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Professor Saul J Takahashi, the director of Osaka Jogakuin University’s Research Institute of International Collaboration and Coexistence in the 21st Century, presented Monday a paper on 'Linguistic Rights of ’48 Palestinians' at the Annual Palestine Forum.The scholar, who has spent five years in Palestine and well-versed in the Palestinian issue, spoke to Gulf Times on the linguistic rights and self-determination of the Palestinian people.“I see that the Israelis have been doing this for a long time ... and it is not just language, it is the appropriation of Palestinian food like humus, which they present as Israeli food, for example,” Prof Takahashi said. “They have been after the eradication of the Palestinian people as a whole, through culture, history, renaming place names.”“In 1948 the whole thing was geared towards the eradication of the Palestinian people as a whole, not just in physical sense, but culturally, linguistically, everything, and that is a gross violation of international law,” he added.“Self-determination translated into hard reality through the continuous lobbying and putting on pressure on the international community to abide by the standards that they themselves have adopted,” Prof Takahashi said.“Of course the Palestinians have been doing this and they will continue doing this,” he continued.“Finally, I think we are seeing it bear fruit, through the recognition of Israel as practicing apartheid by very prominent international human rights non-governmental organisations (NGOs),” the academic pointed out. “Finally, the International Criminal Court ... we see it is starting to move, Insha Allah.”“Also the UN General Assembly has asked the International Court of Justice to provide an opinion on the continuing occupation,” he added.“Once again, not perfect, not full, but still moving in the right direction. Certainly, we are moving in the right direction,” Prof Takahashi emphasised. “Also, the political shifts in the US are definitely favourable towards moving in the right direction.“Insha Allah, I am a human rights person, so I do think that the good guys will win in the end, and justice will triumph,” he said.“As an international lawyer, I think certainly that the entire two-state solution paradigm is based on injustice,” he stated.“It is based on the partition of the Palestinian people’s country,” Prof Takahashi explained. “That the two-state paradigm has been going on and on since 1947, the partition resolution, ... it is based on a gross injustice.”“I do not see how the two-state solution but that,” he said. “It is important that we have peace in Palestine, the true peace can only be achieved with true justice.”“I have a problem with seeing how this can be possible under the two-state solution, which is impossible now in any case, with all the Israeli colonies dotting the West Bank,” Prof Takahashi remarked. “I just do not see that it is going to happen.”"So, I do think that we are heading towards a one-state solution, what exactly that means, we have to see,” he said. “There has to be insuring justice in any kind of one-state solution that means addressing past violations.”"Without the US policies changing, it is hard to see any serious change in the situation in Palestine, but that is coming and that is already taking place,” he added.“So, definitely, Insha Allah I see it happen. Of course, political issues should also be resolved amongst Palestinian factions ... they need to be sorted out, so that it cannot be used as an excuse for not allowing self-determination,” Prof Takahashi concluded.

A total of 15 papers were presented Monday on the third and concluding day of the inaugural Annual Palestine Forum. The last workshop also served to wrap up the forum’s discussions by directing participants’ and attendees’ attention toward reflecting on the future of the Palestinian project. The sessions of the Ostour Symposium, conducted in parallel, also concluded.During the closing session, Azmi Bishara, general director of the Arab Centre for Research and Policy Studies stressed the success of the forum in bringing together Palestinians from across the world to share knowledge from the field of Palestinian studies in an academic environment.Bishara then introduced Marwan Barghouti, political figure and political prisoner for the last 21 years, whose words from the cell were read out by his partner, lawyer, and politician Fadwa Barghouti.Barghouti discussed the challenges facing the Palestinian national project including: the struggle to return the unity of the Palestinian people through one national project, the unity of the Palestinian cause, Zionist settler colonialism, the emphasis on Arab identity, the humanitarian struggle, reinforcing the importance of resistance in all its forms, the crisis of the Palestinian national movement, the struggle for women’s right to equality and dignity, and a leading Palestinian force with a political culture that views the Palestinians as worthy of dignity, equality, and justice. Barghouti concluded by reflecting on the importance of the forum as a step that reinforces the unity of Palestinians and the unified aim of all those working for the Palestinian cause.The first session of the third day revolved around three main themes: the legal and linguistic dimensions of settler colonialism and ethnic cleansing, gender perspectives on Palestine, and Palestine from a historical perspective. Nine papers focusing on these themes were presented. Three papers looked at the Israeli settler colonial regime from a legal and linguistic lens.In his paper 'Ethnic Cleansing as a Tool for Consolidating Settler Colonialism and Apartheid in Jerusalem', Nizar Ayoub studied the policy of systematic ethnic cleansing as a tool of the Israeli settler colonial regime to maintain a Jewish majority in Jerusalem.'Three other papers focused on the theme of gender and Palestine. Camelia Ibrahim-Dwairy’s paper, titled 'The Case of Single Palestinian Men in Israel: Between Patriarchal and Israeli Oppression', examined the discourse of single Palestinian men living within the Green Line amid a patriarchal society.A further three papers discussed Palestine from a historical perspective. In a paper titled 'Mā kānsh fīh!: Oral Narratives as a Missing Source for the Military Historiography of the Palestine War 1947-1949', Bilal Shalash reviewed the outputs of two projects, a Birzeit University project on depopulated villages and the Nakba Testimony Programme, which reflect the military history of the 1948 war.The second session of the third day centred on two themes: the impact of settler colonialism on the environment and agriculture in Palestine, and Palestine in literary discourse. Three papers studied the impact of settler colonialism on the environment and agriculture in Palestine.Yasmin Qaadan’s paper 'Environment Meanings from the Language of Local Knowledge for the Movement of Palestinian Peasants' offered a political ecology perspective of settler colonialism through its ethnographic research of Palestinian peasants. Three additional papers were presented on Palestine in literary discourse. Abdelrahman S Abuaber presented his paper 'The Stranger’s Mirrors: Place, Time, and Questions of the Self in Biographical Writing', which aimed to give organic theoretical attention to biographical writing by Palestinians.In the afternoon, the forum hosted two workshops. In the first, four speakers – Khaled Hroub, Alain Gresh, Ben White, and Yousef Munayyer – discussed changes in the representation and news coverage of Palestine in Western and Arab media discourse.The second workshop was the closing session where Tarek Mitri, chairman, Institute for Palestine Studies Board of Trustees, and Bishara, opened the floor for a discussion for participants to reflect on the question of what is to be done and the future of the Palestinian national project.

