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While recent efforts towards recognizing and acknowledging the struggle of the Harkis is taking steps towards the right direction, there is a bigger picture. By preserving the memory of the Harkis and advocating for justice, real justice, we can prevent future cases of forgotten communities. < Back Forgotten Soldiers: The Case of the French Abandonment of the Algerian Harkis Farida Dowidar for Amnesty Sciences Po Menton September 30, 2024 The Harki - A term derived from the simple word movement in Arabic, but loaded with controversy in the Francophone world. The Harkis describe a group of native Muslim Algerians who fought on behalf of the French army in the Algerian War between 1954 and 1962. The Algerian War was a decolonial independence war fought primarily between France and the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN). Though one of the most significant wars of liberation, the conflict was characterized by war crimes, guerrilla warfare, and internal civil wars. Weighing on the war was the unique position that Algeria held. Unlike the rest of the French colonies, Algeria was declared an integral part of France in 1848, with Algiers, Oran, and Constantine organized as French departments. Subsequently, up to 200,000 Muslim Algerians served as regular soldiers in the French Army. With the outbreak of the Algerian War in 1954, many had their loyalty tested between serving their state or their people. The Harkis had various reasons for serving against the Algerian decolonial movement. Primarily, high unemployment rates among Algeria’s Muslim population made serving in the French army an attractive source of income. Many Harkis felt little devotion to France but sought a stable livelihood for their families. Additionally, as part of the FLN’s political tactics, by 1956, they had co-opted and dissolved all other rival nationalist groups, attacking their members to push their agenda. Thus, some Algerians joined the French Army in order to avenge the death of relatives. Conversely, some Harkis fought for France as they had traditionally, and generationally, served France. With a substantial number of Algerian Muslims fighting for France as auxiliary forces, the end of the war prompted questions about their fate. Though according to the peace agreement, the Evian Accords, no one, Harkis or Pieds-Noirs (Algerian-born Europeans), would suffer the consequences of their position during the war after independence, the realities on the ground looked vastly different. Considering them to be national traitors, widespread reprisals occurred against the Harkis, with lynch mobs, often coordinated by the FLN, killing at least 30,000 and potentially, according to some estimates, up to 150,000, including the Harkis and their families. Charles de Gaulle’s government initially banned the migration of the Harkis into metropolitan France following the end of the war. Regardless, many officers disobeyed and helped their fellow soldiers and families escape. Estimates indicate that about 90,000 Harkis and their families found refuge in France. However, having no right to residency, they were confined to “temporary” internment camps surrounded by barbed wire. Supervised at all times, Harki communities, both within and outside these camps, were subject to destitute conditions. Although they had served as soldiers for France, many Harkis were housed in these transit camps, tents, or huts. Many were put in industrial towns or council estates, but 69 “villages”, subject to 25 families per village, were built by the state in rural areas— in Languedoc-Roussillon, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, and Corsica—to house these communities. Despite some efforts by the state to “integrate” the Harkis, they were placed on the margins of French society on both a geographic and social scale. A recent ruling, Tamazount and Others v. France, by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), saw five descendants of the Harkis standing against the state of France for their human rights violations against the Harkis. The ECHR condemned the state of France for inflicting upon the Harkis "inhuman or degrading treatment" (Article 3) in the Bias camp, one of the temporary internment camps, as well as for failing to respect their "right to privacy", as stipulated in Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights. In this context, a series of strikes and demonstrations, beginning in the early 1970s but continuing until now, brought public attention to the case of the Harkis. Short-term measures were adopted through the 1970s and 1980s by the state, but demands for compensation and recognition were, for the most part, ignored. Though some laws were enacted, the Harki community still suffered from various socioeconomic issues that were rarely acknowledged and even less addressed. Caught in the crossfire of the nuances of the war, the Harkis are perceived as traitors among Algerians, with slur-like connotations of the word Harki. In France, they still serve as a reminder of how the country took a firm stance against the very people who fought to maintain the Empire’s power and control. Feelings of abandonment remain present within the Harki community. Though the government has begun to acknowledge the importance of the Harkis in the last two decades, as Macron admitted, France "failed in its duty towards the Harkis, their wives, and their children.” Speeches and commemorations of war acknowledge their abandonment, but in law, too little is done too late. Given their socioeconomic context, with high levels of societal alienation and illiteracy, there remains to be little literature on their experiences. Few memoirs exist to capture their struggle in either France or Algeria, but secondary literature has been vital in recording their history. The children of the Harkis have begun to capture testimonies to maintain the memory of this uniquely situated community. The hope is that their recorded history will not just stand as a footnote but a sobering reminder of the French colonial legacy and the consequences of the abandonment of a people. While recent efforts towards recognizing and acknowledging the struggle of the Harkis is taking steps towards the right direction, there is a bigger picture. By preserving the memory of the Harkis and advocating for justice, real justice, we can prevent future cases of forgotten communities.

Although the human rights violations in Qatar and its threat to the environment are alarming, it is of the utmost importance that one approaches the situation holistically. Forced labor, environmental threats and the kafala system gained attention due to World Cup boycott conversations. While the tournament has already occurred, it is paramount to not discard these issues in future discourse. < Back Analyzing the Morality of the World Cup: Boycotts, Forced Labor and Human Rights By Catarina Vita December 31, 2022 Every four years, not only do football fans from all around the globe gather to watch the sport but so does most of the world’s population. FIFA, the International Federation of Football Association, is responsible for the World Cup and decided to host the 2022 games in Qatar. Appalled by the workers’ rights violations and the imminent climate crisis in Qatar, a portion of the World Cup audience considered boycotting the tournament. However, counterarguments arose: the consideration of a boycott only popularized when the World Cup was located in the Middle East, and Qatar’s longstanding history of poor labor rights makes the timing of the boycott hypocritical. With increased international knowledge of Qatar’s recently abolished kafala system, alongside continued worker maltreatment in the country, potential World Cup spectators considered not watching the tournament at all. The kafala system, by definition, is a labor system connecting foreign workers to a local employer with no relation to labor ministries. As a result, workers have no rights, and many complain about a lack of breaks and overwhelmingly long working hours. Despite the Qatari government’s 2016 termination of the system, Amnesty International reports that the reform was “inadequate” and still allowed foreign workers to be exploited by their bosses. Furthermore, it is also argued that Qatar did not have the proper infrastructure for the World Cup. The high mortality rate among immigrants was due to the fast-paced manual labor of building stadiums. The climate crisis in Qatar also made the choice of country subject to criticism. Due to the ever-rising temperature in the country, even during the fall season in November and December, the government installed air conditioners inside seven of eight football stadiums. The total Qatar World Cup carbon emissions predicted were upwards of 3.6 million tons, while the tournament in Brazil and Russia had an estimated two million tons emitted. Some perceive the boycott to be either ineffective or contradictory. Although FIFA was involved in an extensive corruption scandal throughout the 2010s, the other World Cups were still watched and appreciated. Moreover, human rights violations in other World Cup host countries, such as massive corruption and torture in Brazil and anti-LGBTQIA+ stances in Russia, did not incur such international resistance. Qatar was the first Middle Eastern nation to host a World Cup, and the fact that only then did boycott ideas surface raises questions about the general perceptions of Middle Eastern countries. Although the human rights violations in Qatar and threats to the environment are alarming, it is of the utmost importance that one approaches the situation holistically. Forced labor and the kafala system gained attention due to boycott conversations. While the World Cup has already occurred, it is paramount not to discard these issues in future discourse. The worsening climate crisis and human rights violations are not limited to one country in the Global South; as these conversations arose because of the World Cup, it is vital to research and raise awareness about them on a global scale.

As we conclude our conversation with Director Youssef Halaoua, his journey highlights an important reminder. We should cherish our time in Menton, appreciating its unique charm, and seizing each fleeting moment with zeal. < Back Unveiling Horizons: A Candid Conversation with Our Director By Maria Eirini Liodi October 31, 2023 What better way to bridge the gap between administration and students than getting to know our new Director Youssef Halaoua a little better? Sitting with Mr Halaoua, the conversation opens with a glimpse into his formative years. “Growing up my favourite hobbies were cooking, reading, and sports.” Whilst it was easy to see how the sports honed his confident tone and leadership skills, how does cooking influence one’s path toward a political sciences degree? “I discovered that working in that industry is really difficult work.” In wanting to pursue his passion for cooking Mr Halaoua was faced with the raw realities hidden behind the youthful idealization of professions, something significant in urging him to consider other interests that he could follow professionally to maintain equilibrium with his passions. As a young boy, Mr. Halaoua was also an avid reader, gaining a critical understanding of world politics through the transformative tales of the Mafalda comics by cartoonist Quino, “I loved Spanish when I was younger due to these comics (…) I think my political sense came from Mafalda.” Another notable read that kindled our Director’s interest in politics was Alexander Dumas, ‘Le Comte de Monte Cristo,’ a tale underscoring the enduring struggle for justice and the moral complexities inherent in seeking retribution within a deeply flawed socio-political framework. Finding himself as a student in Menton in 2006, just a year after the opening of the campus, he grounded himself in a new reality. Coming from the suburbs of Paris with little international exposure prior to university, the melting pot of cultures defining our small campus of Menton was unrivalled for Mr Halaoua, as I know is the case for many of us arriving here this year. Merely from the exposure to students from all over the world and world-class professors like Marc Lazar, he described his experience simply as: “In Menton the world came to me.” “I remember thinking, what would be a dream first job for me? What would I remember for my whole life?” Turning to a story of dauntlessness, after six years in Sciences Po, three years dedicated to becoming a civil servant, and failure after failure to do so, Mr. Halaoua found himself at a personal and professional slough. However, this proved to be a pivotal moment. Despite the disheartening experience of multiple setbacks, he built resilience and took on his future with hard work and determination. So, at 7 p.m. on a Friday, out of a cloud of confusion, arose the opportunity to apply to the Parisian Olympic Candidacy committee. This was also accompanied by a unique set of challenges – tireless research, emails, letters and attempts for meetings, only to be faced with silence. With a mindset of ‘nothing to lose’ and strong-will, Mr. Halaoua posted a video on YouTube boldly delineating the reasons he should be considered to join the committee. After months of no response, this unprecedented move beckoned a call the next day. Subsequently, Mr. Halaoua found himself in Lima as one of the seven speakers at the official conference for the commencement of the planning for the Olympic 2024 games. An awe-inspiring story of ambition – check out the videos to see for yourselves! Coming to the present, how does our Director contextualize his own prior experiences in Menton to bolster his abilities in his current post? Going beyond that, does he believe Menton is a good location for a campus at all? “Firstly and most importantly I understand that students’ time in Menton is short.” As a transient ‘in-between’ given our maximum of two-years on this campus, amidst Mr Halaoua’s priorities is the happiness of the people of Menton — the staff and the students, but also the broader Menton community, through integration events, celebration of the arts and promotion of sports. Here I mentioned the common-held complaint amidst Menton students of the restrictive nature of our small town, and to that Mr. Halaoua agreed – “yes, Menton is small, far from Paris, but it is only the beginning. Enjoy what this town has to give you, not what it doesn’t.” Menton is incomparable to any other place due to the small delights it gives us — a multicultural experience, beautiful scenery, ease of movement to incredibly scenic places near us. “Maximize what can get here and not in Paris, because before you know it you’ll be in Paris and dealing with the very different but very real problems existing there, like three hours of commuting daily, as opposed to 20 minutes!” So, the bottom-line is let’s appreciate the smallness of Menton, the 5-10 minute walks to campus, the night-swims, the bumping-into-one-another-wherever-we-go because before we know it we’ll all be somewhere else! Us Sciences Pistes are fuelled by our passions for politics, society, economics, all as tools to understand and navigate the world better. Amidst the cornucopia of knowledge and experiences we garner in our two years here, Mr. Halaoua advises that we maintain our humility when going into our internships/years abroad and later when transitioning into the workforce. “Working in an embassy in my year abroad and then later in my work with the Olympic Committee, I was met with the saying ‘the more you know, the more you realize you don’t know’. Essentially a reminder of the fact that humility must be at the basis of our actions.” Concurrently, in transitioning into the workplace one should remain curious and perseverant — “stay open to new experiences, meeting people and be prepared to face bad news.” As for the challenges of navigating one’s orientation during and following their studies, our Director outlined the idea of opportunity cost – “the things you are missing out on today are not necessarily excluding you from anything in the future.” Finally, to get a more personal insight into who our Director is, what is his greatest strength/weakness and his favorite pastime activity? As hinted through Mr Halaoua’s reading interests growing up, curiosity is at the basis of his being, prompting him to seek knowledge at every cross-road he finds himself in. However, there is a flip-side that often comes with a great openness and passion for learning, “I get too personally invested in matters sometimes and get easily disappointed — as when your student leaders came to me with lists of complaints, I was happy to listen yet couldn’t help but be disappointed with how many things need be improved. As for a favorite hobby, travelling ranks highest in Mr Halaoua’s interests. “I love travelling. If I were to die tomorrow, Istanbul would be the place to go.” Bridging his love of food, culture and history, Istanbul holds a precious place in Mr Halaoua’s heart. As for his upcoming adventure, Torino is on the horizon! As we conclude our conversation with Director Youssef Halaoua, his journey highlights an important reminder. We should cherish our time in Menton, appreciating its unique charm, and seizing each fleeting moment with zeal. Simultaneously, his story inspires the balance of humility on our ambitious journeys, remembering to be receptive to life’s boundless lessons in our enduring pursuit of knowledge.

