Weapons expert debunks Israel’s denial of Gaza hospital strike Middle East Monitor 2026-09-19 | Weapons expert debunks Israel’s denial of Gaza hospital strike
Bread: Gaza perseveres under siege & war MEMO 2024-01-09 | Flour has been one of the most valuable ingredients in Gaza as the territory continues to withstand a brutal siege and relentless Israeli bombardment and invasion. It is the main component necessary to make bread, a versatile and fundamental staple of Levantine cuisine in general, and an essential element of survival in besieged Gaza. Many families have been relying on bread to make basic and easy-to-make dishes and soups more substantial, while others have been surviving on bread alone. Since Israel declared a total blockade on Gaza in October, launching a full-scale war on the Palestinian territory, residents would queue for hours outside bakeries in their quest to buy bread for their families. But the vast majority of both bakeries and flour mills have since been bombed by Israeli warplanes.Bags of flour that can still be found in Gaza now sell at astronomical prices, while yeast is impossible to find in most parts of the Strip forcing many to make bread without yeast. Gaza's residents have also had to find alternative ways of baking their bread amidst the absence of fuel, electricity and cooking gas, leaving many relying on firewood, cardboard and clay ovens.9 out of 10 people in Gaza today cannot eat every day and have to skip meals for extended periods of time, according to the UN. The reliance on locally sourced produce serves only as a partial buffer for a ‘lucky few’ against the acute scarcity imposed by the siege and large-scale bombing campaign and ground invasion which continues to target agricultural areas, markets and roads used to transport humanitarian aid.
Intense Israeli shelling targets Al-Bureij, Al-Maghazi MEMO 2024-01-08 | Middle East Monitor reports from the heart of Gaza the fear of targeting yet another hospital. As shelling continues in the central area of Gaza, Mohammed Asad, MEMO correspondent, reports that there is great fear the shelling will reach Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. He highlights the current areas under direct non-stop bombardment to be Al-Bureij camp and Al-Maghazi refugee camps, while the situation is developing at Al-Nuseirat camp to the west of Al-Bureij.View taken on 06 January 2024
Arab MK recites Darwish poem inside Knesset in response to Gaza transfer plans MEMO 2024-01-07 | Arab member of the Knesset Ahamd Tibi blasted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a speech at the Knesset, saying 'Gazans will stay in Gaza' but it is the PM himself who will soon be leaving his own residence in Jerusalem's Gaza Street. This comes as a response to an article he read out discussing plans to transfer the population of Gaza to other countries. Since 7 October 2023, Israel's war on Gaza has claimed the lives of over 23,000 Palestinians, the majority of whom are women and children. It has also internally displaced 90% of Gaza's 2.2 million residents and destroyed 70% of buildings in the besieged Strip.
Discover the Great Omari Mosque, Palestine MEMO 2024-01-07 | In the heart of Gaza’s Old City stood the magnificent Great Omari Mosque, a place that has borne witness to the ebb and flow of conquerors and civilisations, the rise and fall of empires, carrying in its stones the scent of ancient tales. From a pagan Philistine temple to a church, to a mosque, back to a church again then a mosque.What was once a majestic symbol of spiritual devotion and architectural grandeur, however, today lies shattered amidst the debris as a haunting testament to the devastating impact of Israel’s 2023 war on Gaza and the relentless bombing of the besieged territory.MEMO takes a look at the various transformations of this sacred edifice through the ages, before Israeli air strikes turned it to rubble last month.
MIT student: They are suppressing pro-Palestine speech MEMO 2024-01-07 | MIT student Susanna Chen says that despite MIT’s pro-claimed safeguards and advocacy for free speech, students were met with 20 police officers intervening to shut down a pro-Palestine protest on campus. Beyond immediate challenges, the focus is on cultivating 'leadership', she adds, and the strength for the enduring fight for free speech and pro-Palestinian activism.
