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SAUDI ARABIA Saudi Arabia: King limits clerics who can issue fatwas A decree sent by King Abdullahs office states that only senior Islamic clerics appointed by him can issue fatwas and religious rulings 19 August 2010 United Arab Emirates: Censored rap duo ready with new album The first and only album of the Emirati hip-hop duo Desert Heat which came out in 2008, was banned in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, reported AFP 12 August 2010 Saudi Arabia: Ministry bans music and dancing in schools Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education issued a circular to all schools in the kingdom ordering that no music or dancing be allowed during upcoming graduation celebrations. 11 June 2010 Saudi Arabia: Religious conservatives create setback for Saudi musicians Saudi Arabia is seeing several reversals for proponents of freer access to film and music, reported AFP, Reuters and BBC News on 19 July 2009 27 July 2009 Saudi Arabia: Interview with founder of thrash metal band Faisal Al-Alamy is founder of the Saudi Arabian thrash metal band Octum. They released a demo entitled 'Fighting For Freedom' in January 2008 04 June 2008 Saudi Arabia: Musicians' freedom expanded There has been a quiet, yet marked increase in cultural activities in Saudi Arabia during the past couple of months. New music bands emerge and blossom on the internet 27 May 2008 The Middle East: New restrictions on satellite tv Freedom of expression in the Middle East suffered a major setback on 12 February 2008 when 21 information ministers of the Arab League agreed on a new satellite tv charter 20 February 2008 Jonas Otterbeck: Islamic reactions to the music of today A working paper, 22 pages in PDF-format, to be published as a chapter in the book 'Religion, Media, and Modern Thought in the Arab World', Cambridge Scholars Press Ltd. 13 November 2007 Jason Carter Video interview with musician Jason Carter about his experience of music censorship and music prohibition in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East 22 January 2007 Saudi Arabia: Journalist arrested for “destructive thoughts" Journalist who reported about ritualistic burning of musical instruments has been arrested by Saudi Arabia's domestic intelligence agency 11 May 2006 Sweden: Religious group attempts to silence music A group of young, religious men in Sweden act like as if they were an Islamic police force and try to prevent Swedish muslims from listening to music 28 April 2006 Saudi Arabia: Never write 'music' or 'violin' Words such as 'music', 'musician', and 'violin' are considered offensive in Saudi Arabia, reports Arabnews.com 25 October 2005