Coveting Freedom

TRIPOLI (Reuters) - At a pre-wedding evening party in central Tripoli, a group of Libyan women sing traditional songs to the beat of a drum as they prepare to apply henna to the bride's hands and feet.

Good judgement and common sense should be the order of the day when it comes to dealing with such edicts...

Likud's Limor Livnat warns that exclusion of women leads to violence against women; Shas minister Nahari: We must respect those who find women's singing offensive.

The offices of a French satirical magazine were bombed early today, after the periodical published an issue about the Arab Spring with a caricature of the prophet Muhammad. The magazine featured the Muslim prophet as a “guest editor” for the magazine, Charlie Hebdo, threatening “100 lashes if you don't die of laughter!”

There have been six torchings in the West Bank and Israel in the past two years—but not a single indictment. Dan Ephron reports.

The king of Saudi Arabia is once again making headlines for overturning a court ruling that sentenced a woman to ten lashes for driving a car. For many, this is further proof that King Abdullah is a force for moderation and reform. Fareed Zakaria, for example, has called the Saudi dictator a “man of wisdom and moderation.” Then again, the king could also have considered stopping the recent beheading of Abdul Hamid Al Fakki for the crime of “sorcery.” Instead, he chose to do nothing. While the residents of Salem in 1692 would be proud, modern pundits would do well to hold their praise for the monarch.