< Back The French Visa Process Proves To Be Unequal for Sciences Pistes By Catarina Vita September 25, 2022 The blue of the Mediterranean peeking out of the classroom window, the strong yet nurturing smell of lemonade and kebabs, and the endless stairs unite the diverse students from Sciences Po. In the buzz of “where are you from?” and “where do you live?” since Integration Week , there is only one question left unanswered in every small talk session: “how did you get here?” On the rare occasion that this question gets explicitly asked, the usual responses range from five-hour train rides to two overnight plane trips. However, modes of transport do not adequately characterize how students really got here: bureaucracy, immigration, and, of course, visas. From Morocco to the United States, it is known that being an international student requires not only unique academic recognition and unforgettable letters of recommendation but patience and the means to navigate the bureaucracy of French immigration. Students have distinct experiences due to their origins and nationalities in the visa-clinching process. Three 1As from Australia, South Africa and Indonesia have agreed to talk anonymously about their immigration processes. When I asked the Australian student about their visa process, I heard sighs and saw an expression of distress. “Basically, I’m a Finnish citizen, so I shouldn’t have needed to get a visa in the first place. However, because my European passport has expired, I had to apply to get a visa in France.” They submitted their visa application three months before integration week, and their Australian passport was sent away with it. Yet, two weeks before they left for Menton, the visa was nowhere to be found. During these few days of disorder and stress, 300 euros were dedicated exclusively to the visa office. “I had no choice but to cancel my visa application, so I could at least retrieve back my Australian passport before I leave.” After reacquiring their passport, they crossed the world from Perth, Australia, to Paris, France, to renew their European passport. “I went through all this trouble to apply for a visa, and I couldn’t even get it at the end.” This friend and colleague, who went through the grueling Sciences Po admissions process, had an experience that highlights the notoriously unsatisfactory French immigration and bureaucratic processes. Thankfully, they are here now, but undergoing this stressful process and having 300 euros of expenses causes study-abroad-related trauma. An Indonesian English track 1A had similar horror stories during their visa quest. They forwarded me a four-page document with all the elements required to obtain a French visa. The items ranged from proof of proficiency in the French language to a CV and a motivational letter. On the first page of four, the guiding document warns, “Missing document = incomplete file = high risk of visa refusal and lengthen the visa issuance process.” One WiFi glitch while submitting the visa application or one misinterpretation of the directions in the guide would be practically synonymous with the annulment of your studies at Sciences Po. On the South African side, the immigration process was less demanding. Our interviewee, an English track 1A, described the privilege of being a South African and a Belgian citizen. “I was born in Belgium, but I’ve lived in South Africa my whole life, so my identity is enough to get to Europe at any point.” As our conversation progressed, we reflected upon how the spiraling labyrinth of becoming an international student in France is cut in half by having a European Union-approved document. Amidst my friend’s many notable reflections on this matter, one direct quote struck me the most: “That’s actually a really big problem because if I only had a South African identity, I probably wouldn’t be here right now.” My friend’s comments raised a relevant point about how privilege is not limited solely to economic resources or education. In the French visa process, certain identities are advantaged over others. Sciences Po’s Menton’s diversity imbues the city with rich stories and unprecedented experiences. Besides undergoing the sciencepiste admissions process and graduating high school with excellence — which is hard enough for a teenager — the French immigration process also needed to be confronted. For some of us, losing the battle with the visa office resulted in a denial letter; this one, not from Sciences Po, but the French government. Hopefully, raising awareness about the disparity among nationalities during the visa process will end this unequal treatment. Only then can the responses to the question “how did you get here?” merely refer to means of transportation.

Le Sommet arabe du 4 mars semblerait révéler une exception à une longue période de quasi-désengagement. Ce rassemblement pourrait-il marquer une réaffirmation de la solidarité arabe et un regain d'intérêt pour les aspirations nationales palestiniennes? Le plan adopté pourrait en effet, potentiellement, révéler un retour de la lutte des pays arabes pour la cause palestinienne. < Back La cause palestinienne, un nouveau souffle pour le panarabisme? Christy Ghosn March 31, 2025 Une vidéo générée par IA, publiée sur le compte Instagram du président américain, dépeint une bande de Gaza transformée en une « Riviera du Moyen-Orient. » Gratte-ciels, plages de sable, statue en or de Donald Trump, cette vision dystopique a suscité de fortes réactions au sein du monde arabe. La vidéo, postée sur Truth Social et Instagram, illustre ce que pourrait devenir Gaza sous contrôle américain—idée évoquée par Trump au début du mois de février. Lors d'une conférence de presse conjointe avec le Premier ministre israélien Benyamin Netanyahou, Trump avait choqué le monde en déclarant : « Nous nivellerons les lieux et nous débarrasserons des bâtiments détruits. Puis nous allons relancer le développement économique, qui fournira un nombre illimité d’emplois et de logements pour les habitants de la région. » Face à cette proposition, les États arabes se sont unis pour exprimer leur désaccord, réveillant un fort nationalisme arabe ancré dans la cause palestinienne. Le sommet arabe du 4 mars dernier au Caire symbolise cette solidarité. Pourtant, malgré cette montée du sentiment panarabe, la réalité semble marquée par un nationalisme territorial grandissant, reléguant progressivement l’engagement collectif au second plan. De cette manière, bien que le soutien affiché aux Palestiniens demeure, son expression concrète s’affaiblit, laissant entrevoir une forme d’abandon progressif. Le nationalisme arabe (La Qawmiyya en arabe) repose sur l'idée d'unité et d'intérêts communs parmi les peuples arabes. Émergeant au début du XXe siècle comme un mouvement d'opposition dans les provinces arabes de l'Empire ottoman, il s'est notamment développé dans l'entre-deux-guerres, avec des figures comme Sati' al-Husri ou encore Michel Aflaq. Bien que cette idéologie n'ait pas réussi à créer un État arabe unifié, son idéologie a laissé un héritage durable en tant que sentiment d'appartenance à un même peuple. Comme l’écrit Youssef Choueiri: « [Aflaq] insista de nombreuses fois sur le fait que ce qu’il avait à dire était plus un point de vue [ nadhra ] qu’un système [ nadhariyya ]. Ce nationalisme arabe, profondément enraciné dans la cause palestinienne, a trouvé en cette lutte un puissant catalyseur pour unifier les peuples arabes. Par exemple, lorsque les Palestiniens se sont soulevés contre l'occupation et la création de l'État d'Israël, des figures comme Gamal Abdel Nasser ont su exploiter cette cause pour rallier les masses arabes, en présentant Israël comme une « citadelle de l'impérialisme. » De nombreux sommets de la Ligue arabe ont également joué un rôle crucial dans l'histoire de la cause palestinienne. En 1964 par exemple, le Conseil National Palestinien a été créé lors d'un sommet, marquant le début d'une représentation officielle pour le peuple palestinien sur la scène internationale. Dix ans plus tard, en 1974, un autre sommet a reconnu l'OLP comme le seul représentant légitime du peuple palestinien, renforçant ainsi son poids diplomatique dans les négociations de paix qui ont conduit aux Accords d'Oslo. La Wataniya (ou nationalisme territorial), de son côté, se concentre plus sur l'identité nationale au sein des frontières étatiques existantes. Il semblerait que ces deux formes de nationalisme coexistent souvent, créant un paradoxe où une identité nationale forte côtoie une identité arabe partagée. Leyla Dakhli, historienne tunisienne, explique ce paradoxe en affirmant que malgré les divisions entre et au sein des pays arabes, le nationalisme arabe s’est appuyé sur une culture populaire, diffuse, afin de le transmuer en « culture officielle. » Le sentiment d’appartenance au sein des Etats arabes se manifeste aujourd’hui depuis le 7 octobre 2023, les peuples et les États arabes affichant un soutien unifié à la Palestine. De Tunis à Amman, en passant par Le Caire, de nombreuses manifestations de solidarité ont eu lieu, soutenues par des déclarations des chefs d'État arabes. Le 4 mars dernier, lors du Sommet arabe qui s’est déroulé au Caire, les dirigeants des États arabes ont adopté un plan de 53 milliards de dollars sur cinq ans pour la reconstruction de la bande de Gaza, rejetant unanimement le plan de Donald Trump visant à déplacer les habitants de Gaza. Le président libanais a affirmé qu'il n'y aurait pas de paix sans la libération totale du territoire et la restitution des droits légitimes des Palestiniens. Aoun a souligné que la souveraineté complète et stable du Liban est intrinsèquement liée au rétablissement total de la Syrie et à l'indépendance de la Palestine: « le Liban retrouve aujourd'hui sa légitimité arabe » grâce au soutien constant de ses alliés, affirme t-il, mettant en lumière l'interdépendance des luttes arabes. Selon lui, la véritable indépendance et la légitimité du Liban ne peuvent ainsi être atteintes que dans le cadre d'une unité arabe renforcée. Cependant, malgré un engagement historique en faveur de la cause palestinienne, l'implication des pays arabes semble diminuer au fil du temps. Lors du Sommet de Khartoum en 1967, les pays arabes avaient adopté une position ferme, refusant toute reconnaissance d’Israël. Pourtant, plusieurs pays ont aujourd'hui normalisé leurs relations avec Israël. L'identité palestinienne se distingue progressivement de l'arabité régionale, devenant une identité nationale propre. Selon Elias Sanbar dans Figures du Palestinien , les Palestiniens ne sont plus simplement des habitants d'une terre arabe, mais un peuple avec une identité distincte. Il affirme qu’ils sont même délaissés par leurs frères arabes, qui sont « pour la cause palestinienne, mais contre les Palestiniens . »: alors que les régimes arabes ont soutenu la cause palestinienne comme un enjeu politique contre Israël, ils ont souvent marginalisé les Palestiniens eux-mêmes, par crainte de déstabilisation interne et pour préserver leurs intérêts nationaux. Néanmoins, le Sommet arabe du 4 mars semblerait révéler une exception à une longue période de quasi-désengagement. Ce rassemblement pourrait-il marquer une réaffirmation de la solidarité arabe et un regain d'intérêt pour les aspirations nationales palestiniennes? Le plan adopté pourrait en effet, potentiellement, révéler un retour de la lutte des pays arabes pour la cause palestinienne. Les réseaux sociaux et les médias comme Al-Jazeera ont à leur tour favorisé cette ré-émergence d'un sentiment d'appartenance parmi les peuples arabes. Selon Benjamin Stora , « des gens entrent en contact les uns avec les autres et se comprennent par le biais d’une langue arabe renouvelée, standardisée. Une langue qui peut être comprise du Maroc jusqu’aux Émirats, contredisant les versions distinctes, séparées, opposées des langues nationales arabes. Les moyens technologiques modernes favorisent un néo-nationalisme arabe. L’idée du nationalisme arabe reste à l’ordre du jour. » Dans ce contexte, la position américaine reste cruciale dans la résolution du conflit israélo-palestinien. Marie-Joëlle Zahar souligne que l'avenir d'un plan arabe crédible dépendra en grande partie des intentions de l'État israélien et du soutien américain. Au-delà de l'humanitaire, « ce sont des enjeux profondément politiques, ». L’enjeu est « la manière dont on résout les conflits, ce qui est acceptable et ne l’est pas, c'est la valeur du droit international. » « Si ce plan n'est pas au moins considéré par les États-Unis, la situation pourrait être critique, » a-t-elle poursuivi. Ainsi, si la cause palestinienne continue de fédérer un certain nationalisme arabe, son expression politique et concrète s’effrite face aux dynamiques nationales et aux réalités géopolitiques. Dans ce contexte, la position américaine demeure déterminante : sans une prise en compte sérieuse par Washington, toute initiative arabe risque de rester symbolique, accentuant l’isolement progressif des Palestiniens. Photo source: Ramy Raoof on flickr