MIT student: Theres intentional effort to conflate Israel criticism with anti-Semitism MEMO 2024-01-07 | MIT student Francesca Riccio-Ackerman says there is a deliberate strategy to conflate criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism. Individuals critical of Israel face harassment and racism tailored to their background, she adds, explaining that this pattern of suppression is alarming in its singularity as it surfaces exclusively in response to critiques of Israel.
Ultra-Orthodox rabbi in tears over photo of grieving Gaza mum MEMO 2024-01-06 | Ultra-Orthodox Rabbi Haim Sofer, a member of the anti-Zionist Neturei Karta movement, was moved to tears while voting in Anadolu Agency's 'Photo of the Year'. His choice, Ashraf Amra's 'The Cry Out' captures a Palestinian mother grieving the loss of a child. The photograph is one of 25 pictures submitted to the 'Gaza: Evidence' category which aims to. 'document Israeli war crimes' in Gaza since 7 October 2023.
Will Germany force new citizens to pledge allegiance to Israel? MEMO 2024-01-04 | New citizenship applicants in Germany could be forced to pledge allegiance to Israel as part of a new law that is currently being pushed through the Bundestag, with one German federal state, Saxony-Anhalt, having already made the pledge a legal requirement.However, the Middle East Monitor has been shown exclusive evidence of a Palestinian citizenship applicant already being asked to include their views on Israel and Palestine as part of their application; effectively asking them to accept the Israeli occupation of their homeland in order to get a German passport.
Deputy head of Hamas Saleh Al-Arouri assassinated in Lebanon MEMO 2024-01-03 | Hamas deputy head Saleh Al-Arouri was killed in the explosion that hit southern Beirut today. Al-Arouri was a founding member of the armed wing of Hamas, which led the 7 October attacks on Israel, killing at least 1,140 Israelis. The explosion took place in a suburb of Beirut called Dahiyeh, a residential area but also home to many members of the Lebanese armed movement Hezbollah, which is a Hamas ally.
From Guantanamo to Palestine: MEMO in Conversation with Anas Mustapha MEMO 2024-01-03 | 20 years ago, CAGE UK was set up to advocate for detainees held unjustly in Guantanamo Bay. Now, the rights group is expanding and becoming global at a time when systemic injustices are prevalent, seen especially in the repression of pro-Palestine activism. In this week's conversation, MEMO speaks with CAGE about the organisation's 20-year long journey from advocating for Guantanamo Bay detainees to tackling systemic injustices like the criminalisation of pro-Palestine solidarity. We discuss trends of repression via counter-terrorism laws, how inflated terrorism rhetoric compounds discrimination, the thinking behind CAGE International and its latest report on the crackdown on pro-Palestine solidarity in light of events in Gaza. Anas Mustapha is the head of Public Advocacy at CAGE UK, guiding media strategy and pioneering high-impact research and reports. He is a speaker and advocate against the abuse of state power, specialising across the breadth of UK Counter Terrorism. Anas holds a degree in English language, is a native Arabic speaker and a student of Islamic sciences.
