Latest news with #AmericanUniversityofBeirut
L'Orient-Le Jour
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Designer Reem Acra wins $38.7M judgment in 9-year-old studio fire case
Lebanese American fashion designer Reem Acra, known for bridal couture and a favorite of global celebrities, has won a major legal battle: A Manhattan court has ordered real estate group Chetrit to pay her $38.7 million in ruling concludes a nine-year legal fight stemming from a March 2014 fire in a building adjacent to Acra's New York studio, which destroyed over 2,000 high-end gowns and a priceless archive of as a signatureBorn in Beirut, Acra studied at the American University of Beirut, the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York and in Paris before launching her career in the 1990s. She quickly rose to prominence with her signature blend of sheer fabrics, intricate embroidery and sculptural cuts. Other Lebanese voices in fashion Jad Rahmeh, the director who surprised Gucci with his Sporting images ...
L'Orient-Le Jour
4 days ago
- Business
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Lebanon's poultry sector prepares ambitious growth strategy
The Lebanese Poultry Syndicate organized a conference this week at the American University of Beirut (AUB) to launch the preparations for a "National Strategy for the Poultry Sector," according to the state-run National News Agency (NNA). The conference was attended by the syndicate's president, William Boutros; the Agriculture Minister, Nizar Hani; the Industry Minister, Joe Issa al-Khoury; the Economy and Trade Minister, Amer Bsat; the Director General of the Agriculture Ministry, Engineer Louis Lahoud; the President of the American University of Beirut, Fadlo Khury, among others. During the conference, Boutros stated that "the sector employs about 36,000 people, directly and indirectly, spread over more than 2,000 farms and 60 factories," and produces "about 110 million poultry annually." He said the sector's potential is far from being reached, believing that it can be realized on the ground with this new situation, the new government and the current ministers. "We are going to propose major investments to the private sector in Lebanon, aiming to generate one and a half billion dollars in gross domestic product," he continued. He also said that the government should compensate farmers and poultry producers who have suffered losses as a result of Israeli attacks. Bsat, for his part, said the strategy in question must "create an environment conducive to investment and marketing, both locally and internationally." He added that the Ministry is determined to facilitate internal and external trade by revising bilateral agreements, and to strengthen oversight on points of sale and markets by empowering the monitoring agency to curb fraud, manipulation and ensure fair competition. Issa al-Khoury presented a strategic framework for the development of the industrial poultry sector, drawing inspiration from successful experiences in countries such as Brazil, Turkey, Thailand, the United States and Morocco. This framework is based in particular on securing raw materials, reducing production costs, modernizing manufacturing systems and value chains, as well as supporting cold chain infrastructure, packaging and refrigerated transport, to preserve quality and ensure market access.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
The Druze are a religious sect. Here's a look at their beliefs and history
The Druze religious sect, enmeshed in an outbreak of tit-for-tat violence in Syria, began roughly 1,000 years ago as an offshoot of Ismailism, a branch of Shiite Islam. Most Druze religious practices are shrouded in secrecy, with outsiders not allowed to convert and intermarriage strongly discouraged. More than half the roughly 1 million Druze worldwide live in Syria. Most of the other Druze live in Lebanon and Israel, including in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast War and annexed in 1981. Here's a look at the Druze sect: The principles Druze live by A core social doctrine for Druze is defending their brothers, meaning defending one another, said Makram Rabah, assistant professor of history at the American University of Beirut. 'If a Druze person anywhere in the world needed the help of another Druze person, he would automatically get it,' said Rabah. 'You're part of a bigger community.' He stressed how social and cultural rituals keep the community together. 'They're a big tribe,' he said. Intermarriage is not encouraged. Rabah said mainstream Druze would shun people who marry outside the sect. 'You are under the risk of being isolated socially and community wise,' he said. How Druze have interacted with the Syrian government Syria's Druze have a long history of cutting their own path to survive among the country's powerhouses. They were heavily involved in revolts against Ottoman and French colonial rule to establish the modern Syrian state. The Druze largely celebrated the downfall in December of Syrian autocrat Bashar Assad but were divided over interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa's rule. The latest violence has left the community more skeptical of Syria's new leadership and doubtful of peaceful coexistence. In Israel, members of the Druze community had called for intervention to protect the Druze in Syria. But elsewhere in the region, Druze leaders have rejected Israeli intervention. Druze have armed militias Multiple Druze armed militias have existed for years, originally set up to protect their communities against Islamic State group fighters and drug smugglers coming in from the eastern desert. Assad reluctantly gave Druze a degree of autonomy, as they wanted to avoid being involved on the front lines. The Druze were exempted from conscription into the Syrian army and instead set up local armed factions made of workers and farmers to patrol their areas. Since Assad's ouster, the Druze have been reluctant to lay down their arms. The result is a cycle of mistrust, where government supporters paint Druze factions as potential separatists or tools of Israel, while government hostility only deepens Druze worries. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. Solve the daily Crossword
Associated Press
4 days ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
The Druze are a religious sect. Here's a look at their beliefs and history