< Back The Turbulent World of French Politics and How It Affects Me Stanimir Stoyanov French politics are notorious for being turbulent and complex, and in 2024 especially, France experienced some important shifts in its political landscape. In this context, many people, foreigners in particular, have had a difficult time grasping the political landscape of France. Be it the language barrier or the tongue-twisting, understanding what's happening in France is certainly a demanding task for newcomers. This has led me personally and many other Sciences Pistes to question what effect the current political situation will have on us. This article will present a brief overview of recent events and explain how these developments impact our lives as students at SciencesPo. I. What happened? In the second round of the 2022 French presidential election, Emanuel Macron won 58,55% of the votes against Marine Le Pen, with 41,45% . While still a victory for the current president, the election showcased a continued rise of support for the right-wing leader Marine Le Pen. The election was also marked by the lowest voter turnout ( 72% ) since 1969, raising questions about voter apathy. While political awareness in France remains high, a large part of the population has trouble identifying with politics and disregards their importance. The tensions kept rising as the status-quo was being more and more challenged by the opposition and in January 2024, France experienced severe political turmoil. The ruling government, led by then Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, didn’t have a majority in parliament, making the legislative process a tougher challenge. In January as an attempt to counter the far-right’s influence, Macron backed a controversial migration law , simplifying the deportation process and making immigration to France much more difficult for non-EU foreigners. This was followed by the resignation of Elizabeth Borne on Jan. 8. Afterwards, on Jan. 9, Macron appointed Gabriel Attal as PM and organized a cabinet reshuffle. This was all in an effort to mitigate the rise of support for the opposition ahead of the 2024 EU Elections. In June 2024, French voters headed to the polls for the European Parliament Election and showcased significant support for Le Pen’s far-right party, the National Rally ( Rassemblement National), which was the front-runner with a remarkable 31,37% . This raised doubts about Macron's authority, leading him to dismiss parliament and schedule snap elections on the 30 June and 7 July. While this move is recognized as an attempt to both consolidate support and bring the attention to the public, it can also be viewed as an unprecedented political gamble. The results of the election showcased the severe social fragmentation with no party gaining a clear majority. The current division of parties in parliament is as follows: *Data compiled from French National Assembly website https://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/ , as of Sept. 13 2024. As can be seen, the National Rally party has the most seats, yet no party has a majority. Further, even when looking at possible coalitions within parliament, the main coalitions Nouveau Front Populare (left-wing), and the Ensemble (Macron endorsed) also do not have a majority to form a stable government. The right-wing parties remain divided and are not likely to form a coalition. This means that France currently has a hung parliament, making forming a stable government a formidable task. II. Who is the current French Prime Minister? Following the election in July and Gabriel Attal’s resignation, President Macron had to appoint a new Prime Minister. This was a tough choice, seeing how it needed to be a figure that can gather support from allies and opposition alike. On Sept. 5 2024, Michel Barnier from the Les Republicans party was appointed as Prime Minister. The choice was controversial and followed by backlash from the left coalition NFP, which have the most seats and advocated for their candidate Lucie Castets . In his first interview as PM , Barnier presented his stances on the current situation and promised to form a government that is not just right-wing, but also compromises with the left. He has said he will attempt forming a government in the upcoming week. Should he not gather the support of parliament, the opposition can call a vote of no confidence, where parliament can vote for removing him as PM. Barnier is particularly insistent on his tough stance on migration, following Macron’s attempts to appease the right as a response to Le Pen’s momentum gains. Macron and the Ensemble alliance have always had a more lenient view towards migration, but public opinion has made them toughen their stance. III. How are foreign students studying in France affected? The political turmoil has led to many changes in French society: economic challenges, increase of political protests and violence and a more negative lookout towards migration. The situation has also led to many strikes across France including train strikes in the Côte d'Azur region in August. Such strikes are also planned for the Fall, which raises concerns for Menton students. T he migration law that was passed in January increased requirements for acquiring a visa and made it more difficult for migrants to establish work in France. As part of drafting said law, politicians from Les Republicains, supported by the far-right, succeeded in adding an amendment concerning international students, requiring them to prove every year they are enrolled in a “real and serious programme” and to deposit a sum of money returned after their graduation. These changes were not supported by Macron and were later proven unconstitutional by the Constitutional Council. In the final draft of the law there was no mention of international students. Hitherto, political conversation on the topic has shifted far away from the matter of international students. The ongoing migration legislative efforts mainly concern migrants outside the EU and streamlining of the deportation process. Impact for students is not as severe, beside stricter requirements for visa applications for those outside the EU. Still, uncertainty reigns among students who are not sure how they are affected by the puzzling world of French politics. For now there does not seem to be any imminent danger towards the status of international students seeing how such measures are seen as too controversial and unnecessary for parties on all sides of the spectrum. IV. Final words The changes happening in France now affect our daily lives mainly when it comes to price increases and heightened social tensions. Previously I was hearing many different things, including false news about the dangers that can arise from the political turmoil and it was fairly intimidating. I believe many fellow students also relate to this feeling, but after gathering more insight into the situation, I personally am now more confident as a student in France. While there is no need for us students to fear in this current status, we must remain educated on the matter and follow up with the latest developments to be better informed about the changes happening in France. The domestic political landscape is moving rapidly and is full of unexpected twists. While it might be difficult for foreigners to adjust to it, it is valuable to be well-versed in such topics, in order to know if we are affected by them. Previous Next

Until now, Kurdish voters have gritted their teeth and arguably voted against their best interest for the sake of democracy, and it seems that we must now imagine a world where they do not. < Back In The Lead-Up to Local Elections, Istanbul’s Kurdish Voters in Spotlight By Yasmin Abbasoy March 30, 2024 The 2019 elections were an undisputed success for a weary Turkish opposition. On a late-night political talk show of the sort that is omnipresent in a pre-election Turkey, then-leader of the main opposition Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu received nothing but laughter from the moderator when stating his party’s goals for the campaign. Listing the names of coveted provinces including the capital, Ankara, and the city that is arguably the heart of Turkey, Istanbul, he went on to state that the opposition would “be taking all of these places.” Despite the laughter and the ridicule he later received online, he was proven right by a prodigious result in the elections; the opposition alliance emerged having wrested away from the governing Justice and Development Party, and its People’s Alliance, the metropolitan municipalities of five additional provinces, among which were Ankara and, crucially, Istanbul. In Ankara, main opposition Republican People’s Party candidate Mansur Yavaş prevailed over longtime member of the President’s inner circle and current minister Mehmet Özhaseki relatively uncontroversially. His past as a member of the ultranationalist alliance partner of the government, the Nationalist Movement Party, was much-discussed but seemed to have little bearing on final vote totals. In Istanbul, whose mayorship carries unparalleled pragmatic and symbolic value, the race was much more fraught. As the largest city in Turkey in terms of population and industry, Istanbul is valuable for its rent-generating properties. Its status as the cultural capital and beating heart of the country has however transformed it into the nucleus of Turkish politics. President Erdoğan started his political career as the mayor of Istanbul in 2001, and engraved this path into the collective public consciousness with his often quoted phrase: “Whoever takes Istanbul takes Turkey.” The opposition candidate, Ekrem Imamoğlu, was at the time the mayor of a small western district of Istanbul. He emerged as the underdog, supported solely by Kılıçdaroğlu over other candidates which were more prominent in the public eye. He emerged mostly unscathed despite a state-supported campaign which saw him accused of everything from being a “crypto-Greek',”a fifth columnist opposed to Turkish national interests, to a supporter of the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party. This was a true trial by fire for a candidate who constructed his persona on tolerance and pacifism as encapsulated by his slogan, “Everything will be alright.” Imamoğlu won the first round of the election with a margin of 14,000 votes, though the results were contested by the governing coalition and later annulled by the supposedly-impartial Supreme Election Council. This proved to be a strategic mistake on the part of President Erdoğan, as Imamoğlu increased his margin of victory to over 800,000 votes to lead the opposition to its most significant victory in decades. On the heels of this triumph, widely interpreted as the first blow to Erdoğan’s two-decade regime, the opposition coalition was optimistic heading into general elections in 2023. Hopes were dashed, however, when alliance parties were unable to decide on a unity candidate. The nationalist Good Party pushed for Imamoğlu, but was opposed by the main opposition, who cited a pending criminal case filed against him by the government, which would render him unelectable if he lost. Party chairman Kılıçdaroğlu was ultimately chosen as the candidate, upon which the Good Party announced a withdrawal from the alliance, setting off a cascade of meetings and backroom talks which saw crisis averted but the deep fractures in the alliance laid bare. A campaign that had already been launched on the back foot failed to sway nationalist and islamist voters and further failed to retain the Kurdish vote. A disappointing finish in the first round saw the alliance pivot sharply to the right and campaign on the lowest common denominator in Turkish politics: sending Syrian refugees back to Syria. There was a hasty attempt to establish ties with the far-right ultranationalist Victory Party, whose chairman Ümit Özdağ has been credited with mainstreaming the idea of sending refugees ‘home’ in buses involuntarily. Local media reported that Özdağ, who was courted by both the opposition and the government, had been offered a significant ministerial position from the opposition–a red line for the pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party — who was not officially a part of the alliance but had been promised support on key issues. Shockingly, after this large-scale compromise of principles, Özdağ elected to support the government party instead. In the aftermath, Erdoğan won the second round with a comfortable margin of around 2 million votes. In a way, it has always been Kurdish voters who have decided the fate of the opposition. In 2019, the People’s Democratic Party broke with tradition and did not field a candidate in Istanbul, despite not being party to a formal alliance. During the campaigning stage for the second round of elections, Abdullah Öcalan, the former leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party who has been jailed since 1999, released a letter urging Kurdish voters not to unite under the banner of the opposition alliance. The coverage this letter received on pro-government news channels and discussion panels was no coincidence. When Kurdish voters coalesced around Imamoğlu, it was what won him the election. In 2023, pro-Kurdish parties again chose not to field candidates and to support the opposition alliance for informal guarantees. In return, however, they found an opposition that was perfectly willing to take their votes for granted all while attempting to form alliances with violent racists. This was yet another datapoint in an ongoing pattern for an opposition which sees Kurds as ‘vote depositories,’ according to senior party officials. Most direfully, the main opposition has consistently displayed a chilling disregard for what was and continues to be potentially the most salient issue in the Kurdish political space: the appointment of ‘trustees’ in the place of elected officials to 48 People’s Democratic Party municipalities since 2019. This practice, which has been referred to as a ‘coup on local democracy’ by party officials and the Council of Europe, has failed to draw overt condemnation from the main opposition. The opposition alliance broke apart almost immediately after the general elections. The main opposition replaced its chairman for the young(er) and allegedly more charismatic Özgür Özel, who inherited a party that had alienated most of its allies. The People’s Democratic Party, on the other hand, faced pressure from their base to drop the quasi-alliance strategy, especially in the light of an ongoing criminal case over tenuous links to terrorist organizations that could lead to the closure of the party. Party leaders admitted their strategy had not worked, and expressed their intention to run candidates in all big cities in the 2024 elections. The 2024 local elections will see Imamoğlu defend his position against Murat Kurum, an unremarkable man most notable for his role in rebuilding efforts after the devastating earthquakes of 2023 as the Minister for Forestry, Urbanism, and Climate Change. For Imamoğlu, a victory is essential to establish himself as a viable future presidential candidate, an opportunity for which he has already been passed over once. The field of candidates is a wide one — almost every single political party has at least one candidate in the running. The People’s Democratic Party, for their part, have put forward their co-leaders under the banner of the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party, a joint venture with the left-leaning Green Left Party. Polling figures show that the overwhelming majority of People’s Democratic Party voters who voted for Imamoğlu in the previous election would vote for their own candidate in 2024. In this scenario, the margin of difference between Imamoğlu and Kurum would be a mere two percent. It is these dynamics which will determine the result that comes out of the Istanbul elections. Like so many other elections in Turkey, what really matters here is not promises or ideological notions. This election is being played out in the past, as a response to two decades of betrayal from the main opposition. Until now, Kurdish voters have gritted their teeth and arguably voted against their best interest for the sake of democracy, and it seems that we must now imagine a world where they do not.

The success of the Moroccan team at the 2022 FIFA World Cup has disrupted the traditional balance of football. It has shown how the unassuming underdogs can, with the right combination of teamwork, persistence, and a steadfast, strong-willed, bald-headed coach — Walid Regragui, nicknamed “avocado head”— attain new heights. < Back Morocco's World Cup Success Sends the World a Powerful Statement By Colin Lim January 31, 2023 “Avec nos lions!” triumphantly proclaimed the destination displays of the Casablanca buses. Although the Atlas Lions had lost the World Cup semifinals to France a week earlier, the feeling of triumph was palpable under the balmy December sun. As traffic flowed along the wide boulevards of Morocco’s financial hub, adorned with red and green flags, the national team was eagerly welcomed home 80 kilometers away in Rabat. Riding in an open-top bus, conspicuously emblazoned with the national rallying cry, “Dima Maghrib,” the players were greeted by thousands of jubilant fans who recognized and appreciated the magnitude of their accomplishment. The fact that Morocco’s national football team had even made it to this point was an impressive feat. Their unprecedented success rallied Morocco, the Moroccan diaspora, and Muslim communities of disparate origins worldwide behind a single team. As the first Arab or African country to advance to the semifinals, Morocco managed, at long last, to break the glass ceiling that had been so inviolably reserved for European and South American teams, the traditional strongholds of professional football. The players, whose feline moniker dates back to an extinct species that used to roam the mountains of North Africa, carry an array of passports, as the 26-person lineup includes only 12 players born on Moroccan soil and others born in France, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium and Canada. As the Moroccan team advanced through the World Cup, defeating Belgium, Canada, Spain, and Portugal, they captivated their audience and the world with several iconic images. Photographs that went viral displayed players’ jubilee — even embracing and kissing their mothers, à la Achraf Hakimi. Several photos of Moroccan players and staff united in prayer on the field, all facing the qibla and publicly affirming their faith, gained momentum among Muslim communities globally. The visibility of their devotion in the face of anti-Muslim sentiment in their European birth countries offered a source of inspiration and empowerment. The success of the Moroccan team at the 2022 FIFA World Cup has disrupted the traditional balance of football. It has shown how the unassuming underdogs can, with the right combination of teamwork, persistence and a steadfast, strong-willed, bald-headed coach — Walid Regragui, nicknamed “avocado head”— attain new heights. The Atlas Lions will showcase their improvements at the next World Cup in North America, potentially contributing even more to the diversification of successful football teams.

