https://www.middleeastmonitor.com Latest news from the Middle East and North Africa Tue, 08 Aug 2023 14:06:58 +0000 en-GB Middle East Monitor 30 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.2.2 https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/favicon.png?fit=32%2C32&quality=85&strip=all&zoom=1&ssl=1 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com 32 32 116394717 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230802-refugees-as-grassroots-activists-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-anne-irfan/ Wed, 02 Aug 2023 15:00:41 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=656121 The international humanitarian body UNRWA was created to support Palestine refugees functioned as a surrogate state, however Palestinian refugees have continued to demand their political rights while resisting the UN's categorisation of their plight as an apolitical humanitarian issue. Join us as we speak to Dr Anne Irfan about her book 'Refuge and Resistance: Palestinians and the international refugee system' to discover how engagement with world politics was driven as much by the refugee grassroots as by the upper echelons of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), making refugee groups important actors in global politics, not simply aid recipients. Dr Anne Irfan is Lecturer in Interdisciplinary Race, Gender and Postcolonial Studies at UCL. Her work examines colonial legacies in displacement and bordering […]]]> 656121 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230726-muhammad-ali-pasha-the-man-who-made-egypt-memo-in-conversation-with-khaled-fahmy/ Wed, 26 Jul 2023 15:00:51 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=654352 In 1805, an illiterate Turkish-speaking Greek-born military officer, Muhammad Ali Pasha, became governor of Egypt. He reigned for 43-years and by the time of his death in 1848 Egypt was a profoundly different place. Hospitals, schools, law courts, factories and many new institutions sprang up. Muhammad Ali Pasha, who often likened himself to Napoleon and Alexander the Great, was also brutal. In 1811, he invited the heads of Egypt's military aristocratic elite, the Mamluks, to celebrations at the Cairo Citadel, where Ali's troops gunned them down. MEMO speaks to historian Khaled Fahmy to help us understand this violent, controversial and enigmatic man and his impact on Egypt. Fahmy is Edward Keller Professor of North Africa and the Middle East at Tufts University. Educated […]]]> 654352 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230719-the-water-crisis-and-the-middle-east-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-mohammed-mahmoud-2/ Wed, 19 Jul 2023 15:00:13 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=652855 Join us for a conversation with climate change expert Dr Mohammed Mahmoud as we discuss the impact of water shortages on the Middle East and the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD)'s effect on Egypt's water supply and COP28 being hosted in the UAE. Mohammed is the Director of the Climate and Water Program and a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute. His areas of expertise include climate change adaptation, water policy analysis and scenario planning. He has conducted water management research and work for the Middle East and North Africa region; most extensively on the Nile River Basin. His research on the Nile River Basin focused on the development of water resources in the Basin, analysis of Nile water- […]]]> 652855 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230712-israels-role-in-the-erasure-of-jewish-arabs-from-iraq-memo-in-conversation-with-avi-shlaim/ Wed, 12 Jul 2023 15:00:02 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=651004 Born in Iraq, Avi Shlaim spoke Arabic at home and says he had more in common with his Arab compatriots than his coreligionists from Eastern Europe, but Israel won't allow people to believe Arab Jews lived safely in the Middle East, he says. Join us as we speak to Professor Shlaim about his new book 'Three Worlds: Memoirs of an Arab-Jew' and how he uncovered proof that Israel was behind bombings in Baghdad that led to the mass exodus of Jews from Iraq. Avi Shlaim is an Emeritus Professor of International Relations at the University of Oxford and fellow of the British Academy. His main research interest is the Arab-Israeli conflict. He has authored numerous books, including 'The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World', […]]]> 651004 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230705-quashing-the-debating-on-palestinian-rights-memo-in-conversation-with-giovanni-fassina/ Wed, 05 Jul 2023 15:00:35 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=648951 Join us for a conversation with Giovanni Fassina as we discuss how the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism is increasingly being used to suppress advocacy for Palestinian rights. Fassina serves as Programme Director of the European Legal Support Centre (ELSC) and oversees the legal team and the strategic litigation cases at the ELSC. Previously, he trained as a lawyer in Italy, specialising in cases related to mass torts litigation, Business and Human Rights and civil liability before domestic courts and the European Court of Human Rights. Giovanni graduated in International Law from the University of Trento and worked for many years in the Occupied Palestinian Territory in the development sector. MORE >>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 648951 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230628-peace-and-islamic-law-memo-in-conversation-with-kaleem-hussein/ Wed, 28 Jun 2023 15:00:23 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=647605 Join us for a conversation with Kaleem Hussein as we