AUB graduates helped co-found Damascus University in 1923, and in the 1950s, its distinguished professor Constantine Zurayk became President of Damascus University. Zurayk also became president of AUB in 1954, and in 1988, another distinguished graduate, George Toemeh, became President of Balamand University in Lebanon. During World War I, Syrian students at AUB triggered and co-founded the early movement of Arab nationalism that strove to liberate Syria from Ottoman rule. One of the martyrs of May 6, 1916, hanged by Jamal Pasha, was an AUB graduate. Two AUB graduates had headed the underground movement against the Ottoman Empire in 1914-1918 and went on to head the underground movement under the French Mandate in 1920. In 1925, they co-founded the _first political party in post-Otto-man Syria. It was called the People’s Party and its founders were Faris al-Khury and Abdul-Rahman Shahbandar. Khury had studied mathematics at AUB; Shahbandar had studied medicine. Both had been instructors at AUB. Shahbandar became the leading anti-French politician of his generation in the 1920s and 1930s. Ten years later, Khury became the _first AUB Alumni to become Speaker of the Syrian Parliament, then Prime Minister of Syria. That same year, in 1945, another AUB Alumni became Syria’s _first Ambassador to the USA. Syrian AUB graduates worked at the White House with US Presidents like Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, and John F. Kennedy. AUB graduates from Syria also engaged actively with 10 Downing Street, working with British Prime Ministers Clement Attlee, Anthony Eden, Harold Macmillan, and Tony Blair. On the other side of the Cold War, they worked with Joseph Stalin and later Nikita Khruchev in the USSR, and Emperor Hirohito in Japan. On May 29, 1945, as Damascus was being air raided by the French, busloads of Syrian students from AUB came to Syria to meet with President Shukri al-Quwatli and offered their solidarity. Some AUB students even offered to take up arms against the French.

Sami Moubayed

When Daniel Bliss sailed to present-day Lebanon from Boston, Massachusetts, in December of 1855, he probably did not realize that for generations to come, he was about to re-shape the entire Middle East. He first founded a small school in Aley, then headed a boarding school in Souk al-Garb, finally establishing the Syrian Prostant College, which was later renamed the American University of Beirut (AUB), in 1866. The pioneering institute of higher education did wonders to the Arab World and had a profound effect on nearby Syria. Generations of leaders from throughout the Arab World, in politics, medicine, art, and business, studied at AUB. The Syrian AUB list includes Prime Minister Faris al-Khury, President Nazim al-Qudsi, and nationalists like Abdul-Rahman Shahabandar. The success story of AUB was made possible through the dedication and vision of its consecutive presidents, starting with Bliss and ending with outgoing President John Waterbury, under whose guidance, AUB was re-born after the devastating Lebanese Civil War. Among the list of AUB presidents are Malcom Kerr, who was assassinated on campus during the war, and the Syrian scholar Constantine Zurayk, who also served as Rector of Damascus University and contributed volumes of literature on Arab nationalism. Marching in the footsteps of towering academics like these is Peter F. Dorman, the new president of the American University of Beirut.

Sami Arnaaout

Alexandria, “the capital of memory” as described by British writer Darrell Lawrence, has experienced a renaissance since the 1990s, marked by the introduction of new developments such as the San Stefano Grand Plaza and the resurgence of old ones such as Bibliotheca Alexandria, helping the city to reestablish itself as a preeminent cultural destination for the 21st century. This was supported by the renovations made by the Egyptian government to the international airport of Alexandria.

Nabil Beitinjaneh

In January of 2008, a legendary chess player and artist passed away. Robert (Bobby) Fischer, the only American Chess World Champion of the 20th century, was credited as the one who was able to break decades of Soviet domination over chess in 1972, and the story of his victory includes many elements of intrigue that transcend the chess board.

Hunting for fame, bigger audiences and better salaries, some of the potential stars of Syrian television have left for competing satellite channels. In order to keep their talented employees, the Syrian state owned channel faces challenges similar to those of the rest of the Syrian society.

Listening to my short wave radio at home one day, when I was quite young, I heard a very strong station at about 14 MHz calling “CQ CQ THIS IS YK1AA, YK1AA …” Not understanding what I heard, I asked my father, who told me that it was our neighbor, who was a radio amateur with his own radio station at home. That started my love for radio later as a professional.

For the first time Syria has brought home an international advertising award. At Dubai Lynx, the advertising show organized by the Cannes Advertising Festival, JWT was voted “Advertising Agency of the Year,” as well as receiving several other awards. “It was great to finally be on stage representing JWT Syria, rather than behind the scenes,” says Samer Khwaiss, executive creative director for JWT Syria. “It also says a lot about what kind of company we are here at JWT.” Established in 1864 by J. Walter Thompson, or, as managing director of JWT Syria Iyad Krayem calls him, the “great, great, great grandfather of advertising,” JWT has been setting trends and pioneering the development of advertising, public relations, branding, and media resources for nearly 150 years. The agency first opened its doors in Syria in 1995, and has become the oldest continuously operating advertising agency in the Syrian market. Part of the WPP international holding company, the office includes staffers from Mindshare, Media Insight, and Buchanan PR, with strong network ties to other communication based companies.

An internationally acclaimed musician, Kinan Azmeh has been trotting the globe with his clarinet in hand, wowing audiences with his mastery. How did he get started on this path and where does he go from here? What does his music mean? A medium of soulful expression, a pleasantry, a source of power, a method of communication, and above all playfulness, Azmeh reveals the driving forces behind his music and what makes his performances so hypnotic.