Local Journalism in the Public Interest

The Long Read

A self-portrait of journalist Issam Abdallah in the foreground, carrying his DSLR camera and microphone, to the background of destroyed buildings. Clear winter day.

A self-portrait of the martyr Issam Abdallah, camera in hand, in front of destruction in Elbistan following the earthquakes that struck Turkey and Syria earlier this year. February 12, 2023. (Retrieved from Issam's Facebook profile)

Israel Killed Issam Abdallah but Cannot Kill the Story

Christina Cavalcanti
Israel Killed Issam Abdallah but Cannot Kill the Story
A black and white photograph showing two children fettered to a radiator at the psychiatric hospital of Deir El-Salib in Deir El-Qamar, Lebanon.

A rare photograph from the Psychiatric Hospital of the Cross (Dayr al-Salib), taken in the aftermath of the 1982 Israeli invasion, of two children clad in modest winter dress and bound to a radiator, their faces reflecting distress and dread. Dayr al-Qamar, Lebanon. 1982. (José Nicolas/Corbis via Getty Images)

(Im)Possibilities of Healing Within the Mental Health System

Fátima Fouad el-Samman
(Im)Possibilities of Healing Within the Mental Health System
A composite of Greek police guarding the National Bank of Greece in the foreground, with Lebanese police guarding the Bank of Beirut in the background.

A composite of Lebanese police guarding the Bank of Beirut during the "week of rage" anti-government protests in Hamra on January 14, 2020, (Marwan Tahtah/The Public Source) and Greek police guarding the National Bank of Greece during anti-austerity protests on February 25, 2010. (Creative Commons)

What About the “Sovereign Wealth Fund”? Some Lessons From Greece

Nikolas Kosmatopoulos
What About the “Sovereign Wealth Fund”? Some Lessons From Greece
A composite of two images: a woman in the foreground, and people standing at a railing in the background, looking outward. There is a mosque on the horizon.

A composite of migrant domestic workers holding their employers' children and enjoying the view, and a woman chatting with a friend from the balcony of her employer's home. Photos taken by Matthew Cassel between March 31, 2010 and May 13, 2010 in Beirut, Lebanon.

Neoliberalism and Kafala

Sumayya Kassamali
Neoliberalism and Kafala

الملحق

صورة للمشاركات/ين في الاجتماع السياسيّ التنظيميّ المنعقد في مانشن بيروت خلال أيّار

الحضور خلال اجتماع لمناقشة التنظيم السياسيّ وأزمات اليسار في مانشن. بيروت، لبنان. أيّار ٦، ٢٠٢٣. (محمد شبلاق، مصدر عام)

رؤى حول التنظيم: نهج جديد

غابرييل توبينامبا
رؤى حول التنظيم: نهج جديد
شباب يمضون الوقت قرب البحر في منطقة الميناء. طرابلس، لبنان. 28 تِشْرين الأَوَّل ٢٠٢٢. (مروان طحطح، مصدر عام)

شباب يمضون الوقت قرب البحر في منطقة الميناء. طرابلس، لبنان. 28 تِشْرين الأَوَّل ٢٠٢٢. (مروان طحطح، مصدر عام)

حصار في عُرض البحر

يارا المرّ
حصار في عُرض البحر
الصفحة الأولى لصحيفة النهار اللبنانية.

خبر انهيار بنك إنترا محتلًا كامل الصفحة الأولى لصحيفة النهار اللبنانية، والتي تضم صورة المودعين وهم يصطفون خارج أحد الفروع. ١٦ تشرين الأول ١٩٦٦.

شركة إنترا للاستثمار: "أكثر أسرار الدولة اللبنانية كتمانًا"

كريم مرهج
شركة إنترا للاستثمار: "أكثر أسرار الدولة اللبنانية كتمانًا"
تركيب صور من فترة ازمة المحروقات في لبنان خلال صيف ٢٠٢١

تركيب صور من فترة ازمة المحروقات في لبنان خلال صيف ٢٠٢١ التقطت على محطّات المحروقات وعلى الطريق السريع. التقط الصور مروان طحطح بتاريخ 14 حزيران ٢٠٢١. (مصدر عام)

كيف دُمِّر نظام النقل المُشترك في لبنان ولصالح من؟

ليلى يمّين
كيف دُمِّر نظام النقل المُشترك في لبنان ولصالح من؟

In-Trans

The (Dis)order Report

A composite of a senior woman protesting during the October 2019 uprising in the foreground against an old Mar Mkhayel barber shop in the background.