Eleyan Sawafta, president of the C.O.N.F.L.I.C.T. Alliance, graduate research assistant at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG)’s School of Education, and the 1990’s Palestinian generation’s representative, presented Sunday a paper on 'Development and Settler Colonialism: Perpetuating Neo-Colonial Domination and Apartheid', with his colleague Hasan Ayoub at the 2023 Annual Palestine Forum. He spoke to Gulf Times on self-sufficiency under the occupation and continuation of resistance. "I think this is a very important question,” Sawafta said. “I was born in 1990 and I experienced the peace process and the second Intifada, when everybody was in their homes for several weeks.” “We did not go to schools, everybody was stuck at home, and the main issue was how to handle the situation and how we can understand our sustainability,” he said. “It was easy and simple: people at that time had their own basic needs,” Sawafta continued. “I am from a farming family, my father is a farmer and he goes to his farm every day.” “What is going on in Palestine is a land based struggle. If we understand the conflict from this angle, we can present our arguments about how we can improve our sustainability,” he said. “How can we stand against this regime or settler colonialism?” Sawafta posed. “We need to understand ourselves outside the world order of public policies.” “It does not work if we keep just talking about Bretton Woods institutions – the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) – and World Bank policies,” he stated. “Now, Palestinian people have their own basic needs and we suggest, in our paper, that we need collaborations and people-centred development,” Sawafta said. “We should start from, for example, agricultural projects in designated areas,” he explained. “These lands are very important to keep fighting and resisting against settler colonialism.” “Land is a key in this conflict, without which I think we lose the game, and we should work on this issue,” the scholar stressed. “The entire agricultural sector is struggling now. My father tells me every day that he is under pressure and could be out of his land within two years,” he continued. “The (Israeli) colonisation (programme) is trying to push them in a silent way towards migration. They control water resources, and they entice them with money.” “So, if you have an option between making either $25 or $150 a day, plus loans, and a very satisfactory economic situation, most likely you will choose second option,” Sawafta pointed out. “This is what is happening now, they are trying to take our labourers, and they control water resources,” he reiterated. “Even though you have land, ideas to develop it, you do not have any tools to do whatever you want to achieve.” “So after two or three years, you will give up and leave the land to them,” he said. “This is a very dangerous idea, and that is why we say that settler colonialism is a classic colonial regime and at the same time it is apartheid, it is neo-colonialism.” “We need to understand the context, to understand the conflict first, and then we propose our ideas about development, what we should do and from where we should start,” Sawafta concluded.

