Gertrude Bell

Tags

France, Gertrude Bell, Iraq, Jordan, Middle East, Syria, UK

When I arrived in Jordan in 1994, I was interested in learning more about the political history of the region, a complex history of a cosmopolitan and multicultural world. This world had known stability under Ottoman-Turk rule but the First World War would change all that forever and give us the region we know today. For 500 years the Ottoman-Turks ruled a vast Empire from Istanbul the Sultan was the shadow of God on Earth, this empire covered parts of Europe, extended over what is called the Middle-East up to the border with Persia/Iran and extended to Egypt, the Sudan, Libya and Tunisia. This was truly a multi-ethnic and multi-religious empire. By the end of the 19th century many weaknesses had started to appear in its governance and European powers were out to exploit these weaknesses to their own advantage. Britain, France, Germany and Russia until 1917 had agendas on how to reshape the region. The Sultan made the fatal mistake of supporting the German Empire against France and Britain in the First World War. The British and the French use the chaos in the region created by the war to undermine Ottoman rule and promise to the Arab populations and their Princes that large spoils would come their way if they revolted against their Turkish masters. British and French imperial policies were not devised for the benefit of local populations and events in the 20th century in Iraq, Syria and Jordan has shown us that Europe created a mess in this region with consequence we still live with today.  Gertrude Bell in her recommendations thought this was the best course to follow and could not see what was going to happen once the Arabs wanted their independence from British rule. The borders of those countries, the design of their flags, the imposition of Monarchies, the framework for their governing bodies and the appointment of officials to posts, the marginalization of the Kurdish people and the division of their ancestral land between the new countries of Iraq, Syria and Jordan, the divide and conquer between Shia majority and Sunni minority in Iraq, all these recommendations made by Bell and endorsed by the British government led to serious problems in the years that would follow and Gertrude Bell bears the weight of those decisions.

She was heavily influenced by her upper class titled background, coming from a wealthy family, involved in the steel industry, educated at Oxford, schooled into world politics from an early age by her politician grandfather in the age of imperial expansion. Like many people of her time and class she did not see the Arab people as capable of governing themselves and needing the guidance of European rulers.

Gertrude Bell was the woman who would as an agent of the British government have enormous influence in the creation of new countries namely, Iraq, Jordan and Syria. Later France would through a secret treaty with Britain create Lebanon under the pretext of protecting Maronite Christians.

I was able to find the books written by Gertrude Bell during her time in the region and these books were widely read and very popular in shaping perceptions of the Arab people and the Bedouin tribes. I found them instructive and fascinating in understanding the unfolding of events. The world she visited and travelled through has changed a great deal in 120 years and it is sad to realize that it was a much gentler world. The European powers were there for mercantile reasons and  oil monopolies also played into the equation.

Gertrude Margaret Lowthian Bell, CBE (1868-1926) was an English writer, traveller, political officer, administrator, and archaeologist who explored, mapped, and became highly influential to British imperial policy-making due to her knowledge and contacts, built up through extensive travels in Greater Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and Arabia. Along with Colonel T.E.Lawrence, Bell helped support the Hashemite dynasties in what is today Jordan as well as in Iraq until its overthrow.

She played a major role in establishing and helping administer the modern state of Iraq, using her unique perspective from her travels and relations with tribal leaders throughout the Middle East. During her lifetime she was highly esteemed and trusted by British officials and exerted an immense amount of power. She has been described as “one of the few representatives of His Majesty King George V Government remembered by the Arabs with anything resembling affection” I would say with a certain generation of Arabs prior to 1970. In today’s world she has entered the world of mythical figures of a long gone era.

If you are interested her books and books on her life can be found easily on Amazon. Gertrude Bell committed suicide in 1926 by overdose of sleeping pills and is buried in the Anglican Cemetery in Baghdad.

 

 

 

Recipe for Namoura cake

Tags

dessert, life, Middle East, Namoura, Recipe

Namoura (نمورة), is a delicious cake/dessert that is easy to make and widely known across the Middle East.  It is topped with almonds, baked and then soaked with an aromatic sugar.

This Namoura dessert is the classic recipe for the original Lebanese Namoura. Many other Middle Eastern cultures called it by other names. Egyptians call it Basbousa, Palestinians call it Harissa, Armenians call it Shamali, Persians call it Revani/Ravani.

HOW TO MAKE THE NAMOURA (نمورة)

In a large bowl mix the sugar, semolina, and butter together. Then add in the milk, baking powder, orange blossoms water, yogurt and mix well to obtain a thick sticky batter.

