Brought to Ruin

2021 ◽  
pp. 113-161
Author(s):  
Sarah C. Schaefer
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Scientific Investigations ◽  
New Approaches ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Biblical Archaeology ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Biblical Sources ◽  
Archaeological Excavations

Chapter 3 examines the impact of biblical archaeology on the production and reception of the Doré Bible, arguing that the recuperations of historical fragments are consistent with broader societal anxieties. Questions surrounding the Bible’s historical credibility (propelled by Enlightenment rationalism) prompted new, ostensibly scientific investigations of biblical sources and sites. Archaeological excavations in the Middle East and North Africa revealed fragments of ancient pasts that engendered new approaches to the representation of biblical subjects. These fragments, the often problematic manner in which they were appropriated into Doré’s illustrations, and the popular reception of the images reveal a distinct anxiety about the narratives of biblical civilizations and what they presage about the present and future. The illustrations speak to the circumstances of French interests and the status of the nation in an era wrought by repeated revolutions that seemed as potentially catastrophic as the events of the Bible.

Endangers culture heritage

2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 476-494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laila Hussein Moustafa
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Disaster Planning ◽  
Disaster Plan ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Management Plans ◽  
Culture Heritage ◽  
The Status ◽  
National Libraries ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a survey sent to librarians and archivists in national and academic libraries in the Middle East and North Africa and the results of eight in-person interviews about the status and content of wartime disaster management plans in their institutions. Based on the research and analysis it presents, the paper concludes that the majority of the region’s libraries and archives either lack or have insufficient plans in place and stresses the need to establish and implement protocols for the protection and preservation of their priceless holdings. In addition to analysis the paper offers some recommendations for overcoming the impact of future disasters on the holdings of these libraries. Design/methodology/approach – The research is based on survey and interviews that was done with librarians, archives, managers from the Middle East. Findings – The paper presented the result of trying to find if libraries, and archives has disaster planning or no. Most of the libraries do not have a disaster plan and maybe do not even know what it means. Research limitations/implications – The research is covering some of the libraries in the Middle East and it was meant to be send to every library and archive but at least to the national libraries of each country in the Middle East. Social implications – Disaster planning is very needed to protect any people culture heritage and not having one in spite all the wars and damaged of libraries is something the author’s research addressed. Originality/value – No one has written about this topic, and the author’s first paper was the scan of literature review of all what was written about disaster planning in a time of war. As a result of not finding anyone who wrote about that topic, the author decided to conduct the survey and the interview to find out if there is a plan or no. The author’s work is original and very important to help in preserving the world heritage in the Middle East.

The Impact Of Financial Sector Development On Economic Growth In The Middle East And North Africa

2019 ◽  
pp. 81
Author(s):  
محمد سعيد محمود بللور ◽  
عامر عبدالفتاح زكريا باكير
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Middle East ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Financial Sector ◽  
Financial Sector Development ◽  
The Impact

THE DEVELOPMENT OF TAXATION IN THE BIBLE: IMPROVEMENTS IN COUNTING, MEASUREMENT, AND COMPUTATION IN THE ANCIENT MIDDLE EAST

1998 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 63-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel L. Jose ◽  
Charles K. Moore
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Historical Development ◽  
Income Taxes ◽  
Property Taxes ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Indirect Taxes ◽  
Special Assessment ◽  
The Impact

This paper traces the development of five taxation types in the Bible — income taxes, property taxes, special assessment taxes, poll taxes (all direct taxes), and indirect taxes. The development of these taxes is discussed within the context of Israel's historical development. The impact of counting, measurement, and computation on the development of taxation is also considered.

Biblical Interpretation in the Majority World

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. K. Yeo
Keyword(s):  
Biblical Interpretation ◽  
National Identities ◽  
Human Flourishing ◽  
New Approaches ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Majority World ◽  
Multiple Contexts ◽  
Spirit World ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Bible Reading

This chapter challenges the ‘received’ view that traces the expansion of the dominant theologies of the European and North American colonial powers and their missionaries into the Majority World. When they arrived, these Westerners found ancient Christian traditions and pre-existing spiritualities, linguistic and cultural forms, which questioned their Eurocentric presumptions, and energized new approaches to interpreting the sacred texts of Christianity. The emergence of ‘creative tensions’ in global encounters are a mechanism for expressing (D)issent against attempts to close down or normalize local Bible-reading traditions. This chapter points to the elements which establish a creative tension between indigenizing Majority World approaches to the Bible and those described in the ‘orthodox’ narrative, including: self-theologizing and communal readings; concepts of the Spirit world and human flourishing; the impact of multiple contexts, vernacular languages, sociopolitical and ethno-national identities, and power/marginalization structures; and ‘framing’ public and ecological issues.