A composite of a senior woman protesting during the October 2019 uprising in the foreground (courtesy of Mourane Matar/Fawra Media) against an old Mar Mkhayel barber shop in the background. (The Public Source) 

 

Indefinitely Deferred: Dignified Retirement Inaccessible to Most

Layla Yammine
Indefinitely Deferred: Dignified Retirement Inaccessible to Most
Two women in colorful long dresses, gloves, face-covering scarves, and hats look towards the camera as they stand in a lush field against a mountainous backdrop.

Agricultural laborers work the field on amiri land, a type of state land that allows for communal use. Most amiri lands are in the Beqaa region, where three quarters of residents live off agricultural work. Beqaa, Lebanon. 2021. (Photo courtesy of Public Works Studio)

The Land We Stand to Lose to the Sovereign Fund

Public Works Studio
The Land We Stand to Lose to the Sovereign Fund
A composite image of hands cupping grains of wheat against the backdrop of a mill worker loading bags of flour onto a truck in Beirut, Lebanon.

A composite image of hands cupping grains of wheat against the backdrop of a mill worker loading bags of flour onto a truck in Beirut, Lebanon. Photos taken on June 28, 2022 by Marwan Tahtah. (The Public Source)

Grain of Hope and Loaf of Neglect: Lebanon’s Renewed Bread Crisis

Christina Cavalcanti
Grain of Hope and Loaf of Neglect: Lebanon’s Renewed Bread Crisis

Editorials

Chronicles of the Crisis

A composite image: the foreground shows a small yacht speeding away; the background shows a darkened image of the sea and the horizon.

An altered image of the small migrant boat as it attempted to evade the pursuit of a Lebanese naval vessel. (The Public Source) 

Intercepted at Sea: Anatomy of a Pullback

Yara El Murr
Intercepted at Sea: Anatomy of a Pullback
Drawing of a small boat sinking.

Months before he embarked on the "death boat," Hashem Methlej drew an ominous sketch of a boat sinking. Tripoli, Lebanon. October 28, 2022. (Marwan Tahtah/The Public Source) 

Intercepted at Sea: The Deadly Reality of Border Control

Yara El Murr
Intercepted at Sea: The Deadly Reality of Border Control
A composite of a forged document claiming the successful incineration of the toxic waste, the Radhost motorship, and the toxic barrels. (Photos © ShipSpotting/Wolfgang Kramer & © Dr. Pierre Malychef from Lab of False Witnesses for Ecotoxicological Research and Communication) 

A composite of a forged document claiming the successful incineration of the toxic waste, the Radhost motorship, and the toxic barrels. (Photos © ShipSpotting/Wolfgang Kramer & © Dr. Pierre Malychef from Lab of False Witnesses for Ecotoxicological Research and Communication) 

The “Ecological Time Bombs” Unloaded at the Beirut Port Decades Ago

The Public Source
The “Ecological Time Bombs” Unloaded at the Beirut Port Decades Ago
A composite of people protesting, barrels of toxic waste at a quarry, and a “river of trash”.

A composite of people protesting the 2015 garbage crisis, barrels of toxic waste at the Shnan‘ir quarry, and a “river of trash” in Jdeideh in 2015. (Photos by Marwan Tahtah & © Dr. Pierre Malychef from the Lab of False Witnesses for Ecotoxicological Research and Communication)

 

Merchants of Death

The Public Source
Merchants of Death
A composite of archival images from Assafir newspaper of the offices of Intra Investment Company and the opening of the Finance Bank, one of Intra Holdings' most secretive holding companies, on December 7, 1999. Mahfouz Sakina, Hassan Farran, Yacoub Al Sarraf, and Salah Harakat are seen cutting a cake. (The Public Source)

A composite of archival images from Assafir newspaper of the offices of Intra Investment Company and the opening of the Finance Bank, one of Intra Holdings' most secretive holding companies, on December 7, 1999. Mahfouz Sakina, Hassan Farran, Yacoub Al Sarraf, and Salah Harakat are seen cutting a cake. (The Public Source)

Intra Investment Company: The “Lebanese State’s Best Kept Secret”

Karim Merhej
Intra Investment Company: The “Lebanese State’s Best Kept Secret”
Composite of images taken at a protest organized by the Beirut Port Explosion Victims' Families and the Lebanese Union for People with Physical Disabilities to demand justice for people killed and injured by the blast. Sylvana Lakkis, president of the union, is the center of the image. Photos taken on July 4, 2021, by Hussein Baydoun. (The Public Source)

