The Night Sky That Returned What Was Lost
Stars as Keepers of Memory
On certain nights, constellations rearranged themselves into objects people had lost—rings, letters, childhood toys. A grieving mother saw the shape of her daughter’s favorite stuffed bear twinkling above. She felt warmth instead of sorrow. The sky offered not the objects themselves, but the love they represented, proving nothing truly disappears if remembered.
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The Compass That Spun Only for the Honest
An explorer owned a compass that worked only when he spoke the truth. If he lied, it spun endlessly. Over years, the compass taught him that honesty leads to clearer paths than any map. When he died, the compass stopped spinning forever—as if content that his life no longer needed direction.
By GoldenSpeech2 months ago in Chapters
Phone hacking and London attack: Saudi government ordered to pay £3 million to YouTuber who mocked Mohammed bin Salman
Ghanem Al-Masarir, a YouTuber with millions of followers, seemed to have everything in life and was fully enjoying his fame. Living in a flat in Wembley, London, the comedian is well known for creating satirical videos and reels. He is also considered one of the prominent critics of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Because of his work, he has many admirers, but due to his strong criticism of the Saudi government, many people also dislike him. One day Al-Masarir felt that his mobile phone was behaving strangely. The phone had become very slow and its battery was draining unusually fast. He then noticed that certain people kept appearing in different parts of London wherever he went. These individuals—apparently supporters of the Saudi government—began blocking his way, harassing him, and some even started filming him. What puzzled Al-Masarir most was how these people knew his exact location. He suspected that his phone was being used to spy on him. Cyber experts later confirmed that he was among the victims targeted through the notorious Pegasus hacking tool. Al-Masarir said, “It was something I couldn’t understand. They can see your location. They can turn on your camera. They can activate the microphone and listen to you. They got hold of your data—your photos, everything. You feel deeply wronged.” On Monday, after a six-year legal battle, the London High Court ruled that Saudi Arabia was responsible for what happened to Al-Masarir and ordered the Saudi government to pay him more than £3 million in compensation. In 2018, the Saudi-born YouTuber’s iPhones were hacked after he clicked on links contained in three suspicious messages. These messages appeared to be special membership offers from well-known news organizations. Following the hacking, Al-Masarir was continuously harassed, followed, and in August he was even physically attacked in central London. The court was told that two strangers approached him, shouted at him, and asked who he was to speak about the Saudi royal family. They then punched him in the face and continued beating him for some time. The attackers backed off only after passers-by intervened, but while leaving they called him a “slave of Qatar” and threatened, “We will teach you a lesson.” The High Court judge described the incident as a planned attack. In his written judgment, Justice Saini stated that there were reasonable grounds to believe the assault and hacking were carried out at the behest of Saudi Arabia or its agents. The judge added that Saudi Arabia had a clear interest in suppressing public criticism of its government. Even after the assault, the harassment continued. In 2019, at a café in Kensington, London, a child approached Al-Masarir and began singing a song praising Saudi King Salman. The incident was recorded and posted on social media, quickly trending with a hashtag and even broadcast on Saudi state television. On the same day, outside a restaurant in west London, a man told him, “Your days are numbered,” and walked away. Al-Masarir was born in Saudi Arabia but has lived in Britain for the past twenty years. He originally came to Portsmouth for education and is now a British citizen living in Wembley. However, visiting central London remains a frightening experience for him. The 45-year-old became famous across the Arab world for his satirical YouTube videos in which he criticized Saudi rulers—especially Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. His videos often went viral and have been viewed more than 345 million times. His most-watched video, with 16 million views, criticized authorities for their anger over a viral clip of girls dancing in Saudi Arabia. Strangely, the audio of that video later disappeared from YouTube, and he still does not know how or when it was edited. Since the hacking and the London attack, Al-Masarir has lost confidence. He became depressed and fearful. Once known for his cheerful and bold personality, he agreed to speak to the BBC but remained cautious and avoided showing his face fully. He has not uploaded any video for the past three years. He says that despite winning the legal battle, the Saudi government has succeeded in silencing him. “The damage done to me cannot be repaired,” he said. “The hacking truly changed me. I am no longer the same Al-Masarir.” Experts from the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab confirmed that he had been hacked using Pegasus spyware. An analyst was sent to London, concluding that the operation was likely organized by Saudi Arabia. Pegasus is a powerful and controversial hacking tool developed by the Israeli company NSO Group, which claims it sells the software only to governments to track terrorists and criminals. However, Citizen Lab has found it on the phones of politicians, journalists, and dissidents—including Al-Masarir. When he first filed a lawsuit against Saudi Arabia, the state argued that it was protected under the State Immunity Act 1978. But in 2022 the court ruled that Saudi Arabia did not have immunity in this case. Since then, the Saudi government has not participated in any proceedings. The High Court judge wrote that Saudi Arabia had failed to present a defense or respond to the claim and had violated several court orders, indicating it did not intend to engage in the case. The court ordered the Saudi government to pay Al-Masarir more than £3 million in damages, though it remains unclear whether Saudi Arabia will comply. Al-Masarir says he is determined to enforce the judgment and, if necessary, will approach international courts. However, he believes no amount of money can compensate for the harm caused to his life. With a sorrowful voice he said, “What hurts most is that they did all this in Britain and still escaped punishment.”
By Hashim Khan about 11 hours ago in Chapters
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