Twenty papers were presented and two workshops were held during the second day of the 2023 Annual Palestine Forum Sunday.The highlights included the launch of the Palestinian Memory Project, as well as the inauguration of the Ostour Symposium.Eleven papers were presented at the first session, which covered three main themes: the sociology of Palestinian identity, development discourse in Palestine and colonial violence, and Palestine in a historical perspective.In his paper 'Trans-Territorial Sumud: Refugee Responses to Multiple Systems of Oppression in Bourj el-Barajneh Camp', Rami Rmeileh offered an alternative conceptual framework to understanding the concept of Sumud (steadfast perseverance).Nour Bader, in a paper titled 'Spatial and Temporal Sociology of Camp Identity: Al-Wehdat – New Amman as a Model', deconstructed the spatio-temporal identity of the Wehdat Camp.In their paper 'Settler Colonialism and the Birth of New Prisoners: Migration from the Gaza Strip, Ahmed Mamoun and Zahraa Shabana' discussed how Israel attempts to depopulate the Gaza Strip through its blockade.In her paper 'Between Ruins and Remnants: Religious Renewal among Christians in West Bank Palestine', Elizabeth Marteijn examined Palestinian Christian thought and practice in relation to the changing political and social context of the West Bank.Four papers looked at colonial violence in development discourse on Palestine.Hasan Ayoub and Eleyan Sawafta’s paper – 'Development and Settler Colonialism: Perpetuating Neo-Colonial Domination and Apartheid' – discussed the relationship between the conceptual framing of Israel in the Palestinian territories and development practices.Ashraf Bader’s paper, titled 'A Critical Reading of the Neoliberalism of the Palestinian Authority under Zionist Settler Colonialism', looked at the neo-liberalisation of the Palestinian political economy.Abdelrahman Murad focused on the proliferation of a counter-discourse on development from Palestinian civil society in response to the neoliberal policies ostensibly put in place for the development of the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) in his paper 'The Construction of a Counter-Hegemonic Discourse on Economic Development: A Critical Analysis of Palestinian Policy'.Marta Parigi presented her paper on 'The Effect of Israeli Settlement-Related Structural Violence on Palestinian Food Security', which discussed how structural violence entrenched in settlements hinders the Palestinians’ ability to access healthy, nutritious food items.Three papers discussed Palestine in a historical perspective.Presenting his paper on 'Transformation of Collective Identity from Ottomanism to Arabism', Adel Manna analysed the life and works of Ahmad Helmi Pasha (1882-1963).In 'The Palestinian Cultural Scene during the British Mandate: Al-Karmel and Filastin Newspapers as Examples', Johnny Mansour analysed cultural advertisements in newspapers to better understand the Palestinians cultural scene during the British Mandate in the cities of Haifa, Jaffa, and Jerusalem.Ali T As’ad provided a historical overview of Palestinian exhibition-making through his paper, 'Palestine and the National Sensorium: Exhibition-Making in the Twentieth Century'.The second session of the Palestine forum focused on three themes: Palestinian economy, demography, and memory.Three papers were presented on the economy.Raja Khalidi and Islam Rabee presented their paper *Prospects for Palestinian Economic Co-operation and Complementarity across the Green Line.They gave an in-depth examination of the economic relations that connect Palestinians in the territories occupied in 1967 with those in Israel.Rabeh Morrar and Rand Jibril presented their paper 'Promoting the Development of the Startup Ecosystem in Palestine and its Potential Effects on Public Finance', which focused on the effectiveness of the Palestinian Authority’s policies in encouraging the development of a startup culture and economy.Areen Hawari and Sami Mahajna’s paper – 'Split in Two Parts: The Dynamics of the Commercial Relationship between the Palestinians from within the Green Line and Jenin' – focused on the impact of the daily economic interactions of Palestinians across the Green Line on Palestinian society, its social fabric, and its national unity.Three papers were presented on demographic research in Palestine.Youssef Courbage and Hala Naufal’s paper – 'Demography of the Palestinians' – was an overview of the growth of the Palestinian population globally and its political weight.Mohammed Duraidi presented a paper on 'The Palestinian Population in the Palestinian Territories and the Palestinians within the Green Line: Demographic Status and Population Projections', where he argued that there are unique patterns of population components among residents of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and Palestinians within the Green Line.Thayer Hastings’s paper 'On the Crisis of Demographic Balance and Majority in Jerusalem' proposed to identify demography as an institutional location from which to examine the conditions and contradictions of a colonial bio-politics.Three papers were presented on Palestinian memory of the Nakba and of refugees in different camps.Azadeh Sobout’s paper on 'War-Memoryscapes and the Grassroots Agency for Justice: Re-Searching the Truth-Memory Practices of Palestinians in Nahr el Bared' provided an exploration of the narratives, stories, and memories that focus on destruction, siege, the postponed home, the need for return, memorialisation, and reconstruction.Reham Amro’s paper 'The Moment of the Nakba: The Erasure of the Palestinian People, the Keys to Stolen Doors, and the Duality of the Intellectual and the Peasant' analysed the personal testimonies of Palestinian peasants (fallahin).Rola Sirhan focused on how Arab regimes have manipulated the memory of the 1967 defeat in her paper 'Memory of Defeat and Palestinian Social and Political Imaginaries: Dominance without Hegemony'.The two workshops Sunday were held in the afternoon.The first hosted four speakers – Osama Abuirshaid, Ahmed Abuznaid, Malia Bouattia, and Majed Abusalama – who discussed the challenges faced by activists for the Palestinian cause in the Western context.The second workshop featured the launch of the Palestinian Memory Project website and the relaunching of the Jerusalem Story website by Mueen al-Taher, Kate Rouhana and Khaled Farraj.The forum will continue Monday, the third and final day, in a similar format to the previous two days, along with the Ostour Symposium being held in parallel to the main forum.

The Annual Palestine Forum was launched Saturday in Doha, with a view to providing a general framework that brings together Palestinians from all over the world and a platform for researchers and activists to focus on the Palestinian cause.Organised by the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies and the Institute for Palestine Studies, the first session is being held from January 28-30, 2023. In addition to specialised sessions, and a number of workshops related to the Palestinian issue, 62 peer-reviewed scientific papers are slated for the sessions.The opening session was chaired by Ayat Hamdan, coordinator of the forum and researcher at the Arab Center, in which Tariq Mitri, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Institute for Palestine Studies, delivered the opening speech.Dr Azmi Bishara, Director General of the Arab Center, gave an introductory lecture in which he touched on the relationship between academic discourse on Palestine and influencing decision-making, and the need for a general framework that brings together Palestinians from all over the world. The lecture also dealt with the crisis of the Palestinian national project, and the hoped-for strategy that the Palestinians would engage in.Bishara reflected on the role of the forum as providing a space that bridges the distance between Palestinians all over the world and that allows researchers and activists from all nationalities who focus on the Palestinian cause to have a rational and responsible discourse about Palestine, its history, and its struggle. The lecture also looked at the crisis of the current framework of the Palestinian national project. In a nutshell, the lecture addressed main questions: What are the main considerations that went into launching the Annual Palestine Forum? How present is the Palestinian cause on official Arab and international agendas? Did the public opinion towards Israel and the Palestinian cause change? How can we understand the crisis of the Palestinian National Liberation movement in light of the changes of the regional context and the politico-geographic fragmentation of the Palestinian people? What is to be done and what are the alternatives that can allow us to overcome this crisis?This was followed by three parallel sessions, which focused on the specificity of settler colonialism in Palestine and the Palestinian cause in the international context. The session moderated by Marwan Kabalan, Nadim Rouhana, Mark Muhannad Ayyash, Caroline Land, and Zina Jallad discussed the multiple aspects of settler colonialism in the case of Palestine, with regard to citizenship and the right to belong in the Jewish state. The relationship between Zionism, nationalism, and settler colonialism, and Israeli attempts to erase the other and impose dominant narrative.As for the session chaired by Muhammad Alwan, Al-Hussein Shukrani, Saif Youssef, and Muhammad Al-Wadrasy presented papers centered on Palestine in international law from the perspective of compensation for environmental damage, refugees and the right of return, and the application of international criminal law in Palestine.In the last session, which was chaired by Abd al-Wahhab al-Afandi, Michael R. Fischbach, Abdullah Musus, Nog Nyue Asanga Von, and Mona Awad Allah referred to the Palestinian issue in the international context from a comparative perspective, specifically with the United States, Kashmir, and Africa.In the following three parallel sessions, Sanaa Hamoudi chaired a session that dealt with different aspects of security colonial techniques, in which Youssef Mounir, Pietro Stefanini, Nour Arafa, and Areej Sabbagh-Khoury spoke about the Israeli transnational network of repression, the unity of government actions, and programmes to enhance effectiveness, Localism in Counterinsurgency and Anticolonial Resilience in Jerusalem.In the session titled "Patterns in the Palestinian Resistance" chaired by Salam Al-Kawakibi, Tariq Radi, Khaled Anabtawi, Ahmed Asaad, Mustafa Sheta and Ayman Youssef presented the thoughts on the features of the gift of dignity and the experience of the national theater. Salam Al-Kawakibi presided over this session.Finally, in a session moderated by Ibrahim Freihat, Ilan Pappe, Bilal Salaymeh, Abdullah Apolloz, and Saja al-Turman discussed the position of Palestine in the academic/knowledge discourse and the future directions of this discourse, and the achievements of the field of Palestinian studies and its future directions.For his part, Faisal Abdulhameed al-Mudhahka, Editor-in-Chief of the Gulf Times, attended the forum and expressed his support for the first session, wishing the participants success. He said on the sidelines of the forum that “our newspaper has been paying substantial attention to the Palestinian cause for decades, and has been making every effort to advance it and assuming a position worthy of its Arab and international legitimacy through what it publishes on its columns.He continued: "On the personal level, I grew up adopting the just Palestinian cause and the continuous struggle for it, with our firm belief that the brutal aggression will be defeated and Palestine will inevitably be independent. The Palestinian brothers from the diaspora will return to their land and homes, God willing. This victory is not only for the Palestinians but for all Arabs because it is the cause of the entire Arab nation. It is no secret to you that we strengthen the struggle for Palestine by raising awareness among readers, community members, and residents, and especially inculcating these values in our children so that we inculcate in them the spirit of Arab nationalism and commitment to defend the Palestinian cause without relenting until victory, God willing.”Two other workshops were held at the end of the first day of the forum. The first dealt with the issue of Palestine in opinion polls, and was chaired by Mahdi Mabrouk. Shibley Telhami spoke about the shift in the American position towards Palestine / Israel, while Muhammad al-Masri spoke about Palestine in Arab public opinion, according to the results of the Arab Index poll, which is implemented by the Arab Center.In the second workshop, chaired by Ghassan al-Kahlout, Muhammad Abu Nimr, Lord Habash and Tamer Qarmout talked about the Palestinian-Palestinian division and the prospects for reconciliation.The work of the Palestine Forum will continue until January 30, as indicated in its agenda for the next two days, in a similar manner. The forum also coincides with the proceedings of the "Historical Writing in Palestine" symposium, which is organised by the Ostoor periodical for historical studies.