Quashing debate on Palestinian rights: MEMO in conversation with Giovanni Fassina MEMO 2024-01-01 | MEMO spoke with Giovanni Fassina about 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.Interview date: 5 July 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230705-quashing-the-debating-on-palestinian-rights-memo-in-conversation-with-giovanni-fassina
The backlash against Palestine solidarity: MEMO in conversation with Dr Hil Aked MEMO 2024-01-01 | MEMO spoke with Dr Hil Aked about 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. Aked has conducted research on the ‘Israel lobby’, Islamophobia, neoconservative think tanks and the media, the far right, and civil society activism in the struggle for AIDS treatment in South Africa. Aked’s work has appeared in the Guardian, Independent, Sky News and Al Jazeera, as well as volumes from Pluto Press and Zed Books/Bloomsbury.Interview date: 24 May 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230524-the-backlash-against-palestine-solidarity-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-hil-aked
Is laziness a new phenomenon? MEMO in conversation with Melis Hafez MEMO 2024-01-01 | MEMO spoke 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 quoting the Arabic original of a hadith commonly attributed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), instead of translating it as “poverty is my pride” she misspoke, saying it as “laziness is my pride.” Interview date: 29 March 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230329-is-laziness-a-new-phenomenon-memo-in-conversation-with-melis-hafez
Birth defects as a result of war: MEMO in conversation with Kali Rubaii MEMO 2024-01-01 | 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.Interview date: 5 April 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230405-birth-defects-as-a-result-of-war-memo-in-conversation-with-kali-rubaii
Lebanon, a failed state: MEMO in conversation with Mohammed Kozbar MEMO 2024-01-01 | MEMO spoke with Mohammed Kozbar about 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 Advisory Group (IAG) and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) London Scrutiny and Involvement Panel in hate crimes.Interview date: 12 April 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230412-lebanon-a-failed-state-memo-in-conversation-with-mohammed-kozbar
The EU and Israels right-wing coalition: MEMO in conversation with Rasmus Alenius Boserup MEMO 2024-01-01 | MEMO spoke with Executive Director of EuroMed Rights Rasmus Alenius Boserup about 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.Interview date: 22 March 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230322-the-eu-and-israels-right-wing-coalition-memo-in-conversation-with-rasmus-alenius-boserup
Will Israel be tried at the ICJ? MEMO in conversation with Hugh Lovatt MEMO 2024-01-01 | We look back at MEMO's conversation with Hugh Lovatt, a senior policy fellow with the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations, earlier this year discussing whether Israel would be tried at the ICJ.Lovatt has focussed extensively on regional geopolitics and advised European policymakers on the conflicts in Israel-Palestine and Western Sahara. He is regularly interviewed and quoted in international media, including by the New York Times, BBC, Christian Science Monitor, Financial Times, AFP, Le Monde, France24 and Al Jazeera.Interview date: 18 January 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230118-will-israel-be-tried-at-the-icj-a-conversation-with-hugh-lovatt
Climate change and the Middle East: MEMO in conversation with Dr Mohammed Mahmoud MEMO 2024-01-01 | Earlier this summer, MEMO spoke with climate change expert Dr Mohammed Mahmoud about 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- sharing agreements and solutions for current and future challenges in the Nile River Basin.Interview date: 19 July 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230719-the-water-crisis-and-the-middle-east-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-mohammed-mahmoud-2
Who was the founder of Hamas? Profile: Sheikh Ahmed Yassin MEMO 2024-01-01 | Sheikh Ahmed Yassin grew up as a refugee in Gaza after he was driven out of Al-Jaura, a Palestinian village depopulated in 1948 by Zionist forces, along with his family. In 1987, Yassin co-founded Hamas as an armed resistance movement against the then 20-year-old Israeli occupation. Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20240101-profile-sheikh-ahmed-yassin-founder-of-hamas
South Africa files case at ICJ accusing Israel of ‘genocidal acts’ in Gaza MEMO 2023-12-31 | South Africa has invoked the Genocide Convention, initiating proceedings before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), also known as the World Court, accusing Israel of ‘genocidal acts’ against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and seeking provisional measures.The ICJ is the United Nations venue for resolving disputes between states. Although ICJ rulings are binding under the UN charter, it has no means of enforcing them. South Africa believes the move would mobilise the international community into taking action to resolve the Palestine Question.The Israeli Foreign Ministry labeled South Africa's move as a ‘blood libel’ and dismissed the accusations as ‘baseless’.