Brush a non-stick sheet pan (which I prefer using because I like my Namoura cake thin, about an inch and half thick at the most) with tahini paste and then place the batter on it and flatten out completely with a spatula or your palm.

Let it sit for about 30 minutes and then cut out the namoura into square patterns or diamond shape patterns, whatever you prefer. I do it like this because it looks pretty. Then press a piece of halved raw almond (peeled) on each piece of cut out cake. The reason I cut it out before baking is because it makes the cutting later so much easier and doesn’t break apart as much. the pieces come one perfectly cut on the edges.

Bake the Namoura cake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 40 minutes, and if the top if not gold enough for you, you can broil it for a few minutes. I just don’t like to over cook the Namoura because it becomes try and too crunch. That is why if it needs any more color, I just broil the top. Once you remove from the oven, pour 1 1/4 cup of sugar syrup evenly over the Namoura while it’s hot. I like using those ketchup or mustard rubber containers to drizzle the sugar syrup over the cake. We don’t like the cake super sweet. Some people drench the cake with sugar and that is one reason I don’t like to buy this cake and would rather make it at home. If you like it super sweet, feel free to add some more sugar syrup to it.

Namoura is very popular during Ramadan. The portions are small and you don’t have to eat a huge piece. You can enjoy a small piece whenever you have a sweet tooth.

Ingredients

• 3 cups semolina flour coarse
• 1.5 cup melted butter
• 1.5 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup plain yogurt not Greek
• 1/2 cup milk I used Carnation
• 3 tbsp. orange blossoms water
• 2 tbsps.. tahini paste
• 1/2 cup almonds (peeled and halved)

SUGAR SYRUP:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1.5 tbsps. orange blossoms water

Instructions

• In a large bowl mix the sugar, semolina, and butter together. Add in the milk, orange blossoms water, baking powder, yogurt and mix well to obtain a thick sticky batter.
• Brush a non-stick sheet pan with the tahini paste and then place the batter on it and spread out with a spatula or your palm.
• Let it sit for about 30 minutes and then cut out the namoura into square patterns or diamond shape patterns, whatever you prefer.
• Bake the Namoura cake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 40 minutes, and then turn on the broiler to broil the top a few minutes if you would like to obtain a darker golden color.
• Remove from the oven and pour 1 1/4 cup of sugar syrup evenly over the Namoura while it’s hot. Let it cool at room temperature before serving.

SUGAR SYRUP:

• In a small pot, mix the sugar and water well until the sugar dissolves. Bing to boil and then start timing 5 minutes time on low-medium heat.
• Add in the lemon juice and orange blossoms water and boil for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the syrup cool down.

Notes

Prepare sugar syrup during bake time or before.

Every new Year it never fails

Tags

conflict, Iran, Middle East, Persia, war

Usually a few days before the New Year I always wonder what the new year will bring for me personally and for us as a family and then for Canada and the world. It seems that if our domestic life continues apace and no great event changes our lives beyond what is to be normally expected, the situation in the world is a vastly different matter.

I have come to expect some kind of disaster, natural, man made or other. In 1990 while in the Middle East, I and my colleagues knew was imminent with Iraq for invading Kuwait and the oil fields. So that Christmas in Cairo, my boss at the time told me to take my little puppy Bundnie with me to Canada because I might not be able to return and it was best not to leave her behind. I did return in the New Year but Bundnie was safe at home in Canada. The first Gulf war was short really, the Iraqi army was not professional and ill equipped for any war against a Western army. Other years brought other terrible events. So why would 2020 be any different.

The Middle East has been since 1914 a huge trouble spot and a play ground for the great powers, Britain, France, USA, Russia and now China. The people of the region do not count for much in the final analysis. Much racism and bigotry at play. Trump’s decision is one of a man who has NO understanding of the world and history or international commitments for that matter. His mistake has given Iran a victory today.

The Iraqi Parliament today has voted to oust all USA troops from Iraq. The domino effect is that the NATO mission to train Iraqi soldiers is at an end, they too will have to leave. Iran becomes de facto the only power to control the militias and political life in Iraq.

All NATO operations against ISIS are also at an end. ISIS will probably make the calculation of now attacking only Western forces, siding with Iran because it is convenient for them. Russia is also winning with the USA out of the way. Iran is also re-starting its enrichment of Uranium program.

The assassination of Qassim Suleimani was a terrible mistake and it is difficult to understand how the State Dept, The National Security Council, experts and advisors could not point out the obvious to Pres. Trump. Suleimani was similar to Iran killing the US Secretary of State or the Chief of the Defense Staff. It reminds me of a story involving the Duke of Wellington at the battle of Waterloo. Prior to the battle as was custom at the time generals would go up and down the line to harangue soldiers prior to the battle.