discuss his book 'Peace and Reconciliation in International and Islamic Law' and how the sources of international law and Islamic Law help or hinder the pathway towards peace and reconciliation in selected conflicts. Focusing on Afghanistan, Palestine-Israel and Kashmir, we will discuss how the depiction, interpretation and understanding of Islamic law is often misconstrued and mis-represented across many mainstream media platforms. While also looking at the role of religion and faith in the process of conflict resolution, de-escalation of violence, conflict transformation, as well as creative non-violent contributions that can be inculcated through the prism of interfaith and intra-faith dialogue in the peacebuilding process. Hussain is a British writer, multi-disciplinary change […]]]> 647605 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230621-rumi-lost-in-translation-memo-in-conversation-with-muhammad-ali-mojaradi/ Wed, 21 Jun 2023 15:00:13 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=645956 The 13th century Islamic jurist and mystic Jalal Al-Din Muhammad Rumi is frequently dubbed 'America's best selling poet' and 800 years after his death he has acquired a large following among wellness influencers and spirituality shoppers in the West. However, translations into English of Rumi's work often obscure or erase his Islamic background and Muslim beliefs, instead depicting him as an anti-religion and pro-spiritual figure. These erroneous depictions have sparked a conversation about who the real Rumi was and what his poetry really says. Join us as we speak to Muhammad Ali Mojaradi, founder of the Instagram and Twitter page Persian Poetics, which aims to provide authentic translations of Persian poetry into English, introducing new audiences to Persian-language literary tradition and heritage. We discuss […]]]> 645956 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230614-memo-in-conversation-with-prof-khairudin-aljunied/ Wed, 14 Jun 2023 15:00:59 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=644668 Join us for a conversation with Professor Khairudin Aljunied as we discuss his latest book 'Shapers of Islam in Southeast Asia', which attempts to capture the progressive and pluralistic nature of Islamic conformism in Southeast Asia from the mid-20th century onwards, as well as the impact of the Middle East on Malaysian scholars and vice versa. Prof Aljunied is a Professor at the University of Malaya and Senior Fellow at the Alwaleed Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University. He's the author of several books including 'Colonialism, Violence and Muslims in Southeast Asia', 'Muslim Cosmopolitanism: Southeast Asian Islam in Comparative Perspective', and 'Hamka and Islam: Cosmopolitan Reform in the Malay World'. MORE >>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 644668 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230607-the-battle-for-beiruts-urban-spaces-a-conversation-with-mona-harb/ Wed, 07 Jun 2023 15:00:41 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=642644 Nothing symbolises corruption, greed, sectarianism, foreign intervention and neoliberal transformation quite like Beirut. And nothing symbolises resistance, resilience, communal solidarity and a thirst for change quite like Beirut. Join us as we talk to Mona Harb about urban politics in the Lebanese capital. Mona Harb is tenured professor of urban studies and politics at the American University of Beirut (AUB) where she is also co-founder and research lead at the Beirut Urban Lab. Her research investigates urban governance and city-making in contexts of dysfunctional states and disasters, and the role of urban activists in collective action and oppositional politics. She is the author of Le Hezbollah à Beirut: de la banlieue à la ville, co-author of Leisurely Islam: Negotiating Geography and Morality in Shi'i South Beirut, co-editor of Local Governments […]]]> 642644 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230531-syria-assad-and-the-arab-league-memo-in-conversation-with-lina-khatib/ Wed, 31 May 2023 15:00:11 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=640032 On 19 May 2023 Syria's leader Bashar Al-Assad arrived in Jeddah for the Arab League summit. It was the first time Damascus attended the summit since being expelled from the league in 2011. Despite hundreds of thousands of deaths, millions displaced, thousands incarcerated, a ruined economy and a country battered and bruised, Riyadh has welcomed Syria back into the fold of Arab Nations. Many see this as a victory for Bashar Al-Assad but are they right? Join us for a conversation with Dr Lina Khatib. Khatib is the Director of the SOAS Middle East Institute and MBI Al Jaber Chair in Middle East Studies as well as Professor of Practice at the Department of Politics and International Studies at SOAS […]]]> 640032 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230524-the-backlash-against-palestine-solidarity-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-hil-aked/ Wed, 24 May 2023 15:00:45 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=638052 Join us in conversation with Dr Hil Aked as we discuss how Israel's friends in the West are helping maintain its apartheid regime and reverse widening support for the Palestinian cause in Britain. Dr Aked is a writer and author of 'Friends of Israel: The backlash against Palestine solidarity' which  traces the history and changing fortunes of key actors within the British Zionist movement in the context of the Israeli government's contemporary efforts to repress a rising tide of solidarity with Palestinians expressed through the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. An investigative researcher with a background in political sociology, Aked holds a PhD