The creation of Fitna: Beirut on 7th May 2008.

“Once again, the reprisals thus deliberately inflicted on them failed to turn the people against the ‘terrorists’ in their midst. On the contrary, Qana, two-thirds Muslim, one-third Christians, became the tragic symbol of ‘national unity’ restored. Most Lebanese now supported the ‘Islamic resistance’ as never before. Christians as well as Muslims inundated the country’s numerous 24-hour chat shows with enquiries about the location of Hizbullah’s … Continue reading The creation of Fitna: Beirut on 7th May 2008.

حول وحول

:حلقة جديدة عم لاحظ انه في ناس بالوطن العربي، خصوصا بمنطقة بلاد الشام، مع الحرية وضد الانظمة القمعية بشراسة! كمان عم لاحظ انه نفس .الناس ما عندهم مشكلة مع قمع انظمة عربية اذا كان جاي القمع مع رزمة وراق خضر  عم استنتج من كل هالملاحظات انه هول الناس ما عندهم مشكلة مع القمع كقمع. في مبدأ بالموضوع. هني ضد القمع على الناشف.  اما اذا كان … Continue reading حول وحول

دخان مبين: حلقة بودكاست

من كم شهر حكينا بحلقة شب ديمقراطي عن السقوط الامريكاني اللي سرعه الطوفان. ومتل ما حيكنا صار، وسقط بايدن. او بالاحري غزة سقطت الجزار بايدن بسبب دعمه الغير مشروط للابادة الصهيو نازية على اهلنا بغزة من تسعة اشهر. واجت عملية الاغتيال علي ترامب سوجرتله النجاح. هون الاتي هو دخول الامبراطوري الامركانية بمرحلة الانفجار الداخلي ويبدو انهم رايحين ركض على الحرب الاهلية. طوفان الاقصي سرع عملية … Continue reading دخان مبين: حلقة بودكاست

Gaza: The Flood Opened The Abyss

Protests erupted all over the world (especially in Africa and Asia) on the night of the Baptist hospital massacre in Gaza. People united under one demand: the liberation of Palestine. Many protests, especially in Lebanon and Jordan, surrounded the US embassy. In Iraq the resistance fired a drone at the Green Zone.  These popular developments demand attention. If we look carefully at the bigger picture, … Continue reading Gaza: The Flood Opened The Abyss

Music Politics After the Arab Uprisings (Part 2)

[This article is Part 2 of 2 in this series on music politics in the wake of the 2011 Arab Uprisings. Click here to read Part 1 of the Post-Arab Uprisings: Music Politics series.]   A Real Mutation, a New Generation  In the post-Arab uprisings era, Arabic alternative artists, especially in the Gulf, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia and Lebanon, became a recognizable medium for promoting … Continue reading Music Politics After the Arab Uprisings (Part 2)

George Wassouf: the People’s Champ

Whenever memories take me back to the time when the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990) had just ended, one sound always echoes along the scenes: it is the special voice of that one singer who will always function as an anchor pinning down that particular slice of my remembrance of the past. Born in 1961 Kafroun, a Syrian village located in the countryside of Homs, George … Continue reading George Wassouf: the People’s Champ

Lebanon: Nationalist Stimulation, Syrian Dehumanizatio

During a misty summer dawn, on Friday 30 June 2017, Lebanese Army Forces (LAF) troops—reinforced with several tanks—stormed two Syrian refugee camps located on the outskirts of Arsal, in northeast Lebanon. The first, al-Nour Camp, is located in Jafar. The second, Qara, is located in Wadi al-Hosn. That dawn, LAF soldiers took their positions surrounding each of the camps and waited for the zero hour. … Continue reading Lebanon: Nationalist Stimulation, Syrian Dehumanizatio

الصيف الذي أنقذني فيه سلطان الطرب

في المعازف   أردت أن اكتب عن جورج وسوف لأردّ له الجميل. حكايتي مع الوسوف بدأت عندما كنت في العاشرة من عمري، في صيف ١٩٩٢. حين انتهت المدرسة سألت والدي “بابا هي الصيفية حنطلع عالصيد؟” فرد بنبرة حادة “إذا بدك تطلع عالصيد روح شتغل واجمع حق الخرطوش، أمك واخواتك أحق بالمصاري”. بعد هذا الإعلان انحصر تفكيري بكيفية تدبير كلفة الخرطوش. قلت لنفسي حازماً ‘بدنا نطلع عالبقاع ونروح نتصيد’، … Continue reading الصيف الذي أنقذني فيه سلطان الطرب

Palestinian refugee who fled Syria recounts outpouring of support from EI readers

My latest for Electronic Intifada an update on Um Mohammad and her son. “Suddenly my phone started ringing, some spoke to me in Arabic, others in broken Arabic, and one caller didn’t speak Arabic at all. Ya imi [O mother] there are still good-doers in this world,” Um Muhammad remarked with grace while we stood on the street of a busy vegetable market at the entrance … Continue reading Palestinian refugee who fled Syria recounts outpouring of support from EI readers

Another Car Bomb Another Mysterious Assassination

Brigadier Wissam al-Hassan was born in 1965 in the village of Betwartij, Koura, North of Lebanon, a married man and a father of two boys. He enrolled in the security service in 1983 as a student lieutenant, and moved up the ranks until he was assassinated as a General. After his death he was promoted to the rank of Brigidier, a rank that he had … Continue reading Another Car Bomb Another Mysterious Assassination