The Druze religious sect, enmeshed in an outbreak of tit-for-tat violence in Syria, began roughly 1,000 years ago as an offshoot of Ismailism, a branch of Shiite Islam. Most Druze religious practices are shrouded in secrecy, with outsiders not allowed to convert and intermarriage strongly discouraged. More than half the roughly 1 million Druze worldwide live in Syria. Most of the other Druze live in Lebanon and Israel, including in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast War and annexed in 1981. Here's a look at the Druze sect: The principles Druze live by A core social doctrine for Druze is defending their brothers, meaning defending one another, said Makram Rabah, assistant professor of history at the American University of Beirut. 'If a Druze person anywhere in the world needed the help of another Druze person, he would automatically get it,' said Rabah. 'You're part of a bigger community.' He stressed how social and cultural rituals keep the community together. 'They're a big tribe,' he said. Intermarriage is not encouraged. Rabah said mainstream Druze would shun people who marry outside the sect. 'You are under the risk of being isolated socially and community wise,' he said. How Druze have interacted with the Syrian government Syria's Druze have a long history of cutting their own path to survive among the country's powerhouses. They were heavily involved in revolts against Ottoman and French colonial rule to establish the modern Syrian state. The Druze largely celebrated the downfall in December of Syrian autocrat Bashar Assad but were divided over interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa's rule. The latest violence has left the community more skeptical of Syria's new leadership and doubtful of peaceful coexistence. In Israel, members of the Druze community had called for intervention to protect the Druze in Syria. But elsewhere in the region, Druze leaders have rejected Israeli intervention. Druze have armed militias Multiple Druze armed militias have existed for years, originally set up to protect their communities against Islamic State group fighters and drug smugglers coming in from the eastern desert. Assad reluctantly gave Druze a degree of autonomy, as they wanted to avoid being involved on the front lines. The Druze were exempted from conscription into the Syrian army and instead set up local armed factions made of workers and farmers to patrol their areas. Since Assad's ouster, the Druze have been reluctant to lay down their arms. The result is a cycle of mistrust, where government supporters paint Druze factions as potential separatists or tools of Israel, while government hostility only deepens Druze worries. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Who are the Middle East's Druze minority?
The Druze are a prominent religious community of more than a million people spread across Syria, Lebanon and Israel, who for centuries have sought to preserve a distinct identity. In Syria, Druze fighters have clashed both with neighbouring Bedouin tribes and with forces loyal to the Islamist government, as they have struggled to find their place in the new order ushered in by the December overthrow of longtime president Bashar al-Assad. Israel's bombardment of government forces deployed to the community's Sweida province following the latest unrest has further complicated Druze relations with the ruling Islamists. Israel says it is acting to protect the minority community, a claim challenged by most Druze outside Israel as well as the Damascus authorities. Here is a brief look at Druze beliefs and history: - Religion and customs - The Druze emerged in Egypt in the early 11th century as a branch of the Ismaili sect of Shiite Islam. They are monotheistic and call themselves "muwahhidun", or unitarians. The sect is highly secretive and includes mystical elements like a belief in reincarnation. It does not allow new converts and marriage outside the community is strongly discouraged. A source familiar with Druze rituals, requesting anonymity to discuss matters considered sensitive, said the faith's emergence was influenced by other religious and philosophical teachings, including those of Greek philosopher Plato. Some Druze religious occasions align with those of other Islamic sects. Traditional Druze garb is black, with men wearing white caps or turbans and women covering their heads and part of their faces with a flowing white scarf. - Where are they? - "The Druze don't really recognise borders," said Makram Rabah, assistant professor of history at the American University of Beirut. "You have marriages and you have standing relationships between the Druze across the region," he said, adding that "clerics play a very important role in keeping this relationship alive." Before civil war erupted in Syria in 2011, the community was estimated to number around 700,000. According to "The Druze Faith" by historian Sami Makarem, Druze have been migrating to southern Syria since the 16th century, to an area now known as Jabal al-Druze, meaning Druze Mountain, in Sweida province. Syria's Druze are now mainly concentrated in their Sweida heartland, as well as nearby Quneitra province, with smaller pockets in the Damascus suburbs, notably Jaramana and Sahnaya, which saw sectarian violence earlier this year. In Lebanon, an estimated 200,000 Druze are concentrated in the mountainous centre as well as in the south near Israel and Syria. In Israel, some 153,000 Druze are Israeli citizens, living mainly in the north. Unlike other Arab Israelis, Druze serve in the Israeli army. In the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, seized from Syria in 1967, more than 22,000 Druze hold permanent resident status. Only around 1,600 have taken up the offer of Israeli citizenship. The rest maintain their Syrian identity. Some Druze from southern Syria have settled in neighbouring Jordan, where the community is estimated to number between 15,000 and 20,000. Two delegations of Syrian Druze clerics have made pilgrimages to a holy site in Israel this year. Outside the Middle East, there is a Druze diaspora, particularly in North America and Australia. Well-known Druze include prominent human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin Clooney and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi. - Leading role - Despite their minority status, Druze "have filled an important and sometimes a leading role in the political and social life" of the Middle East, according to historian Makarem. In Syria, Druze Sultan Pasha al-Atrash led a nationalist revolt against the French mandatory power which had established a Druze statelet in southern Syria during the 1920s and 1930s. In Lebanon, Druze leader Kamal Jumblatt played a key role in politics from the 1950s until his assassination in 1977, and his son Walid is a powerful politician. In April, Jumblatt urged Syria's Druze to reject "Israeli interference", after Israel warned the Islamists who ousted Assad against harming the minority. Druze leaders have declared their loyalty to a united Syria, though some have called for international protection. Israeli Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif has urged Israel to protect Syria's Druze. Rabah said there was a Druze "power struggle across three states", adding that he believes Syria's community does not aspire to statehood. The Druze largely stayed on the sidelines of the Syrian civil war, focusing on defending their heartland. Most Druze armed groups have yet to reach a settlement with the new authorities. kam-kir/dcp Solve the daily Crossword
