How the Arab world can tackle the invisible mental-health pandemic

Experts say there are many ways to maintain a good mental balance during the uncertain times of COVID-19. (Shutterstock/File Photo)
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Updated 02 April 2021
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How the Arab world can tackle the invisible mental-health pandemic

  • Egyptian-Canadian Ally Salama wants a culture of mental wellness that speaks to the Middle Eastern mindset
  • With no let-up in COVID-19 cases in many countries, people are understandably feeling overwhelmed and anxious

DUBAI: Of the Arab world’s many problems exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, mental health is easily among the most insidious.

Fortunately, one young Arab has made it his life’s mission to help lead the conversation in the region and address the latent stigma surrounding feelings of depression and anxiety.

The story begins a few years ago when Ally Salama, a 24-year-old Egyptian athlete, moved to Toronto, Canada, to pursue a university degree in entrepreneurship and innovation.

Following a blissful childhood spent in Cairo and Dubai, Salama says, the move led to a dramatic change in his cultural surroundings, which left him feeling isolated and alone.

“I made my first friend four and a half years after attending my first day of university,” he told Arab News.

“It was very hard. We’re very culturally intelligent, but I didn’t want to let go of my values. I could neither mix nor mingle. As a result, I lost my identity and my mind in a year and a half. I felt completely different physically, mentally and psychologically. It caused a lot of issues for me in university.”

Depression quickly set in. He recalls not being able to get out of bed or managing to take care of his basic psychological needs.




The estimated annual global economic cost of mental health disorders stands at $2.5 trillion. (Shutterstock/File Photo)

“Smoking and drinking weren’t my thing, which is what created the biggest gap in university life,” he said.

After reluctantly seeking help from his university counsellor, Salama found the tools he needed to cope, and has since sought to help others.

“It takes a lot for a man to admit that,” Salama said. “It’s very difficult, and I’m here to make that awareness very visible. I didn’t have someone who’d been through this to tell me it was OK. That’s when I realized there are so many people who feel like me but who don’t have the courage to go through with it.”

His healing journey changed the way he views human strength — no longer in terms of physical fitness alone, but rather as a combination of physical and mental.

So when a university project came along about entrepreneurial problem solving, he used the opportunity to launch an online platform called Break the Silence Egypt.

Overnight, 180 people anonymously submitted testimonies revealing their deepest and darkest feelings, in English and Arabic. “It made me realize this is bigger than me,” Salama said. “Mental health is an issue.”




A man wearing a facemask walks past a mural painted as part of the Cities of Hope festival in Manchester and highlighting the effects of mental health as the number of cases of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 rises in 2020. (AFP/File Photo)

Upon graduating in 2019, he did a short stint as a banker in Canada before realizing he was sitting on the wrong side of the desk.

In parallel, he developed a mental health magazine for the Middle East called EMPWR. The first issue came out in March 2019, during his final year of university.

In July that year, Salama’s mentor Dr. Nasser Loza, president-elect of the World Federation for Mental Health and a World Health Organization consultant, recommended him to speak at a UN workshop in Sharm El-Sheikh on the role of media in destigmatizing mental-health issues.

“I spoke about people’s perceptions and why the media’s work hinders people’s quality of life,” Salama recalled.

“That experience changed my life. Depression and mental illnesses aren’t rational — you don’t even want to get better. It’s irrational.”

Mental HealthIn Numbers

* $2.5 trillion - Estimated annual global economic cost of mental health disorders.

* 38% - Percentage of Arabs who know someone suffering from mental-health issues. 

* 56% - Percentage of Arabs who say quality mental-health care is difficult to access. 

* 48% - Percentage of Arabs who say seeking mental-health care is viewed negatively in their country. 

Source: Arab Youth Survey 2020, WHO

It was only a matter of time before EMPWR became a leading mental-health magazine in the region, from its base in Canada.

“The biggest issue with Arabs is that no matter how much they read online (about psychological issues), it’s not culturally relevant to our relationships, our marriages, our cultures, our homes and our thoughts,” Salama said.

“A big thing about success in psychological support is having a rapport with the person in front of you and understanding where they’re coming from. I understood because of my experience.”

Soon the project expanded into podcasting with the launch of Empathy Always Wins. “Podcasting is quite educational — 70 percent of listeners have a higher education degree,” Salama said.

“We got New York Times bestselling authors, the world’s No. 1 squash player, and businessmen who people really respect, to speak.”

With over 100,000 downloads last year and a rank in Harvard’s top seven social initiatives in 2019, the podcast’s success led Salama to launch the Art of Podcasting School with Microsoft for Start-Ups.

He describes his podcast as an all-inclusive, uninhibited exploration of personal vulnerabilities, with the aim of making the ability to share and understand one another’s feelings a sign of strength.

“Empathy is the key winning component for every man and woman,” he said. “Empathy always wins in life.”