Legal consultant, researcher and educator Dr Zeina Jallad Saturday presented a paper on the topic of 'Identity annexation; Israel’s non-territorial and psychic annexation of the West Bank Samaritans in the occupied Palestinian territories' at the Annual Palestine Forum. Speaking exclusively to 'Gulf Times' on the sidelines of the forum, Dr Jallad spoke about how the Samaritans were being treated by the occupation.“I think this is a timely question if we look at the type of strategies and technologies that the state of Israel is using in what some have defined as a creeping annexation. It is an annexation in detail, step by step until there is a full control -- whether in terms of cultural, historical or legal presence on the land," she said."The way I view it, Samaritans are only less than 1,000 people in both parts of the country in total. They have so many differences (from the Israelis), their presence or the lack of it in the Israeli system does not change the demography. So, if we think about why they have been granted the citizenship... it was not to help them have the mobility or freedom of movement, access to health treatment, or the everyday code of rights. I think of it as a strategy of eraser. It is erasing that narrative of diversity and emptying it from the component of the Palestinian identity," Dr Jallad continued."Step by step, we are losing our diversity, we are losing the Samaritans, the Jews, the Christians, may be at some point the Druze, and it will become only one colour, a one tuned kind of crisis or conflict. No, the occupation is occupying the identity of the people, their psychology, their narrative, their story of belonging, their memory."This is where it is a very important and tricky way to analyse what goes beyond the acquisition of the land. Annexation and the legal appropriation of the land is one face to it, but there is something more that has to do with the psychology of the people, their way of self-perception. So, from the natives of the land, they become the 'other'. Someone who lives in Nablus today as a Samaritan is becoming an Israeli, so he is becoming an invader in his own homeland. This is the transformation sought of the native to the 'other', and there resides the other angle of it, the appropriation of the language and the narrative of belonging and rootedness to the Israeli discourse and narrative.""So, it is not only taking the land but also taking the narrative of the Palestinian people and appropriating it in the Israeli narrative, and this is where it is scary,” Dr Jallad concluded.

Qatar’s Badr Mubarak al-Marri won gold in the singles competition at the horseback archery World Championships qualifiers in South Africa Friday. The event, which began on January 15 concluded Friday at the Rossfield Equestrian Club in Pretoria.The competition is part of the World Horseback Archery Championship Qualifiers. It was held in five groups, under the umbrella of the International Horseback Archery Federation, with three teams qualifying for the final.Thirty-four players from different parts of the world participated in the tournament. The event was divided into four competitions: clog throwing, chain throwing, Kasai system and the team system.Al-Marri scored 4 points in the individual pole throwing competition, leading the competition with 38 points. Coach Fouad al-Mudhahka, who is also a member of the World Horseback Archery Federation (WHAF), was gratified with the good accomplishment at the international level.“I congratulate Badr al-Marri for winning the gold at these qualifiers for the international championship, and for hoisting the Ada’am (colloquial for Qatar flag) very high and of course all the riders in the Qatari team,” he told Gulf Times Friday.Al-Mudhahka confirmed also that “the international competitions were highly competitive, and the nature of the tournament is the quick throw from horseback. Horseback archery is one of the ancient traditional sports, and it is practiced in Qatar, as one of the unique sports in the region, and a contribution to the expansion of the Arab heritage.”Three other Qatari riders Abdulaziz al-Qahtani, Abdul Rahman al-Ishaq and Hayel al-Anzi also participated in the competition.