Identity and Palestine: MEMO in conversation with Amira Al-Shanti MEMO 2023-12-30 | Wacth the screening of a short film followed by a conversation with Scottish-Palestinian actor, singer and writer Amira Al-Shanti about identity and Palestine in the context of her piece 'Said the Dove to the Olive Tree'.The 12-minute film, created by Amira Al-Shanti and produced by Interbang Productions in 2021, is a piece of digital spoken word which explores the complex feelings and identity of a Palestinian Diaspora in Scotland. It captures the intricate balance between the nostalgic romanticism of a homeland she cannot return to and the bleak and dangerous reality of the oppression of Palestinians.Al-Shanti had her West End debut in the world premiere of Rumi at the London Coliseum. She provided Arabic voiceover work in the National Theatre of Scotland’s screenplay adaptation of Adam (BBC Scotland) and has a wealth of other theatre work. Previous pieces of her writing have been published by the Herald, including “Letters to JK Rowling” and “Being BROWN GIRL”.Interview date: 27 April 2022Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20220427-identity-and-palestine-memo-in-conversation-with-amira-al-shanti
Iran, Sufism and everyday mysticism: MEMO in Conversation with Seema Golestaneh MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO speaks with Seema Golestaneh about contemporary Sufi movements in Iran, how followers translate Sufi teachings into their everyday lives and how Iranian authorities deal with them.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.Interview date: 25 January 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230125-memo-in-conversation-with-seema-golestaneh-on-iran-sufism-and-everyday-mysticism
Stranded at an airport for 7 months: MEMO in conversation with Hassan Al Kontar MEMO 2023-12-30 | Having fled Syria to avoid military service, Hassan Al-Kontar found himself living the life of Tom Hank's character in The Terminal with no country willing to give him refuge.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. Earlier this year, the Syrian refugee was granted Canadian citizenship.Interview date: 8 February 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230208-memo-in-conversation-with-hassan-al-kontar
Israels 2021 war on Gaza: MEMO in conversation with Prof. Norman Finkelstein MEMO 2023-12-30 | Two years ago, MEMO spoke with Prof. Norman Finkelstein to discuss his book ‘Knowing Too Much: Why the American Jewish Romance with Israel is Coming to an End’ in light of Israel’s May 2021 bombardment of the Gaza Strip.Prof. Finkelstein is an American political scientist, activist and author. His primary fields of research are the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and the politics of the Holocaust. He has held faculty positions at Brooklyn College, Rutgers University, Hunter College, New York University, and DePaul University, where he was an assistant professor from 2001 to 2007.Interview date: 9 June 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210609-memo-in-conversation-with-prof-norman-finkelstein
Jokes, Israeli politics and coexistence: MEMO in conversation with Noam Shuster-Eliassi MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO spoke with Israeli stand-up comedian and activist Noam Shuster-Eliassi, who grew up speaking Arabic and was often mistaken for a Palestinian, to discuss the 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 the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) and more recently her satirisation of the Abraham accords and the UAE’s normalisation with Israel through a song Dubai, Dubai.Interview date: 4 January 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230104-jokes-israeli-politics-and-coexistence-memo-in-conversation-with-noam-shuster-eliassi
Being a Palestinian journalist in the West Bank: MEMO in conversation with Nida Ibrahim MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO speaks with Palestinian Al Jazeera journalist in the occupied West Bank Nida Ibrahim about her experience of covering events in the occupied territories and escalating violence in the West Bank.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.Interview date: 11 January 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230111-being-a-palestinian-journalist-in-the-west-bank-memo-in-conversation-with-nida-ibrahim
Lebanon, political elites, revolution and crisis: MEMO in conversation with Christiana Parreira MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO spoke with Christiana Parreira, 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 Kennedy School’s Middle East Initiative.Interview date: 23 November 2022Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20221123-lebanon-political-elites-revolution-and-crisis-memo-in-conversation-with-christiana-parreira