Bayda Othman, a psychologist from the NGO Premiere Urgence, consults a patient at the mental health centre of the Bajet Kandala camp for displaced Yazidis near Dohuk, 430 kilometres (260 miles) northwest of the Iraqi capital, by the border with Syria, on November 18, 2020. (AFP/File Photo)

Although the magazine’s content is English-only right now, Salama plans to launch an Arabic version soon. And there certainly seems to be an appetite for the subject.

When he began posting on his Instagram account in Arabic as well as English, he saw his following jump from 5,000 to 73,000 in just six months.

“There’s a need for faces to be vulnerable — people connect with people, not with logos,” he said, describing the positive role of influencers and ambassadors like himself. “This is how you get the message across. People need to be vulnerable to lead.”

Today, Salama is working closely with schools, universities and corporations to help them kick-start programs around mental health.

So far, 40 schools in Canada have benefited, along with Microsoft, the Capital Club and Heriot-Watt University in Dubai.

“It’s about awareness and empowering other people to seek that help,” Salama said. “I’m just an enabler. But it’s my biggest passion when I speak to young children. The more shame, guilt and burden we carry, the more psychologically disturbed, distressed and traumatic we live our lives.”

Now he wants to bring the same message to the Middle East, where he believes millions can benefit from his experience. He wants every Arab home to be discussing mental health and wellbeing.

For younger Arabs, he feels the time has come to tackle such issues, especially as life has become increasingly unsettled in the wake of the pandemic.




With no let-up in COVID-19 infections in many countries, a steady uptick in distressing news and statistics, and unprecedented challenges at home and in the workplace, it is only natural that people are feeling overwhelmed. (Shutterstock/File Photo)

“Whether you like it or not, you won’t feel at peace at any point because we’re being bombarded, which can cause stress,” Salama said.

With no let-up in COVID-19 infections in many countries, a steady uptick in distressing news and statistics, and unprecedented challenges at home and in the workplace, it is only natural that people are feeling overwhelmed, anxious and stressed.

Experts say there are many ways to maintain a good mental balance during these uncertain times.

Among them are the benefits of establishing a good routine, focusing on the things you can control such as exercise and healthy eating, keeping living spaces tidy and limiting news consumption.

“People are feeling so alone, especially during COVID-19, more than ever,” Salama said. For him, taking good care of one’s mental health is the same as stretching before a workout to prevent physical injury.

“We don’t wait until we get injured in sports to warm up,” he said. “We warm up so we perform at our best.”

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Twitter: @CalineMalek


Britain ‘taking forward’ Gaza food airdrop plan: PM Starmer’s office

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Britain ‘taking forward’ Gaza food airdrop plan: PM Starmer’s office

LONODN: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Saturday spoke to his French and German counterparts and outlined UK plans to get aid to people in Gaza and evacuate sick and injured children, his office said.
“The prime minister set out how the UK will also be taking forward plans to work with partners such as Jordan to airdrop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance,” a statement said.
In a phone conversation, Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza “which they agreed is appalling.”
“They all agreed it would be vital to ensure robust plans are in place to turn an urgently needed ceasefire into lasting peace,” according to a readout released by Downing Street.
“They discussed their intention to work closely together on a plan.... which would pave the way to a long-term solution and security in the region. They agreed that once this plan was worked up, they would seek to bring in other key partners, including in the region, to advance it,” it added.
The discussion comes a day after UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres slammed the international community for turning a blind eye to widespread starvation in the Gaza Strip, calling it a “moral crisis that challenges the global conscience.”
Aid groups have warned of surging cases of starvation, particularly among children, in war-ravaged Gaza, which Israel placed under an aid blockade in March amid its ongoing war with Hamas. That blockade was partially eased two months later.
The trickle of aid since then has been controlled by the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.


Britain ‘taking forward’ Gaza food airdrop plan: PM Starmer’s office

Updated 22 min 40 sec ago
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Britain ‘taking forward’ Gaza food airdrop plan: PM Starmer’s office

  • The UK will also be taking forward plans to work with partners such as Jordan to airdrop aid

LONDON: British Prime minister Keir Starmer on Saturday spoke to his French and German counterparts and outlined UK plans to get aid to people in Gaza and evacuate sick and injured children, his office said.

“The prime minister set out how the UK will also be taking forward plans to work with partners such as Jordan to airdrop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance,” a statement said.


Libya detains 1,500 undocumented migrant workers in raid near Tripoli

Updated 41 min 6 sec ago
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Libya detains 1,500 undocumented migrant workers in raid near Tripoli

  • Al-Abed said: “These workers, of various nationalities, had no residency permits, no official passports, and not even health records“
  • The detained migrant workers will be “transferred to centers run by the Anti-Illegal Immigration Authority”

TRIPOLI: Libyan authorities detained on Saturday some 1,500 undocumented migrant workers in a raid on a neighborhood housing them east of the capital Tripoli, an AFP reporter saw.

“Saturday’s inspections uncovered housing units where undocumented foreign workers were living,” Libyan labor minister Ali Al-Abed, who was present during the raid, told reporters.

“These workers, of various nationalities, had no residency permits, no official passports, and not even health records.”