from the University of Bath and an MSc from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. […]]]> 638052 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230517-poetry-a-voice-for-the-oppressed-in-australia-and-palestine-memo-in-conversation-with-sara-saleh/ Wed, 17 May 2023 15:00:15 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=635906 Much like Palestinians, Australia's First Nation people – known as the Aboriginals – and Torres Strait Islander peoples have suffered dispossession, violence and colonialism from the European settlers. Pro-Palestine and pro-First Nation activism are connected in their fight for justice against settler colonialism. Helping us connect the dots is poet and human rights lawyer Sara Saleh. Join us as we explore how poetry and art enable activism. Sara Saleh is a writer, human rights lawyer, organiser and daughter of Lebanese-Palestinian-Egyptian migrants based on Bidjigal land (Sydney, Australia). Her poems, short stories and essays have been published nationally and internationally in English and Arabic. She is co-editor of the groundbreaking 2019 anthology Arab, Australian, Other: Stories on Race and Identity. Sara made history as the first poet […]]]> 635906 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230510-silencing-criticism-of-israel-in-the-classroom-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-lara-sheehi/ Wed, 10 May 2023 15:00:34 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=633918 Dr Lara Sheehi was recently cleared of allegations of anti-Semitism brought against her by the notorious anti-Palestinian lobby group StandWithUs. Join us as we discuss concerns over the conflation of anti-Semitism with criticism of Israel and its effect on education. Lara Sheehi, PsyD, is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology at the George Washington University's Professional Psychology Program. She teaches decolonial, liberatory and anti-oppressive theories and approaches to clinical treatment, case conceptualisation and community consultation. She is the president-elect of the Society for Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Psychology (APA Division 39), and the chair of the Teachers' Academy of the American Psychoanalytic Association. She is co-editor of Studies in Gender and Sexuality and co-editor of CounterSpace in Psychoanalysis, Culture, and Society. Lara is on the advisory […]]]> 633918 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230503-i-am-from-palestine-memo-in-conversation-with-filmmakers-rifk-ebeid-and-iman-zawahry/ Wed, 03 May 2023 15:00:22 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=632075 Join us as we speak to the filmmakers behind 'I am from Palestine', a new animated children's film following the story of Saamidah, a young Palestinian-American girl, as she deals with questions about where she comes from and where Palestine is on a map. Iman Zawahry and Rifk Ebeid discuss the ups and downs of making a short feature and telling Palestinian stories through film. Zawahry is one of the first hijabi American-Muslim filmmakers. She has worked on numerous films that have played at over 150 venues worldwide. She's an Emmy award winner, Princess Grace Award recipient, a Lincoln Center Artist Academy Fellow, and Sundance Momentum Fellow and Sundance Universal Fellow. She is also the co-creator of the first American Muslim film grant […]]]> 632075 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230427-sudan-in-crisis-memo-in-conversation-with-ola-ibrahim/ Thu, 27 Apr 2023 15:00:48 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=630976 Since 15 April, major clashes have erupted in a number of Sudanese states between the army, led by Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo 'Hemedti'. Hundreds have been killed and wounded, most of whom are civilians. Thousands have fled and the country sits at the precipice of a civil war. Join us as we talk to Ola Ibrahim, a member of the Khartoum Resistance Committee. The Khartoum Resistance Committee was formed as an informal, grassroots network of Sudanese residents that started organising civil disobedience campaigns against the government of Omar Al-Bashir in 2013 and became part of a major organised network playing a key role during the Sudanese Revolution which ousted him in […]]]> 630976 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230426-christianity-under-attack-in-jerusalem-memo-in-conversation-with-john-and-samuel-munayer/ Wed, 26 Apr 2023 15:00:27 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=631346 Israeli occupation forces blocked the route for the Holy Saturday procession through Jerusalem and attacked Christian worshippers who were taking part. Such events have previously been highlighted as some of the reasons why Christians are leaving the occupied territories. With these attacks on the increase, MEMO speaks to John and Samuel Munayer, Palestinian theologians, about the situation of Christians in Jerusalem and what the future holds for them. John S. Munayer is a Palestinian theologian from Jerusalem who holds degrees from King's College London, the University of Edinburgh, and VU University Amsterdam. John is currently a lecturer at the Bethlehem Bible College and editor of the Journal of Palestinian Christianity. John is also active in several Palestinian Christian initiatives in Palestine. Samuel S. Munayer is a Palestinian theologian from Jerusalem. After completing […]]]> 631346 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230419-a-glimmer-of-hope-for-yemen-memo-in-conversation-with-hisham-al-omeisy/ Wed, 19 Apr 2023 15:00:29 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=629859 Hisham Al-Omeisy is not surprised the Saudis are sitting down for peace talks with the Houthis, but is under no illusions that the talks will resolve the conflict. Hisham Al-Omeisy is a Yemeni conflict analyst and consultant, currently based in Washington DC. He has worked with the UN and other international bodies in Yemen. Hisham has been working to promote a peace process that is bottom-up and puts ordinary Yemenis first, and has discussed this plan with government officials in the UK and elsewhere. Since the start of the conflict, Hisham has been an outspoken critic of both sides. He was arrested by the Houthis in 2017 and detained for five months.  