< Back Climate Crisis in the Horn of Africa: The Flood of the Century. By Elian Jorand December 31, 2023 The Horn of Africa is gripped by an unprecedented humanitarian crisis as torrential rains linked to the El Niño weather phenomenon wreak havoc in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia, leaving a trail of destruction and despair in their wake. The flood, labelled by some as the "flood of the century," is the aftermath of a prolonged drought that plagued the region for over three years, transforming the parched and cracked earth into an unforgiving ocean of mud. The climatic double ‘setback’ of the El Niño phenomenon and the Indian Ocean Dipole anomaly has unleashed powerful rains during the ‘ deyr ’ raining season, submerging vast areas. Reports from the three affected countries paint a bleak picture, with at least 260 lives lost and over 1 million people displaced. The logistical challenges faced by rescue and relief operations are monumental, as vital roads are cut off daily, impeding the delivery of humanitarian aid and slowing down the rescue efforts. The Chébéli River in Somalia has swallowed entire cities, transforming Beled Uen into a desolated city beneath the floodwaters. Rescue operations navigate through submerged rooftops and minarets to assist the 330,000 displaced residents now seeking refuge in improvised camps. The disaster unfolded against the backdrop of Somalia emerging from a historic drought just six months ago that had pushed the country to the brink of famine and displaced 1,170,842 people since January 2021. Somali Disaster Management Agency director, Mohamud Moalim Abdullahi, reported at least fifty lives lost in Somalia alone and 687,235 individuals forced to evacuate their homes. Roads, bridges, hospitals, and schools have suffered extensive damage, isolating thousands of people in villages and heightening the risk of diseases such as cholera and malaria. Kenya is also dealing with the overflow of the Tana River in eastern Kenya, flooding vast areas and forcing hundreds of thousands of farmers and herders to abandon their livelihoods. President William Ruto declares the situation an " extreme emergency " as the nation contends with roads vital for aid delivery being severed by rising waters. Despite efforts by Somali authorities and humanitarian partners to reach around 820,000 affected people with assistance, needs are rapidly rising as the flooding expands across the country. Mahamud Moallim emphasises the current priority of rescuing stranded families and providing immediate humanitarian relief. The devastation is described as "heartbreaking" by Nimo Hassan, Director of the Somali NGO Consortium, who underscores the urgent need for sustainable solutions and disaster preparedness for future climatic events. As the Horn of Africa contends with this unfolding crisis, millions of Somalis continue to battle hunger and malnutrition. An estimated 1.5 million children under the age of five will face acute malnutrition between August 2023 and July 2024. Humanitarians warn that current and emerging needs cannot be met without additional resources. A $2.6 billion plan to support 7.6 million people this year is so far only 42 percent funded, underscoring the urgent need for increased international assistance. This unfolding crisis comes as El Niño is expected to persist until at least April 2024, necessitating prompt and robust action from the international community to avert further catastrophe in the region. The Horn of Africa stands at a critical juncture, grappling not only with the immediate devastation caused by unprecedented floods but also the ongoing repercussions of drought and a myriad of humanitarian challenges. The global community must respond urgently to mitigate the suffering of those affected and prevent a deepening catastrophe in this vulnerable region.

Dans le contexte du conflit de Gaza entre Israël et le Hamas, le Yémen, déjà en proie à ses propres troubles internes, se trouve de plus en plus impliqué dans des complexités régionales, principalement orchestrées par le mouvement houthis montant. < Back L'implication du Yémen dans la guerre de Gaza : l'essor des houthis et la dynamique régionale By Elian Jorand April 30, 2024 Dans le contexte du conflit de Gaza entre Israël et le Hamas, le Yémen, déjà en proie à ses propres troubles internes, se trouve de plus en plus impliqué dans des complexités régionales, principalement orchestrées par le mouvement houthis montant. Alors que le pays navigue sur ce terrain dangereux, la grave crise humanitaire qui sévit dans le pays est un rappel saisissant du coût humain des conflits et des manœuvres géopolitiques. Le Yémen, souvent qualifié de pays le plus pauvre du monde arabe, lutte depuis longtemps contre la pauvreté systémique et la souffrance généralisée. Avec environ trois quarts de sa population plongée dans la pauvreté et la maladie faisant rage, dont une épidémie de choléra suspectée dépassant deux cent mille cas en 2020, le pays est au bord de l'effondrement. La pandémie de COVID-19 n'a fait qu'exacerber la crise, les analystes de la santé suggérant que les cas signalés sous-représentent largement l'ampleur réelle de l'impact du virus. Le blocus imposé par les forces de la coalition dirigée par l’Arabie Saoudite a infligé d'indicibles souffrances à la population yéménite, obstruant le flux de fournitures vitales et faisant grimper les prix des biens essentiels. Bien que le cessez-le-feu de 2022 ait offert un bref répit, les craintes d'une résurgence des coûts élevés sont grandes après son expiration. Le bilan de la guerre, aggravé par des causes indirectes telles que le manque de nourriture, d'eau et de services de santé, a entraîné la mort d'environ 370 000 personnes, selon le Programme des Nations unies pour le développement. Dans ce contexte de désespoir, les forces houthies et de la coalition sont accusées de commettre des crimes de guerre flagrants, notamment des attaques contre des cibles civiles en violation directe du droit international. La destruction d'un hôpital dirigé par Médecins Sans Frontières en 2015 témoigne de la nature indiscriminée de la violence qui sévit au pays. Malgré ces nombreux défis, des lueurs d'espoir ont émergé à l'horizon. Les négociations de paix soutenues par l'ONU, bien que difficiles, ont progressé de manière incrémentielle, notamment avec l' Accord de Stockholm de 2018 qui a évité une bataille catastrophique dans la ville portuaire de Hodeïda. Cependant, la mise en œuvre des dispositions de l'accord a été lente, entravée par les frictions persistantes entre les acteurs régionaux, dont l'Iran, l'Arabie saoudite et les Émirats arabes unis. Des développements récents ont insufflé un optimisme prudent dans les efforts de paix, avec des relations améliorées entre l'Arabie saoudite et l'Iran et des discussions en cours entre Riyad et les houthis offrant une lueur d'espoir. La coordination d'un cessez-le-feu national en avril 2022, facilitée par le nouveau conseil gouvernemental du Yémen, a marqué une étape significative vers la désescalade. Toutefois , l'échec à renouveler le cessez-le-feu a soulevé des questions sur les perspectives de paix durable, d'autant plus que des acteurs clés, tels que le conseil gouvernemental et le Conseil de transition du Sud (STC), restent exclus des négociations. Malheureusement, le récent conflit à Gaza a anéanti les espoirs de paix, avec l'implication des houthis, soutenus par l'Iran, exacerbant la situation précaire. Leurs actions irrationnelles ciblant le commerce maritime civil ont suscité de fortes réponses de la communauté internationale, y compris des raids aériens conjoints des États-Unis et de la Grande-Bretagne. Ces frappes, touchant 36 cibles houthies dans 13 endroits au Yémen, ont été menées en réponse aux attaques continues des houthis contre le commerce maritime international et commercial en mer Rouge. Les frappes de précision visaient à perturber et à dégrader les capacités utilisées par les houthis pour menacer le commerce mondial et la vie des marins innocents, ciblant les installations de stockage d'armes profondément enfouies, les systèmes de missiles, les lanceurs, les systèmes de défense aérienne et les radars. Les houthis, quant à eux, ont justifié leurs attaques contre le commerce maritime en mer Rouge en tant que soutien aux Palestiniens de Gaza au milieu de la campagne dévastatrice d'Israël, déclenchant des frappes de représailles et exacerbant la violence régionale impliquant des groupes soutenus par l'Iran. La situation a atteint un état critique, avec peu d'optimisme à l'horizon. Alors que le Yémen se débat avec son implication dans les conflits régionaux, l'urgence de trouver une solution durable à sa propre crise n'a jamais été aussi pressante. Ce n'est qu'avec des efforts internationaux concertés, soutenus par un dialogue diplomatique et une aide humanitaire robuste, que le Yémen pourrait espérer sortir de l'ombre de la guerre et tracer un chemin vers un avenir défini par la paix, la stabilité et la prospérité pour sa population longtemps éprouvée.

Following the Oct. 8  offensive by the Israeli military in Gaza, over 20,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, including a large percentage of women and children. However, the cost of war has gone beyond the considerable death toll; there have been catastrophic environmental damages, leaving us to question whether this conflict warrants the legal label of ‘ecocide.’ < Back Gazan ‘Ecocide’ Accelerates Amidst Israel-Hamas War By Lucy Lönnqvist and Alexandra Iliopoulou for Sciences Defense January 31, 2024 Following the Oct. 8 offensive by the Israeli military in Gaza, over 20,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, including a large percentage of women and children. However, the cost of war has gone beyond the considerable death toll; there have been catastrophic environmental damages, leaving us to question whether this conflict warrants the legal label of ‘ecocide.’ The Independent Expert Panel for the Legal Definition of Ecocide (IEP) defines ecocide to be ‘unlawful or wanton acts committed with knowledge that there is a substantial likelihood of severe and either widespread or long-term damage to the environment being caused by those acts.’ The term ‘ecocide’ has attracted much media attention since Oct. 7 and prolonged geopolitical tensions to this day; however, it can be said that today’s attack on Gaza is not the introduction of ecocide in the region, but the extension of a pre-existing one. Warfare has continued off and on in the Gaza strip since the Arab-Israeli War of 1948, and continued with the Six-Day War, subsequent Intifadas, the Gaza-Israel conflict in 2014, right up to Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7 and Israeli retaliation. Taken cumulatively, the destruction of biodiversity and mass extinction of species caused by the release of bombings and white phosphorous choking the atmosphere with toxic fumes overtime has been labeled an ‘ environmental apartheid’ ; dispossessing Palestinians of their land, water and natural resources inflicted by the ecological damage of warfare. It is clear that the visible ecocide in the Gaza strip today was not only precipitated by the heightened 2023 attacks, but rooted in Israel’s historical colonial practices in the occupied Palestinian territory. In order for Israel to establish its colonial settlements, it began by bulldozing mass areas of Palestinian land, uprooting thousands of trees to build infrastructure on previously prized nature reserves. This tactic is used to deprive Palestinians not only of territory but any hope for economic opportunity, with approximately 80,000 to 100,000 Palestinian families relying on olive farming as their primary source of income. According to the Palestine Trade Center, or PalTrade, the olive sector is worth between $160 million and $191 million in a good year. The consequences of Israel’s destruction of Palestinian native land are therefore twofold: eradicating Palestinians from their territory through the expansion of illegal settlements, subsequently invoking severe habitat fragmentation, land degradation and soil erosion. In Aug. 2012, the United Nations predicted that Gaza would not be livable by 2020, demonstrating how Israel’s imposition of colonial settlements degrade the environmental health and habitability of the land, in addition to the repercussions of active warfare. Since the Israeli military response of Oct. 8, damages have spanned from mass destruction of infrastructure, the homes of half a million people being damaged or destroyed, to the internal displacement of almost 2 million people. Moreover, the environmental destruction, including water pollution and the consequences as a result of the deployment of white phosphorus, pose additional challenges for victims of the war. Israel’s limited allowance of water, fuel, and electricity into Gaza as a warfare tactic has led to sewage and water treatment facility disruption. As a result, “more than 130,000 cubic meters of untreated sewage” have entered the Mediterranean Sea daily, bringing acute environmental implications. The bombing of water treatment facilities has resulted in decreased availability of fresh drinking water for Gazans and strained aquifers, leading to Gazans having to drink large amounts of salty water. Experts predict that it will take years to successfully clear pollution from the soil, water, and air. The lack of water available is predicted to accelerate the spread of disease, noting the accumulation of corpses, causing unnecessary deaths from treatable diseases . The Israeli military has also utilized white phosphorus , an incendiary weapon, in its offensive, which, when considering that it is being used in some of the most densely populated areas of the world, acts as a violation of international law. While white phosphorus itself is restricted in warfare by international law, it is strictly prohibited in civilian areas, which Israel has used it in in both Lebanon and Gaza. Despite the various health implications of coming in direct contact with white phosphorus, when entering water sources, it can severely impact the potability of the drinking water that Gazans have access to. Moreover, the animals that ingest this water, primarily fish, also become toxic to consume. The agricultural ramifications of white phosphorus contamination pose a threat to livestock and severely alter the fertility of farmland, which can pollute soil for decades . These damages have largely been excused by Israel’s claims of self defense and pursuit to eliminate Hamas, a terrorist organization whose attacks on Oct. 7 resulted in the deaths of an estimated 1,200 people . However, a recent development in the international response to the Israeli military campaign in Gaza is South Africa’s submission , calling for proceedings to begin against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The report details Israeli public officials’ expressed genocidal intent in their motivations for attack, and emphasizes the excessive civilian casualties that have occurred in the war. Additionally to the denunciation of civilian deaths, calls from the public to categorize Israel's military offensive as ecocide have also surfaced. The impacts of climate change have indicated the Middle East as one of the most vulnerable regions in the world, and the environmental damages occurring in Gaza can end up having adverse effects on the entire region (Israel included). Critics have raised attention to the longer term impacts that the bombing in Gaza will have, such as accelerating the effects of climate change and polluting the Mediterranean. A recent piece from The Guardian stated that the initial reports of carbon emissions in the 60 day period following the war amount to the equivalent of burning over 150,000 tons of coal, a greater carbon footprint than the annual emissions of 20 climate vulnerable nations. The emissions, which are attributed to emissions from combat and directly assisting combat, such as fueling aircraft, also largely originate from American cargo deliveries of military equipment to Israel. In turn, this highlights the sensitive position of all parties involved, as the impacts of their actions will emphasize their role in the region in the long-term. How, then, can these stakeholders be held accountable? There is a proposal submitted into the International Criminal Court to add ecocide as a crime, waiting to be endorsed by two thirds of the signatories of the Rome Statute. As it stands, ecocide is not considered an international crime despite being a transgression of national law in several countries including France, Georgia, Armenia, Ukraine, Belarus and Vietnam. This is largely due to the fact that representatives have a hard time constituting environmental destruction as a ‘crime against humanity.’ However, given the rise of rights-based climate litigation characterizing recent international case law before the ICJ, hope for criminalizing environmental warfare is well within reach. The geopolitical climate in Gaza is drawing attention to the long-term damage towards wildlife, ecosystems, and industry, raising questions as to whether the charge of ecocide should be included in international courts. For some, South Africa’s submission against Israel before the ICJ will not only bring justice to the civilian casualties and victims of wartime atrocities, but inspire nation states to endorse the ICC ecocide proposal, outlawing future damage to our natural world and our lives on it.

