A couple of Fridays ago, while making the dreaded trek down I-95 after work (for readers who don’t happen to live on the East Coast, this is pretty much what rush hour on the Beltway is like), NPR’s Science Friday came on the radio, kicking off with a segment on Martian meteorites. So what does that have to do with the Middle East? Well, the Martian meteorites being discussed on the show were those that fell in Morocco last July –a once-every-fifty-years event; and upon doing a little research, it turns out that meteorites of all origins –not just Martian– are not uncommon finds throughout the Sahara Desert in North Africa, though they’re rare enough to fetch a pretty penny. In fact, there’s a veritable black market for the sale of meteorites, much to scientists’ chagrin. According to a piece by The New York Times last year, this black market has seen an explosion in size “mainly because of a rush of new meteorites arriving from North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.” Why these areas? As the BBC explains , Meteorites land anywhere on earth and often end up in the oceans. On land, they are most likely to be found near the Equator because it has the largest surface area, and particularly in the Sahara, as the dry climate helps to preserve them. Providing they land on the flat hard pad rather than the soft sand dunes, meteorites are easy to spot in the desert and people will sometimes go in search of them if they see a meteor shower at night.

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Martian Meteors in Morocco: Hitting the Jackpot in North Africa

BEIRUT — Pressure mounted on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad Monday after the Jordanian king suggested he step down ahead of a crucial Arab meeting in Morocco on Wednesday aimed at exploring specific measures to sanction Syria for its ongoing crackdown against protesters. Jordan’s King Abdullah offered the most explicit condemnation yet of Assad by an Arab leader in an interview with the BBC. ‘If Bashar has the interest of his country, he would step down. But he would also create an ability to reach out and start a new phase of Syrian political life,” he said. Read full article > >

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Jordan’s King Abdullah suggests Assad step down as pressure on Syria mounts

Saudi Arabia is flexing its financial and diplomatic might across the Middle East in a bid to avert the overthrow of any more leaders struggling to calm turbulent republics.

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Saudi Arabia Scrambles to Limit Region’s Upheaval

On Wednesday, The Lede is following the uprising in Libya and protest movements in Bahrain, Egypt, Yemen, Morocco and Iran.

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The Lede: Latest Updates on the Uprising in Libya

This rich and lively novel’s hero is a chronicler of Moroccan lore.

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Walled City

Authorities arrested 27 people accused of operating a terror cell in the Western Sahara led by a member of the local branch of Al Qaeda.

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Morocco Says It Foiled Terror Cell in Sahara

A Moroccan terror network with plans to attack “hot spots across the world” has been dismantled, a state-run Morocco news agency said Monday.

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Terror network ‘dismantled’ in Morocco

A riot that left 11 Moroccan officers dead has renewed a long-festering conflict between Morocco, which governs Western Sahara, and the separatist Polisario Front, based in and supported by neighboring Algeria.

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Desert Land in Limbo Is Torn Apart

A rights group accuses Morocco of abusing hundreds of people detained after a raid on a protest camp in Western Sahara.

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Morocco ‘abused Sahara detainees’

Saudi’s Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz returns home from Morocco, as King Abdullah prepares to go to the US for medical treatment.

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Saudi crown prince returns home

The police in Morocco have broken up a cell of 18 militants planning a series of attacks in the country, officials say.

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Morocco ‘breaks up militant cell’