Composite of images taken at a protest organized by the Beirut Port Explosion Victims' Families and the Lebanese Union for People with Physical Disabilities to demand justice for people killed and injured by the blast. Sylvana Lakkis, president of the union, is the center of the image. Photos taken on July 4, 2021, by Hussein Baydoun. (The Public Source)

“And What Would You Like Me to Do About It?”: How the Lebanese Government Disabled Hundreds of People — and Then Left Them to Pay for Its Crime

Karim Merhej
Kareem Chehayeb
Christina Cavalcanti
“And What Would You Like Me to Do About It?”: How the Lebanese Government Disabled Hundreds of People — and Then Left Them to Pay for Its Crime

PS Visuals

Bruised fruits and kitchen utensils are laid around the green metal column of the Fiat bridge in Beirut.

A makeshift kitchen set up by a single father and his daughters under the Fiat Bridge in Beirut. December 8, 2022. (Marwan Tahtah/The Public Source)

Life on the Streets of Beirut

Real estate speculation, combined with the absence of state policies to ensure housing as a basic right, created housing precarity well before the economic crisis.
Life on the Streets of Beirut
A scene from one of the confrontations on Hamra Main Street, where tens of students charge, amid tear gas, some of them armed with stones.

After security forces stormed the American University of Beirut, revenge demonstrations erupted, sparking violent confrontations with the ruling class and its guards. In the photograph, dated February 26, 1975, is a scene from one of the confrontations on Hamra Main Street, where tens of students charge, amid tear gas, some of them armed with stones.

The Student Movement in Lebanon, a Struggle Through Time

Fátima Fouad el-Samman
The Student Movement in Lebanon, a Struggle Through Time
A woman with long black wavy hair holds a cluster of stinging nettle leaves in her hand while she picks more. She is bending next to a large bluish kale plant on her right

Stinging nettle | قراص

Next to a large bluish kale plant, forager Rianna Tassabehji holds a cluster of stinging nettles in her hand while she picks more, despite getting mildly stung. The leaves, she dries, powders, or grinds, incorporating them into her baked cookies or infusing them in her teas. Nettles can replace any leafy greens, in soups, with eggs or noodles. They can also be made into a tincture for an iron and vitamin boost. Forager Nayla Kahwaji explains that nettles are used for detoxing kidneys and that, unlike other detoxifying herbs, they nourish the body with vitamins and minerals without ridding it of the things it needs. Batloun, Lebanon. September 14, 2022. (Chris Trinh/The Public Source)

Plantcestral Remedies for Perennial Ailments

Chris Trinh
Christina Cavalcanti
Yara El Murr
Plantcestral Remedies for Perennial Ailments
A black and white image of the Beirut grain silos which consist of a white concrete building with 14 cylinder shapes. The sea and a boat can be seen in the foreground.

Image adapted from the monograph of Průmstav Pardubice. (Source: Jiří Hemr, Průmstav Pardubice 1951–1986, Pardubice 1986)

The Beginning and End of Beirut’s Iconic Grain Silos

A photographic history of Beirut’s port grain silos
The Beginning and End of Beirut’s Iconic Grain Silos
On the left, two old men chat before a mural by Tripoli’s visual artist Ali El Rafei, close to Al Shiraa Square in El Mina. At the top right corner, a picture of politician Ashraf Rifi covers part of the mural.

On the left, two old men chat before a mural by Tripoli’s visual artist Ali El Rafei, close to Al Shiraa Square in El Mina. At the top right corner, a picture of politician Ashraf Rifi covers part of the mural. El Mina, Lebanon. May 15, 2022. (Fátima Fouad/The Public Source)

If These Walls Could Speak

If Tripoli's walls could speak, what would they say?
If These Walls Could Speak
The Lebanese Red Cross reports six people were killed and dozens injured in the hours-long street battles. One of the victims, Mariam Farhat, a mother of five children, was killed by a stray bullet to her head inside her home. Another victim, 32-year-old Ali Ibrahim, who worked at a local gym and fitness diner, was killed while delivering food to a customer nearby. He was described as “an innocent soul” whose “smile never hides.” Tayouneh, Lebanon. October 14, 2021. (Marwan Tahtah/The Public Source)

The Lebanese Red Cross reports six people were killed and dozens injured in the hours-long street battles. One of the victims, Mariam Farhat, a mother of five children, was killed by a stray bullet to her head inside her home. Another victim, 32-year-old Ali Ibrahim, who worked at a local gym and fitness diner, was killed while delivering food to a customer nearby. He was described as “an innocent soul” whose “smile never hides.” Tayouneh, Lebanon. October 14, 2021. (Marwan Tahtah/The Public Source)

Obstruction of Justice Turns Deadly

Marwan Tahtah
Obstruction of Justice Turns Deadly

In the Interlude

A terrified family taking refuge from shelling under a metallic bridge.