MORE>>> MEMO in conversation with ]]> 629859 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230412-lebanon-a-failed-state-memo-in-conversation-with-mohammed-kozbar/ Wed, 12 Apr 2023 15:00:29 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=628630 Join us for a conversation with Mohammed Kozbar as we discuss the economic and political collapse in Lebanon and what's next in the country's future. A Lebanese national, Kozbar is the Deputy Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) and the Chairman of Finsbury Park Mosque, one of the most prominent Islamic centres in the UK, and a member of the National Council of MCB. He holds a master's degree in Charity Management at St. Mary's University. Kozbar is also a member of the Islington Faiths Forum representing the Muslim Community in North London and was a regular IB Times UK and MEE columnist. He sits on the diversity panel of the ITV London news and is a member of the Police Islington […]]]> 628630 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230405-birth-defects-as-a-result-of-war-memo-in-conversation-with-kali-rubaii/ Wed, 05 Apr 2023 15:00:46 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=625888 Join us as we discuss the impact of the US invasion and occupation of Iraq on health and environment. Our guest is Kali Rubaii who has documented birth defects, diseases, destruction of farmland and climate change. Kali Rubaii is an assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology at Purdue University. She is currently conducting two research projects: Taking toxicity as an analytic for material politics, she is working with a team of doctors, epidemiologists, and environmental activists to document the links between the epidemic of birth defects in Fallujah and military environmental damage. She is also researching the corporate-military enterprise of concrete production in post-invasion Iraq and how it enforces global regimes of class and citizenship. MORE >>> The EU and […]]]> 625888 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230329-is-laziness-a-new-phenomenon-memo-in-conversation-with-melis-hafez/ Wed, 29 Mar 2023 15:00:16 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=619281 Join us for a conversation with Dr Melis Hafez on how the concept of laziness and productivity took off in the 19th century Ottoman Empire. Hafez is an Associate Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University. She received a PhD in History from UCLA. Her research is focused on the cultural history of the Ottomans during its last century when the empire experienced land losses, social and economic upheavals, wars and violence, along with extensive, transformative reforms. Her book 'Inventing Laziness: The Culture of Productivity in Late Ottoman Society' was published in 2021 and traces the development of a binary between work and laziness during the last century of the Ottoman Empire. Correction: Dr. Hafez would like to offer a correction. After […]]]> 619281 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230322-the-eu-and-israels-right-wing-coalition-memo-in-conversation-with-rasmus-alenius-boserup/ Wed, 22 Mar 2023 16:00:23 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=618896 Join us for a conversation with Executive Director of EuroMed Rights Rasmus Alenius Boserup as we discuss how the EU and European member states have reacted to the far-right Israeli government and how the bloc could act. Boserup previously worked as senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies focusing on power and politics in the Middle East and North Africa. Prior to this, he served as Executive Director of the Danish-Egyptian Dialogue Institute in Cairo. He holds a doctoral degree in culture and civilisation from École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris and a PhD in Arabic Studies from the University of Copenhagen. MORE >>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 618896 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230315-iraqi-poetry-revolution-danger-and-resistance-memo-in-conversation-with-kevin-jones/ Wed, 15 Mar 2023 16:00:38 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=617615 Join us for a discussion with Kevin Jones on Iraqi poetry, British colonisation, national building and resistance. Jones is an Associate Professor and the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the History Department at the University of Georgia. He earned his PhD in History from the University of Michigan in 2013 and served as Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the George Washington University Institute for Middle East Studies in 2013-2014 before accepting his current position at the University of Georgia. His first book, 'The Dangers of Poetry: Culture, Politics, and Modernity in Iraq', demonstrates the unique contribution of nationalist and communist poets to the cultural politics of anticolonialism and national liberation in twentieth-century Iraq. MORE >>> The history of medicine before colonisation: MEMO in […]]]> 617615 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230308-palestinian-engineer-sets-her-sights-on-the-stars-memo-in-conversation-with-bayan-abu-salameh/ Wed, 08 Mar 2023 16:00:20 