In a recent interview, National Assembly Jassem al-Khorafi waxed poetic about the nature of government and democratic reforms in Kuwait. He stressed the need for national unity - cooperation between the Assembly and the government - which has often proved a sticking point in actualizing reform in Kuwait.

Al-Khorafi only made passing mention of political parties, using few words to give a definitive answer to the question of Kuwait's readiness for a party system: "Are we ready now? I'd say no we are not."

Kuwaiti women married to foreigners will be given houses by the government if a motion filed in parliament gets approved. The draft law calling upon the government to provide "appropriate" houses to all Kuwaiti women who are married to non-Kuwaiti men was endorsed by the parliament's Women's Committee and will be discussed by the MPs at a regular session.

Rather than restricting access to the entire YouTube website, Bahrain has blocked one specific channel entitled "Bahrain Rulers." According to IFEX, the channel carried critical messages about Bahrain's main political figures, portrayed in a satirical light through cartoons and short film clips.

Hana Al-Zuhair and Samira Al-Suwaigh were among the six members appointed Sunday by Commerce and Industry Minister Abdullah Zainal Alireza to the Asharqia Chamber.

This has been a grim year for Yemen's independent press, the victim of a media war waged by the government under the guise of combating terrorism and sedition, including the recent arrest of two journalists.

"Physical attacks, interrogation, criminal charges, arbitrary arrests, prosecutions with no evidence, solitary confinement, 'preventive measures' and disappearances – such is the treatment reserved by the government for journalists who refuse to reflect its views on sensitive issues," Reporters Without Borders said.

The first of the past week's media arrests was that of Khalid Jahafi, a journalist who works for the opposition news website Alsahwa.net. He was arrested by security forces on 27 December 2009 while photographing clashes between police and supporters of southern Yemen's independence and was beaten on the orders of national security chief Alaa Mohammed Al-Azraqi. There has been no news of him since then.