MID-EAST JUNCTION

In this month's Mid-East Junction, we delve into the culinary delights across the region that have been miles ahead of the vegan trend for decades, even centuries in some cases. Click here to read the article. Click the 'play' button above to listen or subscribe to the podcast by searching 'RFI Mid-East Junction'

In this month’s podcast, we’re going to take a break from politics. And social anxiety. And uprisings and laws. Because the Middle East doesn’t just make headlines. It also has a sensitive musical soul. And this side to the region often comes out in the musical instrument the oud. Or the oriental lute. Find out all about it in this month's podcast of Mid-East Junction or read about it here. Click the 'play' button above to listen or look for 'rfi mideast junction' in your favourite podcast platform to subscribe, so you'll never miss another episode.

On 30 March 1936, the Palestinian Broadcasting Service hit the radio waves. The new service, referred to as PBS, catered to the growing population in British-mandated Palestine that included Palestinian Arabs, Palestinian Jews and the British. In this month's Mid-East Junction, we take a look at the short life of the PBS and the role it played in airing culture, news and social programmes aimed at all the three different audiences. Click on "Play" above. You can also subscribe to this podcast on your favourite podcast platform when you search for RFI Mid-East Junction. You can read more here.

In this week's Mid-East Junction, we meet Julia*, a young woman who escaped her life and marriage by force in Saudi Arabia to find freedom in France.   She, like hundreds of others of women caught in the oppressive male guardianship system in the kingdom, are choosing to risk everything for a life where a woman is respected and ultimately free to make her own decisions. *Her name has been changed for security reasons You can read more about it here  

On December 31st, Bahrain’s high court upheld a five year jail sentence against human rights activist Nabeel Rajab.His sentence was in response to posts he made on social media in February of 2018 accusing the government of torture and criticising Saudi Arabia’s air strikes in Yemen. Campaign groups around the world called his sentencing "political persecution” and “utterly outrageous". For a small country, however, his case is not exceptional. In this week's Mid-East Junction we take a look at Bahrain and look behind the headlines to get a better idea of what's happening in the tiny Gulf state. You can read more about it here