HE Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Thani al-Thani, CEO of Qatar Media Corporation (QMC), Wednesday presided over a ceremony honouring the staff on the occasion of the National Day and the conclusion of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.The event, reviewed the achievements of the Qatar Radio, Sout al-Khaleej radio, French, English, Spanish, and Urdu languages radio stations for their exceptional and comprehensive coverage of the World Cup events and the cultural festivities which accompanied them, from the fan zones to cultural, and concert venues.A video presentation highlighted the milestone of 700 TV coverage achieved by Qatar TV which exceeded 20 hours a day at times, a challenge which was the first of its kind. The coverage of the World Cup as well as the related festivals, and cultural events was in Arabic with English translation.“Welcome to the World” was one of the leading feature programmes during the World Cup, targeting an international audience. A report about Al-Kass TV channel stressed that it broadcast an exceptional coverage of the World Cup for the entire Arab world.**media[4494]**Thanking the gathering, HE Sheikh Abdul Aziz praised the QMC staff for their dedication and professionalism during the coverage of the World Cup and said: ‘Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of you I would like to extend my congratulations to our wise leadership, the people of Qatar and residents for the tremendous success of the organisation and hosting of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 with excellence. I hereby stress my deep gratitude to your hard work, passion and dedication during the past month and the preparation for the event. I thank you for your hard work, and the long hours spent broadcasting, which exceeded a 19-hour span of live coverage daily on both Qatar TV and Al-Kass screens, along with eight radio stations that broadcast in Arabic, English, Spanish, French, and Urdu languages. I really appreciate them. Thank you very much.” HE Sheikh Abdul Aziz concluded.

Malik Jones is a Gambian broadcast journalist and a former director general of the Gambia Radio and Television Services (GRTS). He spoke to Gulf Times about his experience, prior to bidding farewell to Doha, about his coverage of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and how it was transmitted to Qatari and expatriate audiences.He said: “This is my second coverage of a FIFA World Cup. The first was as a commentator with the BBC in South Africa in 2010. As an African I was part of the making of history for Africa and to commentate on the matches was just phenomenal. However, Qatar 2022 was a completely different ball game not only for me but to some journalists like myself who witnessed the determination of Qatar to showcase the best World Cup edition despite all the negative propaganda. It was a prestigious model; the first World Cup in the Middle East hosted by an Arab nation."At local English radio QBS where I was engaged as a match analyst and content provider for the newsroom, the will of Qatar to succeed became a fundamental ingredient of my content before the World Cup kicked off. The hostility against Qatar by some foreign media outlets and its protagonists was uncalled for and it has to be watered down by all possible means especially by the media. From my experience this turned out to be exactly what it was promised to be and more. "The media did a terrific job and have never wavered in their quest to rally behind Qatar. At QBS radio there was a team of journalists from different countries and backgrounds and we blended well professionally regardless of our different roles. There was a great team spirit which led to our success. As a print and broadcast journalist, it was like being an ambassador for my country, the Gambia. My stories for the local Point newspaper, in the Gambia was well received. I gave several interviews to local radio stations in addition to a weekly radio programme which I host from here and broadcast in the Gambia."At the diplomatic level the Gambia ambassador to Qatar dispatched a press release to the Gambia which apart from praising the Government of Qatar for hosting the tournament, highlighted my role in the broadcast media and that of the Gambian referee Papa Gassama. The reaction was tremendous back home as was manifest in the mainstream and social media."Personally I felt comfortable with the media in Qatar- both print and electronic. Suffice it to say that without any hint of flattering, the Gulf Times was the paper I looked forward to reading since my arrival in October, I am even subscribed to it. So keep it up!” Jones concluded.

There is no doubt now after the glorious World Cup final saw the Argentina team lift up the trophy, that Qatar delivered the best ever World Cup in the championship’s history. For all those who visited Qatar, be it fans, players, organisers, or even those who followed the matches on TV this has become an obvious truth.Although, some of the pre-World Cup criticism casting doubts on Qatar’s ability to meet its pledge to deliver an amazing edition of the tournament have been silenced by the social media posts by international fans in Qatar, there are still some minority voices which air blatant racist remarks against Arabs and Arab culture through social media. As old habits die hard, there will always be some black sheep somewhere.His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani wrapped the traditional bisht around Argentina captain Messi during the World Cup closing ceremony.Giving the bisht (a traditional Arab cloak) to a guest is a sign of great honour in Arab culture. Bisht is viewed as a sign of appreciation and respect and is typically worn by top officials such as politicians, sheikhs and other high-status individuals.Hassan al-Thawadi, secretary-general of Qatar’s World Cup organising committee, said: “It is a dress for an official occasion and worn for celebrations. This was a celebration of Messi. The World Cup had the opportunity to showcase to the world our Arab and Muslim culture. This was not about Qatar, it was a regional celebration.”To say that it ruined the ceremony is racist and exposes the commentator's scant knowledge about the region's traditions. Imagine if Lionel Messi was gifted the Kimono or a British order knighting robe, or an African hat, no one would have written a word against it. The football legend Pele wore a Mexican hat when he won the World Cup in 1970 and no one said it ruined the moment. Arabs wear western clothes at ceremonies and all the time. We saw on social media images of the Argentine ambassador to Turkey wearing the Qatari bisht during the celebration of his country's victory in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.The World Cup 2022 tournament was an occasion for mutual acceptance, cultural exchange and tolerance. This is exactly what almost all the fans experienced in Qatar during the tournament. The false image and stereotype disseminated for many years before the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 have been debunked. The true and real history of the Arabs and the Arab culture have unfolded before an impressive figure of 3,404,252 fans and about 5 billion people around the world, who according to a FIFA estimate watched the Qatar World Cup 2022. In addition to the 1.8mn fans who attended the FIFA Fan Festival in Doha and enjoyed the live broadcasts of games and the free entertainment featuring some of the most famous names around the world are going to be the ambassadors of the Arab culture in their respective countries.HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad al-Thani said in a debate on al-Kass TV channel: “We do not wait for the West to approve our ambitions and dreams.” Qatar has delivered its pledge with outstanding standards, from the state-of-the-art stadiums, the remarkable free transportation arrangements, the best safety and security, to the carnival-like atmosphere, the warmth and hospitality of the locals, the world-class events and activities lined up by the organisers which enthralled the fans.Ask Qatar for advice: British dailyReferring to the excellently-organised FIFA Qatar World Cup 2022, Charlie Brooks, commentator with the British daily The Telegraph Tuesday said: "Compare Qatar to the drug-fuelled chaos when we hosted the Euro final, then ask yourself where you'd rather taken your 10-year-old daughter." His comment appeared in an article captioned: Perhaps we should be asking Qatar for advice.

