The brief detention of Syria Prisons Museum founder Amer Matar in September 2025 shows how fragile the space remains for documenting torture and disappearance in post‑Assad Syria. By targeting a virtual museum that uses 3D technology to reconstruct prisons, authorities signalled that immersive memory projects and digital archives of abuse remain under suspicion.
When Syrian writer Morris Ayek described a “second phase” of Syria’s civil war and used the term “Sunni fascism” in an August 2025 essay for Al Jumhuriya, he triggered a wave of online intimidation. The phrase was torn from its analytical context and recirculated on social media, where Ayek and the platform were attacked for opening a difficult debate on sectarian power and minority vulnerability in post‑Assad Syria.
The August 2025 decision to rename Syrian schools exposed a deep struggle over cultural memory and identity. When authorities moved to remove playwright Saadallah Wannous’ name from a Damascus school, public backlash forced a rare reversal. Meanwhile, a sweeping order in Aleppo replaced dozens of cultural figures with religious names, signalling an ideological reshaping of Syria’s educational space.
The sudden cancellation of Malek Jandali’s “Syrian Symphony for Peace” tour in December 2025 has exposed how cultural policy, religious authority and the politics of martyrdom intersect in post war Syria. The decision to drop his Homs Clock Square concert at the last minute, followed by conflicting official and religious justifications, reveals how fragile guarantees remain for artists using public space to confront traumatic memory.
Iraqi singer Mohammed Abdel Jabbar successfully performed in Nasiriyah on November 15, 2025, despite opposition from religious figures who condemned the concert as incompatible with the city's religious identity. However, just over a week later, concerts scheduled in Basra were cancelled after the organizing company received threats. The cancellation followed protests by clerics denouncing entertainment events, continuing a pattern of pressure against cultural activities in southern Iraq since 2019.
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UK-based Syrian comedian and journalist Malath Alzoubi faced a wave of online threats after a July 2025 stand-up clip satirising Syria’s new leader Ahmad Al‑Sharaa and HTS’s history of dismantling infrastructure. Weeks after the video, a coordinated harassment campaign across Instagram, X and Facebook used homophobic slurs and location-based threats, exposing how Syrian artists in exile remain vulnerable to transnational digital intimidation.
Iraq’s 2025 Husseini Chant Festival shows how religious authority can curb cultural policy without legal bans. After the Ministry of Culture introduced instrumental music into Arbaeen rituals, a clerical backlash led by Ali Al‑Talqani sparked online outrage and institutional hesitation, revealing how informal pressure and fear of controversy drive self‑censorship in Iraq’s cultural sector.
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In May 2025, a governance crisis shook the Syrian Artists’ Syndicate when four council members challenged newly appointed head Mazen Al‑Natour over unilateral decisions and lack of accountability. Their attempt to withdraw confidence was rejected as “illegal,” followed by their removal from the council. The episode exposes how post‑Assad institutions risk replicating old authoritarian patterns instead of protecting artistic freedom
Iraq’s Ministry of Higher Education has banned mixed-gender events at universities, including student marathons, citing “moral and cultural values.” The directive, issued under political and religious pressure, institutionalizes gender segregation and deepens a broader crackdown on student freedoms, women’s visibility, and youth-led cultural expression within academic spaces .
Indian films are facing growing, selective scrutiny in Gulf states, especially when they depict India–Pakistan tensions, Kashmir, or LGBTQIA+ lives. Recent bans on “Dhurandhar”, “Sky Force”, and the Malayalam film “Maranamass” show how geopolitical sensitivities and moral norms shape access to cinema for South Asian audiences across the region
Mimeta’s December 2025 reporting focuses on the Middle East and North Africa, revealing how artistic life is increasingly constrained by overlapping systems of state power, religious authority and informal enforcement. From disappearances and arrests to quiet bans and moral campaigns, artists across the region face repression that is often unwritten yet deeply effective, shaping what can be seen, heard and performed, and who is allowed to appear in public cultural life.
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CategoriesCensorship in Arts, Censorship MENA, Censorship SWANA, Middle East, Mimeta, North-Africa, Reports
Israeli intelligence forces raided Jerusalem’s Palestinian National Theatre, Al-Hakawati, during the children’s musical “Dreams Under the Olive Trees,” ordering families to evacuate within five minutes. The shutdown of a licensed, internationally funded cultural event has drawn condemnation from theatre groups, human-rights advocates and media outlets, who say it exemplifies the broader repression of Palestinian cultural life and children’s rights in Jerusalem.
When Syria’s pioneering stand‑up collective Styria cancelled its shows in Hama during the country’s first Comedy Festival, co‑founder Malke Mardinali warned that “every word is being scrutinized and reports are being filed.” The incident captures how surveillance, informal pressure, and fear of denunciation still define the limits of artistic expression in Syria’s fragile post‑war cultural opening
Karbala’s first girls’ school athletics championship in December 2025, organized with an all‑female refereeing team, quickly turned into a test of the city’s “sanctity” politics. A local religious initiative condemned the event as indecent, while rights advocates and social‑media users defended it as a legitimate step for girls’ education, health and visibility in Iraqi public life.
Syrian author Khalil Sweileh’s acclaimed novel The Barbarians’ Paradise faces renewed censorship more than a decade after its first Cairo publication. Authorities demanded removal of passages depicting the Syrian conflict and changes to the text, which Sweileh refused. This episode underscores the persistent control over artistic expression in Syria and highlights the limited space for writers to challenge official narratives.
When a Basra fashion show celebrating cultural heritage sparked armed threats, it revealed how non-state actors now dictate Iraq’s moral and creative boundaries. The case exposes the deepening crisis of artistic freedom in a society struggling to reclaim its cultural voice.
On 6 February 2025, Iraq’s Karkh Misdemeanor Court issued a one-year prison sentence in absentia against Iraqi singer and performer Taysir Al-Iraqiya for publishing content deemed “immoral” online. The ruling, based on vague morality provisions in Iraq’s Penal Code, reflects a broader state campaign targeting artists, influencers, and creators. The case highlights growing risks to artistic freedom, digital expression, and cultural diversity amid intensified online content policing.
In July 2025, Syrian folk singer Omar Khairy was abducted from a wedding in his hometown of Al‑Bab by armed men who said they were acting for “general security.” Hours later, videos showed him beaten, shaved, and forced to sing under duress over his alleged praise of Bashar al‑Assad. The case reveals how rival authorities in northern Syria enforce red lines on cultural expression through intimidation and public degradation
The July 2025 eviction of Damascus’s historic Al‑Kindi Cinema by Syria’s Ministry of Religious Endowments has become a defining test of post‑Assad cultural policy, pitting promises of renewal against fears that religious and political authorities are tightening their grip on what counts as legitimate art and public memory.
Iraqi digital artist and performer Joanna Al Aseel was arrested in Baghdad on 12 May 2025 after her online content was flagged as “immoral” by a Ministry of Interior committee. Her conviction and three‑month prison sentence on 20 November 2025 exemplify Iraq’s expanding use of vague public‑morals laws to police artistic expression online and deter women artists and content creators from participating in digital public space
