Qifa Nabki

Lebanon’s Ministry of Energy and Water has launched a new campaign promoting the benefits of off-shore oil exploration for the average citizen. The ads contain shots of smiling people aside captions like: “My children and I are staying in Lebanon“… or “My future is in Lebanon“… or… “I’m going back to work in Lebanon!“ Another … Continue reading »

Everyone is wringing their hands over Lebanese Salafist leader Shaykh Ahmad al-Assir’s call to send jihadists to help Syria’s rebels. On Monday, he announced the formation of resistance battalions that were prepared to join the side of the uprising, saying: “There is a religious duty on every Muslim who is able to do so… to … Continue reading »

Theodor Hanf famously described Lebanon’s consociational system as a “fair-weather model,” meaning that it sails smoothly under sunny skies but is not built for stormy conditions. I found myself thinking back to this statement as I observed the remarkably smooth accession of Tammam Salam last week to the post of Lebanon’s Prime Minister. Compared with … Continue reading »

A few years ago, Maya Zankoul and I came up with a snarky parody of the ubiquitous iPhone advertisement, tailored specifically for Lebanon’s problems. At the time, the idea of a single iPhone app designed for life in Lebanon was hysterically funny, mainly because internet speeds were only a notch beyond the dial-up era. Since … Continue reading »

The media reaction to the resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati last week has been puzzling, from my perspective. CNN says that the resignation “throws Lebanon’s politics in turmoil” while The Economist warns the Lebanese to “be careful,” as “Lebanon’s delicate sectarian system is in danger of falling apart.” Not to second-guess the propensity of the … Continue reading »

LBC is reporting (on Twitter) that Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Miqati is headed to the Grand Serail to announce his resignation over the current cabinet squabble concerning the extension of Ashraf Rifi’s tenure as director of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces (ISF). I spoke to NOW Lebanon’s Alex Rowell yesterday about this issue, suggesting that … Continue reading »

  Just a quick note to mention a few upcoming talks I’m giving (which is a none-too-subtle way to apologize for the slow posting these days): Poetic Forces: Creative Change in and Beyond the Arab Spring (Tuesday, March 12, 5:30 PM, Granoff Center, Martinos Auditorium, Brown University) Very much looking forward to this event, which will … Continue reading »

Last week, Hizbullah chief Sayyid Hasan Nasrallah announced his party’s support for an electoral law based on a single national district. In the past, the main champion of this idea has been Speaker Nabih Berri, but there has never been an occasion to take the possibility seriously since Lebanon’s electoral laws have generally not departed … Continue reading »

I try not to mix business and pleasure too often, but this conference that I’m organizing next semester at Brown University may be of interest to some folks. See below for our call to papers, and please feel free to publicize it widely. The website for the conference (still in development) is islamichumanities.org. ** The … Continue reading »

When some future historian writes a chronicle of 21st-century Lebanon, she will likely devote a bemused footnote to the odd events of February 2013, when the country’s leaders saw fit to tear down a pillar of the confessional regime one week, only to erect another one a week later. On February 11, the Justice Ministry … Continue reading »

I’ve written an essay for Jadaliyya that explores the long-term political implications of implementing civil marriage in Lebanon. As it currently stands, the wedding between Nidal Darwish and Khulud Sukkariyyeh has been rejected by the Lebanese government, even though the civil society organization that orchestrated the marriage had allegedly received assurances in the past from … Continue reading »

There’s a lot of great stuff to read about the ongoing electoral law debate in Lebanon. Some of the most relevant stuff is below: Karl Sharro made a lot of the same points I did in my last post, except he made them a week ago.  Mustapha at Beirut Spring weighs in on the debate … Continue reading »

The electoral law being championed by Lebanon’s Christian parties — also known as the Ferzli law, the Orthodox law, the Orthodox-Maronite Gathering law, or as we like to call it here at Qifa Nabki, the “OMG law” — is the most backward, sectarian, reactionary, bloody-minded proposal to come out of a legislative committee in a very … Continue reading »