by Robert Hamd In 2017, the Lebanese government brought in the international consultancy firm, McKinsey, to analyze Lebanon’s public and private sectors. On Wednesday, January 2, the Ministry of Economy released the report, describing what they saw as Lebanon’s crippling political stalemate in government. The 1,200-page report warns that the […]
By Elias Ghazal A deliberate war waged against Yemen has killed more than 10,000 people and displaced millions. The situation on the ground is appalling. There have been over 1.2 million suspected cholera cases since April 2017 – one of the worst outbreaks in recent history. Polio, an easily preventable […]
By Wissam al-Saliby In March of this year at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, I saw a man sitting next to me writing in Arabic the statement that he will be reading to the council. Adel was a Tunisian head of a non-profit. I said hello in […]
By Robert Hamd Today, the younger generations of Christians are asking the difficult questions, such as why injustice persists. They are passionate about a convergence of the words of scripture and real-life practice. For example, they read passages from Isaiah that challenge us to “learn to do good; seek justice, […]
By Brent Hamoud Landscapes throughout the MENA region have been transformed by unfolding crises of forced migration. This is especially the case in Lebanon. An estimated 1.5 million Syrian refugees reside within its borders adding layers of dimension to long-existing populations of displacement.[i] Many Syrian refugees reside in informal tented settlements. […]
The 1970s were defining for me. Those were my high school years. Growing up between Lebanon and the US gave me the opportunity to experience those formative high school years cross-culturally. I was a mid-western boy living in a Middle Eastern home. Recently, I’ve decided to reread some of my […]
by Elias Ghazal After a year of fruitless negotiations, empty promises, and shady contracts, the garbage crisis is back in Lebanon! Piles of toxic waste have lined streets of towns and villages, emitting harmful gases, contaminating underground water streams, and causing an environmental disaster at a national level. The solution […]
By Ashley al-Saliby How long has it been since anyone has really seen her? I can’t help but wonder her name and her story as I navigate the sidewalk parallel to the one she’s traveling, both of us with market bags in hand. I’m new here, and by “here” I […]