Wellington did it and so did Napoleon on his white horse. An Officer pointed out to the Duke that it would be very easy to simply shoot Napoleon prior to the battle and that would be the end of that, Wellington said NO, we do not do that, it would be beyond the pale and contrary to the rules of engagement. If Napoleon dies during the battle fine but not prior to hostilities.

The killing of Suleimani is contrary to International Law, since there was no declared war between Iran and the USA. Despite the media depicting him as a terrorist etc. still no previous president or anyone else suggested killing him out right. Now we see the result, Iran is now at war with the USA. The Americans are loosing ground and outside of the UK it is very unlikely that any other ally including Canada will want to get involved in an un-winnable war.

Iran is not Libya or Syria or Iraq, it is a power in the region and has the capacity to wage a war, its soldiers are committed to a cause they believe in, can’t say the same for a Western soldier who may not see the point of fighting a war far from home for what goal exactly and for a President who has been impeached. Vietnam was lost because the Vietcong believe in what they were fighting for, not so on the American side.

Iran is a country in Western Asia. With 82 million inhabitants, Iran is the world’s 18th most populous country. Its territory spans 1,648,195 km², making it the second largest country in the Middle East and the 17th largest in the world. An ancient culture, a highly educated population. What we see today is a failure of US diplomacy, since 1979 unable to resolve issues because the US administration has always treated Iran as an inferior. Then again Cuba comes to mind, another long standing failure of US diplomacy since 1959.

Now Pres. Trump wants to target specifically Iranian Cultural sites which are in most cases important to all humanity and some are protected under UNESCO. It seems that Trump wants to be declared a war criminal, what a distinction for a US President.

We live a very difficult moment in the world and none of this will make America great as Trump wishes, what a way to start the new year.

 

 

 

Memories and developments

Tags

Britain, Iran, Middle East, NATO, Politics, Russia, Syria, Trump, Turkey, World

In the last few weeks with the zigzags of international situations and the horrible nightmare circus of the Trump NO Foreign Policy, I am concerned for the safety of us all and for the stability of the World.

On my last visit to Damascus back in around 2002 just before the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, I was surprise to see the large number of Iranian visitors, business people and families living in neighbourhoods of Damascus a city before the Civil War of 2 million people. The official explanation was Shia Holy Sites which brought people to visit Syria. In the Southern Suburb of Damascus is the tomb and Mosque of Sayidda Zeinab daughter of Ali and grand daughter of the Prophet Mohammed. The Mosque in Persian Style was built in the 1990’s on the site of a much older mosque. The Iranian Embassy was also the next door neighbour of the Canadian Embassy in Damascus on Fayez Mansour.

The Assad Regime in Syria is allied with Iran for various complex political and military reasons and Iran is an important supporter of Hezbollah ( the Party of God) in Lebanon and these alliances are maintained to keep a foothold in Lebanon keeping the country unstable and ensuring the on-going influence of Syria in Lebanon. Iran can also maintain pressure on Israel with the help of its proxy Hezbollah.

Since the invasion of Iraq by the USA in 2003 and the final overthrow of the Regime of Saddam Hussein, Iran has moved into Iraq on the pretext of helping the Shia majority at the expense of the Sunni minority. It also helps control politics in Iraq and prevents the USA from dominating the region and helps Russia play a large role. Something Russia has been wanting to do since the 1930’s but was unable to do because of British and American interest in the area. Britain is now gone and the USA are in a weaken position.

Enters Trump and his simpleton politics of I know it all school of thought, who decided to abandon the Kurds who counted on the USA as an ally seeking protection from Turkey, Iran and Russia. Confirming the old belief that you really cannot depend on the USA as an Ally. Russia is consolidating its position in the region, having cultivated President Erdogan of Turkey by selling him armaments despite the fact that Turkey is still a member of NATO. Russia is undermining NATO and Trump in London said that he does not feel compelled to uphold article 5 of the Alliance of mutual assistance. This sends a strong message to Russia and China who understand that they can make a move with little fear of USA intervention.

Trump then makes threats against Turkey of sanctions thinking that President Erdogan will give in, which is unlikely given his own posturing at home and new found friends in Russia and China. This point escapes Trump completely and his arrogant attitude at the NATO Anniversary in London shows how much he is out of it, we also saw how the world thinks little of him and the USA.  His leaving early in a huff or calling President Macron and Prime Minister Trudeau names like a school child did little to enhance his profile.