Sports Recap — February 2023 < Back February Sports Recap By Hugo Lagergren February 28, 2023 Football Manchester City has been charged with 115 breaches of financial regulations by the Premier League. The charges mark the end of a four-year investigation conducted by Premier League officials into the club’s financial dealings from 2008 to 2020. The breaches can be split into three categories. The main issue raised by the Premier League relates to the financial irregularities of Man City’s business dealings. Secondly, the Premier League requires clubs to be transparent and honest about their financial activities, which they say has not been the case with City. And lastly, the Premier League has accused City of not cooperating fully with the investigation. Two years ago, similar charges were brought forth by the Union of European Football Associations against Man City. However, after being reviewed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the charges were thrown out. According to the Times’ chief sports writer, Martyn Ziegler, City will not be able to appeal the charges this time. The Premier League has not issued sanctions at the time of writing. Possible sanctions include fines, possible points deduction or exclusion from the League. Brazilian footballer Vinicius Jr. said that not enough is being done to combat racism in Spanish football and Spain more generally. Vinicius tweeted, “Let’s start to punish those people, or we’ll go back to how it was before,” following an incident that saw Brazilian basketball player Yago Dos Santos being subjected to racist abuse during a EuroCup game. Borussia Dortmund player Sébastien Haller scored his first league goal since his return three weeks ago from chemotherapy. Haller was diagnosed with testicular cancer in August of last year. Since then, Haller has continued to raise awareness in the football community for the fight against cancer. The date of his goal coincidentally fell on International World Cancer Day – an occasion which Dortmund marked by slightly altering their center circle to represent a tumor. L’Olympique de Marseille managed to knock out bitter rivals Paris St-Germain (PSG) in the last 16 of the Coupe de France. PSG’s poor form in the previous few matches has seen them drop points several times. This has put pressure on the manager, Christophe Galtier, to deliver silverware in an increasingly tricky season for the Parisian side. Rugby After a narrow victory against Italy, Six Nations favorites France continued their shaky start to the tournament by losing to a well-oiled Irish team, who looked organized and structured compared to their French opponent, which struggled to escape their own 22 at times. On the other hand, the number one ranked Irish team has moved to the top of the table with comfortable victories over France and Wales. Scotland has continued their impressive run of form, with victories over England and Wales, to move to second in the Six Nations behind Ireland. A big test for Gatland’s men will be in two weeks when Scotland travels to the Stade de France to face a wounded French side. Handball Denmark beat France in an exhilarating final to claim a historic third successive International Handball Federation World Handball Championship. After the Danish victory, operators of the Oresund Bridge, which connects Sweden and Denmark, lit the bridge in red and white to honor Denmark’s achievement. For co-host Sweden, the tournament ended in disappointment as they lost 39-36 to Spain in the bronze medal game. Basketball Lebron James became the National Basketball Association’s all-time top points scorer with 38,387 points as the Lakers fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder. He surpasses Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s point total — a record he has held since 1984. American Football The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 to win their second Super Bowl in the last four years. For the second time, Patrick Mahomes, the quarterback for the Chiefs, was awarded the National Football League Most Valuable Player Award. Olympics Earlier this month, the International Olympics Committee (IOC) issued a statement saying that it would allow Russian and Belorussian athletes to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, on the condition that no anthems or flags from the two countries are displayed. This has sparked outrage from politicians and fans alike. President Zelenskyy commented that the decision from the IOC highlighted that “terror is somewhat acceptable”.

< Back Queen Elizabeth II Dies Leaving the World To Mourn, Marvel or Celebrate By Leo Gerza September 26, 2022 “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.” On Thursday, the 8 of Sept. 2022, this message rippled throughout the world as we learned of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s death, marking not only the culmination of the longest reigning monarch in British history but also reminding us of the unique role she served for 70 years. In many ways, the Queen came to represent a constant in a rapidly changing world. She brought duty and service to her role and provided resolve throughout decades of domestic political and economic turmoil, which signified Britain’s ever-declining global importance. Beyond the island’s coastline, the Queen also observed an exodus of former colonial states as they claimed independence and oversaw the continuation of the Commonwealth, a moderated alternative to British subjugation. The endurance of the Queen’s reign also meant the persistence of the monarchical institution and, with that, the memory of colonial times for many of the citizens living in former colonies. The Queen’s death will resonate differently with everyone in the diverse Menton community : there will be those who could not care less; some will no doubt have been struck by sadness; others may have been in awe at the significance of her reign; and, of course, many will be reminded of the pain and suffering upon which the British monarchy’s power and global prominence were built. Thus, this article will strive to reflect on the Queen’s reign by celebrating Her Majesty’s role in becoming a fundamental aspect of British identity and exploring the facets of her reign within the Commonwealth and on the international stage. Domestically, it is difficult to imagine a more definitive and iconic figure than the Queen. She modernized the relationship between monarch and subject, and her apolitical existence raised a reassuring curtain around a nation increasingly fraught with polarizing politics. Her connection with and affection toward the public began before her ascension to the throne. Her 1940 Wartime Broadcast instilled comfort in the nation’s young children who were forced to leave their families for the countryside. “We know, everyone of us, that in the end all will be well; for God will care for us and give us victory and peace. And when peace comes, remember it will be for us, the children of today, to make the world of tomorrow a better and happier place.” The Queen, Wartime Broadcast 1940 She hinted toward her future decades of duty by staying in England during WWII and serving as a mechanic in the Auxiliary Territorial Services (ATS), endearing her to the nation and demonstrating that, even though her life could not be more different from that of the ordinary citizen, she was prepared to bridge the connection between monarch and subject. This rapprochement between monarch and subject manifested itself in the first-ever televised coronation – during the Queen’s accession to the crown – but also in times when it seemed that controversy had taken the monarchy to the brink of redundancy. During the calamity following Princess Diana’s death in 1997, the Queen broke protocol by making an exceedingly rare address to the nation. Her message underscored how deeply she understood the grief of the people mourning the loss of perhaps the only royal figure more popular than herself. “We have all been trying in our different ways to cope. It is not easy to express a sense of loss since the initial shock is often succeeded by a mixture of other feelings: disbelief, incomprehension, anger - and concern for those who remain. We have all felt those emotions in these last few days. So what I say to you now, as your Queen and as a grandmother, I say from my heart.” The Queen’s message to the nation following Princess Diana’s death in 1997. Even though many will point out that such examples are normal human instincts for empathy, it is crucial to recognize how such actions departed from the Victorian custom of existing as far removed from the public as possible. Despite all her faults, the Queen provided Britain with continuity during a period when it experienced immense social, economic and political change. Her absolute sense of duty supplied motherly refuge in moments of critical uncertainty for Britain. Her address to the nation amidst the COVID-19 pandemic exemplified how, to some, she became a source of hope and connection in times when reality demanded distance. “We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days will return: we will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again; we will meet again. The Queen, address to the nation during the COVID-19 pandemic 2020. Internationally, the Queen aided Britain in maintaining an outsized relevance in international relations. Though Britain’s share of global trade and economic power has waned, its clout on the international stage remains fairly high. According to the Washington Post, soft power and the power of attraction have been vital boosts for British foreign policy. After all, many American presidents have claimed that their most treasured memory in office was the opportunity to meet the Queen of England. Former Prime Minister David Cameron even attributed his warm relationship with President Obama to the successes of the Queen during their state visit in 2011. “The Queen and the Royal Family have been pivotal in maintaining the nation’s relevance.” Brand Finance, 2020 Global Soft Power Index . Departing from the Queen’s impact within Britain, examining the bloodstains of colonialism that trail her death is vital. In many countries whose history intertwines with Britain’s, reluctance to mourn the Queen demonstrates the complexity and pain that her legacy – colonialism – leaves behind. After all, the capacity of the Queen’s death to engulf so much attention is partially owed to the vast areas of the world that colonialism and the British Empire impacted. It is also true that the tragedies of colonialism were not events overseen exclusively by the Queen’s predecessors. The Queen herself supervised a government that acted brutally and immorally at the tail end of its lifespan as an empire. Several months after her ascension to the throne, British authorities in Kenya responded to the Mau Mau rebellion by means of torture and assault. It is estimated that by 1956 up to 150,000 Kenyans were held in detainment camps aiming to forcefully reform its internees to the views of the government and “abandon their nationalist aspirations.” According to the New York Times, this event “led to the establishment of a vast system of detention camps and the torture, rape, castration and killing of tens of thousands of people.” “It’s her dual status as the face of colonialism, but also a symbol of decolonization that defines how she is perceived in many former British African colonies.” Moses Ochonu, professor of African studies at Vanderbilt University to NPR. For many people, the Queen was also the face of the British Empire’s pilferage: many of the monarchy’s jewels were not returned to their homelands, such as the Koh-i-Nor or Cullinan diamonds, belonging originally to India and South Africa, respectively. To this end, separating the individual from the institution and its history seems impossible. Yet, as leader of the Commonwealth, the Queen oversaw 17 former colonies become independent. Today, the Commonwealth includes a third of the world’s population, a fifth of its territorial mass and a third of its waters. The Queen worked tirelessly to maintain the Commonwealth and modernize its values. Her success has materialized in the membership of new states such as Mozambique in 2005 and Gabon and Togo in 2022, former Portuguese and French colonies, respectively. In the same way that it is possible to consider the Queen’s legacy tied to British colonialism, it is also possible to acknowledge the vast decolonization that her reign oversaw. Ultimately, the Queen’s refusal to apologize explicitly for the traumas of colonialism, even as the world turns the lamp toward the darkness of colonialism, means that her death should not absolve her of her failures. It is deservedly so that her legacy of service to Britain will forever be wrapped together with the pain of colonialism and the British Empire. However, it is still worth taking a moment to awe at the endurance of her reign and the sense of duty that she brought to her role.

