Hamed Gohar — “King of the Red Sea” — was featured as a Google Doodle on November 15, 2023, to mark what would have been his 115th birthday. We were curious to learn more about his contributions to marine biology and pioneering work as a much-loved TV presenter

The Orontes stands out as the sole perennial river in Western Asia, meandering northward from Lebanon through Syria before merging its waters into the Mediterranean Sea. This geographical feature – having long held profound historical significance as a boundary marker since antiquity – has witnessed a series of shifts, embracing and bidding farewell to various attributes that have sculpted its being over time.

Mohammed Hammad writes about his family home in Nablus — Beit Hammad — sharing its history and its present.

In Oct 2022, Google Doodle featured Haja El Hamdaouia — an icon of Moroccan Chaabi and El Aita music. We wanted to find out more about her life, music and legacy. Image via SRNT News.

Erragab Eljanhaoui writes about Captain James Riley and Sidi Hamet, and his role in catalysing the end of slavery in 19th century America. Image via SFGate

A look at the life and art of Jewad Selim — an Iraqi painter and sculptor who was considered one of the founders of modern art in Iraq. Image via The National News.

Ibrahim Abu-Lughod pioneered the understandings and portrayals of the Middle East in political science and more broadly in America. Close friend Edward Said described him as “Palestine’s foremost academic and intellectual.”

A history of Sudan’s Nubian pyramids and why they look different from their counterparts in Giza. Image via Intro Africa.

Mai J Abbassi reminisces about Sah El Nawm — a Syrian comedy series from the 70s — from huddling round windows to catch the newest episode to its satirical undertones and the love triangle at the heart of the show.

A look at Casablanca’s colonial-era architecture and its main figures.