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=619674 Join us this International Women's Day as we talk to Bayan Abu Salameh who is working on building and launching Palestine's first satellite and talking about the challenges she has faced and barriers she has broken as a female Palestinian engineer. A mechanical engineer graduate from Birzeit University, Abu Salameh – who is from a small village near Jenin called Faqua – was awarded the Chevening Scholarship, funded by the British government, to study at Queen Mary University, where she successfully designed and analysed what she hopes will be the first Palestinian cube satellite and named it Palestine_1. She is now completing her post graduate studies at Imperial College London and undertaking further research on her space project which will […]]]> 619674 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230301-the-imam-of-the-christians-memo-in-conversation-with-philip-wood/ Wed, 01 Mar 2023 16:00:36 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=618416 Join us in our discussion with Professor Philip Wood on medieval Arab Christian political thought and his book 'The Imam of the Christians'. Wood is Tejpar Professor of Inter-religious studies at the Aga Khan University Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations. He is also Head of Education for the MA programme in Muslim cultures. A historian of the Middle East, he focuses on the experience of Christians in the early Middle Ages (roughly 500-900). His most recent monograph, 'The Imam of the Christians: The World of Dionysius of Tel-Mahre' considers the experience of Christians under the Abbasid caliphate. He is also interested in contemporary discussions of social integration and religious education and has recently published an edited volume on theory […]]]> 618416 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230222-memo-in-conversation-with-prof-justin-stearns/ Wed, 22 Feb 2023 16:00:44 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=613346 Join us for a conversation with Justin Stearns as he tells us about his work on 17th century Morocco, the history of the natural sciences and medicine before colonisation and the state of archives in the Arab World. Stearns received his BA in English and History from Dartmouth College in 1998, and a PhD in Near Eastern Studies from Princeton University in 2007. He is Professor of Arab Crossroads Studies at New York University Abu Dhabi.  His research interests focus on the intersection of law, science and theology in the pre-modern Muslim Middle East. He has written a number of books including 'Infectious Ideas: Contagion in Pre-Modern Islamic and Christian Thought in the Western Mediterranean' and 'Revealed Sciences: The Natural Sciences […]]]> 613346 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230215-earthquake-relief-efforts-memo-in-conversation-with-mehmet-kaplan/ Wed, 15 Feb 2023 18:00:26 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=615389 Join us for a live conversation with Executive Director Muslim Aid Sweden Mehmet Kaplan as we discuss the relief efforts on the ground in Turkiye following the deadly earthquakes that rocked the country and neighbouring Syria on 6 February 2023. Born in Gaziantep, Turkiye, Kaplan moved to Sweden in 1972 and later studied environmental engineering. He served as Sweden's Minister for Housing and Urban Development from 2014 to 2016 and is a member of the Swedish Green Party. He is currently on the ground in Turkiye helping with relief efforts.   MORE >>> MEMO IN CONVERSATION]]> 615389 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230208-memo-in-conversation-with-hassan-al-kontar/ Wed, 08 Feb 2023 16:00:27 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=612345 After having lived in an airport for up to seven months, his days punctuated by the rhythm of ceaseless flights and footsteps, Syrian refugee Hassan Al-Kontar, has finally become a Canadian citizen. Famously known as "The Airport man", the 41-year-old made headlines in 2018, when he was stranded and stuck at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia for about seven months. "I did not decide to stay at the airport; I was out of options after the system decided for me. Those who were fighting for power decided for me," said Hassan. "I was not in control of my own destiny. I was left with no choice but to stay at the airport, despite trying everything." Hassan was born in […]]]> 612345 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230201-writing-history-using-iraqi-voices-memo-in-conversation-with-ross-caputi/ Wed, 01 Feb 2023 16:00:58 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=611234 Join us for a live conversation with Ross Caputi as we discuss the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, the siege of Fallujah and building an oral history archive made up of Iraqi voices and stories. Caputi served in the US marine corps and was stationed in Iraq, but grew disillusioned with the war and became an anti-war activist. He is a doctoral candidate in the Department of History at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and the Director of Archives at Archive Iraq. Ross' research and writing ranges from US foreign policy, with a focus on the Anglo-American invasion and occupation of Iraq, to the social history of Italian dialects. He is also the main author of The Sacking of Fallujah: A People's History (2019). […]]]> 611234 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230125-memo-in-conversation-with-seema-golestaneh-on-iran-sufism-and-everyday-mysticism/ Wed, 25 Jan 2023 16:00:46 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=609038 Seema Golestaneh is Assistant Professor of Near Eastern Studies at Cornell University. She holds a PhD in anthropology from Columbia University, and her research investigates contemporary trends in Islamic thought in the Persian-speaking world. Her first book, Unknowing and the Everyday, traces the social and material life of mystical knowledge in post-1979 Iran.  