Egyptian blogger Alaa Abd El-Fattah released from prison

Egyptian blogger Alaa Abd El-Fattah released from prison

Shortly after being released from prison on Sunday, Alaa Abd El-Fattah joined fellow activists in Tahrir Square to protest against the ruling military. The prominent Egyptian blogger was sent to prison around two months ago for refusing to undergo questioning by the military prosecution for his alleged involvement in the violent clashes that erupted during a protest on the 9th October.

Thousands of Coptic Christians had gathered in Cairo that day to protest the burning of a church in southern Egypt. The demonstration degenerated into bloody conformations with riot police, 27 people were killed and hundreds of others were wounded. In this video, activists say the army opened fire on civilians that day.

Alaa Abd El-Fattah was accused of inciting violence at this particular demonstration, and during his time in prison became a symbolic figure of the moment against the ruling military. Since the ouster of Hosni Mubarak, the army has been under intense criticism for summoning thousands of civilians to appear before military tribunals.

The famous blogger may well still have to appear before a military court, as the charges against him have not been dropped. But in the meantime, Alaa Abd El-Fattah is enjoying getting to know his son who was born three weeks ago when the blogger was still behind bars. The child is called Khaled, in memory of Khaled Said, a young Egyptian who was killed by police officers in Alexandria in June 2010; the incident shocked the nation and was a contributing factor to the revolution.

Tebowing is the latest Internet craze

"Tebowing” is the latest craze to hit the web and consists of kneeling on the ground, bowing your head and pausing for a moment of contemplation or prayer; the pose was first seen on American football pitches and has since become highly popular. It all began on October 23rd with Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow, who completely turned the game around within the space of just a few minutes.

Before leading his team to victory, the number 15 got down on one knee and started praying, something he does at the beginning of each half and has made the player, whose parents are missionaries in the Philippines, into a superstar.

Ha has inspired other sports personalities, like Lindsey Vonn who adopted the same pose after winning the Alpine ski world championships, as did ice hockey player Colton Orr after scoring a penalty.

On this collaborative blog you can check out all sorts of “tebowing” photos taken by web users across the world, often in some pretty unusual places; like Antarctica, in an operating theatre or even with Father Christmas.

"Tebowing" has become a veritable social phenomenon, to such an extent that it now features in the “Global language Monitor” which documents, analyzes and tracks trends in language usage.

But not everyone approves of this new craze. Two New York college students were suspended from school recently for encouraging dozens of fellow students to take on the Tim Tebow pose in the school corridors.

2011 in Lego

To mark the end of 2011, British daily "The Guardian" has compiled a roundup of the best Lego structures capturing some of the major news stories of the past twelve months. From William and Kate’s wedding and the Occupy Wall Street movement in the US to the Libyan uprising and the UK riots; this is 2011 in Lego.

Now trending on social networks

"Rest in Peace Ben Breedlove" has become a popular trending term on social networks following Monday’s announcement the American teenager had died. The 17 year old boy suffered from a life threatening heart condition, and had become something of an online sensation with the moving videos he posted online in which he talked about his ordeal. His passing has touched the hearts of many, and tributes for Ben Breedlove have been pouring in online, hailing his bravery and spirit.

Video of the day

This young man from Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia gave his girlfriend a wedding proposal to remember, because he used a series of signs featuring well known Internet “memes” those highly popular images used to illustrate concepts or emotions. She was obviously won over because she accepted without any hesitation whatsoever.