Essays and Features

A ‘Narcissistic Wound’:

Betrayal and the Politics of Survival in Syria
By 
Naomi Pham
 
Syrians have nursed a wound that has never been given the chance to heal, just barely scabbing over before it is reopened once more — so much so that the Syrian experience has become synonymous with pain and suffering. In the aftermath of the coastal massacres in March, Samar Yazbek found herself feeling empty, searching for answers only to be met with silence.

Mourning the Swallows of Ghouta:

Twelve Years of Grief, Silence, and Betrayal
By 
Naomi Pham
 
Twelve years have passed since the horrifying attack on the people of Damascus’ Ghouta district, but the nightmares of that day are just as vivid today as they were over a decade ago to the survivors. Shortly after midnight on August 21, 2013, Bashar al-Assad’s regime launched a sarin gas attack on the towns of Zamalka, Ein Tarma, and Irbin.

The Minimalistic Words of Sonallah Ibrahim:

A Hemingway Legacy Exposes the Rot Hidden Within Egypt’s Shadows
By 
Naomi Pham
 
One of the Arab world’s most unyielding literary dissidents, Sonallah Ibrahim (1937-2025) devoted his life’s work to social justice and national liberation. Known for his stubborn integrity, Ibrahim refused to “enter the pen,” a phrase he used in reference to submission to the cultural establishment, and equally refused prizes, honors, and official recognition. He paved the way as the pioneer of the Arab documentary novel, his writing both a witness and a staunch refusal to submit to corruption and tyranny.

The End of Innocence:

Fear, Violence, and Lebanon’s Collapse of Moral Order
By 
Elie Chalala
 
As an academic and editor who regularly follows news and interviews from the Arab world, I am often struck by a recurring line of reasoning in discussions of the Arab-Israeli conflict: Israel, some argue, does not need a reason to attack, because aggression is inherent to its nature.
 
This memory came back to me while reading Marwan Harb’s recent article in Al Modon, “Preventive Killing: No One Is Innocent.”* Harb reflects on the erosion of “innocence” a

Broken Branches:

Lebanon’s Empty Institutions and the Architecture of Collapse
By 
Elie Chalala
 
Many debates on Arab politics revolve around the absence of institutionalization as a root cause of underdevelopment, corruption, and authoritarianism. This absence is often contrasted with the prevalence of personal rule — the dominant form of governance in much of the Arab world. Leading scholars and analysts have long emphasized the urgent need to shift Arab politics away from personalism and toward institutionalism, where laws, not individuals, determine the course of governance.

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