Libya has been gripped by conflict since the 2011 overthrow and killing of longtime ruler Muammar Qaddafi in a NATO-backed uprising.

The country remains split between Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah’s government based in Tripoli and a rival administration based in the east.

With Italy some 300 kilometers (186 miles) away, Libya has become a key launchpad for tens of thousands of migrants who risk their lives at sea trying to reach Europe.

The area targeted in the sweep east of Tripoli housed makeshift encampments surrounded by high walls and a large gate.

Hundreds of migrants — mostly Egyptians and sub-Saharan Africans — were said to have lived there.

Inside the compound, an AFP journalist saw a small grocery store, a butcher shop and vegetable vendors.

The labor minister said the site had “unregulated housing that fails to meet basic requirements for decent accommodation, health and workplace safety.”

The detained migrant workers will be “transferred to centers run by the Anti-Illegal Immigration Authority, and legal proceedings will be initiated against them according to national regulations,” Abed said.

It remained unclear whether the migrants would be immediately deported.

Earlier this month, a European Union commissioner and ministers from Greece, Italy and Malta were in Libya to discuss irregular migration from the North African country.

Migrants intercepted by Libyan authorities, including in international waters before reaching the Italian coast, are forcibly returned to Libya and held in detention under harsh conditions frequently condemned by the United Nations.


Nine killed in courthouse attack in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchistan province, Iranian media report

Updated 26 July 2025
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Nine killed in courthouse attack in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchistan province, Iranian media report

  • Jaish Al-Adl claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement on its Telegram account
  • Sistan-Baluchestan is home to Iran’s Sunni Muslim Baluch minority, who have long complained of economic marginalization and political exclusion

At least nine people were killed in an armed attack by the Sunni Jaish Al-Adl Baluch group on a courthouse in Iran’s restive Sistan-Baluchistan province on Saturday, including three of the assailants, state media reported.

Another 22 were injured, according to the report.

Jaish Al-Adl confirmed the deaths of its three members in the clashes with security forces in Zahedan, the capital of the far southeastern province bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan. Sistan-Baluchistan is home to Iran’s Sunni Muslim Baluch minority, who have long complained of economic marginalization and political exclusion.

A toddler and a 60-year-old woman were among those killed, as well as three soldiers and law enforcement personnel assigned to the courthouse, the head of the province’s judiciary told IRNA. He did not identify the sixth dead person. He said the attackers wore explosive vests and carried grenades. It was not clear if they had detonated them.

Jaish Al-Adl, which claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement on its Telegram account, said it had killed at least 30 members of the judiciary and security forces. It said it targeted judges and court personnel, whom it accused of issuing death sentences and house demolition orders to Baluch citizens.

“We warn all judges and employees of the judiciary that Baluchistan will no longer be a safe place for them and death will follow them like terrifying shadows until retribution,” the group said in its statement.

It blamed security forces for the deaths of civilians, saying they had fired indiscriminately.

The Baluch human rights group HAALVSH, quoting eyewitnesses, said several judiciary staff members and security personnel were killed or wounded when the assailants stormed the judges’ chambers.

Sistan-Baluchistan is frequently hit by clashes between security forces and armed groups, including Sunni militants and separatists who say they are fighting for greater rights and autonomy. Tehran accuses some of them of ties to foreign powers and involvement in cross-border smuggling and insurgency.


Five civilians, three gunmen killed in ‘terrorist’ attack in southeast Iran

Updated 26 July 2025
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Five civilians, three gunmen killed in ‘terrorist’ attack in southeast Iran

  • Jaish Al-Adl group, operating from borderlands between Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan, claimed the attack
  • The region has been the scene of recurring clashes between Iranian security forces, various militant outfits

TEHRAN: Gunmen killed five civilians during a “terrorist attack” on a judiciary building in southeast Iran on Saturday before being killed themselves, state media reported.

“Unknown gunmen attacked the judiciary center in Zahedan,” the capital of southeastern Sistan-Baluchistan province, the judiciary’s Mizan Online said.

“Five people have been killed and 13 injured in this terrorist attack,” the report said while adding that the counts are “preliminary” and the toll may rise.

Separately, the official IRNA news agency reported that three of the attackers were killed during the assault, citing the regional headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

According to Alireza Daliri, deputy police commander of Sistan-Baluchistan province, the attackers attempted to enter the building disguised as visitors.

The assailants threw a grenade into the building, Daliri said, killing several people inside, including a one-year-old baby and the child’s mother.

Jaish Al-Adl (Arabic for ‘Army of Justice’), a Baloch militant group operating from the borderlands between Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, mainly the Sistan-Balochistan triangle, but active inside Iran, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Located about 1,200 kilometers (745 miles) southeast of the capital Tehran, the restive province shares a long border with Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The area has been the scene of recurring clashes between Iranian security forces, including the IRGC, and rebels from the Baluch minority, radical Sunni groups, and drug traffickers.

In one of the deadliest incidents in the region, ten police officers were killed in October in what authorities also described as a “terrorist” attack.