Interview

Saudi Arabia is on a path of dramatic economic and social reforms. The reforms, launched by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, are aimed at modernizing the kingdom and are welcomed both nationally and internationally. Abir Abusulayman stands at the forefront of social reforms, in particular women’s right to choose. The …

“The wheels of justice turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine”, Sun Tzu – a Chinese general, writer and philosopher – said almost 2500 years ago. In Serbia, where many litigations and trials have been around for decades, another concept seems to prevail: “Justice delayed is justice denied”. By Nikola MikovicAlthough …

The events and entertainment industry is one of the industries that was probably hit the hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic. Actors, musicians, and singers lost a large part of their income. Some made a virtue of necessity, like Dubai based Dutch producer and singer/ song writer LYZZ. Who reinvented herself.By …

The situation in Lebanon is deteriorating. People are increasingly desperate amid the political deadlock, the financial meltdown, the rising poverty, and COVID-19. In this unprecedented economic crisis there is still room for success proves Lebanese entrepreneur Rony Abou Saab (43). By Arthur BlokAbou Saab started working when he was only …

“Tunisian authorities should drop the charges against Rania Amdouni, a prominent women’s rights defender and LGBT activist”, said Hamza Nasri a Tunisian Human Rights activist and defender. Amdouni was sentenced to six months in prison last month for ‘insulting a public officer’.By Arthur BlokNasri is a member of the Tunisian …

Facebook removed a video of an interview with former President Trump conducted by his daughter-in-law Lara Trump, saying any content “in the voice of Donald Trump” would be scrubbed from the social media platform. Is Facebook trying to erase the former US president? By Arthur BlokFacebook permanently banned the former president from their …

Emad El-Din Aysha: Dear Dr. Csicsery-Ronay Istvan. First please let me apologise for saying doctor. In Arabic countries we take such honorifics very seriously, even when speaking English. Secondly, please tell us something about yourself. Where you teach, your background? What drew you to science fiction and specifically non-Anglophone SF? …

After weeks of negotiations Tunisia’s parliament voted in September for a second new government in just six months. The new government of Hichem Mechichi is unique in Tunisia’s history: not one party in parliament is represented in it. The vote was won after a diplomatic offensive behind the scenes by …

President Trump is once again charging that last month’s presidential election was rigged and rampant with fraud. In an address posted on his Twitter and Facebook pages that the president described as possibly “the most important speech, I’ve ever made.” By the Levant News newsdesk Trump charged that “lots of …

United States Attorney General William Barr compared calls for a national lockdown in the U.S. to slavery earlier this week. Speaking at Hillsdale College in Michigan, the event’s host asked Barr to explain the “constitutional hurdles for forbidding a church from meeting during COVID-19.” Barr then launched into a four-minute …

By Emad El-Din Aysha, PhD       “I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is: I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat, or a prostitute.” — Rebecca West   “The more identities …

The world is so focussed on the latest figures of Covid-19 deaths and infection statistics, only few people realize what is pending in the background; a new global systematic war. Dutch political scientist Ingo Piepers (PhD) expects a new systematic war to erupt in the nearby future: “It has not …

This interview was conducted by Darius Luca Hupov. Hupov is the Editor-in-chief of Romania’s top sci-fi online publication, Galaxy 42, covering the activities of sci-fi enthusiasts from Europe to China and the Middle East. Darius Hupov has been writing science fiction since 1987 ans has published in the Banat Renaissance, …

Tunisian politician and businessman Nabil Karoui (1963) became world famous when he was arrested last year before the start of the presidential campaign where he was frontrunner. During the second round he was released from prison, but the damage to his name was irreversible. He became the runner-up, and his …

Emad El-Din Aysha: Tell me something about yourself, your CV? Asmaa Kadry: Forget CV’s, they’re highly overrated. I think you could say that I’m an eclectic soul: Internationally accredited Psychotherapist, Hypnotherapist & NLP life coach Public speaker & certified trainer Author whose written and published 10 books until now mostly …