The Civil War in Syria will come to an end with Russia and Iran as the winners, the USA will be out and the Kurds will be reduced once again to living on the margins, because they backed the USA.

What sort of Syria will we have in the future, not a democratic one, more like an enhanced dictatorship with more grinding poverty, a powerful Russia with naval bases in the port of Latakia, something Russia has been wanting for more than a century. Iran will also get access to the Mediterranean and come to dominate the region, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq. This puts even more pressure on Israel and pushes out Saudi interests in the entire region, Iran is the winner.  With Trump’s ever changing reasoning and attitudes, 60 years of complicated US diplomacy is gone. It leaves little Jordan alone with Israel to fend for themselves.

With Israel at the moment in a state of turmoil as Premier Netanyahu facing criminal prosecution for corruption, no clear winner after 2 back to back election. Trump may think he can just send in the Marines to clear things up, but it no longer works that way, this is not the 1940’s. The USA is running out of options but hey The Donald can’t seem to grasp this reality.

War with Russia is not possible, because Nuclear Weapons. A conflict with Iran is also not feasible, Russia again would certainly intervene on the side of Iran. Sanctions against Turkey will not work either and only push the Turks into the Russian camp further and undermine NATO on its Southern flank.

China has been moving for the last 20 years to displace the USA commercially in Africa, South America and Asia. China is having economic problems due to Trump’s tariffs but there is a limit to such tariffs, Stock Markets reflect the unease and worry of a trade war with China. Trump knows he is limited in what he can do without damaging the USA economy.  What has been lost in terms of  US Foreign Policy and influence in the World will not bounce back, it is simply too late.

Looks like the whole impeachment process is far to slow and uncertain and then the 2020 election another uncertainty.  No it does not look good at all.

More reading

Tags

Austria, Empire, Europe, Guapa, Middle East, Saleem Haddad, Stefan Zweig, Vienna

I have this old habit, in the evening before going to sleep I like to read a little. Most of my reading is done in bed at night, I find this soothing and it helps me to fall asleep. In the last few weeks I have read two books by Stefan Zweig, (1881-1942), born in Vienna in a wealthy privilege family and died in Petropolis, Brazil in a suicide pact with his second wife Lotte Altmann. He was a famous writer, journalist, biographer of the first part of the 20th century and his books remain to this day great to read and give the reader wonderful insight. He also knew and was friends with all the great intellectuals of that time and do not be surprise to see him associated with so many famous people it is head spinning, Sigmund Freud, Romain Rolland, Richard Strauss, Rainer Maria Rilke and many others.

The first book was the celebrated biography of Marie-Antoinette the ill-fated Queen of France. I have already written on it in a previous post and I recommend it if you want to go beyond the fiction and the Hollywood version of her life.

The other book is the last one ever written by Zweig, The World of Yesterday. He mailed the manuscript to his editor the day he and his second wife committed suicide in Brazil.

Zweig describes himself as a European in the old world sense and at the same time a European of what we know today as the European Union. He is also an enigma for us who live at the end of the 20th and now in the 21 century. He was married for many years to Frederike Maria Von Winternitz but never mentions her in this book which covers the period from his birth in 1881 to 1925. The reader could be excused for thinking that Zweig was single, he divorced her in 1938 and she lived on until 1971.  Was he a very private man? I do not know, in The World of Yesterday he certainly speaks volume about himself and his famous friends, his work, the people he knew and frequented, his travels, about being an assimilated and integrated Jew in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and he describes and analyses in minute detail the society of the time, a society which has totally disappeared now and lives on in print. You have to imagine a world, Europe, the old Empires ruled for hundreds of years by Princes and Sovereigns and then the total collapse in 1919, everything changing forever in a radical  manner with the rise in Europe of Fascism and Bolchevism in Russia.

Zweig misses the old world, what he calls the Age of Golden Security assured by an aged Emperor (Franz-Joseph) over a vast Empire comprising dozen nationalities, languages and various religions. He explains the commercial reasons for the First World War, a war promoted by French and German Armament dealers and British and German competing merchant marine. Decades of Peace in Europe, the last war was in 1870 and lasted just over 3 weeks had lulled people into believing that not much would happen in 1914. No one could imagine that by November 1918 their world would no longer exist.

