Latest news with #ZanjRebellion
Al-Ahram Weekly
03-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Al-Ahram Weekly
A sneak peek at Mohamed Ramadan's new film Assad - Screens - Arts & Culture
Egyptian actor Mohamed Ramadan shared a few photos from the shooting location of his highly anticipated film Assad (Lion), set for release this year, on his Instagram account. Over the past weeks, Ramadan has also released other photos and videos presenting different scenes from the film. In Assad, Ramadan portrays Ali ibn Muhammad, who led the Zanj Rebellion, a major revolt against the Abbasid Caliphate (from 869 to 883). The film is directed and co-written by Mohamed Diab, a filmmaker also known for writing and directing 678 (2010), Eshtebak (Clash, 2016), among other works. Diab also directed episodes one, three, five, and six of Marvel Studios' TV mini-series Moon Knight and was the co-executive producer of the whole series. Although the date of the film's release has not been announced yet, the audience expected cinemas to show it during Eid Al-Adha in June. However, it was postponed, with some media sources pointing to December this year. The film creators clarified that the grand production requires extensive work to ensure the best results in terms of picture, sound, music, locations, visual effects, and other factors. The film features 70 actors, including 12 major stars and special guests from Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, and Sudan. It also includes 50 supporting actors — some in single yet pivotal scenes. Besides Ramadan, the main cast includes Razane Jammal, Kamel El-Basha, Aly Kassem, Maged El-Kedwany, Rakeen Saad, and Islam Mubarak. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
The Independent
02-06-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Archaeologists solve mystery of Iraq's huge network of ridges and canals
Archealistgists may have finally figured out the origin of a vast network of ridges and canals in Southern Iraq. New evidence suggests that the lines, long thought to be the remains of a large-scale agricultural system, may indeed have been constructed using slave labour. An international team of archaeologists has uncovered findings that support this theory. By dating the construction of some of the massive earthen structures, the team discovered that their creation spanned several centuries, beginning around the time of a notable slave rebellion in the 9th century A.D. The research, which sheds new light on the history and social structures of the region, was published in the journal Antiquity. The enslaved people from that era are known today as the 'Zanj,' a medieval Arabic term for the East African Swahili coast, although there are different theories about where in Africa most of them actually came from. They carried out a large-scale revolt in Iraq in 869 AD under the Abbasid state, known today as the 'Zanj rebellion.' The rebellion lasted for more than a decade until the Abbasid state regained control of the region in 883 A.D. Many descendants of those enslaved people now live in the southern port city of Basra in modern-day Iraq. While they are part of the fabric of modern-day Iraq, 'their history has not been actually written or documented very well in our history,' said Jaafar Jotheri, a professor of archaeology at the University of Al-Qadisiyah in Iraq, who was part of the research team. Researchers from Durham and Newcastle universities in the U.K., Radboud University in the Netherlands, and the University of Basra in Iraq also took part. 'So that's why this (finding) is very important, and what is next actually is to protect at least some of these huge structures for future work. It is minority heritage,' he said. The researchers first reviewed recent satellite imagery and older images from the 1960s showing the remains of more than 7,000 massive manmade ridges across the Shaṭṭ al-Arab floodplain. The size and scale of the network indicate the 'investment of human labour on a grand scale,' the report in Antiquity said. Sites were selected across the system to be analyzed with radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence dating. All four of the ridge crests sampled date to the period between the late ninth to mid-13th century A.D., situating their construction during the period when slave labor was in use in the area — and providing evidence that the use of slave labor likely continued for several centuries after the famous rebellion. Their findings demonstrate 'that these features were in use for a substantially longer period than previously assumed and, as such, they represent an important piece of Iraqi landscape heritage,' the researchers wrote. The finding comes at the time of a resurgence of archaeology in Iraq, a country often referred to as the 'cradle of civilization,' but where archaeological exploration has been stunted by decades of conflict that halted excavations and led to the looting of tens of thousands of artifacts. In recent years, the digs have returned and thousands of stolen artifacts have been repatriated.
CTV News
02-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Archeologists find new evidence of ancient slave labour in southern Iraq
Archeologists work at an archaeological site where researchers uncovered massive earthen structures, believed to have been built with slave labour, and found that their construction spanned several centuries, near Basra, Iraq, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Jaafar Jotheri) BEIRUT — A system of thousands of ridges and canals across a floodplain in southern Iraq has long been believed to be the remnant of a massive agricultural system built by slave labour. Now an international team of archeologists has found new evidence to support the theory. The team undertook testing to determine the construction dates of some of the massive earthen structures and found that they spanned several centuries, beginning around the time of a famous slave rebellion in the 9th century A.D. The research findings were published Monday in the journal Antiquity. The enslaved people from that era are known today as the 'Zanj,' a medieval Arabic term for the East African Swahili coast, although there are different theories about where in Africa most of them actually came from. They carried out a large-scale revolt in Iraq in 869 AD under the Abbasid state, known today as the 'Zanj rebellion.' The rebellion lasted for more than a decade until the Abbasid state regained control of the region in 883 A.D. Many descendants of those enslaved people now live in the southern port city of Basra in modern-day Iraq. While they are part of the fabric of modern-day Iraq, 'their history has not been actually written or documented very well in our history,' said Jaafar Jotheri, a professor of archeology at the University of Al-Qadisiyah in Iraq, who was part of the research team. Researchers from Durham and Newcastle universities in the U.K., Radboud University in the Netherlands, and the University of Basra in Iraq also took part. 'So that's why this (finding) is very important, and what is next actually is to protect at least some of these huge structures for future work. It is minority heritage,' he said. The researchers first reviewed recent satellite imagery and older images from the 1960s showing the remains of more than 7,000 massive manmade ridges across the Shaṭṭ al-Arab floodplain. The size and scale of the network indicate the 'investment of human labour on a grand scale,' the report in Antiquity said. Sites were selected across the system to be analyzed with radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence dating. All four of the ridge crests sampled date to the period between the late ninth to mid-13th century A.D., situating their construction during the period when slave labour was in use in the area — and providing evidence that the use of slave labour likely continued for several centuries after the famous rebellion. Their findings demonstrate 'that these features were in use for a substantially longer period than previously assumed and, as such, they represent an important piece of Iraqi landscape heritage,' the researchers wrote. The finding comes at the time of a resurgence of archeology in Iraq, a country often referred to as the 'cradle of civilization,' but where archeological exploration has been stunted by decades of conflict that halted excavations and led to the looting of tens of thousands of artifacts. In recent years, the digs have returned and thousands of stolen artifacts have been repatriated. Abby Sewell, The Associated Press
