Also today I can recommend some reading for those of you who are not busy with other things! Very distinct Christmas theme, too.
Dagens Nyheters runs a evangelical Christmas editorial this morning.
In the newspaper they also ran a Bengt Nilsson-essay on the Holy sepulchre church and the territorial conflicts between different churches inside the building. I can't find it on the web but it was worth reading if you have it - I may add it later.
Biblical archaeology is a difficult business - a new Bethlehem is found to the north?
Åsa Linderborg in Aftonbladet writes about the Christmas spirit - charity or change?
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Future forum - happy note for happy holidays?
A last look before the holidays at substance issues touching on our life at the Gulf, the link of the Future Forum held in Abu Dhabi in October.
Happy holidays to all of you! I may return to blog before the New Year, but wish you a calm and peaceful end to 2008 all ready now, to be on the safe side.
Happy holidays to all of you! I may return to blog before the New Year, but wish you a calm and peaceful end to 2008 all ready now, to be on the safe side.
Policymakers, administrators, historians
I had reason recently to discuss British colonial practices and orders - mainly on HOW the Middle East was governed (and what the British imperial interest was). This book came nicely into it and partly helps unveil the tight connection to the government of India, at least up until the Iraq mandate was formed (the First World War became a sort of landmark also in this). This link becomes especially apparent in the Gulf, actually.
The corresponding American policy formation and the early shapers of it are introduced here:
Both are warmly recommended for reading as they focus on passionate individuals and help explain the 20th century through them.
The corresponding American policy formation and the early shapers of it are introduced here:
Both are warmly recommended for reading as they focus on passionate individuals and help explain the 20th century through them.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Link updates continue
First 2 links from this week:
Aftonbladet on women, power and sex in modern film.
National runs a story on the "Arab Booker"-prize shortlist..., results to be announced at the Abu Dhabi Book Fair.
And deeper into the autumn backlog:
Dagens Nyheter ran an editorial on Russian gas policies, mentioning my mother!
Svenska Dagbladet writes of Barack Obama's Arab appeal and runs an editorial on Obama and Iran policies. Washington Posts writes of Arab and other bloggers in the election race.
BBC reports on a British Dubai sex scandal... Later, a "swinger-scandal" hit Cairo.
Svenska Dagbladet reports on a trial against a molester in Egypt. The victim and brave reporting woman is interviewed here!
Svenska Dagbladet also meets the man behind "Young Freud in Gaza".
IWPR raises the alarm for journalists in Iraq. BBC reports on the tragic fate of a young Iraqi woman in a tribal environment... Another hard-pressed group in Iraq are Christians, as reported here by BBC.
National reports on ethnic disturbances in Turkey. BBC discusses the trial uncovering the "deep state".
Cyprus is also featured in Dagens Nyheter.
National runs a forum on the environment in the UAE - a difficult issue in the best of times.
Dagens Nyheter visits Istanbul and Svenska Dagbladet travels to Damascus.
National ran this story on preserving architecture in New Delhi.
BBC reports on seabed finds off Indonesia, highlighting Indian Ocean trade.
Cordelia Edvardsson for Svenska Dagbladet on lessons of how a Greek antique reached a private Swedish home... Dagens Nyheter writes on historical research into the history of capital punishment in Sweden.
And finally some posts in the Swedish debate - on criminalising forced marriages and on parents and taking leave to spend with their young children.
Aftonbladet on women, power and sex in modern film.
National runs a story on the "Arab Booker"-prize shortlist..., results to be announced at the Abu Dhabi Book Fair.
And deeper into the autumn backlog:
Dagens Nyheter ran an editorial on Russian gas policies, mentioning my mother!
Svenska Dagbladet writes of Barack Obama's Arab appeal and runs an editorial on Obama and Iran policies. Washington Posts writes of Arab and other bloggers in the election race.
BBC reports on a British Dubai sex scandal... Later, a "swinger-scandal" hit Cairo.
Svenska Dagbladet reports on a trial against a molester in Egypt. The victim and brave reporting woman is interviewed here!