Zweig did spend part of the war in Zurich in neutral Switzerland, a land of plenty in a sea of wont. He describes a scene at the end of the war in 1918, the Kaiser in Germany has already gone into exile in Holland. Zweig stands on the platform of the Train Station at the Border with Switzerland on the Austrian side, everything around him is tattered and the people look tired and sad, the defeat and fall of the Austrian Empire is dawning on them. Zweig notices how the Station is becoming crowded with people, officials and Austrian soldiers though no trains is expected, he notices a beautiful black train of highly polished cars pulling slowly into the station, it’s the Imperial train, at the window stands Emperor Karl and his wife Empress Zita who are leaving Austria and going into exile, He refused to abdicate and simply left quietly, ending the 900 year rule of the Hapsburg dynasty, Zweig notices how everyone is silent and looks embarrassed, Zweig felt at that moment that this was truly the end. The end of it for him, for the world he had known, yes and how he then maybe went into a state of deep melancholy. The years that followed will see the rise of economic difficulties, Fascism in many European countries, the great depression, anti-semitism, nazism, the rise of Communism and then the Second World War. Of course for Zweig life goes on but on a different track, having the financial means he then travels abroad fleeing the chaos of the new and territorially small Republic of Austria, he will go to England as Freud did, to North America and finally to Brazil. Despite having a new young wife Lotte Altmann, he feels he cannot re-invent himself and fears aging, the past of Old Europe haunt him.

Zweig’s Villa in Salzburg on Kapuzinerberg 5, it is a private house today.

I find Zweig to be a complex person, a highly educated, refined person, he seems to be several people at once, the great writer, the friend of the cognoscenti, living in a world at the top of the social pyramid but then the other person appears emotional, overly sentimental, detached, revealing little of his personal life, this may be simply his 19th century sensibilities, gentile upbringing of not burdening people with personal details, something unknown to us in our world of the selfie.

The other book I read was just published by a first time author Saleem Haddad, a young thirty something man. Saleem Haddad is a writer and aid worker. He was born in Kuwait City to an Iraqi-German mother and a Palestinian-Lebanese father, and has lived in Jordan, Cyprus, Canada and the U.K. He has worked with Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) and other international organizations in Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Lebanon, and Egypt. He and his partner have a greyhound, Jack and live in London.

His book published in March is entitled Guapa, the name of a Gay underground bar. I found this novel after a friend of mine who owns a bookstore café in Jordan recommended it to me. I liked the book instantly, the story is fast moving and happens in an unnamed Arab country, I was convinced it was Damascus the Capital of Syria but the author Haddad based the city where the protagonist lives on several cities, Amman, Beirut, Cairo. He does this on purpose and it works very well, though the President Dictator reminded me of Bashar Al-Assad and his wife Asma in their description in this book, this is why I thought it might be Syria.

Guapa gives a very accurate portrait of Arab life, family and society, I recognized it instantly, I came to care about Rasa and the people around him.  Haddad says; Not naming the country also allows the story to take on a metaphorical nature: I really didn’t want to write a book that would be sold as an anthropological or political ‘study’ of one country. Instead I wanted to draw on common themes young Arabs across the region could relate to, regardless of their background. The book also shows in the narrative of the story that Arabs are not a monolithic group and the region is populated by many other people who are not Arabs.

The story of the book is about Rasa, a twenty-something-year-old gay man living in an unnamed Arab country, as he negotiates family, societal expectations, queerness, love, police brutality, authoritarianism, decorum, revolution, imperialist narratives, and Islamist extremism—all in the space of twenty-four hours. Throughout Rasa’s journey, the reader is thrown back into the losses, definitions, redefinitions, and rebellions that orbit his life. I would recommend reading this book for anyone who wishes to understand this part of the World and the people living in it. As they say, We are not in Kansas anymore.

 

 

 

The Sons-in-Law

Tags

Ibn Saud, Iraq, Jordan, King Hussein, Middle East, Saddam Hussein, WMD

Back in 1995 I was posted to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The kingdom was created by the British Government after the First World War part of a promise made to Cherif Hussain of Mecca for his support in the Arab uprising against the Ottoman Turkish Rulers.

The Hashemite’s claim direct descent from the Prophet Muhammad and are an ancient ruling family. Traditionally the Guardians of the Holy Sites of Mecca and Jerusalem. A Bedouin family ruling over many tribes in Arab Peninsula now known as Saudi Arabia. The Al-Saud Family were  their mortal enemies and rival amongst all the Bedouin tribes of the region. Ibn Saud and his family are described as brigands and uneducated boors by the Hashemites who as rulers/Protectors of the Holy Sites and part of the Family of the Prophet. However the Saud are also an old princely family but without the family connection to the Prophet.

The Hashemite’s were forced out of Arabia when the Al-Saud clan won several battles against the Hashemites and their allies and forced them to move to Jordan, Irak, Syria after 1922. You may remember from the movie Lawrence of Arabia the background of this story, the political hand of the British is never far in all this history.