Dr. Haytham Mouzahem, head of Beirut Centre for Middle East Studies talks to International Affairs Review on the assasination of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani by US strikes in Baghdad airport earlier today and the implications for the region.   Do you see this assasination as an escalation between the US and …

The Levant News Exclusive – By Emad El-Din Aysha | Mark Sedgwick is Professor of Arab and Islamic Studies at Aarhus University, and Chair of the Nordic Society for Middle Eastern Studies. He studied history at Oxford University, did his PhD at the University of Bergen, and taught for many …

When it comes to Hamas, the issue revolves around its historical roots and its past and present affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood worldwide. Its recent stance on the Turkish invasion of parts of Syria reopens for researchers and writers the doors to study the Hamas affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood. …

Dr. Haytham Mouzahem, head of Beirut Centre for Middle East Studies talks to International Affairs Review on the current situation in Syria and the Turkish military operations and the implications for the region.   Please walk us through what is happening right now in north east Syria. Turkey has been invading areas …

By Emad El-Din Aysha, PhD   As journalist with The Levant and a member of the Egyptian Society for Science Fiction (ESSF), I’m always on the lookout for fellow Arab and Muslim authors of science fiction, and one area that has peaked my interest as of late is Sufi science …

  We should call this week “Iranian diplomacy week”. It seems that Iran’s strategic patience after the US withdrawal from the international treaty on Iran nuclear program, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and Washington’s “maximum pressure” is bearing fruit. On the one hand, Foreign Minister …

  Hello, Mr.Gouthama, welcome to Melange ! Could you please tell us about you and what you are ?   From the International arena, you welcome me and my writings. I thank you and International readers of sci-fi as well on behalf of Tamil.   I am primarily a fiction writer …

A New Zealand nurse visited the ancient city of Petra in Jordan, where she met a Bedouin seller of souvenirs and loved him and lived with him in his cave. By Dr. Haytham Mouzahem — ‘”Where you staying?” the Bedouin asked. “Why you not stay with me tonight – in …

Dr. Haytham Mouzahem is a Lebanese analyst and researcher who specializes in Islamic and Middle East affairs. He has authored many books on Islam, Shiism, Iran, and Islamic and Jihadi groups. He currently heads the Beirut Centre for Middle East Studies. He spoke to International Affairs Review on the current …

This is an interview conducted by Emad El-Din AyshaBy with the Indian analyst and editor of International Affairs Review, Aditi Bhaduri on the Pakistani- Indian recent clashes: The Levant News: What is the Indian position now? Does it want escalation of the hostilities? What does India want from Pakistan that …

Dyna Fayz, is a Public Figure and TV broadcaster based in London. Raised in Scotland up till the age of 21,she graduated from Glasgow University with a Masters degree in Civil Engineering and moved to London with her family.   Since a young age, Dyna adores mathematics, algebra and problem …

The Levant News – Here is a special interview with Dr. Haytham Mouzahem, director of Beirut Center For Middle East Studies regarding the ongoing battles of Syria’s South: Q-What do you think this means for the overall status of the Syrian conflict? The battle of the Syrian south comes to …

THE LEVANT NEWS EXCLUSIVE – Interview conducted by Emad El-Din Aysha —    Dear Sarah Begum, before anything else, could you fill us in on your background please? Where did you grow up and how did this shape your life and career? Did you grow up watching David Attenborough and …

Interview conducted by Emad El-Din Aysha   Dear Juliana… well, first off, what’s your maiden name? Juliana Borba   You’re a dedicated wife and mother. How did you meet your husband? On a dating website. I was working 50+ hours a week as a area Manager for Ann Taylor at …

The Levant News — Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai, Secretary General of ‘World Kashmir Awareness Forum’ voiced his continuing belief that the conflict over Kashmir cannot be resolved through military might. Kashmir is a political issue and has to be resolved through political means by involving all parties to the conflict …

