Samia al-Aghbari

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Samia al-Aghbari (Arabic: سامية الأغبري) is a Yemeni blogger, journalist and human rights activist who often criticizes Yemen’s government and extremism. She helped lead street protests that contributed to President Ali Abdullah Saleh stepping down. In 2007 she wrote a piece criticizing Saleh for seeking another term; a pro-government newspaper accused her of having an improper relationship with foreign men. She sued and won the case. As a protest leader, she joined other women challenging traditional gender roles in Yemen, distributing flyers against the government and tracking human rights abuses by security forces. She served as secretary of the Rights and Freedoms Committee of Yemen’s Journalists’ Syndicate. On 13 February 2011 she was attacked and men tried to kidnap her; she said nearby police did not intervene. On 12 December 2012 she remarked that politics, religion and tribes form an ugly mix on the 10th anniversary of Jarallah Omar’s assassination, for which Islamists accused her of blasphemy. She has spoken against the prosecution of Bahá’í people in Yemen and said the post-Saleh period was confusing, a sentiment shared by many democratic activists. She also contributes writings to newspapers.