We all knew that Daesh was capable of horrible things. However, the death by burning to which Jordanian pilot Moaz al Kasasbeh was subjected to broke through a morbid threshold I believe very few of us, if any, thought would happen. This isn’t to say that the other killing methods (decapitation, execution, drowning, etc..) used by the so-called Islamic State are any less brutal. But we dealt with them by exercising a degree of denial, if only because of the sheer number of times they have and continue to occur and more importantly, as a coping mechanism to deal with the horrors of Daesh at our doorsteps. Continue reading “Time to Re-Evaluate the War against Daesh”
“Fighting for the Right to Party in Beirut”: Fighting for the Right to Stop this about Beirut
Just because we are a bit of a hot-blooded bunch and have been through more wars than we care to admit; and just because Lebanon is in a region that is usually not associated with hedonistic tendencies (mostly because of people’s ignorance) and pictured as an inherently threatening place (mostly because of media-fueled misconceptions) doesn’t mean we can’t have a good party. In fact we do. And the best. Now deal with it and please, please get over it. Continue reading ““Fighting for the Right to Party in Beirut”: Fighting for the Right to Stop this about Beirut”
Even in Lebanon, Some Deaths are Preventable
Death is not something that is under our control, but sometimes it is… Continue reading “Even in Lebanon, Some Deaths are Preventable”
The Time for Justice has Come…
…or so some would say.
Nine years after the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005, the court proceedings of the ‘Special Tribunal for Lebanon‘ (STL) have finally begun. Created for the purpose of bringing those responsible for this crime (and many others that followed it) to justice, the tribunal is considered unprecedented on many levels. While it is the first time that an international court will be trying a case based on terrorism charges, it is also the first time in contemporary Lebanese history, if ever at all, that so much effort and resources have been allocated to bringing criminals to justice. Lebanon may have become used to wars and politically motivated crimes, but it has become even more accustomed to never knowing the truth behind those crimes and taking for granted that nobody in Lebanon is ever brought to account. Continue reading “The Time for Justice has Come…”
On Resilience and Perpetual Violence
It is difficult to stay away from writing and lamenting about bombs, death and destruction for too long when in Lebanon. And it’s all too easy to write and lament about the same old things when this happens: on how we’ve had enough of this perpetual vicious cycle of violence and how our politicians are an indestructible curse; Continue reading “On Resilience and Perpetual Violence”
We’ve Already Let Syria Down
If they are not yet, today more than ever, all eyes are on Syria. Well, not exactly today, but they soon will be…
Many of us have been following the Syrian uprising from day one: praying for the fate of the innocent children of Daraa who sparked the revolution, fervently denying the revolt was a conspiracy as the Syrian regime wanted the world to believe, disheartened by what parts of the Syrian opposition had become, and grieving for Syrian suffering and the horrors of Ghouta. Continue reading “We’ve Already Let Syria Down”
Beirut will never surrender, but…
They say that Beirut is a city that will never surrender, but what if everything that keeps life together in it is slowly disappearing, gradually being torn apart? Continue reading “Beirut will never surrender, but…”
The Sheikhs Get Down to Business
In what came as a rather unexpected move, member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) listed Hezballah on their never-heard-of-before list of terrorist organizations for its involvement in Syria alongside the Assad regime, while threatening to take action against its members/sympathizers and their assets in the Gulf. Continue reading “The Sheikhs Get Down to Business”
Triumphant over Who?
“That Hezballah (Party of God) shall be triumphant” (فإن حزب الله هم الغالبون) as their slogan says. But triumphant over who?
From Today’s Headlines: The Tragicomedy of Lebanon
With the flurry of events of the past 24 hours, my only pair of hands unable to type out all the ideas, the amazement, the frustration and laughter inspired by the latest developments, I thought I’d still try to put it all together in a couple of words.
Continue reading “From Today’s Headlines: The Tragicomedy of Lebanon”
Eye on the East 