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Marwa Fatafta

MENA Policy and Advocacy Director

Marwa leads Access Now’s policy and advocacy work on digital rights in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Her work spans a number of issues at the nexus of human rights and technology including content governance and platform accountability, online censorship, digital surveillance, and transnational repression. She has written extensively on the digital occupation in Palestine and focuses on the role of new technologies in armed conflicts and humanitarian contexts and their impact on historically marginalized and oppressed communities. Marwa is a Policy Analyst at Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network, an advisory board member of the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy, and an advisory committee member for Bread&Net. Marwa was a Fulbright scholar in the US and holds an MA in International Relations from Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University. She holds a second MA in Development and Governance from the University of Duisburg-Essen.
Saudi Arabia Internet Governance

Joint Statement: Saudi Arabia must free detainees jailed for their online expression ahead of Internet Governance Forum

6 Sep 2024

Access Now, Amnesty International, and civil society partners demand Saudi Arabia free individuals detained for their online expression ahead the UN Internet Governance Forum in Riyadh.

Press Release
Joint Statement: Saudi Arabia must free detainees jailed for their online expression ahead of Internet Governance Forum
6 Sep 2024
Joint Statement: Saudi Arabia must free detainees jailed for their online expression ahead of Internet Governance Forum
Saudi Arabia Internet Governance

بيان مشترك: على السلطات السعودية الإفراج عن المحتجزين بسبب تعبيرهم عن آرائهم على الإنترنت قبيل انعقاد منتدى حوكمة الإنترنت

6 Sep 2024

نطالب، بالتعاون مع منظمات المجتمع المدني، السعودية بالإفراج عن الأشخاص المحتجزين بسبب تعبيرهم عبر الإنترنت قبل منتدى حوكمة الإنترنت.

Press Release
بيان مشترك: على السلطات السعودية الإفراج عن المحتجزين بسبب تعبيرهم عن آرائهم على الإنترنت قبيل انعقاد منتدى حوكمة الإنترنت
6 Sep 2024
بيان مشترك: على السلطات السعودية الإفراج عن المحتجزين بسبب تعبيرهم عن آرائهم على الإنترنت قبيل انعقاد منتدى حوكمة الإنترنت
#KeepItOn in Sudan

Break the silence on Sudan: an urgent call to action

5 Sep 2024

Over 50 civil society organizations urgently call upon the international community to step up and break the silence surrounding the brutal conflict in Sudan.

Press Release
Break the silence on Sudan: an urgent call to action
5 Sep 2024
Break the silence on Sudan: an urgent call to action
Togo elections internet access

Joint statement: Sudan has suffered in silence for over 500 days

5 Sep 2024

After more than 500 days of brutal conflict in Sudan, the #KeepItOn coalition reiterates calls to reactivate telecommunication services.

Press Release
Joint statement: Sudan has suffered in silence for over 500 days
5 Sep 2024
Joint statement: Sudan has suffered in silence for over 500 days
digital ceasefire gaza

International Court of Justice: Protect evidence in the Gaza war 

22 May 2024

We join organizations defending freedom of expression in supporting South Africa’s request to the ICJ to ensure unimpeded access to Gaza for fact-finding missions and journalists to assess and preserve evidence.

Press Release
International Court of Justice: Protect evidence in the Gaza war 
22 May 2024
International Court of Justice: Protect evidence in the Gaza war 
|Human rights problem with Google Cloud Platform in Saudi Arabia - Twitter thumbnail

Hey Google: we need to learn more about your role in the war on Gaza

16 May 2024

Amid revelations of AI use by the Israeli army in Gaza, Access Now urges Google for transparency through an open letter to Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet Inc.

Press Release
Hey Google: we need to learn more about your role in the war on Gaza
16 May 2024
Hey Google: we need to learn more about your role in the war on Gaza
KeepItOn 2023 MENA

MENA in 2023: internet shutdowns soar amid unprecedented violence and war

15 May 2024

By almost every measure, 2023 was the worst year of internet shutdowns on record. Authorities implemented at least 77 internet shutdowns in 15 countries across the MENA region.

Press Release
MENA in 2023: internet shutdowns soar amid unprecedented violence and war
15 May 2024
MENA in 2023: internet shutdowns soar amid unprecedented violence and war
KeepItOn 2023 MENA

حجب الإنترنت في الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا في عام 2023: ارتفاع عدد الحالات مع تصاعد العنف والحروب غير المسبوقة

15 May 2024

بحسب جميع المعايير، كانت سنة 2023 الأسوأ على الإطلاق بالنسبة لقطع الإنترنت. حيث قامت السلطات بحجب الإنترنت بشكل متعمد على الأقل 283 مرة في 39 دولة.

Press Release
حجب الإنترنت في الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا في عام 2023: ارتفاع عدد الحالات مع تصاعد العنف والحروب غير المسبوقة
15 May 2024
حجب الإنترنت في الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا في عام 2023: ارتفاع عدد الحالات مع تصاعد العنف والحروب غير المسبوقة
How to stay safe online in the context of conflict in Gaza

Artificial Genocidal Intelligence: how Israel is automating human rights abuses and war crimes 

9 May 2024

Israel’s war on Gaza has revealed how mundane, unsophisticated AI surveillance systems are being used to unleash the most dystopian, tech-driven horrors on Palestinians.

Publication
Artificial Genocidal Intelligence: how Israel is automating human rights abuses and war crimes 
9 May 2024
Artificial Genocidal Intelligence: how Israel is automating human rights abuses and war crimes 
|Human rights problem with Google Cloud Platform in Saudi Arabia - Twitter thumbnail

Bad for human rights and for business: Amazon must not build cloud infrastructure in Saudi Arabia

6 May 2024

Access Now is calling on Amazon to halt the launch of AWS infrastructure region in Saudi Arabia and adequately address the severe human rights impacts that would arise from such a move.

Press Release
Bad for human rights and for business: Amazon must not build cloud infrastructure in Saudi Arabia
6 May 2024
Bad for human rights and for business: Amazon must not build cloud infrastructure in Saudi Arabia