In the Summer of 1995, 7 August, the day I arrived in the Kingdom on Jordanian Airlines, I was met at the airport by my colleagues, I was taken to my new home near the Fourth Circle, my garden back-up against the wall of the Queen Mother’s Palace. So I had a large division of Arab Army soldiers (all bedouins) next door to me. I should write about them they are absolutely lovely fellows. One of the brother’s of the King, Prince Muhammad lived just one block away from me, so it was a very secure neighbourhood.

As we passed the Fourth Circle on our way to the Chancery, police cars appeared behind us escorting a motorcade, they motioned our driver to give way, which he did. My colleague pointed out that the two black cars were carrying the sons-in-laws of President Saddam Hussein of Irak. They had defected to Jordan with their wives and kids. King Hussein bin Talal had given them asylum, he did not owe any favours to Saddam and the Baath Party.

King Hussein bin Talal (1935-1999)

Hussein Kamel Al-Majid and his brother Saddam Kamel Al-Majid were both second cousins and Sons-in-Law of the Iraqi dictator. They had little formal education and were promoted well beyond their capabilities. Neither were particularly intelligent and because of family ties were put in position of trust. However Saddam Kamel lost his position as Head of the guards responsible for President Saddam Hussein’s security. His brother Hussein Kamel was entrusted with military and chemical weapons secrets and the development program of such weapons. Irak would use such weapons against its own people, this was the extent of their military weaponry and the world would learn later that Irak never had any weapons of mass destruction, that was a convenient lie.

Both brothers probably felt insecure due to the intense rivalry with the sons of President Saddam Hussein, Odai a cruel and violent alcoholic, who took pleasure in beating those who worked for him and Qusai who was particularly violent and feared, it is believed that Qusai was psychotic, both were known for their cruelty.

In being granted asylum in Jordan both brothers were to be discreet, quiet and live at a guest palace in the outskirts of Amman, the Jordanian Capital. This however is not what happened. Hussein Kamel called for the overthrow of his father-in-law President Saddam Hussein and presented himself as a possible replacement. He tried to ingratiate himself with the CIA and the British MI6, he had a list of things he wanted, he really had an inflated sense of who he was and both the USA and Britain quickly lost interest in him. At that moment both brothers realized that they were in a golden cage they could not leave and isolated for the rest of their lives. At this point communications between the daughters of President Saddam Hussein and their brothers back in Baghdad, Qusai and Odai took place with complicated negotiations for a return home. The two daughters wanted to go home, they obviously had not been consulted on this defection to Jordan.

In Amman many were following this buffoons circus and we were wondering how long His Majesty King Hussein would put up with such nonsense. King Hussein was in my opinion a very great charismatic leader, much loved by his people for his own personal courage and determination. I was presented to him and instantly liked him. His wife Queen Noor was also an extremely intelligent and kind person. The Hashemite Royal Family are good long term friends of Canada. Our diplomatic relations are excellent to this day.

 Queen Noor of Jordan

  The circus of the two defectors in Amman lasted 6 months and it ended like it started as a complete surprise. Suddenly one morning both brothers announced that they were returning to Irak. Apparently their father-in-law President Saddam Hussein had forgiven them for their treason, all was well, it was ok to go home. Everyone was surprised by this news and disbelieving, given the horror of the regime in Irak which was not known for its kindness towards traitors like those two.

The road trip from Amman to Baghdad is about 10 hours on the highway across the desert. Every media crew in Amman decided to follow the convoy to the border with Irak, I remember CNN and the BBC and many others all going, they all wanted to see if indeed the brothers were forgiven. No one believed they would remain alive long once in Irak but then again Saddam Hussein had surprised many in the past by not doing what was expected of him. King Hussein wished them luck but he knew their fate was sealed.

At the Border Crossing both sons of Saddam Hussein, Odai and Qusai and a strong detachment of Irak Republican guards were waiting. The Sons-in-Law were separated from their wives and children and got a public beating before being pushed into a truck.

The next day in Baghdad, in front of President Saddam Hussein their father-in-law they were made to divorce their wives. This was the signal that it was now ok to kill them both.

Both were dead within 48 hours, shot by family members. Saddam Hussein claimed later that he had no idea this was going to happen. Some 40 other family members of the brothers including their father were also shot to death, their sister and some children. A form of family house cleaning the Saddam Hussein way.