Her new project examines intellectual histories of Afghanistan, with a focus on Islamic leftist thought of the 1980s and 1990s. MORE >>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 609038 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230118-will-israel-be-tried-at-the-icj-a-conversation-with-hugh-lovatt/ Wed, 18 Jan 2023 16:00:52 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=605972 MEMO in Conversation With]]> 605972 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230111-being-a-palestinian-journalist-in-the-west-bank-memo-in-conversation-with-nida-ibrahim/ Wed, 11 Jan 2023 16:00:32 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=604583   Nida Ibrahim was a colleague of Shireen Abu Akleh, who was murdered by Israel sniper fire last year, Ibrahim says "her death made me more dedicated to telling the story of our people, like Shireen who remained objective and Palestinian." Ibrahim previously worked for the BBC and other regional news sites and broadcasters. MEMO in Conversation With]]> 604583 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230104-jokes-israeli-politics-and-coexistence-memo-in-conversation-with-noam-shuster-eliassi/ Wed, 04 Jan 2023 17:03:24 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=602947 Join us for a live conversation with Israeli stand-up comedian and activist Noam Shuster-Eliassi who grew up speaking Arabic and was often mistaken for a Palestinian. We will be discussing the new Israeli government, doing comedy in Arabic, English and Hebrew and going viral on Arabic-language social media. Noam was raised in Neve Shalom/Wahat as-Salam or the Oasis of Peace, a community in Jerusalem where Jews and Arabs live together by choice. Born of an Iranian-Jewish mother and Romanian father whose parents survived the Holocaust, Noam became a prolific activist and undertook a fellowship at the Harvard School of Divinity in Religion, Conflict and Peace Initiative. Some of her comedy sketches which have gone viral in the Arab world including her marriage proposal on Israeli television to […]]]> 602947 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20221214-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-suja-sawafta-2/ Wed, 14 Dec 2022 14:00:27 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=600513   Watch our conversation with Dr Suja Sawafta where we will be discussing granting Palestinians permission to narrate their history through popular culture and Nexflix's recent offering Farha. Sawafta is an Assistant Professor of Arabic Studies in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at the University of Miami. She is currently working on her first book project which examines the impact of exile, intellectual commitment and political dissent in the works of the formative Saudi-Iraqi novelist Abdulrahman Munif. She teaches interdisciplinary content courses on literature and cinema as well as Arabic and French language.   WATCH: Israel Minister criticises Jordan film depicting brutality of Israeli soldiers]]> 600513 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20221123-lebanon-political-elites-revolution-and-crisis-memo-in-conversation-with-christiana-parreira/ Wed, 23 Nov 2022 16:00:34 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=594766 Christiana Parreira is an Assistant Professor in the Department of International Relations and Political Science at the Geneva Graduate Institute. Her research focuses on the role of local political institutions and actors in governance, looking primarily at post-conflict contexts in the Middle East and North Africa. Her forthcoming book project examines how local governments and elections facilitated predatory state-building practices in Lebanon. In other research, she examines determinants of governance quality and distributive outcomes in Lebanon, Iraq and elsewhere in the Global South. She received her PhD from Stanford University in 2020. Before joining the Graduate Institute, she served as a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University and a pre-doctoral associate at the Harvard […]]]> 594766 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20221102-the-world-order-before-and-after-the-west-a-conversation-with-ayse-zarakol/ Wed, 02 Nov 2022 16:00:01 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=590737 Zarakol's research is at the intersection of international relations and historical sociology, focusing on East-West relations in the international system, history and future of world order(s), conceptualisations of modernity and sovereignty, rising and declining powers, and Turkish politics in a comparative perspective. She is the author of Before the West: the Rise and Fall of Eastern World Orders, After Defeat: How the East Learned to Live with the West and the editor of the prize winning Hierarchies in World Politics. Her articles have appeared in journals such as International Organisation, International Theory, International Studies Quarterly, European Journal of International Relations, Review of International Studies, among others. CHECK MORE HERE >>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 590737 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20221016-arab-democracy-and-us-foreign-policy-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-shadi-hamid/ Sun, 16 Oct 2022 10:29:46 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=586712 Join us for a live conversation with senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and an assistant research professor of Islamic studies at Fuller Seminary, Dr Shadi