History Today: ‘The Emperor and the Elephant’ by Sam Ottewill-Soulsby review

By Carine van Rhijn. The Emperor and the Elephant: Christians and Muslims in the Age of Charlemagne by Sam Ottewill-Soulsby surfaces Umayyad and Abbasid perspectives on their Frankish frenemies. The elephant in the title of Sam Ottewill-Soulsby’s study of diplomatic relations between Christians and Muslims in the Carolingian period (800-887) is Abul-Abbas, who having arrived

Xinhua: Owner of vintage bookstore in Syria encourages readers to keep passion alive

By Hummam Sheikh Ali. In the ancient al-Halbouni area of Syria’s capital Damascus, entering through a narrow gate, bookworms will have access to a unique “library,” a haven where they can immerse themselves in reading inside rows of bookshelves. The bookstore, named Modern Library and owned by Bashir Jarkas, boasts a collection of over 100,000

Orient XXI: Egypt: The Shawarma Dispute

By Dalia Chams. The huge shawarma spit is here, all by itself. Rotating slowly, letting the fat drip and the meat grill gently. Just two hours before the breaking of the fast, the personnel of a famous Levantine fast-food chain are preparing the meals they will soon be serving. They chat among themselves in a

The Business Standard: Lebanese food: A cuisine steeped in history and geography

By Nazia Adnin. Lebanese cuisine was heavily influenced by occupying powers and many new dishes were added to the cuisine throughout its history “The secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside.” -Mark Twain I first tried Lebanese cuisine at dinner party, which also

The Jordan Times: Gaza’s monuments become ruins

By Mustafa Al Naddaf. Armed conflicts threaten not only civilian populations, but also cultural property. Although cultural heritage is protected by several legislation, for example the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954 AD, this did not prevent the Zionist entity from targeting Palestinian cultural heritage,

History.com: This Day In History (November 1-1935): Palestinian-American public intellectual Edward Said is born

By History.com Editors. On November 1, 1935, Edward Said, the eminent Palestinian-American public intellectual and the father of postcolonial studies, is born. Said was born in Jerusalem, then part of the British Mandate of Palestine. He was born into a wealthy Christian Arab family, and grew up in Jerusalem and Cairo before moving to the

Aljazeera: The fruits of Palestine and their symbolism

By Adam Sella. Beyond their simple colours and shapes, these fruits carry the weight of history, shared culture, and loss. What do watermelons, oranges, olives and eggplants all have in common? Yes, technically, they are all fruits. Maybe you think they’re all delicious. But for Palestinians, they symbolise Palestinian culture and identity. In protest, agriculture,

Deutsche Welle: Rebuilding Beirut’s cultural life

By Stefan Dege. Three years after a massive explosion devastated Beirut, cultural institutions in the city are still struggling to pick up the pieces. But restored and planned new museums offer hope. More than 200 people were killed and large parts of the city devastated when close to 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate blew up

Al-Jazeera: How Israel Weaponizes Museums to Erase Palestinian Existence

By Somdeep Sen. Physical violence isn’t the only way Israel tries to deny Palestinian existence. Museums are tools of terror, too. Erasing Palestine and Palestinians is a vocation of the Israeli state. After all, the myth of Palestinian non-existence is part of its founding ethos. During the Nakba of 1948, this vocation was on full display when

People’s Daily Online: Chinese, Lebanese beautiful villages photo exhibition opens in Beirut

By Editorial Dept. The Chinese Embassy in Lebanon, in cooperation with “The Most Beautiful Villages in Lebanon” association, opened on Friday a photo exhibition showcasing the beautiful villages of Lebanon and China. Titled “Villages Without Borders,” the Chinese-Lebanese photo exhibition is open to the public from Friday to Thursday. It showcases 60 photos of rural