Arab democracy and US foreign policy: MEMO in conversation with Dr Shadi Hamid MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO spoke 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 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 top 50 thinkers by Prospect magazine.Interview date: 16 October 2022Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20221016-arab-democracy-and-us-foreign-policy-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-shadi-hamid
Israels 2021 bombing of Gaza: MEMO in conversation with Dr Samah Jabr MEMO 2023-12-30 | In 2021, MEMO spoke with Palestinian psychiatrist, psychotherapist and writer Dr Samah Jabr to discuss the mental health issues impacting Palestinians as a result of Israel’s May 2021 bombardment of the Gaza Strip.Dr Jabr is the head of the Mental Health Unit at the Palestine Ministry of Health. She is also Assistant Clinical Professor at George Washington University and the author of ‘Derrière les fronts’ (Behind the Frontlines).Interview date: 23 June 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210623-memo-in-conversation-with-dr-samah-jabr
The UKs crackdown on free speech on Palestine: MEMO in conversation with Dr Rob Faure Walker MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO spoke with Dr Rob Faure Walker about the crackdown on free speech on Palestine in UK schools and understanding why the country's anti-extremism programme is flawed and racist.Faure Walker is a lecturer at UCL and author of ‘The Emergence of ‘Extremism’ Exposing the Violent Discourse and Language of ‘Radicalization’’. He also runs PREVENT digest, an independent not-for-profit organisation that has been gathering evidence on the impact of the UK’s counter radicalisation programme.Interview date: 2 March 2022Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20220302-the-uks-crackdown-on-free-speech-on-palestine-a-conversation-with-dr-rob-faure-walker
The world order before and after the West: MEMO in conversation with Ayse Zarakol MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO spoke with Professor of International Relations, University of Cambridge, Ayse Zarakol to discuss the world order before and after the West.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.Interview date: 2 November 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20221102-the-world-order-before-and-after-the-west-a-conversation-with-ayse-zarakol
Connecting with Lebanons history: MEMO in conversation with Charles Al Hayek MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO spoke with history instructor and cultural heritage consultant Charles Al Hayek to 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.Interview date: 12 October 2022Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20221012-connecting-with-lebanons-history-memo-in-conversation-with-charles-al-hayek
The ethics of liberation: MEMO in conversation with Randa Abdel-Fattah MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO spoke with award-winning Australian author and activist Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah about her chapter in Prof. Ilan Pappe's and Dr Ramzy Baroud's book 'Our Vision for Liberation: Engaged Palestinian Intellectuals and Leaders Speak Out'.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.Interview date: 8 June 2022Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20220608-the-ethics-of-liberation-memo-in-conversation-with-randa-abdel-fattah
The politics of marriage in Jordan: MEMO in conversation with Geoffrey Hughes MEMO 2023-12-30 | MEMO spoke with Geoffrey Hughes about the politics of marriage and contemporary life in Jordan in the context of his book ‘Kinship, Islam, and the Politics of Marriage in Jordan: Affection and Mercy’.Hughes is a lecturer in anthropology at the University of Exeter. His work is broadly concerned with the topics of kinship, emotions, Islamic ethics and the politics of everyday life in the contemporary Middle East. More recently, he has written about social conflict, envy and the impact of social media on the revival of tribal identities.Interview date: 1 June 2022Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20220601-the-politics-of-marriage-in-jordan-memo-in-conversation-with-geoffrey-hughes
Sudan in Crisis: MEMO in conversation with Ola Ibrahim MEMO 2023-12-30 | 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. MEMO spoke with Ola Ibrahim, a member of the Khartoum Resistance Committee, to discuss the crisis in Sudan.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 2019. The network gave youth “the momentum and inspiration to be part of the revolution and to own their own fate and future.” Part of the Sudanese Resistance Committees, its members have been targeted by the RSF and the General Intelligence Service during protests.Interview date: 27 April 2023Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20230427-sudan-in-crisis-memo-in-conversation-with-ola-ibrahim