Véritable expérience cinématographique, l’audace narrative unique, les personnages attachants et l’esthétique inimitable de Pulp Fiction en font un chef-d’œuvre intemporel. En défiant les conventions, Quentin Tarantino a encore prouvé que le cinéma pouvait être à la fois populaire et artistique. < Back Pulp Fiction, un chef-d'œuvre culte et intemporel Habiba Lala January 31, 2025 Réalisé par Quentin Tarantino, Pulp Fiction est bien plus qu’un simple film: c’est une révolution cinématographique qui défie les conventions narratives classiques tout en capturant l'essence brute et stylisée de la culture populaire américaine de son époque. Sorti en 1994, ce long-métrage est récompensé par la Palme d’or au Festival de Cannes et se dresse comme un chef-d’œuvre iconique du cinéma postmoderne. Loin de se contenter d’être un exercice de style, Pulp Fiction offre en réalité une exploration profondément humaine et ironique sur des thèmes plus lourds tels que la violence, le destin ou même la rédemption. Puzzle temporel et narration éclatée L’un des éléments qui m’a le plus marqué dans Pulp Fiction est sa structure narrative non linéaire. Contrairement à un récit classique, où les événements suivent un ordre chronologique, le film éclate sa temporalité en plusieurs fragments interconnectés qui partagent des motifs récurrents: la violence, le hasard, la morale, la rédemption. On y suit trois intrigues principales: l'histoire de Vincent Vega et de Jules Winnfield qui sont deux tueurs à gages chargés de récupérer une mallette sous les ordres de Marsellus Wallace; celle de Butch Coolidge, un boxeur en fuite; et enfin, une intrigue secondaire autour des mésaventures de Vincent et de Mia Wallace, épouse du gangster Marsellus. Cette construction, audacieuse pour l'époque, défie les conventions classiques et nous engage activement en tant que spectateurs dans le montage du puzzle narratif. Les scènes de début et de fin, centrées sur Pumpkin et Honey Bunny dans un restaurant, servent d'encadrement et de miroir, ce qui illustre l’obsession de Tarantino pour la circularité et l'interconnexion. Cette structure originale remet en question notre rapport au temps et au destin, un thème omniprésent dans le film. Par ailleurs, elle crée une tension particulière: même lorsque le spectateur connaît l’issue d’un événement, comme par exemple avec la survie de Vincent et Jules dans la scène du « nettoyage, » l’intérêt réside plus dans le « comment » que dans le « quoi. » Chaque chapitre est autonome tout en enrichissant l’ensemble, ce qui est d’autant plus impressionnant. Des dialogues ciselés et iconiques Je suis convaincue que si Pulp Fiction est si mémorable, c’est en grande partie grâce à l’écriture des dialogues. Tarantino possède un don rare pour mêler trivialité et profondeur, transformant une discussion sur les hamburgers (“Royale with Cheese”) ou les massages des pieds en moments captivants et révélateurs des personnages, de leur manière de penser. Les échanges entre Vincent et Jules, souvent empreints d'humour noir, alternent entre légèreté apparente et réflexions philosophiques sur la moralité et la violence. Le monologue biblique de Jules, issu d’une version modifiée d'Ézéchiel 25:17, est un autre exemple emblématique. Ce passage, où il prétend être un instrument de la volonté divine, transcende sa fonction initiale pour devenir une introspection sur la rédemption et le changement. De même, le décalage entre les situations et le vocabulaire s’inscrit dans cette continuité comme avec l’histoire du père de Butch, racontée par le capitaine de manière tragique, mais qui parfois adopte un ton décalé lorsqu’on sait où le père de Butch avait caché sa montre. Une galerie de personnages complexes Un des aspects qui m’a le plus fasciné réside dans l'écriture des personnages. Chaque personnage de Pulp Fiction est un monde en soi, oscillant entre caricature et profondeur. Vincent Vega, joué par John Travolta, est un tueur nonchalant mais qui masque une certaine vulnérabilité qu’on réussit à entrevoir dans ses mésaventures avec Mia. Jules Winnfield, interprété par Samuel L. Jackson, évolue tout au long du film, passant du cynisme à une quête de rédemption après avoir survécu à une fusillade, ce qu’il considère comme un signe divin l’invitant à une introspection. Mia Wallace, incarnée par Uma Thurman, est la quintessence du mystère et de la sensualité, particulièrement lors de la scène de danse devenue culte. Quant à Butch Coolidge, joué par Bruce Willis, il représente un homme pris entre son passé violent et son désir de s’en libérer et qui est aussi confronté à un dilemme dans lequel il choisira de sauver la vie de Marcellus Wallace, celui qu’il a trahit et tenté de tuer auparavant. Ces personnages, bien que plongés dans des situations absurdes ou violentes, conservent une humanité troublante, rendant leur destin captivant et leurs personnalités attachantes. Une esthétique rétro et pop Sur le plan visuel, on remarque facilement que Pulp Fiction est un hommage à la culture pulp, à ces magazines des années 30 à 50 qui regorgeaient d’histoires sensationnalistes. La mise en scène, riche en couleurs saturées et en compositions symétriques, est imprégnée de cette esthétique. C’est aussi un hommage au cinéma des années 70 avec des couleurs vives, des décors vintages et un montage stylisé présents tout au long du film. La dimension pop est également présente à travers ses nombreuses références à la musique, au cinéma et à la culture populaire. La bande-son est par exemple composée de morceaux préexistants de rock 'n' roll américain, de surf music, de pop et de soul. Elle comprend des références cultes telles que Misirlou de Dick Dale ou encore You Never Can Tell de Chuck Berry. Chaque choix de musique est utilisé pour renforcer l’ambiance d’une scène, comme avec la chanson Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon d'Urge Overkill lors de la scène avec Mia Wallace ce qui permet d’illustrer sa vulnérabilité et sa complexité. Entre violence et ironie, susciter le choc chez le spectateur La violence, omniprésente dans le film, est souvent stylisée et teintée d’ironie. Tarantino ne se contente pas de choquer. Il transforme la brutalité en un langage esthétique. Une scène comme celle où Vincent tire accidentellement sur Marvin dans une voiture en mouvement est aussi tragique qu’absurde. Ce traitement décalé de la violence, souligne l’absurdité des situations tout en déstabilisant les attentes du spectateur puisque rien ne pourrait expliquer l’acte de Vincent. L’ironie dans les scènes tragiques est aussi présente lors de l'overdose de Mia Wallace, puisque l’on a un montage alterné où Mia est au bord de la mort/va presque mourir, pendant que Vincent reste dans les toilettes à se soucier de préoccupations qui semblent futiles en se demandant comment rentrer chez lui et refuser de rester avec Mia. Une œuvre intemporelle Si on me demandait de décrire Pulp Fiction en un mot, je dirais « iconique. » Si on me demandait de le raconter, je dirais « chaotique. » Véritable expérience cinématographique, l’audace narrative unique, les personnages attachants et l’esthétique inimitable de Pulp Fiction en font un chef-d’œuvre intemporel. En défiant les conventions, Quentin Tarantino a encore prouvé que le cinéma pouvait être à la fois populaire et artistique.

< Back Iraq at the Ballots Kerem Demir Karahan December 10, 2025 On Nov. 11 Iraqis went to the parliamentary election ballots to determine who gets the 329 seats on Iraq’s Council of Representatives. Following their loss in the 2021 legislative elections four years ago, supporters of Iran-backed parties attempted to storm the government buildings within the Green Zone in Baghdad. This led to violent clashes between security forces and protestors, leaving 125 individuals injured and two dead. On Nov. 7 two days after the attempted storming, Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi survived a drone attack. No group claimed responsibility for the attack, however, Iraqi governmental sources state that Iran backed militias were responsible. The violent clashes were then followed with an eleven-month-long political crisis where members of the Council of Representatives were unable to form a functioning coalition government and therefore elect a president. Demonstrators supporting the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr had stormed the Parliament building in the Green Zone in order to stop the nomination of anti-Iran al-Sudani for Prime Minister. In August, another series of clashes took place in Baghdad, pitting al-Sadr, a Shiite cleric, against pro-Iranian militias. The clashes in August left 30 people dead and over 700 injured. Following violent protests in Baghdad, the Parliament chose Abdul Latif Rashid as the new President of Iraq, who then tasked Al Sudani with forming a government. This year’s elections saw an unexpectedly high 56.11% participation rate, an increase of 12.81% from the 2021 elections where many politicians threatened boycotts over claims of corruption, perhaps signaling an increased confidence in the democratic process in Iraq. However, Erika Solomon and Falih Hassan of the New York Times note that “though the stakes are high, public confidence in Iraq’s democratic process is low, with nine million eligible Iraqis not even registering to vote [...]”. Ihsan al-Shammari, a political scientist at Baghdad University,mentioned in the same article, states that “This is intentional obfuscation of participation to boost their [the election’s] legitimacy”. Another attack on the legitimacy of the elections were the claims by various parties that “vote-buying” had taken place. The AP reported that “Last week, security services arrested 46 people accused of illegally buying and selling voter cards in sting operations in several provinces, and some 1,841 cards in their possession were seized.” Previous elections in Iraq were also riddled with claims of “vote-buying”, showing a trend in the apparent illegitimacy of Iraqi elections. The counting of votes was largely completed the following day, with projections showing Prime Minister al-Sudani’s party at first with 46 seats out of 329 in the Parliament and 12.06% of the popular vote. Following him in the popular vote was Masoud Barzani with 10.09% of the vote translating to 26 seats. However, the party with the second most seats in the parliament was the State of Law Coalition led by former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Prime Minister al-Sudani will now need to get into coalition talks, which may take many months, all while trying to navigate both American influence demanding the dismantling of Iranian militias and Iranian groups who listen to Tehran more than Baghdad. In order to cozy up to the Americans, al-Sudani presented himself as a “tough-on-Iran” Prime Minister throughout the electoral process, and reiterated his commitment to rid the country of foreign influence following the announcement of votes. Still, 22 years after the American-led invasion of Iraq that toppled Saddam Hussein’s regime, the country’s politics remain to be dominated by the Shiite-majority, many parties of whom are still close to Iran (al-Sudani, an Iraqi Shia, and his party is a notable exception). These parties are now threatened by louder calls from the United States, highlighting the “urgency in disarming Iran-backed militia”. Another aspect of his character that al-Sudani reinvented for his elections was his characterization as a businessman, an attempt to appeal to President Trump. In order to succeed in gaining Trump’s favor, al-Sudani oversaw several deals with American oil giants and has vowed to encourage Iraqi billionaires to invest in the United States. In return, he has received promises of decreased American military presence in Iraq, with only a small number of soldiers to remain in order to ensure the Islamic State doesn’t pose any threats. The Iraqi Parliament will start attempting to form a government in the coming weeks, and their success, or lack of, will once again leave its mark on Iraq’s uneasy experiment with democracy after the American invasion.

