Over the last decade, there has been mounting interest in the uses of Information Communication Technologies - ICTs - [satellites, computers, telephones, faxes, and the Internet] in human rights and developmental movements and campaigns around the world. The Internet is the quintessence of this new ICT technology, with its speed, lack of centralization, and citizen-to-citizen connectivity. According to some analysts, the Internet has shifted power to access and present information from governments to people, which gave rise to the hope, and fuel to the claim, that it is indeed a possible democratizing force. While there is truth to those claims, one must not lose sight of the problems and challenges that impede such progress. After all, the Internet continues to be an elitist tool whose access, cost, and skills make it prohibitive to many in the Global South. It is specifically controversial in the area of development ? should we use development in a much narrower sense - where the rate of illiteracy is high in some poor countries, not to mention the rate of computer literacy and technical skills. Moreover, since the mid-1990s, a number of governments and international institutions have sought to control the Internet through laws and regulations. They have been quite successful. The campaign against terrorism and the security excesses it produces have speeded up the trend. One year after the tragic events in New York and Washington, the Internet can be added to the list of collateral damage caused by the general spate of security measures. As a result, basic cyber-freedoms have been cut back. This paper deals mainly with the Internet as a communication medium, and its impact on human rights and development campaigns in the Middle East. I argue that while it is too early to assess the impact of the Internet on the Middle East, there is enough evidence to suggest that unlike other media, it has exceptional potential because of, among other things, its interactive nature. While it is true that to-date it has not been used effectively by civil society, given a comprehensive strategy, it could be a source of unimaginable strength and progress. I also claim that currently the obstacles that impede the democratic progress in the Middle East, are not easy to overcome, especially in the short run; not least among them is the clear evidence of global arrogance, demonstrated in English language hegemony on the Internet. This paper is divided into four sections. The first section provides a background on Internet usage in the Middle East and compares it with international trends and statistics. The second analyzes the human rights movement in the Middle East, and shows how the Internet has been used to-date by civil society. The third will discuss the potential of the Internet in the Middle East as an enabling medium, and will highlight the challenges facing such a potential. The last section highlights specific case studies from Egypt, Jordan, and the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, and how the Internet has been used in those countries to promote human rights issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]