Middle East | Huck
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Middle East

A year after the Beirut blast, the fight for justice continues

Rebuilding from the rubble — On 4 August 2020, a large quantity of ammonium nitrate exploded in the port of Beirut, killing 218 people and injuring 7000 others. A year on, protestors still fighting for answers gathered together on the streets.

  • Activism
  • Matt Kynaston

The fight to boycott Israel – inside occupied Palestine

#PalestineEconomicWeek — It has long been assumed that Palestinians living inside the apartheid system have an inherently weaker capacity to mobilise. But a new campaign is educating Palestinians about the importance, and feasibility, of boycotting Israeli goods from the inside to corrode colonial-economic structures.

  • Activism
  • Amal Nazzal

A Gaza resident on life after the ceasefire

‘Without hope we cannot live’ — A Palestinian medical project coordinator who has lived in Gaza for the last two decades recounts the horrors of the past few weeks, which saw hundreds killed by Israeli airstrikes, and what must happen next to secure peace.

  • Activism
  • Jessie Williams (interview)

The project reviving Beirut’s forgotten trans history

Treat Me Like Your Mother — Combining studio shoots, interviews and archival imagery, a new book documents the untold stories of 11 trans women living in Beirut and rewrites the queer history of a war-torn city.

  • Culture
  • Gunseli Yalcinkaya

Beirut’s skate scene is rebuilding from the rubble

After the blast — For those living in the Lebanese capital, the explosion was simply the tip of the iceberg. As the city grapples with the aftermath, a group of skaters are fighting to save their scene – because for them, it’s the only way to escape the pressures of everyday life.

  • Magazine
  • Victoria Schneider

The secret spaces giving a voice to Saudi Arabia's youth

Behind closed doors — In Saudi Arabia, where homosexuality merits the death penalty and many activists are still jailed or tortured for sedition, there are few places for the country's youth to express themselves freely. But a handful of underground events are seeking to change that.

  • Activism
  • anonymous

The photographer spotlighting Iran's forgotten minorities

Afro-Iranian — Many Iranians are unaware of the existence of Black Iranians, or of the chequered history behind the community's presence in the country. But a new photography project from Mahdi Ehsaei is looking to change that.

  • Photography
  • Niloufar Haidari

Illustrations that capture the changing face of Iran

Diaspora letters — Historian and artist Beeta Baghoolizadeh shares Diaspora Letters – a collection of digital drawings exploring memory and migration in the Iranian diaspora.

  • Art
  • Iman Sultan

Young artists explore coming of age in the Middle East

Banat Collective — In The Middle Of It All is a new book showcasing the diverse experiences of Arabian womanhood, featuring contributions from writers, illustrators and photographers.

  • Art
  • Salma Haidrani

Shooting the sidelines at Syria’s football cup final

Beautiful game — In a country torn apart by civil war, people are grasping for moments of relief – and football is one thing they turn to. It's also been weaponised and politicised, as photojournalist Sally Hayden grapples with at the Syrian Cup Final.

  • Reportage
  • Sally Hayden

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