Hamid to discuss democracy in the Middle East and the US' policy in the region. Hamid has authored a number of books including The Problem of Democracy: America, the Middle East and the Rise and Fall of an Idea and Islamic Exceptionalism: How the Struggle Over Islam is Reshaping the World which was shortlisted for the 2017 Lionel Gelber Prize for best book on foreign affairs. Hamid is also a contributing writer at the Atlantic, where he writes a monthly essay on culture and politics. In 2019, he was named one of the world's […]]]> 586712 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20221012-connecting-with-lebanons-history-memo-in-conversation-with-charles-al-hayek/ Wed, 12 Oct 2022 13:16:03 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=585827 Join us for a live conversation with history instructor and cultural heritage consultant Charles Al Hayek as we discuss Lebanese history and culture and the ways he has been working to reconnect citizens to it. Al Hayek was a resident writer at the Centre of Arts and Humanities, American University of Beirut (AUB) (2020-2021) where he worked on writing and producing a series of short documentaries, Lebanon's centennial: a hundred years of fact and fiction. Al Hayek is currently completing an MA in Arab and Middle Eastern History at the Centre for Arab and Middle Eastern Studies, AUB. More MEMO In Conversation]]> 585827 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220928-the-life-of-yusuf-qaradawi-memo-in-conversation-with-azzam-tamimi/ Wed, 28 Sep 2022 13:04:53 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=583368 Join us for a live conversation with British Palestinian academic and political activist Dr Azzam Tamimi as we discuss the life and legacy of Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi who died at the age of 96 on 26 September 2022.Tamimi is currently the Chairman of Alhiwar TV and is its Editor-in-Chief. He is also the author of Hamas: Unwritten Chapters and Rachid Ghannouchi: A Democrat Within Islamism. Join us HERE today at 4pm London time MORE MEMO In Conversation]]> 583368 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220920-cop27-egypt-and-human-rights-memo-in-conversation-with-yasmin-omar/ Tue, 20 Sep 2022 09:41:18 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=581217 At last year's Climate Change Summit in Glasgow, campaigners stormed the streets in their thousands, some smearing blood over themselves, others taking off their clothes. They were chanting, yelling, all in support of meaningful action for climate change. "This is the way people express themselves peacefully. However, people in Egypt cannot even express themselves on social media," says Yasmin Omar, a human rights lawyer and UN Manager at the Committee for Justice. "People cannot even write a post or a tweet because the punishment here is spending unlimited time in Egyptian prisons." In November, heads of state, ministers, climate change activists and civil society members will meet in Egypt's Red Sea resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh, where they will discuss […]]]> 581217 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220914-uk-muslims-second-class-citizens-memo-in-conversation-with-frances-webber/ Wed, 14 Sep 2022 10:00:09 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=579376 Join us for a live conversation with Vice-Chair of the Institute of Race Relations Frances Webber to discuss her new report on racism within the UK citizenship system which has reduced Muslims to 'second-class' status. MORE >>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 579376 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220907-dws-sacking-of-palestinian-reporter-memo-in-conversation-with-giovanni-fassina/ Wed, 07 Sep 2022 12:55:36 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=578224 Watch our conversation with Giovanni Fassina, Programme Director of the European Legal Support Centre (ELSC), discussing the dismissal of Palestinian journalist Farah Maraqa by German newspaper Deutsche Welle (DW) on charges of anti-Semitism and her subsequent legal victory, in the context of a world-wide crackdown on pro-Palestine activism. As Programme Director, Fassina oversees the legal team and the strategic litigation cases at the ELSC. Previously, he trained as a lawyer in Italy, specialising in cases related to mass torts litigation, Business & Human Rights and civil liability before domestic courts and the European Court of Human Rights. He also worked for many years in the development sector in the occupied Palestinian territories. WATCH MORE >>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 578224 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220824-possible-turkish-syrian-reconciliation-memo-in-conversation-with-sami-hamdi/ Wed, 24 Aug 2022 11:48:02 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=575381   Watch our conversation with political analyst Sami Hamdi discussing the possibility of Turkish reconciliation with Syria's Bashar Al-Assad and the consequences of such a move. Hamdi is the managing director of the global risk and intelligence company International Interest. He is a geopolitical risk consultant who advises governments on the geopolitical dynamics of Europe and the MENA region, as well as advising companies on commercial issues and aspects.]]> 575381 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220817-whatever-happened-to-anti-semitism-memo-in-conversation-with-antony-lerman/ Wed, 17 Aug 2022 14:05:20 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=573747 Join us for a live conversation with British anti-Semitism specialist Antony Lerman to discuss his latest book Whatever Happened to Antisemitism?: Redefinition and the Myth of the 'Collective Jew'. Lerman is the former founding director of the Institute for Jewish Policy Research (JPR) and has written widely on anti-Semitism, Middle East politics and multiculturalism for such periodicals as the Guardian, London Review of Books, Prospect, the New York Times, the Nation, Haaretz and the Jewish Chronicle.]]