Living in Jordan was always filled with tensions, being positioned geographically in the middle of bullies, Syria, Irak, Israël all ready at a moments notice to shoot at each other and Jordan in the middle trying not to get involved and be that oasis of stability.

The next big crisis would come in 1997 with the Khaled Meshaal Affair. The Prime Minister of Israël Benjamin Netanyahu thought that killing Mr Meshaal, leader of Hamas justified the risk of acting in Jordan, where Israel had a peace treaty and supposedly normal diplomatic relations. Netanyahu had also dragged Canada foolishly into this situation and for what reason? He did the same thing with various other European countries in a complicated chess game that suited his personal political ambitions at home.
Five agents of the Mossad, Israel’s external intelligence agency, were duly sent to Amman, posing as Canadian tourists carrying good quality fake Canadian passports. They ambushed Mr Meshaal on a street corner and sprayed poison into his left ear, inflicting instant paralysis and, so they hoped, death within 48 hours. This all happened around lunch time and I returned after lunch to find the staff in a state of panic. This was very serious and potentially dangerous for us at the Embassy.  Israel’s PM Netanyahu had put Canada into a terrible conflict situation, a nation with whom he professed friendly relations and had endangered peace in the region. I remember thinking at the time how none of this would have happened while Yitzhak Rabin was alive, he had been assassinated by a fanatical Israëli settler two years previously. Prime Minister Rabin a Nobel Prize winner and a man of Peace.
Then everything went wrong for the Israeli agents. The Jordanian security forces responded to this brazen daylight attack, arresting two of the Israeli agents and forcing three to hide in their country’s embassy, which was promptly surrounded by troops.

Instead of escaping over the border, the Mossad team found itself trapped in Amman. Mr Netanyahu was forced to send emissaries to King Hussein of Jordan to plead for their release. The king, drove a hard bargain. First, Israel had to supply an antidote to the poison that was killing Mr Meshaal. Jordanian doctors duly used this to save his life.

Then Mr Netanyahu had to go beyond a standard release of Arab prisoners from Israeli jails. He ended up freeing nine Jordanians, 61 Palestinians. Only then did King Hussein release the five Israeli agents. Mr Netanyahu, trapped in a debacle of his own making, found himself supplying the means to save Mr Meshaal’s life. After King Hussein died in 1999, Mr Meshaal was expelled from Jordan, moving first to Qatar and then Syria.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mezzeh!

Tags

Africa, Arak, Cairo, Egypt, Food, Levant, Mezzeh, Middle East, Muslims, Pasha, Scotch

I do not know what made me think of it today but I suddenly had a memory of Cairo and other places in the Middle East where I served at a time when I was Consul Pasha.

The name Consul Pasha was bestowed upon me by my Egyptian friends, a Pasha is or was an Honorific title given to people who served at a certain level in the government of the Ottoman Empire, you were either a Pasha or a Bey. A Pasha could also be the brother in law of the Ottoman Sultan, a general or a senior diplomat. In Egypt until fairly recently it was given as a sign of respect.

When you live abroad you often have to get used to many different foods and cuisine tradition which are totally foreign to you. Many countries hold on to their culinary traditions and do not give in to fast food or food globalization. As a tourist you just need to step out of your International chain hotel to realize that no one eats like you do. A good example in Italy, where tourists will stuff themselves with Pizza and cheap pasta because these are the only two foods they recognize from back home. Missing all the other culinary dishes of veal, wild truffles, cheeses, beef and seafood.

One discovery in the Middle East was the variety of the food and its quality. I learned a whole new way of eating and what was wonderful was the freshness of all the dishes, always made daily from scratch and always served fresh. A good Host would make it a point of honour to have the best food for his guests. You would never hear the phrase ” It is just something we threw together at the last minute, nothing fancy”, that would be an insult to your guests. You would also not be served dips and chips or peanuts or something frozen or processed. Same went for liquor, only certain brands of Scotch was acceptable, yes even amongst my Muslim friends. Scotch was not seen as alcool it was the drink of Gentlemen. No one would think of offering you a beer.

If you were not invited at home, the host would make sure he knew a good restaurant and know the owner and or the chef and make sure the quality was high, no haphazard selection of a place they did not known or who did not have a good reputation.

The first time I was invited for dinner, we arrived around 9 PM, dinner would never be served before 11:30PM so in the meantime Mezzeh was served with Raki or Arak anis flavour drink on the rocks with a little water. Also know in Greece as Ouzo or in France as Pastis. It is closely associated with food and all culinary matters in the Levant.

The word Mezzeh is found in all the cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire and comes from the Turkish meze “taste, flavour, snack, relish”, borrowed from Persian, Maze.