Svenska Dagbladet also meets the man behind "Young Freud in Gaza".
IWPR raises the alarm for journalists in Iraq. BBC reports on the tragic fate of a young Iraqi woman in a tribal environment... Another hard-pressed group in Iraq are Christians, as reported here by BBC.
National reports on ethnic disturbances in Turkey. BBC discusses the trial uncovering the "deep state".
Cyprus is also featured in Dagens Nyheter.
National runs a forum on the environment in the UAE - a difficult issue in the best of times.
Dagens Nyheter visits Istanbul and Svenska Dagbladet travels to Damascus.
National ran this story on preserving architecture in New Delhi.
BBC reports on seabed finds off Indonesia, highlighting Indian Ocean trade.
Cordelia Edvardsson for Svenska Dagbladet on lessons of how a Greek antique reached a private Swedish home... Dagens Nyheter writes on historical research into the history of capital punishment in Sweden.
And finally some posts in the Swedish debate - on criminalising forced marriages and on parents and taking leave to spend with their young children.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Extreme backlog of links...
This autumn has been more difficult to cope with and confused than I reckoned with. Blogging has been one thing I have not really had a lot of energy for. So I have a absolutely enormous backlog of links to give you. I'll try to give them some structure...
For a time in the early autumn, a renewed US presence in Tehran was floated, here reported by the BBC. Here Per Ahlin in Dagens Nyheter about the discussion on Iran in the US presidential race. National looks at muscle-flexing by Tehran's influential bazaaris.
BBC also reports on an Iranian "women's car".
National reported on the fourth anniversary of Istanbul Modern!
Joschka Fischer wrote an appeal for an Arab Jean Monnet, to father an Arab cooperation like that in Europe - her in Gulf news, but I remember it being published also in Swedish, by Dagens Nyheter.
Gulf News on Syrian-Russian relations echoing the cold war?
Bitte Hammagren för Svenska Dagbladet on reconstructing Beirut and what is forgotten underneath.
National reports on an early Arab highlevel visit in Baghdad, from the UAE. Here also on Kurdish-Arab relations in Iraq and on tribal endeavours to enhance security.
Human Rights Watch reports on developments in Saudi-arabia. Amnesty similarly discusses who seem to be at the receiving end of Saudi legal harshness.
National on ethnic and linguistic mixing in the UAE - very interesting and entertaining! They also ran a whole series on youth in the Arab world, eith very interesting features of the Gulf, not least. BBC looks at the difficulties of dimensioning infra-structure in a boom - Dubai has a sewage problem...
Thomas Gür for Svenska Dagbladet on Turkey and the Caucasus, especially Armenia, against the backdrop of the Georgian war. also in Turkey, the discussion of the Ilisu dam building goes on.
Svenska Dagbladet also reports on the Swedish presence in Afghanistan.
A review from Svenska Dagbladet on Steve Colls book on bin Laden.
A little reminder of the importance of the translator of fiction...
Dagens Nyheter writes on the foreign aid-debate in Sweden and some of the books published on the topic.
Mariza sang in Uppsala, praised here by Svenska Dagbladet.
Swedish tour operators re-discover the Middle East?
Sarah Palin wigs became the rage - I wonder what her stylist does now?
For a time in the early autumn, a renewed US presence in Tehran was floated, here reported by the BBC. Here Per Ahlin in Dagens Nyheter about the discussion on Iran in the US presidential race. National looks at muscle-flexing by Tehran's influential bazaaris.
BBC also reports on an Iranian "women's car".
National reported on the fourth anniversary of Istanbul Modern!
Joschka Fischer wrote an appeal for an Arab Jean Monnet, to father an Arab cooperation like that in Europe - her in Gulf news, but I remember it being published also in Swedish, by Dagens Nyheter.
Gulf News on Syrian-Russian relations echoing the cold war?
Bitte Hammagren för Svenska Dagbladet on reconstructing Beirut and what is forgotten underneath.
