eid Al Fitr, the Muslim holiday marking the end of Ramadan, started with the shutting down of two prominent mosques in Yemen and Iraq.…
ACLED-Religion Overview
1-7 May 2021
Religious celebrations and events of important religious significance last week were met with repression, leading to violence across the Middle East and North Africa. In Egypt and Palestine, celebrations of Christian Orthodox Easter were limited, and at times suppressed due to coronavirus restrictions.…
ACLED-Religion Overview
24-30 April 2021
Last week, violations against religious minorities were reported in Iran, with a total of 25 Baha’is arrested during the month of April. In Yemen, the suppression of the largely Sunni practice of Tarawih — a prayer held specifically during Ramadan — by pro-Houthi forces continued for the second week of the holy month of Ramadan.…