The photo below show the traditional display put before you, an incredible variety. This is before dinner while you are a glass of Arak. Now the real connaisseur will only have a little bite and will not make a point of finishing all the plates presented. This is just so that you are not famished by the time dinner is served later on. All of it is very good and as a novice you might be tempted to eat too much. Your Host will press you to eat more, but does so only out of politeness. You have to know to refuse politely while always showing interest in the dishes. It is a complicate ”Oriental” tradition one could say, but then in the Orient nothing is ever simple. Far too many people fall for the Mezzeh and then are caught not being able to have dinner, that was a faux pas. Worse still colleagues would complain about the hour and make a quick exit after the Mezzeh course. They were never invited again, forgetting that they were not back home and cannot behave as if they were.

I will never forget one evening in Damascus when a colleague of mine invited some of our contacts who had been more than generous in their hospitality towards us in the past. He counting his pennies decided to short changed his guests by ordering just a couple of plates of Mezzeh and cheap beer. What a stupid mistake and how embarrassing it was.

In Cairo we use to go to a restaurant called Papillon in Mohandessin (Engineer city) on the Western bank of the Nile with a friend of mine A.M. El Solh. They had a great Mezzeh.

Popular mezzeh dishes in Cyprus, Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, Egypt and Syria include:

Mutabbal/Babaghanoush – eggplant (aubergine) mashed and mixed with seasonings.
Hummus – a dip or spread made from cooked, mashed chickpeas
Hummus with meat (hummus bil-lahm)
Falafel – a deep-fried ball or patty made from ground chickpeas, fava beans, or both.
Tashi – Dip made from tahini, garlic, salt and lemon juice with chopped parsley garnish.
Köfte – meat balls and patties consisting of ground meat, usually beef or lamb, mashed onions, spices and a small amount of bread crumbs.
Kibbeh (İçli köfte in Turkey) – dishes made of burghul, chopped meat, and spices
Kibbe Nayye – burghul, chopped lamb meat, and spices
Spicy lamb and beef sausages (naqaniq/maqaniq/laqaniq and sujuk)
Halloumi cheese, usually sliced and grilled or fried.
Souvlaki – Bite sized meat cubes (lamb is very common), grilled on a skewer over charcoal.
Stifado – Slow cooked beef stew with lots of onions, garlic, tomatoes, cinamon, pepper and vinegar.
Afelia – Diced pork marinated in wine with coriander seed, then stewed.
Lountza – Smoked pork loin slice, usually grilled.
Dolma Vegetables like peppers, eggplants or courgettes stuffed with rice, chopped mint, lemon juice, pepper, minced meat. (Turkish)
Sarma (also known as Koubebkia or Mashi Warqenab) – Grape vine leaves, stuffed with rice, chopped mint, lemon juice, pepper, minced lamb. (Turkish)
Yogurt (Mast-o-Khiar in Iran)
Cacık – Dip made from plain yogurt, chopped cucumber with finely chopped garlic and mint leaf.
Tarama – a fish roe dip based on cured carp fish roe, mashed potatoes and olive oil. In the traditional Istanbul variety of this dish, a substantial part of the roe must remain intact.
Labneh – strained youghurt which tastes similar to cream or sour cream only more tart.
Shanklish – cow’s milk or sheep’s milk cheeses
Muhammara – a hot pepper dip with ground walnuts, breadcrumbs, garlic, salt, lemon juice, and olive oil
Pastirma – seasoned, air-dried cured beef meat
Tabbouleh – bulgur, finely chopped parsley, mint, tomato, spring onion, with lemon juice, olive oil and seasonings
Fattoush (Fatuş in southern Turkey) – salad made from several garden vegetables and toasted or fried pieces of pita bread
Arugula (known also as Rocket) salad
Artichoke salad
Olives
Tulum cheese

Yes all of it will be presented to you and then a full dinner. My favorite Mezzeh dish are: Babaghanoush, Hummus, Falafel, Köfte, Halloumi cheese, Dolma, Tabbouleh, Fattoush, Olives, Tulum cheese with a nice drink of Arak. Of course this would be accompanied by conversation on various topics.

Because Ramadan just started a few days ago, dishes served during the Holy Month are totally different, IFTAR is the meal served as sunset. The dishes are too numerous to name and many are special dishes and desserts made specifically for Ramadan. If you do Ramadan and fast during the day, it is important that you not stuff yourself quickly at Iftar, your stomach cannot take it and a polite person will eat slowly, serve food to others and enjoy a long meal, at the same time eating in moderation. But that is another topic for another time.