By Michael Clarke and Raffaello Pantucci for The National Interest — On August 14, Guan Youfei, a rear admiral in China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy, visited the Syrian capital of Damascus, escorted around the city under heavy guard. Guan’s visit reportedly included meetings with senior military officials and Russian officers, …

The Levant News — Here is an interview with Dr. Haytham Mouzahem, President of Beirut Center For Middle East Studies, regarding the Uighur fighters in Syria: Q- Is there now clear and undisputed evidence emerging from Syria of a significant Uighur presence? What is their number? I have seen everything …

By Francesca Cicardi for EFE — Dr. Haytham Mouzahem, is the president of Beirut Center for Middle East Studies. He is specialized in Islamic and Middle East Affairs, and Islamic and Jihadi movements. EFE interviewed him on the impact of the death of Baghdadi on ISIS. How can Al Adnani’s …

by Russell Schoch for Campus Watch published in June 2003 — Shortly after September 11, 2001, professor of Persian and Islamic Studies Hamid Algar hailed a cab in downtown Berkeley. The cab driver was an Indian Sikh, wearing a turban. When Algar got into the cab, the driver said: “Sir, …

By Ken Klippenstein* for AlterNet — Seymour Hersh is an American investigative journalist who is the recipient of many awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for his article exposing the My Lai massacre by the U.S. military in Vietnam. More recently, he exposed the U.S. government’s abuse of detainees in the …

Fawaz Gerges, a professor of international relations at the London School of Economics, recently published ISIS: A History, a book that analyzes and contextualizes the Islamic State’s rise to power. Gerges argues that decades of sectarian violence have strengthened today’s global jihadi movement. In order to curb it, the Islamic …

LONDON: The British press Friday accused President Barack Obama of launching an unprecedented verbal attack on British Prime Minister David Cameron in a magazine interview. In a lengthy interview with The Atlantic, Obama faults Cameron and other European allies for shortcomings in dealing with Libya after the 2011 ouster of …

THE LEVANT NEWS — Experts describe the footage obtained by Sky News of a “jihadi technical college” as an intelligence gold mine.   By Stuart Ramsay, Sky News Chief Correspondent Terror group Islamic State is employing scientists and weapons experts to train jihadists to carry out sophisticated “spectacular” attacks in …

By TOBY CRAIG JONES for The New York Times — WHEN Saudi Arabia executed the Shiite cleric and political dissident Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr on Saturday, the country’s leaders were aware that doing so would upset their longtime rivals in Iran. In fact, the royal court in Riyadh was probably counting …

THE LEVANT NEWS — Saudi Arabia widened its rift with Iran on Monday, saying it would end air traffic and trade links with the Islamic republic and demanding that Tehran must “act like a normal country” before it would restore severed diplomatic relations. Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told Reuters in …

THE LEVANT NEWS –By Dr. Haytham Mouzahem — The German researcher Sabine Schmidtke (born in 1964) is German scholar and Professor for Islamic Studies and Director of the Research Unit Intellectual History of the Islamicate World at Freie Universität Berlin. She has a BA (summa cum laude) from the Hebrew …

THE LEVANT NEWS– Syria complains that terrorists harrying the country grew in power after the United States and its allies started aerial strikes against purported Daesh hideouts. “The result is that the terrorists have gained more ground and more recruits from around the world,” Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told China’s Phoenix television …

The Levant News– Syrian president Bashar al-Assad said his country is ready to share intelligence with France only if Paris changed its policy toward Syria. “We are ready to exchange intelligence with France if Paris changed its policy toward Syria and we have repeatedly called for the necessity to form …

The Levant News– The United States has set the stage for a direct confrontation with Russia by deploying fighter jets to Turkey to undermine the Russian air campaign against terrorists in neighboring Syria, an American political pundit says. A US military official said on Tuesday that the Pentagon has deployed …