The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 has achieved the unity of the Arab people, and proved that it is their meeting place," Qatar Press Center president Saad Mohamed al-Rumaihi said.He was speaking on the sidelines of a panel discussion on the 'Western campaigns against Qatar and the Arab countries, organised by Qatar Press Center (QPC) in co-operation with Qatar News Agency (QNA) on Sunday."Today, the entire Arab world, east and west, north and south, stands behind the Moroccan national team. They all support the Lions of the Atlantic and hope that the Moroccan national team will reach the final matches and outperform the French national team in the next match," al-Rumaihi said."I see it as a new awakening of the Arab-Islamic culture. Yes, we are emotional by nature, we stand behind every Arab achievement. The great effort made by the Qatari media, whether newspapers, radio or TV, with the Arab sports satellite channels, did a great and a wonderful job regarding the daily files presented,” the QPC president stated.QPC vice president and Gulf Times Editor-in-Chief Faisal Abdulhameed al-Mudahka, who moderated the panel discussion, explained why that there has been so much negative propaganda against Qatar in the run up to the World Cup.“There are three reasons, one is racism, second is hate, and third orientalism and the perception of the stereotype about Arabs and Muslims in general, the Ghotra (headgear), Islamophobia, the perception fed by Hollywood, ancient travellers, led to this."Now the question is about what the World Cup did to this false perception, it has changed the whole perception of the Arab world, not only Qatar. This is what Qatar was aiming for, in terms of generosity, hospitality, culture, and that this is the land of civilisation, the land of most prophets who are from this region. It’s a total change, the image of the Arab after the World Cup is going to be different from that before the World Cup,” al-Mudhahka stressed.Dr Tarik M Yousef, director of Middle East Council for Global Affairs, told Gulf Times on the sidelines of the panel discussion that “one of the unexpected outcomes of hosting the World Cup in Qatar, was the melting pot of cultures. It went a long way in promoting understanding, respect, facilitated curiosity and brought together peoples who normally, because of geography, would not connect with one another, and would not be familiar with one another, and may have been influenced by the wrong image."What the World Cup did was to really in many ways demonstrate the power of football when it is allowed to do precisely that: promote cultures, promote diversity, understanding and curiosity, and allow people to come together to celebrate, and to tolerate one another.”Nazim Bessol, member of the executive office of the International Sports Press Association - Africa region, told Gulf Times in a statement about the false image disseminated by some Western media: “I think it's not new it's old, it's a concept that has existed since the end of the 18th century, beginning of the 19th century where the representation of everything outside the European borders is perceived like a retrograde world and that's what justified the unjustifiable."We remember the civilising missions of the populations that were considered as indigenous and that were treated like less than nothing. Perhaps in the collective unconscious this idea remains despite the passing years and centuries. In the end, when we discuss with people and especially with many colleagues who came to cover the World Cup, their level of amazement is commensurate, I believe, with the ignorance of this region.and these countries and perhaps beyond them."I am Algerian but it happened to me in France where I lived, while discussing with people who asked me sincerely and not to insult (about Qatar), are there camels, palm trees, is it like Algeria? It is really the postcard of the current of the time that some kept and entrust to the 21st century."So when there is this representation that remains over time and the mass media work not to correct it but to maintain it. Only when people arrive here in Doha, the first contact can be the first means of transport is the metro, and they all agree that this metro is something they have never seen, I have a colleague who said it's not a metro, it's a business class plane. So you imagine if you arrive with preconceived ideas and you find a plane instead of a metro, there's something that's not working. So it's this mindset there and then maybe the refusal to know more. "Whether we like it or not there are cultures of countries which are dominant and which work to propagate if it is not a false image of the countries or regions in question it is an image of their culture or their countries themselves by making people believe that they are “at the top” I think that is the main explanation.” Bessol concluded.