Photojournalist Marwan Tahtah had heard about this photograph taken by his relative Kamel Lamaa before he saw it for the first time hung on a wall in his uncle’s apartment. Lamaa worked as a photojournalist for the AFP and owned “Play Boy,” a photography studio he ran with his siblings and cousins in the southern suburb of Beirut. In the mid-80s, as heavy shelling was falling on the city, Lamaa was driving with his colleagues near al-Sahel Hospital when their car was hit. After hiding under a bridge, they found this terrified family taking refuge. Beirut, Lebanon. August 25, 1985. (Kamal Lamaa/AFP, courtesy of Marwan Tahtah)

Capturing the End Times: The Unseen Realities of Photojournalists in Lebanon

Fátima Fouad el-Samman
Capturing the End Times: The Unseen Realities of Photojournalists in Lebanon
A wide shot showing a young woman dressed in black making her way through a foraging trail down a rocky path. Trees line up the top of the hill and stand tall against a cloudy blue sky.

Rianna Tassabehji makes her way amid rocky outcrops on a trail that twists at the bottom of a hill. Batloun, Lebanon. September 14, 2022. (Chris Trinh/The Public Source)

Returning to the Land and Our Oral Plantcestral History

Yara El Murr
Christina Cavalcanti
Returning to the Land and Our Oral Plantcestral History
A composite image of Khaled Al Mahmoud inspecting a frame amid colorful wooden hives with bees and flowers in the foreground.

A composite image of Khaled Al Mahmoud inspecting a frame amid colorful wooden hives with bees and flowers in the foreground in Mazra'at Jemjim, Lebanon. Photos taken on June 11, 2022 by Marwan Tahtah. (The Public Source)

Collective Beekeeping in South Lebanon

Yara El Murr
Collective Beekeeping in South Lebanon
A composite image of Fodda El Youssef (left) and her mother Aziza Sattouf (right) manually sorting wheat to be sent to a mill in Saadnayel, Lebanon, against the backdrop of Seed in a Box's vegetable seedling greenhouse in Beddawi, Lebanon.

A composite image of Fodda El Youssef (left) and her mother Aziza Sattouf (right) manually sorting wheat to be sent to a mill in Saadnayel, Lebanon, against the backdrop of Seed in a Box's vegetable seedling greenhouse in Beddawi, Lebanon. Photos taken on May 10, 2022, and May 18, 2022 by Chris Trinh. (The Public Source)

From the Ground Up: Seed Saving and Food Sovereignty in Lebanon

Christina Cavalcanti
Chris Trinh
From the Ground Up: Seed Saving and Food Sovereignty in Lebanon

Comictern

The Heist teaser image #1
The Heist

The Plot

Yazan Al-Saadi
Sirène Moukheiber
The Plot
the last hour
Voxbox Comics

The Last Hour

Ayman Makarem
Hisham Rifai
The Last Hour

[From the Archive] Dispatches from the October Revolution

A sanitation worker employed by Lebanese company Ramco pauses for a picture while working a shift at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. April 6, 2020. (Marwan Tahtah/The Public Source)

A sanitation worker employed by Lebanese company Ramco pauses for a picture while working a shift at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. April 6, 2020. (Marwan Tahtah/The Public Source)

Labor in Lebanon: Between Racism and Capitalist Exploitation

Hani Adada
Labor in Lebanon: Between Racism and Capitalist Exploitation
Protesters rest beside graffiti depicting the hanging of an authority figure. Downtown Beirut, Lebanon. December 15, 2019. (Rita Kabalan/The Public Source)

Protesters rest beside graffiti depicting the hanging of an authority figure. Downtown Beirut, Lebanon. December 15, 2019. (Rita Kabalan/The Public Source)

Oligarchiyya, Lebanese Style (Part 2 of 2)

Julia Choucair Vizoso
Oligarchiyya, Lebanese Style (Part 2 of 2)
Lebanese expatriates in New York City express support for injured and killed anti-establishment protesters in their home country. November 19, 2019. (Ahmed Gaaber/The Public Source)

Lebanese expatriates in New York City express support for injured and killed anti-establishment protesters in their home country. November 19, 2019. (Ahmed Gaaber/The Public Source)

On Belonging to a Country That Cannot Keep Its Children

Ghassan Hage
On Belonging to a Country That Cannot Keep Its Children
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