Kareem Shaheen
Middle East and Newsletters Editor
Kareem Shaheen is the Middle East and newsletters editor at New Lines. He is a journalist, columnist, editor and consultant based in Montreal and was previously a Middle East correspondent for the Guardian, based in Beirut and Istanbul. He was nominated for the Frontline Club award for print journalism for his coverage of the Khan Sheikhun chemical attack. He studied war in the modern world at King’s College London. He was one of the founding editors of New Lines.
Latest from Kareem Shaheen
The Dark Legacy of French Colonialism
A weekly review of news, essays, podcast and more from New Lines. The week of May 02 to May 06, 2022.
Ramadan TV Blurs Fact and Fiction
It is of course difficult to discern truth from fiction in such works of art, particularly given the secretive nature of these dealings, but they all add up to a relentless sort of public framing that primes minds to think about events, groups and people in a certain way.
War Widows and Veneration of Death
A weekly review of news, essays, podcasts and more from New Lines. The week of April 18 to April 22, 2022
Stability for Its Own Sake Is One Step From Chaos
A weekly review of news, essays, podcasts and more from New Lines. The week of April 11 to April 15, 2022
Russia’s Grotesque Intervention in Syria
A weekly review of news, essays, podcast and more from New Lines. The week of April 4 to April 8, 2022
Reading Stories of Courage From a Century Ago
It is gratifying to read about such courage and heroism under duress. Whatever the impetus, odes should be sung for it in celebration. The Turkish officer who protected Armenians from the Ottoman-era genocide is like Schindler, the personification of the better angels of our nature.
The Saudis’ Religious Legacy
It is difficult to glean the actual impetus behind the initial decision to ban the broadcast in the first place. The scenes from the holy mosques are emotive to a lot of observant Muslims and cement Saudi Arabia’s role as the custodian of the holy mosques and an Islamic center. They are also powerful showcases of the state’s organizational prowess in pulling off such seminal events hosting millions of faithful every year.
The Danger of Hagiography as History
A weekly review of news, essays, podcast and more from New Lines. The week of March 21 to March 25, 2022.
Russia’s Long History of Bombing Hospitals
A weekly review of news, essays, podcast and more from New Lines. The week of Monday Mar. 5 - Friday Mar. 11, 2022.
Racism Isn’t a One-Way Street
A weekly review of news, essays, podcast and more from New Lines. The week of Monday Feb. 28-Friday Mar. 4, 2022.
At the Olympics, Arab Unity Remains Elusive
If any cause should inspire Muslim solidarity and empathy it is the plight of the Uyghurs, certainly more so than other ridiculous causes that have prompted widespread outrage like a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad or a film in which an actress removes her underwear offscreen.
Netflix’s Perfect Strangers Has More Truth in It Than Its Critics Allow
It creates a kind of societal schizophrenia in which people are publicly outraged over artists’ failure to adhere to the moral imperatives of their faith and cultural values but Muslim countries lead the world in Google searches for porn.
Egypt Events Draw Focus on Sexual Harassment
A suicide and the circumstances behind an ad call attention to mistreatment of women and girls.
Mo Salah and Aboutrika Spark a Debate About Religion
Two separate incidents involving major Egyptian footballers have sparked a debate online and in the mainstream press on the role of religion in society.
Turjuman: Sudan Edition
Note from the editor: We wrote this news digest in the days before the ongoing coup in Sudan. The military…
The Death of the Palestinian Cause Has Been Greatly Exaggerated
Arabs are of course not of a single mind on any particular issue, nor is it possible to gauge public opinion under tyrannical regimes. But it is indicative of the fact that these authoritarians no longer see the pan-Arab Palestinian cause and supporting it as vital to their survival.
First Among Satans
America does not deserve sole ownership of the Great Satan title. Why do Russia’s and China’s actions not spark similar outrage, a similar, simmering public consciousness that establishes them as foes to be thwarted in the broader culture?