National reports on an early Arab highlevel visit in Baghdad, from the UAE. Here also on Kurdish-Arab relations in Iraq and on tribal endeavours to enhance security.
Human Rights Watch reports on developments in Saudi-arabia. Amnesty similarly discusses who seem to be at the receiving end of Saudi legal harshness.
National on ethnic and linguistic mixing in the UAE - very interesting and entertaining! They also ran a whole series on youth in the Arab world, eith very interesting features of the Gulf, not least. BBC looks at the difficulties of dimensioning infra-structure in a boom - Dubai has a sewage problem...
Thomas Gür for Svenska Dagbladet on Turkey and the Caucasus, especially Armenia, against the backdrop of the Georgian war. also in Turkey, the discussion of the Ilisu dam building goes on.
Svenska Dagbladet also reports on the Swedish presence in Afghanistan.
A review from Svenska Dagbladet on Steve Colls book on bin Laden.
A little reminder of the importance of the translator of fiction...
Dagens Nyheter writes on the foreign aid-debate in Sweden and some of the books published on the topic.
Mariza sang in Uppsala, praised here by Svenska Dagbladet.
Swedish tour operators re-discover the Middle East?
Sarah Palin wigs became the rage - I wonder what her stylist does now?
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Celebrations today
Today marks 2 different celebrations:
Nobel celebrations in Stockholm and in Oslo.
and
the 60 years anniversary of the UN Declaration of Universal Human Rights. Read Human Rights Watch and Amnesty about it here.
Nobel celebrations in Stockholm and in Oslo.
and
the 60 years anniversary of the UN Declaration of Universal Human Rights. Read Human Rights Watch and Amnesty about it here.
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
December reading
I have a wealth of waiting links from almost the whole autumn to post - so I'll be unorthodox and start with the latest ones. ;-)
Goran Bregovic played in Stockholm - here reviewed in Svenska Dagbladet.
Bitte Hammargren writes here in Svenska Dagbladet of meeting the inhabitants of Nahr el-Barid camp in northern Lebanon, months after the siege.
The National interviews new UAE ambassador to Sweden.
Ing-Marie Froman reflects on neo-feminism and social conservatism with swedish televisison iniativ Halal-tv as a backdrop. This show has also been much debated a few weeks ago on Newsmill, actually mainly before broadcasting began.
A lot of Svenska Dagbladet today - here they published an essay exploring the importance of cassettes for spreading news and information in Arabic, here in Yemen.
A much-discussed arrest of blogger Hoder in Iran has not met with much attention in sweden, but Brian Whitaker of the Guardian discusses it here. a mass of different theories and points-of-view have popped up, will post more if I find something sensible and comprehensive.
I believe I have previously (even if it was quite some time since) pointed to the specific situation in the Sinai. Human Rights Watch issued a new report in the subject in November.
Sexuality is a powerful taboo not least in the Middle East (in Sweden we are less afflicted by it ;-) ) - Dagens Nyheter here meets sex-advisor in Lebanon and discusses implications.
A Dagens Nyheter-editorial on EU-Russia relations, against the background of an installation speech by Swedish EU-minister Cecilia Malmström at the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences.
The Institute for Gulf Affairs offered a report on religious freedom in Saudi-Arabia - I haven't read it but the topic is always interesting!
Robert Fisk is angry and to the point as usual - here lamenting the fact that Arab archives are closed and making the writing of history dependent on British and Israeli archives! I am by the way reading a book on the colonial officers who shaped the Middle East and it's 20th century - coming back to that in a later post.
Goran Bregovic played in Stockholm - here reviewed in Svenska Dagbladet.
Bitte Hammargren writes here in Svenska Dagbladet of meeting the inhabitants of Nahr el-Barid camp in northern Lebanon, months after the siege.
The National interviews new UAE ambassador to Sweden.
Ing-Marie Froman reflects on neo-feminism and social conservatism with swedish televisison iniativ Halal-tv as a backdrop. This show has also been much debated a few weeks ago on Newsmill, actually mainly before broadcasting began.
