Middle East Censorship News

The BBC has pulled a documentary which follows the life of a boy in war-torn Gaza after seemingly coming under pressure from Israeli supporters.

Gaza: How To Survive A War Zone which was on the BBC's iPlayer streaming service centres on the struggles of 13-year-old Abdullah, living under Israel's brutal offensive in the Palestinian territory.

Following pressure, it was taken down on Friday, a day after British Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said she would discuss the issue with the BBC's director general and chairman. The BBC says that a number of British television figures also had sent letters criticising it and called for an investigation.

The documentary was removed after the BBC with the explanation  that the organisation discovered that the boy's father, Dr Ayman Alyazouri, has worked as a deputy agriculture minister in the Gaza government. Following the ban, the BBC issued a statement saying:

The film remains a powerful child's eye view of the devastating consequences of the war in Gaza which we believe is an invaluable testament to their experiences, and we must meet our commitment to transparency.

Despite it being pulled from iPlayer, many online users have shared the one-hour documentary on social media.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is a 2024 US first person shooter published by Activision

The game was banned by Kuwait government censors in October 2024. The government has reportedly blocked the game from being sold in stores or downloaded digitally.

In a statement from publishers Activision, the company confirmed the news:

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has not been approved for release in Kuwait. At this time, the title will not be available for release in region. As a result, all pre-orders in Kuwait will be cancelled and refunded to the original point of purchase. We remain hopeful that local authorities will reconsider, and allow players in Kuwait to enjoy this all-new experience in the Black Ops series.

Gamers who had pre-ordered the game will receive full refunds, but the disappointment remains high. It's not the first time Kuwait has blocked a game, with previous examples including The Sims: FreePlay and Dragon's Dogma 2, highlighting the stricter regulations on gaming in the country.

The reason behind Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 being blocked in Kuwait hasn't been officially revealed, but it's likely due to its focus on the Gulf War and Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, which is a sensitive topic for the region.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will be available elsewhere on October 25 for the PS4, Xbox One, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC.

Barbie is a 2023 UK/US comedy fantasy by Greta Gerwig
Starring Margot Robbie, Kingsley Ben-Adir and Ryan Gosling

Barbie suffers a crisis that leads her to question her world and her existence.

Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have banned the movie Barbie from cinema screening.

In Saudi Arabia, the culture ministry's announcement on August 9 cited violations of laws and values, asserting that certain scenes within the film mocked the sanctity of marriage and family, and insulted Islamic beliefs.

Kuwait banned the film in a bid to protect public ethics and social traditions.

Meanwhile there is a lot of pressure in Lebanon to ban the film. Lebanon's culture minister Mohammad Mortada criticised the movie, saying it "contradicts values of faith and morality" by diminishing the importance of the family unit.

The minister is backed by the armed Shi'ite armed group Hezbollah, whose head Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah called on Lebanese authorities to take action against materials he deemed to be promoting homosexuality, including by banning them, and said homosexuality posed an imminent danger to Lebanon and should be confronted.

Talk To Me is a 2022 Australia horror thriller by Danny Philippou, Michael Philippou
Starring Sophie Wilde, Joe Bird and Alexandra Jensen

When a group of friends discover how to conjure spirits using an embalmed hand, they become hooked on the new thrill, until one of them goes too far and unleashes terrifying supernatural forces.

The hit Australian horror film Talk To Me has been banned from screening in Kuwait, reportedly solely over the casting of non-binary trans actor Zoe Terakes, who plays a character whose gender identity is never mentioned in the film.

The Hollywood Reporter first reported on the decision, which they confirmed was based entirely on the presence of Terakes, an Australian actor who identifies as non-binary and trans-masculine.

Terakes issued a statement describing the decision as being:

Targeted and dehumanising and means to harm us.

Our film doesn't actually ever mention my transness, or my queerness. I am a trans actor who happened to get the role. I'm not a theme. I am a person. Kuwait has banned this fim due to my identity alone.

As much as it is very sad to be on the receiving end of this, what is even more heartbreaking is what this precedent means for the queet and trans people of Kuwait . Representation is hope. Representation is a light at the end of the tunnel, a reason to keep going, something to hold onto in the dark, a voice that whispers things can be better than they are. Eliminating trans actors on screens will not eliminate trans people (as much as the government of Kuwait wishes it would) but it will eliminate a lot of hope.

Talk to Me has already released without cuts across all other Gulf territories.