When thinking about global warming, one rarely associates it with terrorism. Nevertheless, when looking at the aims of terrorist organizations and the potential power and influence that climate change predisposes them to have in certain regions of the world, we understand both the disparity of the situation and the urgent need for it to change. < Back Terrorism & Climate Change: A Collective Effort To Further Destabilize West Africa? Victoria Krumova September 30, 2024 Our world is political. By virtue of our need to constantly showcase our individuality and unique way of thinking, we often stand strong in our beliefs. We debate topics like abortion, war, mental health and, basically, all that we can think about. We also debate climate change. And while some highlight that it has come as a result of human activity, others passionately argue that the influx of temperatures is solely a natural phenomena explained by the cyclic nature of the temperatures on our planet. One, however, has to pose a begging question that arises: does it really matter what causes climate change, when we see it is a fact and it is starting to kill our own? Because, at the end of the day, if we have the means to stop it, slow it down, or postpone it, shouldn't we all be united by the goal of self-preservation and the chance for prosperity for future generations? Surely, for the average UK resident, climate change is not going to radically alter their day-to-day life experiences. It might be two degrees hotter on a random Thursday afternoon, but that, for most people, is as far as the impact will go. The country having millions upon millions of pounds in its bank reserves, being relatively self-sufficient and being isolated from other countries means that it is unlikely to face consequences such as inability to invest in adaptation means, lack of goods it had previously been supplying itself with from other countries, or massive waves of migrants in a theoretical critical peak of climate change. But what about Tuvalu, a country expected to sink in under 100 years with the current rate of the rising of ocean levels? The country is the first ever to announce it is “going digital” and is being brought to the metaverse to preserve its customs and traditions. And, as heartbreaking as it is to say, this dystopia is our reality. Cities like Cairo and Alexandria are also at risk of sinking; coastal areas will be the first ones hit by tornados and there will be mass migration of millions of people to a limited number of cities with the most resources. There will be less agricultural land that is supposed to feed the same number of people, there will be overcrowding on the job market and housing options will be insufficient compared to the demand. And yet, these are the “expected” outcomes of climate change. They are the impacts the people of the future will have to deal with. No matter directly or indirectly affected by the crisis, all countries will suffer, regardless of the extent. But how does the situation look today, and more interestingly, what are the unexpected ways in which climate change shapes our reality? When thinking about global warming, one rarely associates it with terrorism. Nevertheless, when looking at the aims of terrorist organizations and the potential power and influence that climate change predisposes them to have in certain regions of the world, we understand both the disparity of the situation and the urgent need for it to change. So what are those terrorist groups doing? Where are they acting? And most importantly, what does climate change have to do with all of this? To be able to analyze these questions, we firstly need to look at where these organizations are prevalent. ISIS and al-Qaeda have been extremely active in West Africa—Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger. The answer to why, however, is far more complex. On the one hand, there is the issue of weak governments that do not have a strong military, by virtue of Africa’s lack of great wars in its history. This, in recent years, has meant that terrorist organizations could install themselves on the territories of those countries, without necessarily having a hard time doing so. Weak governments have also proven to be inadequate in dealing with local conflicts. These conflicts, often based on religious or ethnic divide, lead to the necessity of social services and the need for protection. Jihadist organizations then offer that protection to the people, thus spreading their ideology and influence. The U.N. and France have tried to battle this. In 2013 the U.N. sent a peacekeeping force in Mali, after the occupation of its northern parts by Islamist fighters. France too involved itself, by sending 5,000 soldiers, in an effort to stabilize the situation. However, the insurgency of violence in the region, despite the presence of said external powers, is an undeniable fact. Not only did deaths from armed violence in Mali increase by more than three times from 2015 to 2019, but the U.N. also lost more than 300 soldiers, making this what some have called the “deadliest peacekeeping mission in the world”. It remains uncertain whether the failure of this mission has occurred as a result of the soldiers not being ordered to launch active offensives against the militants, or because of the alleged interference of the Malian government with the operations that were being carried out. Nevertheless, both the U.N. and France decided to withdraw their forces in 2023 and 2022 respectively, with the latter doing so in response to the alienating shifting alliances the junta made with Russia and the growing anti-French sentiment among the local population. Climate change is making battling with the rebel groups and the terrorists even harder. As 70 percent of the population of West Africa is reliant on agricultural activities and livestock to make their living, even the slightest change in weather can mean famine, poverty and death. Thus, a certain demographic has chosen an alternative path for going through life: young men. More and more of them have been resorting to militancy, and by doing so, they have been making the situation for the civilians even more dire. The number of civilian fatalities in Mali has more than doubled in the span of just two years—from 2020 to 2022. In Burkina Faso, 223 people, 56 among whom were children, were massacred on Feb. 25 this year in the villages of Nondin and Soro. In a statement, Human Rights Watch Executive Director Tirana Hassan condemned the attack saying that "the massacres in Nondin and Soro villages are just the latest mass killings of civilians by the Burkina Faso military in their counterinsurgency operations.” She also expressed the need for international assistance to support an investigation into crimes against humanity. But with France and the U.N. already having only a bitter taste of failure from their last mission in Mali, Russia and China having criticized said mission and the UK and Sweden refusing to send troops, it may be said that the international community is intentionally choosing to avoid involving itself further in West Africa’s struggles. A lot of questions remain unanswered: what about the civilians that are forced into radical ideologies because of desperation; what about the kids that are being killed by rebel groups; what about the young men that seek a more stable future in the groups responsible for the unstable status quo? And with the droughts that leave those people without a land to live off of, how much worse will the situation become? With no peacekeeping missions currently present on the terrain, terrorists are continuing to wreak havoc in West Africa. Just recently, on Sept, 5 a jihadist group carried out an attack on civilians in Barsalogho. As of most recent claims, this group was Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), which has links to al-Qaeda. Because of their presence in the northern parts of the country, almost 90,000 migrants, most of them Christian, have sought refuge in the town of Barsalogho, hoping to escape the jihadist violence. However, this attack has proved that no place is safe when there is nobody to stop the advance of the jihadists into new territories. According to reports, between 200 and 400 people were killed in the attack. Moreso, the massacre took place while the civilians were digging defensive ditches to protect themselves from situations exactly like the one that followed. According to eyewitnesses, corpses were found lying near the shovels they had been using to dig. But Burkina Faso has been experiencing turmoil since long before Sept. 5. As stated in reports from May 2023, two million people have been displaced internally—the majority of whom are women and children. According to statistics cited by the Los Angeles Times , “one out of four people requires aid and tens of thousands are facing catastrophic levels of hunger.” Bringing this back to climate change and the need for water and fruitful agricultural lands, there is a silver lining. Despite the droughts that the region has been facing, international organizations have been present on the ground in countries such as Burkina Faso. Oxfam International has invested resources into spreading information to the local families on adapting to the new weather conditions, preparing nutritious meals from the food they have access to and have also trained people on proper hygiene in regards to both cooking and water consumption. Workshops on preventing malnutrition have been carried out in the village of Tafgo, water towers have been installed in other communities and crops that require less water to sprout have been found. However, this is not a viable long-term solution to the impend ing need for food. A local— Noaga Ouèda—shared with Oxfam International: "As there has been less rain than in previous years, we are suffering a lot. Before this, we didn't know hunger, but now we are forced to ration the to [flour] so that we can give it to our children." Therefore, the issue still remains, regardless of the efforts put in and the progress made. No matter our efforts to find crops that require less water to sprout, they require water nonetheless. So the question begs: How many more people will go to sleep hungry tomorrow compared to today and how many more will need to fall asleep under the sounds of yet another jihadist rebel group’s firearms rummaging through their city?

Si l’on peut dire que le cinéma est l’art d’enregistrer des vues tirées de la réalité, c’est aussi et surtout celui d’exacerber ces images en leur donnant un sens plus saisissable par le public. < Back « It Must Be Heaven » ou quand l’absurde démonte les préjugés de l’altérité By Zohra Riahi for Cinémentongraphe October 31, 2023 Si l’on peut dire que le cinéma est l’art d’enregistrer des vues tirées de la réalité, c’est aussi et surtout celui d’exacerber ces images en leur donnant un sens plus saisissable par le public. Explosions, violence, suspense ou simplement paysages époustouflants : autant de moyens qui tentent de séduire un public en faisant valoir l’émotion, au détriment parfois d’un travail rigoureux d’authenticité. Dans cette continuité de pensée, je souhaite aborder le sujet de la représentation de l’Autre. Un sujet qui fait sensation, autant dans le cinéma dédié au « bourgeois Gaze » en France, comme vu dans « Le Brio » (2017), ou ce cinéma fait à l’étranger qui souhaite « exotiser » les salles françaises. Nous nous interrogerons alors sur la production de films « réalistes » commandés aux cinéastes provenant de l’étranger, et en particulier à ceux du Monde Arabe. J’ai rencontré la notion de Néo-Orientalisme au cinéma pour la première fois au travers de l’article de Wissam Mouawad : « Petite réflexion sur le néo-orientalisme, Le cas Nadine Labaki » dans Les Cahiers De l’Orient. Sa thèse est la suivante : « Le néo-orientalisme est beaucoup plus dangereux, beaucoup plus sournois que l’orientalisme car de par sa structure même il tente de bloquer tout discours critiquant l’authenticité de l’œuvre en question. Il est commode de faire porter par un « artiste » autochtone (consentant) un discours exotique. Par là, tout le monde trouve son compte : l’Institution, qui réussit ainsi à insuffler un peu d’authenticité à l’objet de culture qu’elle veut promouvoir comme œuvre d’art ; le producteur, qui est certain d’amortir ses coûts en donnant à la fois l’impression de financer des auteurs ; le fabricant-réalisateur, promu au rang d’artiste (au sens fort) ; le grand public qui a l’impression d’avoir accès à des films d’arts à moindre frais (et à moindre effort intellectuel) ; le public des cinémas d’art et essai, toujours à la recherche de l’authentique, et qui confond souvent authenticité et exotisme… » Ici il décrit la logique de l’offre et de la demande, qui selon lui aboutit forcément au commerce des clichés. Il questionne la façon dont les cinéastes adaptent leur histoire au public. Ainsi, financés par un acteur extérieur, les cinéastes doivent adapter leur histoire aux goûts du public occidental, qui auront la confirmation illusoire que cette œuvre est authentiquement orientale. Si Wissam Mouawad analyse « Et Maintenant On Va Où? » (2017) de Nadine Labaki dans son article, j’ai choisi d’illustrer cette théorie avec le film de Elia Suleiman : « It Must Be Heaven » (2019) . Lors d’une rencontre avec une boite de production française, lorsqu’il est à Paris, Elia Suleiman se voit refuser une offre pour un film, car celui-ci est considéré comme « pas assez Palestinien ». Lui même palestinien voulant représenter la Palestine, comment un film peut ne pas être assez Palestinien? Ma déduction personnelle est que ce sont les clichés habituels : la guerre, l’oppression, la souffrance, l’islamisme; un parti-pris qui servirait à essentialiser son pays. Un film du Moyen-Orient montré en France doit dénoncer. Elia Suleiman, refuse ce parti-pris facile, ou plutôt tente de représenter l’absurdité de ce concept en analysant la France et les Etat-Unis sous le même prisme. Son film montre ses voyages et impressions dans ces sociétés dans un triptyque de la Palestine, de Paris et finalement de New York. Non loin d’un film muet, qui laisse beaucoup de place à la contemplation, on observe avec la même ironie que celle que possède le personnage principal (joué par le réalisateur lui-même) qu’il n’y a pas forcément de lieu où il fait meilleur vivre. Si la Palestine connait son propre désordre absurde, avec ses tumultes quotidiennes comme le voisin du narrateur, voleur de citrons ; elle est aussi représentée comme un théâtre aux récits mystiques, dévoilés par une iconographie typique du pays que sont les cactus, les oliviers ou encore l’apparition énigmatique d’une femme dans la nature sauvage. Plus tard, à Paris, le protagoniste ne s’attend pas à voir que la ville est vide de ses habitants pendant le 14 juillet. Au lieu d’être un moment de fête et de vie pour la nation, ce n’est que le vain défilé de la majestuosité et de l’armement du pays. Dans les belles rues de la métropole, la seule présence est celle des tanks et des avions de chasse. Et lorsque le SAMU apporte un plateau repas gastronomique à une personne sans domicile fixe, on ne retient que l’irrationalité et l’idéalisme de la société. Après tout, que pourrait un SDF vouloir de plus? Finalement, à New York, les mères déambulent avec une poussette pendant qu’elles pratiquent la gymnastique synchronisée dans Central Park, car selon la logique capitaliste tout doit être rentabilisé et exploité. De même, tout le monde fait ses courses avec une mitraillette accrochée sous le bras, dans la totale normalisation de cette atmosphère d’anxiété omniprésente. Pourtant, malgré le dépaysement, où qu’il aille le narrateur rencontre la même présence de la police et des points de contrôle, comme chez lui. Ce film ne tente pas de donner des réponses, il fait surtout émerger de nouvelles questions au spectateur. Selon moi, il souhaite montrer que l ’exotisme renvoie au spectateur. La différence que l’on tente de projeter, contraste-t-elle nécessairement avec soi? Qu’y a-t-il de si étrange dans l’Autre?