A lot of Svenska Dagbladet today - here they published an essay exploring the importance of cassettes for spreading news and information in Arabic, here in Yemen.
A much-discussed arrest of blogger Hoder in Iran has not met with much attention in sweden, but Brian Whitaker of the Guardian discusses it here. a mass of different theories and points-of-view have popped up, will post more if I find something sensible and comprehensive.
I believe I have previously (even if it was quite some time since) pointed to the specific situation in the Sinai. Human Rights Watch issued a new report in the subject in November.
Sexuality is a powerful taboo not least in the Middle East (in Sweden we are less afflicted by it ;-) ) - Dagens Nyheter here meets sex-advisor in Lebanon and discusses implications.
A Dagens Nyheter-editorial on EU-Russia relations, against the background of an installation speech by Swedish EU-minister Cecilia Malmström at the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences.
The Institute for Gulf Affairs offered a report on religious freedom in Saudi-Arabia - I haven't read it but the topic is always interesting!
Robert Fisk is angry and to the point as usual - here lamenting the fact that Arab archives are closed and making the writing of history dependent on British and Israeli archives! I am by the way reading a book on the colonial officers who shaped the Middle East and it's 20th century - coming back to that in a later post.
Reading experience
I read a really interesting novel the other night, The Kissing Gates by Mackenzie Ford.
It takes place in England in the First World War and circulates around issues of life, love and morality - the price of life and the cost of love. It is very multidimensional in it's exploration of these epic themes, but in a very ordinary everyday seeting - at the same time as the wartime setting gives a cutting edge to the issues.
I picked it up by chance, but once reading, I really couldn't put it down...
It takes place in England in the First World War and circulates around issues of life, love and morality - the price of life and the cost of love. It is very multidimensional in it's exploration of these epic themes, but in a very ordinary everyday seeting - at the same time as the wartime setting gives a cutting edge to the issues.
I picked it up by chance, but once reading, I really couldn't put it down...
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Dubai creek at dusk
Seeing the abras floating on the creek as the light is going was a near-magical experience.
Monday, December 01, 2008
Accolade
Like elsewhere, Swedish media are finding Saudi girlband Accolade! I quite like the song (it has no real Arabic feel to it, but I understand it to be sprung from a real rock scene, not necessarily a local/folksy music tradition).
Svenska Dagbladets Middle East blog by Bitte H was probably the first and today Dagens Nyheter also writes about them.
Svenska Dagbladets Middle East blog by Bitte H was probably the first and today Dagens Nyheter also writes about them.
Happy holiday season
In my world looking out from the Gulf, the holiday season begins already now. The UAE celebrates 37 years tomorrow, and next week is Eid Al-Adha. After that comes Lucia, Hanukkah, Christmas (in different versions) and New Year. Busy monthcelebrating, I guess!
My warmest wishes to those of you celebrating all or any of the above (or anything else I may have overlooked...).
My warmest wishes to those of you celebrating all or any of the above (or anything else I may have overlooked...).
Saturday, November 29, 2008
3 year anniversary
Well, activity is a little low right now (but more is to come) - I do however want to commemorate that now in late November is the 3 year anniversary of this blog! I began in November 2005... not bad! I certainly never imagined it at the time and have appreciated the energy I have put into this hobby-project enormously. I hope you can enjoy further!
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Bloggers
Bitte Hammargren of Svenska Dagbladet highlights bloggers in the Arab world in her most recent post.
I've linked this post from Pop the casbah before but it's a good overview on the same topic. Also Global Voices gives you more links to Middle East bloggers!
I've linked this post from Pop the casbah before but it's a good overview on the same topic. Also Global Voices gives you more links to Middle East bloggers!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Downtown Sharjah
Sharjah looks sort of like old Dubai, but nothing like the new Dubai.. do you follow me?
Last picture shows the fort amid the more modern bank buildings.
Last picture shows the fort amid the more modern bank buildings.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Museum of Islamic civilizations
The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization is the nicest I have seen in the UAE so far. It even had a nice cafeteria and a really decent museum shop! Really good exhibition on Islamic science to, with interactive aspects.
