Alexander McNabb

Back in Beirut: Food, Friendship and Stunning Views

Back in Beirut: Food, Friendship and Stunning Views

ALEXANDER MCNABB: It’s impossible to resist Beirut’s diverse and immutable charms. So why bother?

 Ramzy Baroud

The Predicament of Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon

The Predicament of Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon

RAMZY BAROUD: 450,000 UN-registered refugees live in Lebanon. They subsist in poverty, living in 12 concentration style camps, denied basic rights and lack nominal political horizons.

 Common Ground News Service

Tales from Prison: A New Twist on ‘1001 Nights’

Tales from Prison: A New Twist on ‘1001 Nights’

NADA AKL, CGNEWS: Rather than the endless squabbles of politicians which dominate Lebanese debate we can now hear other voices.

 M.-Lynx-Qualey

Banned: A Day In The Life of a Kuwaiti Censor

Banned: A Day In The Life of a Kuwaiti Censor

M. LYNX-QUALEY: Kuwait always features highly in lists of press freedom in the Arab world but it keeps a tight rein on literature

 Susie of Arabia

Princess Basma: An Insider Speaks Out

Princess Basma: An Insider Speaks Out

SUSIE OF ARABIA: She is the niece of the current ruler of Saudi Arabia but is unafraid to point out the shortcomings she sees in the Kingdom.

 Common Ground News Service

“Picture an Arab Man”: See What Google Says

“Picture an Arab Man”: See What Google Says

NADA AKL, CGNEWS: A project by an Iraqi Canadian photojournalist confronts cliche and stereotype

 Common Ground News Service

Cyber Campaigns ‘Limited to Elite’ in Arab World

Cyber Campaigns ‘Limited to Elite’ in Arab World

NADA AKL, CGNEWS: Despite being the fifth most spoken language in the world, just over 1% of content on the web is in Arabic

 Rachel McArthur

Fadel: Genuine or ‘Bandwagon Jumper’?

Fadel: Genuine or ‘Bandwagon Jumper’?

RACHEL MC ARTHUR: He’s been getting a lot of attention but what’s really behind his criticism of Basher al Assad?

 Alexander McNabb

‘Having Fun With Evi’: And Jealous No More

‘Having Fun With Evi’: And Jealous No More

ALEXANDER MCNABB: You’ve had to listen to how much fun your i-Phone dabbing friends have with Siri. Now it’s your turn.

 Tabsir

The Shadid Legacies: Linked by a Common Humanity

The Shadid Legacies: Linked by a Common Humanity

ANOUAR MAJID, TABSIR: The sudden demise of Anthony Shadid calls to mind the work of one of his relations.

 Michael J. Totten

Humour: A Potent Weapon Against Assad?

Humour: A Potent Weapon Against Assad?

MICHAEL J. TOTTEN: There isn’t a lot to laugh about in Syria at the moment but try telling that to the Syrians themselves.

 Juan Cole

The Voice No More: Arab World Mourns Whitney Houston

The Voice No More: Arab World Mourns Whitney Houston

JUAN COLE: Arab musicians and artists have been fulsome in their praise of Whitney Houston who died yesterday.

 Juan Cole

Arab World Christians Shaping Own Destiny

Arab World Christians Shaping Own Destiny

JUAN COLE: The some 12 million Arab Christians (out of plus 350 million Arabs) are very much agents in their own fates. They make alliances, and sometimes switch them.

 Steve Royston

Kingmakers, Invention of the Modern Middle East

Kingmakers, Invention of the Modern Middle East

STEVE ROYSTON: Book Review: Here you’ll find the Britons and Americans – proconsuls, agents provocateurs, spies, politicians – that shaped the Middle East.

 Juan Cole

Gingrich’s Crusade: It’s not an ‘Arab Spring’, it’s ‘an anti-Christian Spring’

Gingrich’s Crusade: It’s not an ‘Arab Spring’, it’s ‘an anti-Christian Spring’

JUAN COLE: In their quest to find an ABM (‘Anyone But Mitt’), the American Right have hit upon Gingrich. Let’s hear what he has to say about the MidEast.

 thehedonista

Eid is Just Around the Corner: So Where to Go?

Eid is Just Around the Corner: So Where to Go?

THE HEDONISTA: Eid al Adha has been my favourite – the last few years it has fallen far enough out of summer it occurs with the change of season.

 James Mullan

News Analysis: Hezbollah ‘Telco War’ on the Brink?

News Analysis: Hezbollah ‘Telco War’ on the Brink?

NEWS ANALYSIS: Hezbollah’s plan to install a private telecommunications network in Lebanon is facing stiff opposition from residents in its path.

 Juan Cole

The Inevitably Brutal End of Qaddafi’s ‘Cult’

The Inevitably Brutal End of Qaddafi’s ‘Cult’

JUAN COLE: The demise of Qaddafi means there’s a contiguous bloc of 100 million Arabs who’ve thrown off dictatorship. The violent end was inevitable.

 Common Ground News Service

The Women Changing Lebanon Through Football

The Women Changing Lebanon Through Football

JUUL PETERSEN, CGNEWS: Young women throughout Lebanon are benefitting hugely from an initiative to set up sports clubs throughout the country

 Syria News Wire

Sectarianism: The ‘Elephant in the Room’ in Syria

Sectarianism: The ‘Elephant in the Room’ in Syria

NEWS FROM SYRIA: There have been a series of assassinations in Syria over the past week which have borne comparison with the sectarian vendettas that still beset neighbouring Iraq.