Category: RECORDS IN MIDDLE EAST

Soad Hosny – Egyptian Cinema’s Sweetheart : Birthdate – January 26th, 1942

Soad Hosny, Egyptian Cinema Superstar Sweetheart ,dubbed by her fans as ‘Egyptian Cindrella’.

Her most prominent roles include her roles in “Al- Ashqya’ al-Thalatha” (Three Naughty Boys) (1962), directed by Hossam Eddine Mostafa; “Be’r el-herman” (The Well of Deprivation) (1969), directed by Kamal el-Sheikh; “Khaly Balak Men Zouzou” (Take Care of Zouzou) (1974), written by the exceptional poet Salah Jaheen and directed by Niazi Mostafa, and “Sagheera ‘Al Hob” (Too Young to Fall in Love) (1966), which was also directed by Niazi Mostafa. 

Hosny used her outstanding talent to call for gender equality in the TV series “Hekayat Hwa we Heyain” (1985) that achieved booming success.

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pix: egypttoday.com

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EGYPT

Dana Shubat – 2nd Arab-American Appointed by U.S. President Joe Biden as Senior Legal Affairs Advisor: January 2021

Dana Shubat was appointed by U.S. President Joe Biden to the White House Team as Senior Legal Affairs Advisor.

  • Served as Senate, Vice President of the Congressional Middle East and North African Staff Association
  • Served as Legislative aide to Colorado Senator Michael Bennet

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pix: english.alaraby.co.uk

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AMERICAN / ARAB-AMERICAN / JORDANIAN-AMERICAN

Maher Al Bitar – Palestinian American Appointed as Director of Intelligence Service in US National Security Council (NSC): January 2021

U.S. President Joe Biden appoints Maher Al-Bitar as Director of Intelligence Service in the NSC.

Highlights:-

  • Served as general counsel to Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee
  • Worked as Director of Israeli Occupation-Palestinian affairs on the National Security Council under former president Barack Obama.
  • Worked with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia
  • Worked with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) in the Near East in Jerusalem.

Education:

  • Bachelors Degree : Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Sevice
  • Masters of Science : Forced Migration – Oxford University’s Refugee Stricken Centre
  • Juris Doctor (JD) – Law – Georgetown Law

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pix: en.royanews.tv

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AMERICAN / ARAB-AMERICAN / PALESTINIAN-AMERICAN

Reema Dodin – First Palestinian-American to Serve as White House Staffer : January 2021

Biden appoints Jordanian-American Reema Dodin as White House Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs

Serves as Co-Deputy Director, White House Office of Legislative Affairs.

Education:

  • BA – University of California, Berkeley – Economics and Political Science (2002)
  • JD – Law Degree – University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign(JD) – (2006)

Book:

  • Book – Co-Author : ‘Inside Congress: A Guide for Navigating the Politics of the House and Senate Floor (2017)

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Senate staffer Reema Dodin speaks at the Gibran Gala in 2018. (Screen capture/YouTube)

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U.S.A / ARAB-AMERICAN /PALESTINIAN- JORDANIAN -AMERICAN

Tunisian Filmmaker Kauther Ben Hamaad and Tunisian-French Actor Samir Bouajila Win Awards at France’s Lumiere Awards : January 2021

Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania’s “The Man Who Sold his Skin” was awarded the International Coproduction Lumiere Award, while Tunisian-French actor Sami Bouajila took home the Best Actor Lumiere Award for his performance in Mehdi Barsaoui’s “A Son.”

The Lumieres — the French equivalent of the American Golden Globes — was held in January 2021 and broadcast on French TV channel Canal+. France-based foreign reporters vote on the film awards.

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pix: arabweekly.com / Tunisian film director Kaouther Ben Hania (L) and producer Nadim Cheikhrouha (R) pose during a photo session in Paris on January 15, 2021 following the 26th “Ceremonie des lumieres” cinema award ceremony. (AFP)

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TUNISIAN / TUNISIAN-FRENCH

Trump Grants Bahrain’s King Hamad Top Honor on last Day in Office

Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa was awarded a rare medal by US President Donald Trump in recognition of his “remarkable efforts” to consolidate relations and the close partnership between the two countries, Bahrain News Agency (BNA) reported on Tuesday.

Trump decorated the monarch with the Legion of Merit, Degree Chief Commander, “a rarely-awarded, prestigious decoration that can only be bestowed by the president, typically to chiefs of state or heads of government of other countries,” the White House said.


The king was also recognized for his “prominent role in pushing bilateral cooperation to broader and more comprehensive horizons, which promoted the common interests of the two countries and its peoples,” BNA said.

source: arabnews.com

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pix: arabnews.com / Creator: Mandel Ngan | Credit: AFP/Getty Images

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BAHRAIN

Lebanese Film Director Jessy Moussallem

Jessy Moussallem. Women Filmmaker. Story Teller.

Written and directed “Roman’ a music video for the band Mashrou’ Leila. Followed up with a couple more directorial assignments.

Awards / Honours:

  • Won – Gold Screen for Changing The World Frame By Frame at Young Directors’ Award (2015)
  • Won – Next Director at D&AD

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pix: lbbonline.com

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LEBANON

UAE to Host Permanent HQ of the Arab Parliament for Child : January 2021

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC) and the Arab Parliament for the Child today signed an agreement to host the permanent headquarters of the Arab Parliament for the Child in the Emirate of Sharjah.

The agreement was signed by Ahmed Abdul Rahman Al Jarman, Assistant Minister for Human Rights and International Law at MoFAIC, and Ayman Othman Al-Barut, Secretary-General of the Arab Parliament for the Child, at the Ministry’s headquarters, in the presence of Sheikh Fahim bin Sultan Bin Khalid Al Qasimi, Member of the Executive Council and Chairman of Sharjah’s Department of Government Relations.

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pix: wam.ae

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UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (U.A.E)

First Saudi Female Skating Team

The first female Skating National Team of Saudi Arabia was founded in 2018.

The President of Saudi Skating Team is Zaher Al-Asiri, its coach is Abdul Aziz Al-Qahtani and the teams’ Media and Public Relations Officer is Aljawhara Minwer.

The Saudi Skating League was also established.

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The Saudi Skating League had organized more than 60 local female tournaments. The players are aged between 13 and 35. The national team has 32 members. (Supplied) / pix: arabnews.com

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SAUDI ARABIA

Asrar Damdam and Lama Al-Abdi honored by L’Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science Middle East Regional Young Talents Program

 Two Saudi Women Asrar Damdam and Lama Al-Abdi recently won awards from the L’Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science Middle East Regional Young Talents Program for their work.

Dr. Asrar Damdam, was honored in the Ph.D. students’ category for her role in the development of a pump meant to revolutionize the way a healthy heartbeat is regulated — combining medicine, electrical engineering and electro-physics.

 Dr. Lama Al-Abdi in recognition of her research on chromatin — a substance within chromosomes consisting of DNA and protein — and the regulation of genes in relation to vision loss.

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pix: twitter ( L t R) Dr. Lama AlAbdi and Dr. Asrar Damdam

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SAUDI ARABIA