A lot of football fans from various countries, attending the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, are wearing the Arab headdress, the ghutra and the agal (Arabic for headband), in particular. Gulf Times spoke to the man behind this idea, Ashraf Abu Issa."The idea of producing the Qatari headdress and headband in the colours of national teams’ shirts and flags participating in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 came to my mind a year and a half ago," he recalled."In order to implement it in a distinguished way, we contacted the FIFA and the teams themselves to ensure that the colours are correct, following which an easy-to-use headwear and headband for all teams were produced, with the official FIFA seal, as an original product,” he explained.“The purpose of manufacturing the headwear and the headband and selling them to non-Arabs is cultural, and the main goal is to change the negative impression of the symbolism of the headwear and the headband, which has been portrayed in the world as a symbol or a stereotype of terrorism. It is going to remove the cultural barrier."The majority of fans wear it according to the colours of their teams, and buy them as presents for their friends and families, and this will convey the true image of this dress. The impact of the fans wearing the headwear and the headband is that we have broken the barrier of the false propaganda from the West."Secondly, fans of all ages wear it and these images will remain in their memories forever. Also history will record that the 2022 FIFA World Cup was held in Qatar. The fans will be the ambassadors who promote the positive image of the headwear and the headband and convey the true picture of the Arab-Islamic culture, from what they experienced and witnessed of the distinguished and positive treatment, and the material and moral cleanliness of the Arab people. They will convey their experience to their people about the good organisation, good reception, security and safety and the honourable Qatari people who respect all peoples. They understand now that Qatar is a developed country, appreciated for its true value, by those who visited it and resided in it.“There are many who imitated this headwear, which sells very well, but the official ghutra is the one that bears the emblem of the World Cup. We also want to convey to the fans and all those who visited Qatar during the championship the image of tolerance in Islam, the ethics of hospitality, the openness of Qatar to all cultures and the culture of sports in Qatar, the only country that has an official sports day to encourage citizens and residents to practice sports,” Abu Issa concluded.Brazilian fan Jurema Cardoso Arruda, who is accompanying her father, clad in the Qatari headwear and headband with Brazilian colours told Gulf Times: “As we are in this country we have to wear a garment which represents it. It is going to be an indelible memory from this championship. I love this integration of different cultures. I love my stay in Qatar and FIFA and Qatar have organised the World Cup very well. I appreciate the luxurious malls, the lights and the fireworks which make the city very beautiful at night. The Qatari people are very welcoming, hospitable, and they have already invited us to their home to see the games together. They gave a special welcome to our team.”The headwear and the headband until recently were portrayed in Western media, including cinema (Hollywood), as a symbol of ignorance, illiteracy, and backwardness and so on. The World Cup fans have been wearing the Arab headwear which helped change this perception of the Arab stereotype. The World Cup will be a turning point, a real game changer. People from all over the world have a real experience of Arab and Islamic (Eastern) hospitality and culture. Arab cultural history will be divided into two phases - the picture before and after the World Cup. One by one it will be very different, very positive.

The Membership Collective Group has opened the doors to The Ned Doha in Qatar, the third Ned hotel and members’ club and its first location in the Middle East.Founded in London in 2017, The Ned expanded in the summer of 2022 to include The Ned NoMad in New York, and now The Ned Doha has opened during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, a statement explained.Set over five floors in the former site of the Ministry of Interior, overlooking the Arabian Gulf and Doha’s skyline, The Ned Doha features 90 bedrooms and suites, six public restaurants, a pool and club lounge, a health club with spa, salon, and fitness centre, and a new 775sqm (8,350sq ft) event space for large-scale conferences, events, and receptions.“Five years after launching The Ned in London, we are excited to open in Doha and occupy one of the city’s most architecturally significant buildings, comprising of a hotel, multiple restaurants and its own private members’ club” said Gareth Banner, group managing director, The Ned.“We look forward to providing our guests and members with a distinct experience, welcoming them to stay, connect, eat and have a good time.”Originally designed in the 1960s by Lebanese architect William Sednaoui, the building has been redesigned by David Chipperfield Architects of London with interiors by Soho House Design. Drawing inspiration from The Ned’s original address in London, there is a live performance stage beneath an atrium surrounded by a collection of restaurants and rich green marble sourced from the Greek island of Tinos.The Ned Doha offers six restaurants open to all, featuring menus entirely Halal. Situated in the centre of the hotel, Cecconi’s serves northern Italian classics from hand-made pastas and wood-fired pizzas to Venetian-inspired seafood dishes. Kaia serves Pan-Asian cuisine, with signature dishes from Southeast Asia and Hawaii including sushi, poke bowls, and mains slow-cooked on a robata grill, served in a space with a marble-topped counter, jade-green cushioned seating, and bulbous chandeliers.Electric Diner is a casual restaurant, serving American staples and deli favourites including burgers, salads, and classic milkshakes, in a comfortable space with red leather banquettes, an open kitchen, and a focal wall accented with the restaurant’s name in pink neon.Nickel Lounge offers a menu of classic drinks, with seating centred around the live performance stage. Also on the ground floor is Millie’s, an international brasserie with vintage-style interiors.Hadika serves Levantine cuisine al fresco, offering mezzeh family-style selections from fattoush to shish tawook in a garden setting, shaded by umbrellas and foliage. Three private dining rooms within Hadika offer air-conditioned spaces for guests to book and enjoy in privacy. Adjacent to the pool, Malibu Kitchen brings an entirely new culinary concept to the destination, offering a menu of California-inspired favourites from sea bream tacos to courgette flatbreads, and young coconut salad. The outdoor restaurant is air-conditioned for year-round comfort.On the rooftop, Ned’s Club Upstairs is a lounge with a warm wood palette, touches of gold, statement furniture, and unparalleled views of the West Bay and the Amiri Diwan. A private room is available for entertaining on the rooftop, seating up to 12 guests. Ned’s Club Spa offers panoramic views of the city.The new Corniche Hall event space, accessible by its own private, separate entrance, invites groups for large-scale conferences, social occasions and events, for up to 600 people for a standing reception, arranged around a landscaped courtyard. The space is lit with height-adjustable chandeliers as well as bathed in natural daylight and features a balcony with access to additional outdoor event space. The balcony overlooking the main stage accommodates up to 40 guests for a standing reception.

A Brazilian cheer leader, Paulo Magnanisilva Anderson, has expressed his joy over Doha's welcoming atmosphere and the Qatari hospitality. "Everything is well organised from our arrival at the amazing Hamad International Airport, to our accommodations, and free transport. I love the Corniche and the international fans here,” he told Gulf Times.“I travel wherever Brazil plays. I attended the last World Cup in Russia, we did not win, but this time we are here to be in the final match and we would like very much to win the cup. I have with me six replicas of the trophy, of gilded copper, which Brazilian fans will hold high to motivate our players and cheer them to the songs 'Ohare garden', 'Samba Di Janeiro,' and 'What is Love' (Haddaway song)," he said. A number of Brazilian fans were seen at Souq Waqif on Friday night, rooting for their national team.