Brief Central Asia update
Afghanistan is slightly outside what we usually think of as Central Asia, but is firmly geographically in it. Al Jazeera ran an update on the war against drug production.
Human Rights Watch reports on the situation for women in Kyrgyzstan.
Maybe most important and interesting in this selection is the interviews with the Swedish journalist who reported from Andijan in Uzbekistan - here from Svenska Dagbladet. We never went to the Ferghana valley during our visit earlier this year, but having seen the country it still feels urgent.
Human Rights Watch reports on the situation for women in Kyrgyzstan.
Maybe most important and interesting in this selection is the interviews with the Swedish journalist who reported from Andijan in Uzbekistan - here from Svenska Dagbladet. We never went to the Ferghana valley during our visit earlier this year, but having seen the country it still feels urgent.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Sharjah corniche
More sights along the Sharjah corniche. I guess Gulf trade has looked pretty much like this for a long long time - and the mix and mingle between old and new is fantastic.
Turkey
One of several postings of links - a little bit thematized this time... - that have been waiting for quite some time for me to publish. If I find I have more within a reasonable timespan - I will probably add and republish...
BBC reports on the renewal of historic wine-making, - not wholly uncontroversial...
BBC also discusses the status of historic churches in Turkey - museums or living shrines?
A paper by Svante Cornell and Magnus Karaveli ask whether AKP and their particular brand of modern Islamic politics will reform Turkey?
ICG explores Ankara's relations with Kurds in Iraq and the Barzani administration in the north.
The mayor of Batman dislikes his namesake film, reports Dagens Nyheter...
Karin Olsson from Expressen discusses reforms in Turkey in view of the Swedish Eu-preisdency 2009.
BBC reports on the renewal of historic wine-making, - not wholly uncontroversial...
BBC also discusses the status of historic churches in Turkey - museums or living shrines?
A paper by Svante Cornell and Magnus Karaveli ask whether AKP and their particular brand of modern Islamic politics will reform Turkey?
ICG explores Ankara's relations with Kurds in Iraq and the Barzani administration in the north.
The mayor of Batman dislikes his namesake film, reports Dagens Nyheter...
Karin Olsson from Expressen discusses reforms in Turkey in view of the Swedish Eu-preisdency 2009.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Hosn fortress in Sharjah
In downtown Sharjah, between the heritage and arts areas, a replica of the old fort, rebuilt by the current Sheikh from memories of his childhood, stands as a museum.
Sharjah, like the Creek area of Dubai, has a more genuine and old-fashioned feeling (even if it is hardly really old by regional standards).
Sharjah, like the Creek area of Dubai, has a more genuine and old-fashioned feeling (even if it is hardly really old by regional standards).
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Sharjah dhow harbour!
Walking along the Sharjah corniche, this is what meets the eye. My favourite is the first picture, with any number of cars on board a dhow, but the leopard sofa further down is great too!
Film from Afghanistan - the Makhmalbafs do it again!
This time it is Hana Makhmalbaf who directs a new Iranian film on children in Afghanistan. I'm sure it is both beautiful and heart-wrenching and would love to see it.
In Stockholm, it opens tomorrow at Zita.
Friday update: Dagens Nyheter meets Hana Makhmalbaf.
In Stockholm, it opens tomorrow at Zita.
Friday update: Dagens Nyheter meets Hana Makhmalbaf.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Looking forward
After a period of low activity here i now do have some new photos. However, my camera and my computer are not fully cooperating with me, so it may yet take some time before I can show you dhows and abras and other aspects of UAE boating life - recently taken during some excursions last week.
I also have a shot of the new apple of my eye - an Iranian nomad playing an important role in my everyday life.
But I can share a couple of links (out of a large accumulated mass of links yet to be sorted and commented...) on a Swedish visiting programme for young Arab leaders and on programmes for visiting Arab journalists.
I also have a shot of the new apple of my eye - an Iranian nomad playing an important role in my everyday life.
