Category: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Nuruddin Farah – International Award Winning Writer : Somalia

Nuruddin Farah (aka) Nuuradiin Faaraa . Novelist. Essayist. Short Stories. Playwright. Educator.

Books /Novels :

-From a crooked rib (1970) /A naked needle (1976) / Sweet and Sour Milk (1979) / Sardines (1981) / Close Sesame (1983) / Blood in the Sun (1986) / Maps (1986) / Gifts (1993) / Secrets (1998) / Past Imperfect / Links (2004) / Knots (2007) / Crossbones (2011) / Hiding in Plain Sight (2014) / North of Dawn (2018)…etc..

Awards/Honours :

-English-Speaking Union Literary Award (for Sweet and Sour Milk) (1980) / -Corman Artists Fellowship (1990) /- Kurt Tucholsky Prize, Sweden (1991) / -Best Novel Award (for Gifts), Zimbabwe (1993) / Premio Cavour (for Italian translation of Close Sesame),Italy (1994) / -Neustadt International Prize for Literature (1998) /- St Malo Literary Festival Award (for French edition of Gifts) (1998) etc…

Presently lives in Cape Town, South Africa

pic: hiiraan.com

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Somalia

Largest Copper Bas-relief Sculpture : Ali Moneer Alassad , Syria 2009

The largest copper bas-relief created by Ali Moneer Alassad in Qurdaha, Lattakia, Syria, on 2 July 2009.

The bas-relief measures 122.5 sq mtr (1,318.5) sq m and is 50.10 m long and 2.44 m tall.

Alassad and his team spent 4,000 working hours to finish the copper bas-relief. The copper bas-relief is surrounded by ornamental plant Islamic framework and includes a 78 portraits represent the most important archaeological finds in Syria throughout history.

The bas-relief reflects the history of Syria since 9 thousand years BC. until the present time.

source: Guinness World Records / world-records.org /

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Syria

World’s Largest Hand-Woven Carpet – Abu Dhabi, UAE

The largest hand-woven carpet sits in Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan Mosque in Abu Dhabi.

The massive Persian carpet was created in 9 parts and assembled inside the mosque. It took 1,200 weavers from the Khorasan province about one year to hand craft. The carpet features 2.2 billion hand-tied individual rug knots, weighs 12 tons and is 5,360 square meters (60,000.81 sq. feet) . It was manufactured in Iran in 2007.

Record by the Guiness World Records

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Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Amal Al-Agroobi – Emirati Neuro-Scientist / Filmmaker : UAE

Amal Al-Agroobi – Emirati Neuro-scientist . Documentary filmmaker, Director, Producer, Writer and Entreprenuer

Entreprenuer:

  • Founder & Owner : AlAgroobi, production company

Awards:

  • Digital Studio Awards for Best Up and Coming Filmmaker of the Year – 2013
  • Digital Studio Awards Best Production (special commendation) for The Brain That Sings – 2014
  • The People’s Choice Award at the Dubai International Film Festival – 2014
  • Women in Film and Television honored as Best New Director – 2014

Education:

M.Sc. : Neurosciences, University College, London

B.Sc : Biomedical Sciences, University of Durham, U.K.

Certificate : Short film production

Certificate : Acting for film

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United Arab Emirates

13 women appointed to Saudi Human Rights Commission : July 2020

Thirteen women have been appointed to the Saudi Human Rights Commission (HRC) under a royal decree issued by Saudi Arabia’s King Salman.

“Appointing 13 women as members of the HRC council, with a total of 26 members, is in line with efforts made by the Kingdom’s leadership to enable women to occupy leading positions in various fields, and helps achieve what is best for the country,” said Dr. Awwad bin Saleh Al-Awwad, head of the HRC

source: www.arabnews.com

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Saudi Arabia

Mourad Boudjellal – Founder – Soleil Production, France

French businessman, publisher and sports enthusiast.

Owner:

  • Soleil Production – French Comic Publisher
  • President – RC Toulonnous (2006-2009)
  • Former – Toulon Rugby Club

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France / French -Tunisian

Taleedah Tamer, Saudi Arabia’s First Couture Model

Taleeda Tamer, Jeddah based Kingdom’s first fashion model.

Made history in July 2018 as the first Saudi model to walk the Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week. Opened for the Italian designer Antonio Grimaldi couture show at ‘Salons France-Amerique’ in Paris.

First’s :

  • First Saudi model to walk a couture runaway in Paris
  • First Saudi model to be on the cover of an International magazine ‘ Harper’s Bazaar Arabia ( Jul/Aug 2018)
  • Featured as one of two Saudi’s to be selected as one of the ‘100 New Wave Creatives’ by the British Fashion Council

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Saudi Arabia

Largest aluminum sculpture , Saudi Arabia : October 2017

Novartis Oncology , a medical company specializing in cancer patients, achieved the Guinness World Records of ” Largest Aluminium Sculpture ” on October 7, 2017. 

The statue – 7.71 m tall,  5.03 m long, 3.95 m wide – was made in the shape of a jackhammer to represent “the powerful tool breaking through cancer,” and was presented at the Novartis Oncology Breast Cancer Summit, Sofitel Event Hall, Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.

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Saudi Arabia

World’s First Purpose Built Church – Aqaba Church, Jordan : 293 A.D.

Built around 293 A.D. in Jordan, the Aqaba Church is considered to be the world’s oldest-known purpose-built Christian church.

It was unearthed by archaeologists in 1998, and ever since then, it has been holding the world record.

Its first phase was dated between 293 and 303, which makes it older than the ‘ Church of the Holy Sepulchre’ in Jerusalem and the ‘Church of the Nativity’  in Bethlehem, both of which were built in the late 320s.

Notes:

  • Cenacle, the site of the Last Supper in Jerusalem, was the ‘First Christian Church’ according to the Catholic Encyclopedia
  • Dura Europos Church, Syria is the World’s Oldest surviving Church building

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Jordan

Shatha Hammad Wins ‘One World Media New Voice Award ‘ : June 2020

Shatha Hammad – Local and young Journalist with the Middle East Eye (MEE) wins the ‘One World Media New Voice Award’ .

The Jury recognised her ability to ‘illuminate political and social issues’ in the West Bank.

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West Bank, Palestine