Ful Medames: Gaza perseveres under siege & war MEMO 2023-12-30 | Since Israel declared a total blockade on Gaza in October, beginning a full-scale war on the Palestinian territory, canned foods have been a lifeline for many.The classic breakfast dish of 'Ful Medames', which dates as far back as ancient Egypt, serves as a main meal for many. Versions of this rich dip can be found across the MENA region, from Egypt to the Levant and the Gulf. The Palestinian version is usually packed with punchy flavour, including garlic, lemons and chilis. But in Gaza today, many opt to simply boiling and crushing the canned fava beans, in available, for a full day's meal.9 out of 10 people in Gaza today cannot eat every day and have to skip meals for extended periods of time, according to the UN.As Israeli forces continue razing agricultural areas, destroying bakeries, food warehouses, flour mills as well as roads used to transport humanitarian aid, the reliance on locally sourced produce serves only as a partial buffer for a ‘lucky few’ against the acute scarcity imposed by the siege and large-scale bombing campaign and ground invasion. Even preparing meals requires finding alternatives to cooking gas, like firewood and cardboard.Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20231223-israel-uses-starvation-as-a-weapon-of-war-in-gaza
Civilians killed as Israel targets residential building in Gaza MEMO 2023-12-28 | A number of people have been killed in an Israeli air strike on a residential building in GazaMEMO correspondent Mohammed Asad reports several casualties after Israeli air strikes targeted residential apartments in Mushtaha Tower in Al-Zawaida area in central Gaza on 28 December 2023.Many have been killed and injured, including children in Israel’s targeting of the residential building.Israeli air strikes have killed over 21,000 civilians and injured more than 55,000 in Gaza since the start of its war Gaza on 7 October.
Jinns, donkey kings, angels and demons: MEMO in Conversation with Emily Selove MEMO 2023-12-27 | In an effort to beat the Abbasid Caliph Al-Nasir, the shah of the Khwarezmian Empire turned to magician Siraj Al-Din Al-Sakaki to create a magical statue that would help win the battle. But things took an unexpected turn. Join MEMO's conversation to find out more about the importance of magic in Middle Eastern history.Siraj Al-Din Al-Sakaki (1160-1229) is best known for his work on Arabic grammar, which students of the language throughout the world use until this day, but very few know he worked as a magician in both the Khwarazmian and Mongol courts. The author of grimoire, a how-to guide for budding magicians, Al-Sakaki offers instructions to students on how to conjure Jinns, how to draw up contracts with the devil, how to cast love spells and how to inflict a humiliating defeat on your enemies as well as a deep dive into the world of magical donkeys. Al-Sakaki was taken very seriously by the rulers of his day, he even managed to survive a talisman gone-wrong, where he was asked by the shah of the Khwarezmian Empire to create a magical statue that would enable them to beat the Abbasid Caliph Al-Nasir in battle and take Baghdad. Al-Sakaki created the talismanic statue and buried it - however the statue magically changed direction while underground causing the shah to lose the battle. Al-Sakaki takes us into the fascinating world of medieval sorcery popular in Middle Eastern and Islamic societies. MEMO in Conversation is joined by Emily Selove, who is translating Al-Sakaki's works into English, to help us understand the man and his magic. Dr Emily Selove is an associate professor in Medieval Arabic Language and Literature at the University of Exeter. She is also the convener of the University of Exeter’s Centre for Magic and Esotericism. Her most recent publication is a short monograph for the Cambridge Elements Series: The Donkey King: Asinine Symbology in Ancient and Medieval Magic. She was the PI of a Leverhulme-funded research project, "A Sorcerer's Handbook," (2019-2022) which will create an edition and translation of Siraj Al-Din Al-Sakkaki's magic handbook, Kitab Al-Shamil wa-baḥr Al-kamil (The Book of the Complete). Her early research focused on the figure of the uninvited guest (or "party-crasher") in medieval Arabic literature. Her translation of another 11th-century book of party-crashing is titled Selections from the Art of Party-Crashing in Medieval Iraq. She also co-authored a textbook to introduce beginning students to the city of medieval Baghdad, Baghdad at the Centre of a World: 8th-13th Century, and has created a collection of cartoons titled Popeye and Curly: 120 Days in Medieval Baghdad to accompany this textbook.