But I can share a couple of links (out of a large accumulated mass of links yet to be sorted and commented...) on a Swedish visiting programme for young Arab leaders and on programmes for visiting Arab journalists.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
11/11 - 90 years
It's 90 years since the First World War ended on the western front - symbolically with a truce beginning at 11:11 on the eleventh day of the eleventh month.
In the part of the world where I move it has profoundly changed history and geography. The map and developments in the Middle East were changed to the core and the parts which were not sorted out but frozen still haunt us. At home in Sweden, we were less involved, but of course not unscathed.
Niclas Ekdal previously of Dagens Nyheter sees important similarities with our time.
In the part of the world where I move it has profoundly changed history and geography. The map and developments in the Middle East were changed to the core and the parts which were not sorted out but frozen still haunt us. At home in Sweden, we were less involved, but of course not unscathed.
Niclas Ekdal previously of Dagens Nyheter sees important similarities with our time.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Challenging Calcutta
Dagens Nyheter runs a set of photos from Calcutta today. They are taken by Marianne Ahrne, who also writes about the challenges of the vast city, both for visitors and inhabitants.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Spanarna
One of my favourite programs on Swedish radio, Spanarna, celebrates it's 20th anniversary this weekend!
For all of you who don't listen regularly, Spanarna is a humoristic studio-conversation between 3 people who each give a prognosis of a phenomenon of our time, which they see as defining for the future. They also play cool jazz between each prognosis and have really funny sarcastic conversations on these defining features. Crystal clear? Cannot be explained, has to be lived!
For all of you who don't listen regularly, Spanarna is a humoristic studio-conversation between 3 people who each give a prognosis of a phenomenon of our time, which they see as defining for the future. They also play cool jazz between each prognosis and have really funny sarcastic conversations on these defining features. Crystal clear? Cannot be explained, has to be lived!
Friday, October 24, 2008
United Nations
Today is the UN Day - 63 years since the founding of the United Nations.
In Sweden, politicians of both the government and the opposition are highlighting this. I had the opportunity this week to underline this myself too. Strangely, none of the major morning papers seem to have had editorials on the topic today...
In Sweden, politicians of both the government and the opposition are highlighting this. I had the opportunity this week to underline this myself too. Strangely, none of the major morning papers seem to have had editorials on the topic today...
Waxholm fort
The fort of Vaxholm.
On seeing this, the German field-marshal von Moltke is said to have laughed one of the two times in his whole life. The other was when his mother-in-law died.
NB I don't know if it's true - but the story is quite widespread in Sweden. ;-)
On seeing this, the German field-marshal von Moltke is said to have laughed one of the two times in his whole life. The other was when his mother-in-law died.
NB I don't know if it's true - but the story is quite widespread in Sweden. ;-)
Human rights award
Another human rights award was given yesterday also, this one to Egyptian activist Nora Younis. Here internet activism has been in focus.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Sacharov award
The European parliament today awarded the Chinese activist Hu Jia with the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.
Svenska Dagbladet reports here.
Human Rights Watch comments here.
Svenska Dagbladet reports here.
Human Rights Watch comments here.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Muslim in America
Al Jazeera's English-channel is broadcasting a programme now on being a Muslim in America. It sounds interesting, even if I haven't had a chance to see it yet.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Boating - in Stockholm this time
More from grandma's and my lovely August archipelago excursion - these summer photos are really in no specific order once I get around to blogging...
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Blogging Middle East!
Svenska Dagbladet launches a Middle East-blog, by Bitte Hammargren (an old favourite of mine).
My friends at (swedish-language) Pop the casbah have a review of Swedish (and a few other) journalists previously blogging on the same theme - well worth reading too.
My friends at (swedish-language) Pop the casbah have a review of Swedish (and a few other) journalists previously blogging on the same theme - well worth reading too.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Picking mushrooms
Our walking cicerone took to picking mushrooms. I would personally never dare eat anything I had picked, but many Swedes do it regularly and well. And it is a nice pastime in the autumn and a delicious meal!
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