To most, it seems incomprehensible how women, especially Western women who are geographically separated from countries ravaged by terrorism, could choose to leave safety to become terrorists. < Back Can Women Be More Than Just Victims of Jihadists? By Isabella Hehl Dalla Zuanna September 27, 2023 When women and terrorism are mentioned in the same sentence, usually, it is in the context of women as victims. Indeed, systematic rape, mutilation, and the fate of becoming a child bride to jihadists are often how women are impacted by such extremism. However, the role of women perpetrating terrorism is much less discussed and more confusing. To most, it seems incomprehensible how women, especially Western women who are geographically separated from countries ravaged by terrorism, could choose to leave safety to become terrorists. While the media does discuss “jihadi brides” in polarizing and infantilizing ways, the roles of terrorist organizations are not only romantic and sexual: they are involved in recruitment, propaganda and even militancy. Women can become intertwined with terrorist extremism voluntarily, leaving their homes to become part of jihadist efforts. The reasons behind their choices are often not different from men: they see the lifestyle as empowering and a way of worshiping and are drawn by alienation, marriage, belief in the cause, adventure and inequality. While some do not understand how women could join groups that actively and regularly participate in and propagate sexual violence, many female terrorists actually agree with such gendered and conservative regulations and embrace and publicize the brutality through propaganda and online recruitment. In Western countries, some women will be driven to extremism by Islamophobia, isolation and a confused sense of identity. Moreover, women will often become extremists when they believe that the whole Muslim community is being aggressively persecuted globally and feel anger about the responsiveness of the international world to their persecution. In contrast, the jihadist world offers a utopian vision of building the caliphate, becoming part of a sisterhood, a romanticized religious experience, and a solution to women's pain in the Western world. Once women become involved in a terrorist group, there are many roles they can take on. Sometimes, but less frequently, these are militant. This is rare because, in most jihadist groups, the basic ideology centers around the power of men and prefers for women to be more or less invisible from society. However, they can contribute to the militant effort in cases of emergency and when permitted by imams. For example, ISIS has increasingly allowed women to be involved in defense since 2014. The Europol report about terrorism trends occurring in the European Union showed children and women playing increasingly more operational and militant roles in terrorist acts. There have even been occurrences where a group of women only planned terrorist attacks, such as in 2016 in France, where three women were arrested for such plotting in Paris. Another trend becoming increasingly frequent is the use of women as suicide bombers. This is strategically advantageous because security forces tend to assume men are much more likely to participate in violent and dangerous acts, and thus women are less suspicious. Through clothing and even apparent pregnancy, women can avoid arousing suspicion and being flagged by the police. Moreover, the use of female suicide bombers not only allows terrorists to have more recruitment opportunities but garners even more media attention than a male suicide bomber since the participation of women seems much more unexpected and shocking. Women also often play organizational roles: as recruiters, logistical support, smugglers and messengers. As recruiters, they can radicalize young women, even girls, and encourage them to spread propaganda or actively join the jihadist effort. ISIS uses this as a key strategy: by reversing the traditional recruitment profile, women can not only effectively recruit other women but also, through shaming, garner more male support too. Women are being recognized for their crucial role in jihadists’ long-term strategy and goal in state-building. However, mostly they continue to primarily play a domestic role: cleaning, cooking, making clothes and providing medicine. This does not make their role any less impactful than that of men. On the contrary: they are necessary to build and produce the indivisible infrastructure of their jihadist group by facilitating, enabling and supporting violent extremism through the state roles. Usually, their participation is limited to “honorable roles”: being mothers and wives to the jihadists. An overwhelming amount of time, when women are associated with terrorist groups, it is because of marriage, its prospects or family ties with a male terrorist. Their own terrorist acts can often be motivated by these relationships: for example, a mother sending her jihadist son money, mothers hiding their sons from the police, or women traveling countries with their husband for his terrorist purposes. Moreover, women are disproportionately impacted by coercion and forced participation, which must be considered when determining a woman’s criminal responsibility for involvement in terrorist activities. Even though it is important to consider coercion and their familial roles, it must also be noted that women play significant roles in disseminating propaganda, recruitment and logistical organization. Girls or women who want to join or have entered terrorist organizations must be taken seriously for their dangerous role. They often deeply understand the jihadist’s ideology and are willing to participate in extremist acts to propagate those ideas. A more well-known phenomenon concerning women’s roles in such groups is controversially called the “jihadi brides,” which describes women or girls who believe they must leave their country, join a terrorist organization, and marry one of the fighters. The International Centre for the Study of Radicalization of King’s College London has reported that 4761 foreign women have joined ISIS in Iraq and Syria, almost half being from Western countries. In the last decade, a serious problem has arisen. With the collapse of ISIS, these women mostly wound up in detention centers and refugee camps by local Kurdish groups in Syria, raising questions for their countries of origin on how to deal with them. Most countries of origin refuse to repatriate their nationals, as they pose a very serious security risk. On the other hand, many were coerced, sometimes even at young ages, to join the caliphate, and did not know the extent of what was expected of them. This is controversial because some adamantly argue that these young women were essentially groomed and sexually exploited. In contrast, others cite numerous reports proving that many “jihadi brides” were aware of ISIS’ brutality. A famous example is Shamima Begum , which set a precedent for other women and countries about how a state should interact with these women's rights and obligations attached to their citizenship. In the case of Shamima Begum – a 15-year-old when she left the United Kingdom for Syria to join the ISIS, and re-emerged four years later, hoping to re-enter her homeland – the United Kingdom refused to allow her to be repatriated, and she remains in a refugee center. This is the fate for most women who were once “jihadi brides.” In conclusion, similarly to men, women are driven to join jihadist groups by violence, religious duty and isolationism, so treating all women joining ISIS as tricked, naive, or sex-driven is a complete misunderstanding. Most women joining such terrorist groups know about and are eager to participate in the horrific acts of terrorism; dubbing them “jihadi brides” is incorrect, overly simplistic, and fails to understand the mechanisms of their radicalization. Women mostly join terrorist groups through family or marriage and are statistically more likely to be coerced into doing so than men. However, women can also play important logistical and support roles and be found in militant positions. The advantages of being a woman, and thus not “suspicious” to security forces, are being increasingly exploited by these groups, as proven by the growing role of women as suicide bombers, messengers and spies. Overall, while it must be taken into consideration that some women express deep remorse and regret about their choice to join terrorist organizations, many do not, and women joining jihadist groups cannot be underestimated: just because they are women does not mean that they cannot play a crucial, and very dangerous role in terrorist efforts.

< Back L'Usine Pedro Meerbaum The historical landscape of Menton seemed immutable. Nowhere in townscapes from the midday Basilique ring of bells can one walk by the beach without being struck by the beauty of the old town with its 16th-century architecture. Even in its new town, Menton feels like a bubble wherein modernity is far-reaching. Yet, the new Cap D’ail style beach clubs and current constructions on the beachfront point to a new direction, one where Menton slowly tries to associate itself with the modern and luxurious audience of Monaco and St Tropez. Amidst Menton's path to total commodification, a little store is at the intersection of Rue de Brea and the Prom. Du Val de Menton protects the key to the authentic Côte d’Azur charm. Located at 3 Rue de Général Gallienie is one of Menton's most precious boutiques, L’Usine . Based on an old factory, as its name suggests, L’Usine is one of Menton's biggest antique stores. Amid its multiple floors, rooms, and charming garden, the family-owned business has cultivated a collection of regional items, from home decor to jewelry, that exist as an archive of a Côte d’Azur that is long lost. One does not need pictures to understand the originality and authenticity of life in the region 40 years ago; the various sofas, cutlery and collectibles of L’Usine tell the story of the region. They put into perspective how much this historical town has shifted. Even its wide door does not do justice to the magnitude of the store. Its side doors and stairs are dizzying and dazzling. One could spend hours going through the collection of objects on the various floors, observing from the smallest pins to the largest human-sized dolls. The owner, Allo, allowed us to carry out an interview with him. He has owned the business for 25 years with his wife, Michelle. He calls himself a proud collector, and before opening L’Usine, he traveled around Europe to acquire different pieces. It was then, almost at the turn of the century, when the couple got the opportunity to buy the estate and open a store. In harmony with an antique store, the place had to undergo a process of renovations and cleanings before they could open it to the public. There were simply too many residues. After everything was clean, Allo told me they had to buy and fill the rooms “little by little.” I carried out the interview accompanied by journalistic partner Anna Halpern, who meticulously asked Allo if all objects were from Menton itself. He confirmed that, indeed, a good part of the objects were from Menton, and while walking through the store, one repeatedly finds posters and objects that herald our town and its beauty. He assures, though, that most objects are from the Alpes-Maritimes region. He claimed that Menton, Nice and Cannes were all cities that received a great influx of tourists and immigrants in the last few centuries, who brought with them specific objects and furniture that now are crucial pieces of his enormous collection. Allo points out that the town is changing. He is not talking about the construction of the new beaches but rather about their taste. His selling point was classical furniture, sofas, closets and grandiose cabinets from the early 20th century. Now, people want a different sort of vintage. He has sold significantly more modernist furniture, pieces from the '60s or '80s, with considerably fewer sales on early 20th-century objects. His audience has also shifted. It is not the local Mentonnaise population that offers him the biggest source of income, despite an occasional SciencesPo student looking for a poster or a lamp, but rather tourists. He estimated that 10% of his clientele is Mentonnaise, 10% is Italian, and the rest are composed of transient Americans, Germans, Scandinavians, and more recently, Australians. He is not quite sure if the change in taste is also related to the change in clientele—in his opinion the Italians had the most dramatic shift of taste, but he has shown himself flexible and ready to adapt his store to the needs of his clients. Allo offered us a store tour, pointing to particular objects that interested him: dutch barrels, 20th-century possessions and even what he called “bizarre stuff.” Anna made a point about how the things he had there were simply mesmerizing and shockingly interesting. Allo, after a quick laugh, says, “Yes, but this is what I am looking for. That is what I aim to sell. It's no easy find, but we work!” He presents objects that remind us of the diversity of the South of France beyond the coast and even elements from the neighboring Italian north and Spanish Catalonia. A conversation with the store owners has led me to become further disbelieved. How was it possible that a couple could find so many particular objects and foster such a big collection of antiquities? When asked how he sees these things, Allo quickly responds with a simple “Je me lève tôt,” “I wake up early.” Every Sunday, when the store is closed, he wakes up at 4 am and ventures throughout the region to find objects for his collection in a tireless search. “It's not easy to find this stuff,” he told me, “it is easier to buy old furniture than to find something truly interesting.” Throughout the years, scavenging his products has been the most challenging aspect of his job. “The provision,” he puts it, “is the hardest part. It's more difficult to find stuff than to sell it.” He also discusses the prices of his stuff, saying that he has to put a price that gives him a profit, and some things end up being more expensive than expected. Yet, “it is not close to being more expensive than the boutique stores in Paris,” he says. “ Those are a steal. You have to put it in perspective.” My final question was the most difficult to answer. “What is your favorite piece?” It took him just a few seconds to answer, “The big window in the showcase!” He took us outside the store to look at the said mirror. It is a grandiose piece, covered by crystals, and so mesmerizing one has to see it for themselves to understand why Allo felt so attached to it. Finally, he told us: “When I find stuff like this, I am happy.” Previous Next

On that evening, when I was casually texting my relative as we discussed Lebanon’s situation, he sent me a photo that my Tweet was shared on TV < Back Never Give Up on Your Voice: My Tweet Went Viral in Lebanon By Riwa Hassan November 30, 2021 Expressing my voice in Lebanon, a country that has been collapsing Nothing uncommon, just some videos of militias terrorizing the country with their legal and illegal arms. Over the years, this has become a norm for me and for everyone who lives in Lebanon, one of the most politically complex and divided countries in the MENA region. For decades now, our citizens have stood by political warlords and religious extremist figures, which has weakened Lebanese unity and allowed for corruption to infiltrate almost all governmental and non-governmental organizations. Today, with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the economic crisis, the Beirut explosion, and the overall socio-political situation compounded, people can no longer afford their basic necessities. On October 14, 2021, although the scene was not very different from today, the backstory was in fact more threatening, as it seemed that the country was on the verge of a civil war. Hezbollah and Amal Movement, known as the duo-Shiite, protested against the judge for the Beirut explosion investigation, Tarek Al Bitar, and accused him of being biassed after he involved some of their leaders in the investigation. As the protestors approached Ain El Remmaneh, where the residing majority are Christians who follow the Lebanese Forces Party, the clash, which soon became a bloodshed, began. This Tayouneh-Ain El Remmeneh bloodshed was called a “mini-civil war” as it also started in the same area where the Lebanese Civil War began in 1975. During that same time, I was in French class, trying to process all the news and the videos while texting my loved ones to make sure they were safe. The whole clash was not as disappointing to me as the youth supporters of these political parties, whose dreams and daily lives have been destroyed over the past two years. The protest, which was clearly not peaceful, was defended by Hezbollah and Amal supporters, as they backed it up with their right to protest and express themselves freely. They only recognize such human rights when it is in their interest. This sentiment was expressed in a Tweet I shared, which compared Hezbollah and Amal’s reactions in protests against a judge doing his job to the protests which demanded justice, equality and basic life necessities. In the former, they clearly supported the protests, but in the latter, their reaction was opposing and full of violence. As I normally do, I wrote a Tweet, “Remember when they called us ‘ate3een tor2at’ and ‘ze3ran’ and accused us of threatening civil peace when we were protesting for our basic rights #العدالة أقوى_من_ترهيبكم #الطيونه .” ‘Ate3een tor2at’ and ‘ze3ran’ can be translated to bandits or crooks. The hashtag under which I shared my Tweet is translated to “justice is stronger than your terrorism.” Suddenly, my Tweet was trending, and while some were threatening and cursing me, others showed their full support. On that evening, when I was casually texting my relative as we discussed the whole situation, he sent me a photo that my Tweet was shared on TV, on Lebanon Broadcasting Corporation International (LBCI). I received a lot of messages that encouraged me to continue voicing my opinion. At the same time, I got messages to be careful, and warnings that being bold about my stance is not safe. Later this year, on November 22, Lebanese Independence Day, while I was supposed to be studying for my finals, I could not help but think of how our lives have flipped upside down during the past two years, and reflect on what independence I was supposed to celebrate. I poured the words from my heart onto a post on Instagram. In almost an hour, my post was shared on numerous Instagram stories, especially within the Sciences Po community. For that, I cannot explain how safe it felt to be living in such a supportive community. I cannot thank you enough but I am forever grateful for your effort to help share my voice. I am writing this article on the plane on my way back to Lebanon and I have never felt this afraid yet excited at the same time. I know that I have only been away for around three months, but the situation in the country is changing very fast and, sadly, for the worse. On the bright side, this is the first time I have seen this amount of people going back to Lebanon, which explains how much love all the Lebanese diaspora hold for this country despite all the traumas and losses it has caused them. Sharing my stance and explaining the situation in Lebanon means a lot to me, and I will always express my opinion regardless of the consequences. Freedom of expression might only be found in our constitution, on paper, but we have the duty to share our concerns and turn it to action. The latter is one step forward towards change which Lebanon is in dire need for.