> 573747 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220810-the-global-war-on-terror-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-rizwaan-sabir/ Wed, 10 Aug 2022 14:00:56 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=572527 Watch our conversation with counterterrorism expert Dr Rizwaan Sabir as we discuss the global war on terror, the rise of the security state in execution of that war and its impact on the, mainly Muslim, victims. Dr Sabir is the author of the recently published book The Suspect: Counterterrorism, Islam and the Security State in which he speaks of his own experiences of wrongful arrest, detention and subsequent surveillance. The academic is a Senior Lecturer in Criminology in the School of Justice Studies at the UK's Liverpool John Moores University.]]> 572527 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220803-advocating-for-palestine-in-canada-memo-in-conversation-with-michael-bueckert/ Wed, 03 Aug 2022 14:00:56 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=571036 Join us for a live conversation with the Vice President of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East Dr Michael Bueckert as we discuss his latest book Advocating for Palestine in Canada. Bueckert has a PhD in Sociology with a specialisation in Political Economy from Carleton University in Ottawa. His dissertation explored the Canadian opposition to boycott movements, and this research involved travel to Palestine and South Africa. He is co-editor of Advocating for Palestine in Canada (Fernwood Publishing, 2022) and has published in Radical History Review and Studies in Political Economy. He has written for publications including Africa Is A Country, Jacobin, and Briarpatch and his research has been cited by the Washington Post, CBC Ottawa among many others. MORE>>> MEMO […]]]> 571036 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220706-the-west-is-wrong-about-islam-memo-in-conversation-with-peter-oborne/ Wed, 06 Jul 2022 13:57:30 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=565674 Join us for a live conversation with prominent British journalist and broadcaster Peter Oborne as we discuss his new book 'The Fate of Abraham: Why the West is Wrong About Islam'. Oborne is the former chief political commentator of the Daily Telegraph. MORE>>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 565674 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220629-palestine-and-latin-american-memo-in-conversation-with-eman-abusidu/ Wed, 29 Jun 2022 12:25:45 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=564518 Join us for a live conversation with Palestinian-Brazilian journalist and writer Eman Abusidu about Palestinians in Latin America and the region's long track record of supporting the Palestinian cause. The discussion will also look at the way in which Palestinians have influenced culture, society and politics in Latin America. Born and raised in Gaza, Eman Abusidu is a member of the Syndicate of Brazilian Journalists (FENAJ) and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). She has written extensively on the Palestinian community in Brazil and Palestinian-Brazilian relations. Join us HERE at 4pm London time MORE >>> MEMO In Conversation]]> 564518 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220622-risks-of-muslim-genocide-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-gregory-stanton/ Wed, 22 Jun 2022 12:45:24 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=563131 Join us for a live conversation with Professor in Genocide Studies and Prevention, Dr Gregory H Stanton, as we discuss major flashpoints in the world today from India to Ukraine, Israel and China and his thoughts on whether any of these run risks of genocide. Stanton is the founding president and chairman of Genocide Watch. From 2010 to 2019, he was a research professor in genocide studies and prevention at the School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University in Virginia, USA. Prior to that, he was the James Farmer Professor in Human Rights at the University of Mary Washington. MORE >>> MEMO in Conversation With]]> 563131 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220615-rise-of-authoritarian-regimes-memo-in-conversation-with-prof-ashok-swain/ Wed, 15 Jun 2022 12:51:30 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=562065  Join us for a live conversation with Professor Ashok Swain as we discuss what is fueling the rise in ethno-nationalist sentiments and authoritarian governments around the world and the slide in democracy in places like India where Muslim minorities are being targeted by Hindutva extremists. Swain is a Professor of Peace and Conflict Research at Uppsala University, Sweden. In 2017, he was appointed as the UNESCO Chair on International Water Cooperation and became the first UNESCO Chair of Uppsala University. MORE MEMO In Conversation]]> 562065 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220608-the-ethics-of-liberation-memo-in-conversation-with-randa-abdel-fattah/ Wed, 08 Jun 2022 15:00:18 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=560748 Dr Abdel-Fattah, who has Palestinian and Egyptian roots, is a postgraduate research fellow at the Department of Sociology, Macquarie University. Her research includes the generational impact of the war on terror on post-9/11 youth. Her debut novel 'Does My Head Look Big in This?' was published in 2005 and she has since published over 11 novels. MORE MEMO in Conversation With]]> 560748