Al Jazeera World

While writing is normally a solitary profession, occasionally literary connections between great authors spark fiery, creative tension and sometimes storytelling brilliance.

This film is the tale of two such connections, both in North Africa in the mid-twentieth century.

The first is about the French writer, Jean Genet, and the Moroccan novelist, Mohamed Choukri.

Both were brought up in dysfunctional circumstances, devoid of life’s advantages, but managed to overcome their troubled early lives.

They met in Tangier where both rose to become leading, modern literary figures and lifelong friends.

The second tells the compelling story of the conflicting lives of Nobel laureate Albert Camus and author Kateb Yacine, set against the violent backdrop of the Algerian War of Independence.

Family, feuds and the future: the Tormsi family, struggling to make ends meet, reflects on the lack of opportunities in Tunisia today - and the older children especially weigh up their options.

There is little money for the family of six that is heavily dependent on their ageing father and the eldest son. Some hard choices need to be made. The two teenage boys consider whether to complete their education in Tunisia or risk everything by taking an illegal boat trip to Europe. They think they stand a better chance of getting European residency if they land in Europe as minors – but their agonising choice has no certain outcome.

The parents balance the reality of trying to feed their family against the aspirations of the younger generation. They want different opportunities, careers, experiences, and modern consumer goods - all of which are unattainable on a brick labourer’s wage in a struggling economy.

Like many around them, the Tormsi family have largely given up on Tunisian politics and are disillusioned about the near future. The 2011 revolution offered high hopes for the nation, but many people remain poor and this optimism has faded. Despite the difficulties, the family retain a degree of positivity and believe there are many other Tunisians worse off than the

Meteorites may be the only truly extra-terrestrial items it is possible to find, buy or own on Earth.

Their rarity has created a global trade, fed by a fascination with these dark rocks from outer space. Most meteorites on the market come from Morocco, where the inky-black rocks are easier to spot in the arid mountain landscape.

Nomads welcome these "gifts from the sky" and sell them to dealers and researchers.

However, the prices obtained by Moroccan nomads in the High Atlas Mountains are a fraction of those in the fashionable rock and crystal shops in Europe.

Courage, corruption, culture and competition – all major factors in the life and times of the first women’s football team in Somalia and its inspirational young coach, Shaima Sellal. The government gave the go-ahead for a women’s team in 1994, but it did not take off because of the continuing civil war. Football can be a casualty of the conflict in a "failed state".

But when an enthusiastic, 19-year-old player-coach arrived from Kenya in 2015, she kick-started the team and adopted the name the "Golden Girls". The team grew, and it applied to FIFA for funding to go to South Africa to play in a tournament in 2018 – but the local authorities siphoned off the cash. When Shaima questioned them, she received threats and had to flee back to Kenya.

Now Shaima arrives back in Somalia, firing on all cylinders. In this film, she and her players tell their personal stories of having to fight the prejudices of a traditional, conservative Muslim culture and for recognition by their families and society as a whole. But when they get the backing of the Somali National Women’s Organisation, they finally take off to compete in a tournament abroad. They might lose the final but they gain a lot of kudos and self-belief.

"We’re back again," says Shaima. "The Golden Girls are back again."

Millions of people from the Arab world have migrated or taken refuge in other countries over the decades, to escape war and persecution or for economic, educational and family reasons.

Arabs Abroad meets those who have built successful lives in countries outside the Middle East, focusing not on their journey but on their destination.

This episode meets two women who have overcome great odds to find success in their new lives abroad - one a politician and social activist in Iceland, the other an award-winning Moroccan-Dutch businesswoman who has created a multimillion-dollar business but still finds time to help disadvantaged young people in the Netherlands.