In Lebanon youth relentlessly test the Mediterranean waters by diving into the sea at Raouché in the capital Beirut. Amazing photographer Tamara Abdul Hadi captured these beautiful moments in a photo series on Raouché.
by Simona Sikimic & Wassim Mroueh Daily Star Tuesday, November 16, 2010.
People across the country prepared for three days of relative calm as they planned to gather with family and friends Tuesday to celebrate Eid al-Adha.
The break is viewed by many as much-needed reprieve from the heated political rhetoric that has raged over the impending indictment from the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) and engulfed Lebanon in a spiral of mistrustful bickering, threatening to reignite sectarian strife.
Photo Massel Cassel A weapon is positioned at a UN base in southern Lebanon.
The international coverage of border clashes between Lebanese and Israeli military forces earlier this month may have suggested the confrontation was a mere squabble over cutting a tree that went awry in a “trigger-happy” and “conflict-prone” region. Less than a week later, one of several recent speeches by Hizballah’s Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah managed to get brief global media coverage. He presented visual and audio material suggesting that Israel may have assassinated former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri in February 2005.
Two young girls stood, as if frozen, starting below them at an ever vibrant Beirut. Their balcony, like the rest of their house and most of their refugee camp was of an indistinct color. It was dirty, as were their clothes. They, on the other hand, looked beautiful and bright, although their future didn’t.
Here in Bourj el-Barajneh, one of a dozen Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, time seems to have stood still for years. Generation after generation, children grow up in the same desperate reality, punished for crimes they did not commit, injured by a history not of their making. They stand on dirty balconies, cracked beyond repair, watching Beirut and the world go by.
Since the 12th of July 2010, workers of the FuturePipe Factory in North Lebanon have been holding an open sit-in protesting against the closure of the factory. The management of the factory had stated that the reason behind closure is due to significant losses.
Yet the workers clearly indicate that the factory is not making any losses. It is actually generating substantial profit. Only about a month ago, the owners of the factory bought new equipment at a cost of more than a million US dollars. They also opened branches in different Arab countries.
The Tadamon! collective wishes to express its full solidarity with Mr. Samah Idriss, editor of Al Adab (“Literature”) Magazine.
About Al Adab
Since its inception in 1953, this important Arabic cultural magazine has played a key role in encouraging progressive thought and debate in the Arab world.
Published in Beirut, Lebanon, Al Adab magazine has become a meeting place for critical reflection on grassroots democratic movements and a platform for voices decrying both colonization and dictatorship throughout the Middle East.
Canada has always been a favorite destination for many Lebanese emigrants. However, the country is now changing its immigration policies and is beginning to resemble a club open to a chosen few who possess the required skills, education and selective criteria to enter.
Last June 26, Jason Kenney, Canada’s minister for citizenship, immigration and multiculturalism, announced that to be eligible to apply as a federal skilled worker, immigrants must either have a job offer from a Canadian employer or experience in one of just 29 in-demand occupations.
Photo Stefan Christoff Palestinian youth walk on the streets of Burj el-Shemali camp.
Palestinian refugees, Lebanese activists and civil society organizations are gearing up for a demonstration on June 27 to demand civil rights for Palestinians in Lebanon.
Activists on Tuesday urged massive participation in the day’s protests in which participants will gather in Sidon, Tripoli, the Bekaa, Mount Lebanon and march toward the Parliament building in Beirut.
The activists were speaking before a Parliament session on Tuesday to discuss the civil rights of Palestinian refugees with the aim of pressuring representatives to amend laws discriminating against Palestinians.
Photo: Zoriah (c). Hezbollah logo painted on bullet pocked wall in Beirut, Lebanon.
Responding to the discussion on political Islam begun in the previous issue of Red Pepper, Bilal El-Amine considers the experience of Hizbullah in Lebanon
It is no doubt commendable that Red Pepper has tried to tackle the thorny issue of political Islam and in particular the Iranian experience, a subject that is greatly misunderstood in the west, even in left circles. But unfortunately the discussion created more spark than substance. This can be attributed to both Alastair Crooke’s rather abstract philosophical approach that often clashes with the reality of events on the ground and Azar Majedi’s shrill response, which reduces the legacy of the Islamic revolution in Iran to ‘30 years of bloodshed, oppression, misogyny, gender apartheid, stoning and mutilation’. One wonders how it is that women in Iran make up 65 per cent of university students under such conditions.
NAHR AL-BARED (North Lebanon) – The hip-hop beats ringing through the muddy, unlit streets of this burnt-out Palestinian refugee camp seem incongruous. But the rhymes are camp-grown – and courageous.
“I’m carrying worries / From inside a destroyed camp / I’m preparing an attack / Words that keep turning in my head / Nahr al-Bared is fenced-in with iron bars / In the newspapers they speak about suffering / Every word makes sense”.