Bethlehem is a small cage: Palestinian psychologist on Christmas 2023 MEMO 2023-12-27 | Bethlehem-based Palestinian psychologist Jumana Kaplanian Halabi tells MEMO the occupied holy city has become "a small cage" as Israeli restrictions keep residents locked in. As Israel's war on Gaza rages, Christmas 2023 has been a muted affair, with celebrations cancelled in Bethlehem. "As a Palestinian, you cannot celebrate while the massacre and the genocide is going on. You can't be happy while your brother and sister are being killed," the founder of Psychology Spa, which has been offering free psychological support to residents affected by the ongoing war, says. "People who are witnessing the killing are also dealing with anxiety, dealing with anger, dealing with frustration, dealing with helplessness."At least 20,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children, since Israel waged war on the besieged territory in the aftermath of the events of 7 October 2023.
As Bethlehem mourns Gaza, MEMO speaks to Christian Palestinian psychologist Jumana Kaplanian MEMO 2023-12-26 | Bethlehem has cancelled Christmas celebrations this year as the holy city mourns the devastating human toll of Israel's ongoing war on Gaza.MEMO speaks with Bethlehem-based Palestinian psychologist Jumana Kaplanian to get a feel of the current atmosphere in the city.
Gaza paramedic consoles his kids after Israeli air strike destroyed their home MEMO 2023-12-26 | Palestinian paramedic Ahmed Matar puts on a brave face as he tries to console his children after an Israeli air strike destroyed his family's home in Deir Al-Balah. "Don't you want to become a paramedic like daddy?" Matar asks his son, who replies "not anymore".Matar's parents were killed in the attack, which took place while he was out on duty. His wife and children were rescued from under the rubble.
Stories of Palestinian and Irish Hunger Strikers‘: MEMO in conversation with Danny Morrison MEMO 2023-12-25 | MEMO spoke with Danny Morrison, co-editor of ‘A Shared Struggle: Stories of Palestinian and Irish Hunger Strikers‘. Morrison co-edited the book with Asad Abu Sharkh, a Palestinian-Irish academic, living in Dublin, whose family lived in Rafah refugee camp.At the age of 22 Danny Morrison (born in Belfast, 1953) became the youngest editor of the Sinn Féin paper Republican News. He was imprisoned several times and twice charged with IRA membership, and is a former elected representative to the Stormont Assembly. During the 1981 hunger strike he was spokesperson for Bobby Sands who died on 5 May after 66 days without food. Danny is the author of several books and an editor and commentator on politics and culture.Interview date: 25 August 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210825-memo-in-conversation-with-danny-morrison
MEMO in conversation with Susan Abulhawa MEMO 2023-12-25 | MEMO speaks with Palestinian novelist and poet Susan Abulhawa to discuss her novel ‘Against the Loveless World’, described by the New York Times as “a beautiful, urgent novel of the Palestinian struggle”.The novel won the Palestine Book Awards Creative Prize in 2020.Abulhawa is the co-chair of Palestine Writes, the first North American Palestinian literature festival. Her debut novel ‘Mornings in Jenin’ is considered a classic in Anglophile Palestinian literature. She is also a political commentator and frequent speaker.Interview date: 31 March 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210331-memo-in-conversation-with-susan-abulhawa
HRWs report on Israels crimes of apartheid: MEMO in conversation with Omar Shakir MEMO 2023-12-25 | Following the publication of Human Rights Watch's report 'A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution', MEMO spoke with the report’s author, Omar Shakir, who is the Israel and Palestine director of the Washington based pre-eminent rights group.The report found that Israeli authorities are committing apartheid and persecution against Palestinians.Interview date: 5 May 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210505-memo-in-conversation-with-omar-shakir