Ali Njie is a volleyball player at Al Shamal Sports Club and has been living in Qatar for over two years.Speaking to Gulf Times, he said: “I am looking forward to attend Senegal's matches as well as Qatar's games. I am from the Gambia, and am also a fervent supporter of Senegal - we come from the same culture and speak the same language. I know that the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me to watch as many matches as I can."Qatar is fully ready for this World Cup, as it has made all the preparations. Everything looks nice and beautiful, and everybody is happy here. I went to the Corniche with Senegalese, Qataris and many other fans and took part in the festivities, I enjoyed the view and the scenery. We are getting ready with flags, music and dancing for this sports festival.""We are representing sport, we have to go out and support the teams and hope for the best outcome of the game. As a sportsman, I recommend fans from all over the world that any country you go to, will have its rules, customs and regulations, and the best thing to do is to follow and respect the Qatari customs, habits and regulations. I also see that Qatar has built all the facilities and more, they have everything now. So let the fans come, support peacefully, do everything nice and enjoy this wonderful event," Ali concluded.

Adel Larbi is over excited about attending the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 with family and friends. He was already here during the FIFA Arab Cup 2021 from 25 November to 20 December, he told Gulf Times: “We are here to encourage the Tunisian squad as well as the Qatar national team and other Arab teams. I would like to congratulate Qatar for the wonderful organisation and call on Tunisian and Arab fans to be the best ambassadors of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.”“The Arab Cup was an impressive tournament. I enjoyed every minute of it with my wife and friends. We are dedicated football fans, I am a veteran basketball player from l’Etoile Sportive du Sahel, of the coast town of Sousse in Tunisia, with a scenic corniche and sandy beaches reminiscent of the Doha Corniche and its state of the art old port. Coming back to Doha feels like home, although I am very pleased with the hosting and the organisation of the World Cup by Qatar which represents the 450 million Arabs in this edition. All the procedures are seamless from booking our tickets, to arrival at HIA, to getting our Hayya cards, travelling around Doha and its suburbs. We find Qatar very welcoming to visitors, we are revisiting Doha not only for football, we are also looking forward to enjoy cultural, musical events and fan festivals. Not to forget Souk Waqif, Katara, Qatar Museums, Lusail, trendy restaurants and much more.” Larbi concluded.

Adel Larbi is excited about attending the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 with family and friends. He was also in Qatar during the FIFA Arab Cup 2021, he told Gulf Times: “We are here to encourage the Tunisian squad as well as the Qatar national team and other Arab teams. I would like to congratulate Qatar for the wonderful organisation and call on Tunisian and Arab fans to be the best ambassadors of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.” Larbi continued, “The Arab Cup was an impressive tournament. I enjoyed every minute of it with my wife and friends. We are dedicated football fans though I am a veteran basketball player from l’Etoile Sportive du Sahel, from the coastal town of Sousse in Tunisia, with a scenic corniche and sandy beaches reminiscent of the Doha Corniche and its state-of-the-art old port. Coming back to Doha feels like home, and I am very pleased with the hosting and the organisation of the World Cup by Qatar, which represents 450mn Arabs through this edition of the World Cup. "All the procedures are seamless - from booking our tickets to arrival at Hamad International Airport and getting our Hayya cards to travelling around Doha and its suburbs. We find Qatar very welcoming to visitors, we are revisiting Doha not only for football, but are also looking forward to enjoy cultural and musical events and fan festivals. Not to forget visiting Souq Waqif, Katara, museums, Lusail, trendy restaurants and other place.”

After two successful years of delivery service, the Guilt Free Company launched its dining service on September 31. The restaurant is located in the chic neighbourhood of the Pearl, Marina, Tower 16, with a sea view. Cortado, espresso, hot chocolate, macchiato, cappucino Snickers bar Rainbow pancake The Guilt Free Company, an iconic lifestyle company made in Qatar, promotes health, through nutrition and fitness, and socio-environmental awareness. Good nutrition is offered by way of healthier choices. The Guilt Free Company’s initial intention is to start with changing peoples’ opinions and beliefs about nutrition, to encourage strong convictions and optimise their health on a long-term basis. Banana bread Monster cookies Snickers cake The Guilt Free Company’s innovation consists of providing healthy and delicious food and beverages with natural ingredients with a view to educate people to make better nutrition choices. The Guilt Free Company’s key ingredients comprise super foods and organic and fresh ingredients, their bread and tacos are gluten free and baked in-house. A closer look shows GFC’s love for raw, organic and natural healthy food. One can eat even sweet food and still feel good, guilt-free and look great. As sugar is proven to be very addictive, GFC offers guilt-free options with natural sweeteners. Rip eye beef burger Spirulina latte Black beans quiona salad Flower bomb The Guilt Free Company’s products provide healthy fats for body and brain functions. Replete with antioxidants, minerals and vitamins, they can be ideal pre-workout and post-work out treats, meeting energy demands and facilitating proper muscle growth. The Guilt Free Company’s best sellers include Black beans quinoa salad, Rip eye beef burger, Snickers cake, Banana bread, Rainbow pancake, Spirulina latte, Flower bomb, Snickers bar, and Monster cookies. The Guilt Free Company has its own online store and delivery system, apart from a strong presence on platforms such as talabat, Carriage, Rafeeq, Deliveroo and Snoonu. To get in touch Tel.: +974 5033 9033 Email: info@the guiltfreecompany.com Web: the guiltfreecompany.com Facebook and Instagram: m/theguiltfreecompany