Slow internet is a hassle, like taxes or traffic. And while internet speed is (somewhat) unavoidable, it is still oh-so-satisfying to complain about.

In that spirit, here is rank of download speeds in the Middle East, according to Net Index, in October 2014. While internet speed is influenced by a lot of factors - upload speed, download speed, individual routers, ISP firewalls - we decided to look exclusively at download speeds, as it is impossible to combine and rank all these separate aspects. No data was available for Yemen, Bahrain or Palestine, so they are not included in this list.

 1. United Arab Emirates

Download speed: 26.65 Mbps

Overall: 31st of 187 Countries

 2. Oman

Download speed: 15.08 Mbps

Overall: 58th of 187 Countries

3. Turkey

Download speed: 13.3 Mbps

Overall: 67th of 187 Countries

4. Qatar

Download speed: 13.24 Mbps

Overall: 69th of 187 Countries

5. Saudi Arabia

Download speed: 10.5 Mbps

Overall: 83rd of 187 Countries

6. Kuwait

Download speed: 9.09 Mbps

Overall: 97th of 187 Countries

7. Libya

Download speed: 5.49 Mbps

Overall: 136th of 187 Countries

8. Iraq

Download speed: 5.11 Mbps

Overall: 139th of 187 Countries

9. Morocco

Download speed: 4.82 Mbps

Overall: 144th of 187 Countries

10. Jordan

4.77 Mbps

147th of 187 Countries

11. Islamic Republic of Iran

Download speed: 4.17 Mbps

Overall: 156th of 187 Countries

12. Tunisia

Download speed: 3.7 Mbps

Overall:159th of 187 Countries

13. Algeria

Download speed: 3.14 Mbps

Overall: 168th of 187 Countries

14. Lebanon

Download speed: 2.99 Mbps

Overall: 170th of 187 Countries

15. Egypt

Download speed: 2.8 Mbps

Overall: 173rd of 187 Countries

16. Syrian Arab Republic

Download speed: 1.39 Mbps

Overall: 187th of 187 Countries

Below is a graphic representation of this list, over the past two years. As you can see, there is a huge difference in speed between the top six (United Arab Emirates, Oman, Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait) and the bottom ten (Libya, Iraq, Morocco, Jordan, Iran, Tunisia, Algeria, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria) countries.

The civil war in Syria mostly likely accounts for their slow internet speeds, as Syrian download speeds have stagnated significantly since 2011. As for the top of the list, U.A.E.'s download speeds are incredibly fast, putting them in the same speed category as countries like the United Kingdom, France or Japan.

StepFeeders- do you live in one of the slowest internet countries? Or the fastest? Share your experiences in the comments below.