Reviewing US policy on Palestine: MEMO in conversation with Professor Rashid Khalidi MEMO 2023-12-25 | In 2021, MEMO spoke with Palestinian-American historian of the Middle East, Professor Rashid Khalidi, to discuss what the Biden administration holds for Palestine and a review of the past four years.Khalidi is the Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University and the director of the Middle East Institute of Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs. He is also the editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies and the author of numerous books on Palestine and the Israeli occupation.Interview date: 10 February 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210210-memo-in-conversation-with-professor-rashid-khalidi-2
‘Jerusalem Interrupted: MEMO in conversation with Lena Jayyusi MEMO 2023-12-25 | MEMO speaks with Dr Lena Jayyusi to discuss her book ‘Jerusalem Interrupted: Modernity and Colonial Transformation 1917-Present’. Published by Olive Branch Press, the book won the Palestine Book Awards Memoir Prize in 2015.Dr Jayyusi is Professor Emeritus at Zayed University’s College of Communication and Media in the UAE. Author of ‘Categorization and the Moral Order’, she has published works in media and cultural studies, film and visuality, memory and narrative, Palestinian national identity, and the discourses of international law and the Gaza war.Interview date: 1 September 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210901-memo-in-conversation-with-lena-jayyusi
Mercy, Law and Victim’s Rights in Iran’: MEMO in conversation with Arzoo Osanloo MEMO 2023-12-25 | MEMO spoke with Prof. Arzoo Osanloo to discuss her book ‘Forgiveness Works: Mercy, Law and Victim’s Rights in Iran’ in the context of law, order, and justice in Iran.Osanloo is an Associate Professor at the Department of Law, Societies, and Justice and the Director of the Middle East Center at the University of Washington. She is a legal anthropologist and previously worked as an immigration and asylum and refugee attorney.Her book ‘Forgiveness Work: Mercy, Law, and Victim’s Rights in Iran’ (Princeton University Press, 2020) examines the Muslim mandates of forgiveness, compassion, and mercy as they take shape in Iran’s criminal justice system.Interview date: 8 September 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210908-memo-in-conversation-with-arzoo-osanloo
The Iraqi uprising and women’s rights : MEMO in conversation with Zahra Ali MEMO 2023-12-25 | In 2021, MEMO spoke with sociologist and Assistant Professor of Sociology at Rutgers University Zahra Ali to discuss the Iraqi uprising and women’s rights in the war-torn country.Ali is the author of Women and Gender in Iraq: between Nation-building and Fragmentation published by Cambridge University Press in 2018. Her research at Rutgers University explores the dynamics of women and gender, social and political movements in relation to Islam and the Middle East and contexts of war and conflicts, with a focus on contemporary Iraq.Interview date: 4 August 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210804-memo-in-conversation-with-zahra-ali
Occultism and superstition in Iran: MEMO in conversation with Alireza Doostdar MEMO 2023-12-25 | MEMO spoke with Associate Professor of Islamic Studies and the Anthropology of Religion at the University of Chicago Divinity School, Alireza Doostdar, on occultism, superstition, and how it relates to Iranian politics and political debate in Iran.Doostdar is the author of ‘The Iranian Metaphysicals: Explorations in Science, Islam, and the Uncanny’ and is currently writing a book about the theology of Satan after the Islamic Revolution.Interview date: 7 July 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210707-memo-in-conversation-with-alireza-doostdar
Middle East disinformation wars: MEMO in conversation with Marc Owen Jones MEMO 2023-12-25 | MEMO spoke with Marc Owen Jones, Assistant Professor of Middle East Studies and Digital Humanities at Hamad Bin Khalifa University, to discuss disinformation wars and the battle for narratives in the digital world.Interview date: 22 September 2021Read more:middleeastmonitor.com/20210922-memo-in-conversation-with-marc-owen-jones