The Independent
02-06-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Archaeologists find new evidence of ancient slave labor in southern Iraq
A system of thousands of ridges and canals across a floodplain in southern Iraq has long been believed to be the remnant of a massive agricultural system built by slave labor. Now an international team of archaeologists has found new evidence to support the theory. The team undertook testing to determine the construction dates of some of the massive earthen structures and found that they spanned several centuries, beginning around the time of a famous slave rebellion in the 9th century A.D. The research findings were published Monday in the journal Antiquity. The enslaved people from that era are known today as the 'Zanj,' a medieval Arabic term for the East African Swahili coast, although there are different theories about where in Africa most of them actually came from. They carried out a large-scale revolt in Iraq in 869 AD under the Abbasid state, known today as the 'Zanj rebellion.' The rebellion lasted for more than a decade until the Abbasid state regained control of the region in 883 A.D. Many descendants of those enslaved people now live in the southern port city of Basra in modern-day Iraq. While they are part of the fabric of modern-day Iraq, 'their history has not been actually written or documented very well in our history,' said Jaafar Jotheri, a professor of archaeology at the University of Al-Qadisiyah in Iraq, who was part of the research team. Researchers from Durham and Newcastle universities in the U.K., Radboud University in the Netherlands, and the University of Basra in Iraq also took part. 'So that's why this (finding) is very important, and what is next actually is to protect at least some of these huge structures for future work. It is minority heritage,' he said. The researchers first reviewed recent satellite imagery and older images from the 1960s showing the remains of more than 7,000 massive manmade ridges across the Shaṭṭ al-Arab floodplain. The size and scale of the network indicate the 'investment of human labour on a grand scale,' the report in Antiquity said. Sites were selected across the system to be analyzed with radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence dating. All four of the ridge crests sampled date to the period between the late ninth to mid-13th century A.D., situating their construction during the period when slave labor was in use in the area — and providing evidence that the use of slave labor likely continued for several centuries after the famous rebellion. Their findings demonstrate 'that these features were in use for a substantially longer period than previously assumed and, as such, they represent an important piece of Iraqi landscape heritage,' the researchers wrote. The finding comes at the time of a resurgence of archaeology in Iraq, a country often referred to as the 'cradle of civilization,' but where archaeological exploration has been stunted by decades of conflict that halted excavations and led to the looting of tens of thousands of artifacts. In recent years, the digs have returned and thousands of stolen artifacts have been repatriated.
Associated Press
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Archaeologists find new evidence of ancient slave labor in southern Iraq
BEIRUT (AP) — A system of thousands of ridges and canals across a floodplain in southern Iraq has long been believed to be the remnant of a massive agricultural system built by slave labor. Now an international team of archaeologists has found new evidence to support the theory. The team undertook testing to determine the construction dates of some of the massive earthen structures and found that they spanned several centuries, beginning around the time of a famous slave rebellion in the 9th century A.D. The research findings were published Monday in the journal Antiquity. The enslaved people from that era are known today as the 'Zanj,' a medieval Arabic term for the East African Swahili coast, although there are different theories about where in Africa most of them actually came from. They carried out a large-scale revolt in Iraq in 869 AD under the Abbasid state, known today as the 'Zanj rebellion.' The rebellion lasted for more than a decade until the Abbasid state regained control of the region in 883 A.D. Many descendants of those enslaved people now live in the southern port city of Basra in modern-day Iraq. While they are part of the fabric of modern-day Iraq, 'their history has not been actually written or documented very well in our history,' said Jaafar Jotheri, a professor of archaeology at the University of Al-Qadisiyah in Iraq, who was part of the research team. Researchers from Durham and Newcastle universities in the U.K., Radboud University in the Netherlands, and the University of Basra in Iraq also took part. 'So that's why this (finding) is very important, and what is next actually is to protect at least some of these huge structures for future work. It is minority heritage,' he said. The researchers first reviewed recent satellite imagery and older images from the 1960s showing the remains of more than 7,000 massive manmade ridges across the Shaṭṭ al-Arab floodplain. The size and scale of the network indicate the 'investment of human labour on a grand scale,' the report in Antiquity said. Sites were selected across the system to be analyzed with radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence dating. All four of the ridge crests sampled date to the period between the late ninth to mid-13th century A.D., situating their construction during the period when slave labor was in use in the area — and providing evidence that the use of slave labor likely continued for several centuries after the famous rebellion. Their findings demonstrate 'that these features were in use for a substantially longer period than previously assumed and, as such, they represent an important piece of Iraqi landscape heritage,' the researchers wrote. The finding comes at the time of a resurgence of archaeology in Iraq, a country often referred to as the 'cradle of civilization,' but where archaeological exploration has been stunted by decades of conflict that halted excavations and led to the looting of tens of thousands of artifacts. In recent years, the digs have returned and thousands of stolen artifacts have been repatriated.
