Elaph
Elaph logo
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| Type | Daily |
|---|---|
| Format | Online newspaper |
| Founder(s) | Othman Al Omeir |
| Publisher | Elaph Publishing |
| Managing editors | Samar Malak |
| Founded | 21 May 2001 |
| Political alignment | Liberal |
| Language | Arabic |
| Headquarters | London |
| Circulation | 1,179,801 hits (May 2010) |
| Website | Elaph |
Elaph (in Arabic إيلاف meaning "Coming together" in Arabic) is the first daily Arab independent online newspaper and is not associated with any established print or broadcast medium.
Elaph was launched by Elaph Publishing in London in 2001. The reason for choosing London as the center of the website was to be free from the censorship rules of Saudi Arabia and also, offer liberal viewpoints, particularly in opposition to religious radicalism. The goal of Elaph is stated as to offer a mix of print, audio and visual material to its readers.
The owner of the news portal is Saudi businessman, journalist and author Othman Al Omeir who is the former editor of the London-based weekly The Majalla and Arabic language daily Al Sharq Al Awsat. After the ban of Elaph in Saudi Arabia in May 2006, it was registered in the United Kingdom.
The founder and editor-in-chief of the Elaph website is Othman Al Omeir.Nicholas Claxton is managing director of Elaph. The news portal has journalists in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco. It is reported in 2007 that the portal employs 90 journalists worldwide.
Elaph is managed by Integrated Intelligent Solutions (IN2SOL) that is one of Middle East’s leading providers of IT services and solutions.
In June 2014 Elaph reported that it would use unmanned aerial drones to cover and delivers news.
The Elaph newsportal offers the readers instant news from all around the world, making it a strong competitor to Arab and international news agencies. Additionally, it involves pages on politics, business, culture, health, sports, music, cinema, fashion, features, reports, newspapers, technology, writers, opinions, and special news. Elaph.com also provides video news and tries to provide an interactive platform for its readers. For instance, in January 2009, its readers were asked to send farewell letters to then US President George W. Bush.
In September 2011, Elaph reported that the Saudi Ambassador to Cairo, Ahmad Abdelaziz Kattan, survived an attempted assassination by poison, allegedly organized by Iran. The e-newspaper further claimed that since the Saudi diplomats, including Adel Al Jubair are all close to Prince Bandar who is known to be a strong opponent of Iranian influence in the Middle East, they are likely to experience such events.Elaph reported an interesting comment of a Salafist Sheikh in Egypt, Sheik Abu Ishaq al Heweny in December 2011. He said that a woman’s face is like a vagina so that it should be covered with a veil.
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