scholarly journals Influence of COVID-19 on lifestyle behaviors in the Middle East and North Africa Region: a survey of 5896 individuals

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Abouzid ◽  
◽  
Dina M. El-Sherif ◽  
Nael Kamel Eltewacy ◽  
Nesrine Ben Hadj Dahman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Food Consumption ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Fast Food ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Eating Habits ◽  
Lifestyle Behaviors ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has affected health and lifestyle behaviors of people globally. This project aims to identify the impact of COVID-19 on lifestyle behavior of individuals in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region during confinement. Methods We conducted an online survey in 17 countries (Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Yemen, Syria, Palestine, Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia, Iraq, and Sudan) from the MENA region on August and September 2020. The questionnaire included self-reported information on lifestyle behaviors, including physical activity, eating habits, smoking, watching television, social media use and sleep before and during the pandemic. Logistic regression was performed to analyze the impact of COVID-19 on lifestyle behaviors. Results A total of 5896 participants were included in the final analysis and 62.8% were females. The BMI of the participants was 25.4 ± 5.8 kg/m2. Around 38.4% of the participants stopped practicing any physical activities during the confinement (P < 0.001), and 57.1% reported spending more than 2 h on social media (P < 0.001). There were no significant changes in smoking habits. Also, 30.9% reported an improvement in their eating habits compared with 24.8% reported worsening of their eating habits. Fast-food consumption decreased significantly in 48.8% of the study population. This direct/indirect exposure to COVID-19 was associated with an increased consumption of carbohydrates (OR = 1.09; 95% CI = 1.02–1.17; P = 0.01), egg (OR = 1.08; 95% CI = 1.02–1.16; P = 0.01), sugar (OR = 1.09; 95% CI = 1.02–1.16; P = 0.02), meat, and poultry (OR = 1.13; 95% CI = 1.06–1.20; P < 0.01). There was also associated increase in hours spent on watching television (OR = 1.07; 95% CI = 1.02–1.12; P < 0.01) and social media (OR = 1.09; 95% CI = 1.01–1.18; P = 0.03). However, our results showed a reduction in sleeping hours among those exposed to COVID-19 infection (OR = 0.85; 95% CI = 0.77–0.94; P < 0.01). Conclusions The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with an increase in food consumption and sedentary life. Being exposed to COVID-19 by direct infection or through an infected household is a significant predictor of amplifying these changes. Public health interventions are needed to address healthy lifestyle behaviors during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Whose risk? Bank de-risking and the politics of interpretation and vulnerability in the Middle East and North Africa

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Sherine El Taraboulsi-McCarthy
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Money Laundering ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Politics Of Interpretation

Abstract Following the events of 11 September 2001, measures aimed at countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) were intensified by States. Many countries around the world adopted strict anti-money laundering and CFT regulations for the transfer of funds globally. This process increased the costs of complying with regulatory requirements and imposed high penalties on banks for non-compliance. As a result, preventive measures – often known as “de-risking” – were taken up by banks, including terminating the accounts of clients perceived as “high-risk” for money laundering or terrorist financing, and delaying transfers. These measures, however, have had negative consequences, reducing financial access for local civil society organizations in conflict-affected contexts that are deemed high-risk for terrorist activities. Drawing on five years of research to understand the impact of de-risking on conflict-affected contexts from a local perspective, this paper reflects on the local political economy of CFT, with a focus on the Middle East and North Africa. It explores two key areas of inquiry. The first of these is the politics of interpretation – how counterterrorism as a discourse and a set of practices, of which CFT is one, gets interpreted by local authorities and banks, and subsequently gets reinterpreted to the population. This also has implications for which local actors are better positioned to access funds than others, and why. The second area of inquiry is the politics of vulnerability – how the local political economy impact of CFT can increase the social and economic vulnerabilities of some groups more than others. This paper demonstrates that under the guise of “counterterrorism”, local authorities in conflict-affected contexts have used CFT to restrict the non-profit and philanthropic space and are using banking regulations to shape that space in ways that are bound to have negative medium- and long-term implications for it.

The meta-geography of the Middle East and North Africa in Turkey’s new geopolitical imagination

2013 ◽  
Vol 44 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 431-448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aylin Güney ◽  
Nazif Mandacı
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Arab Spring ◽  
Critical Geopolitics ◽  
Syrian Crisis ◽  
Security Practices ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Arab Spring ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Geopolitical Imaginations

This article critically analyses Turkish security discourses connected to the meta-geography of the Broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA) before and after the developments of the Arab Spring. A critical geopolitics approach and critical security theories in international relations provide the theoretical framework, as security discourses are considered to be a product of geopolitical imaginations and codes that, in turn, shape the making of foreign and security policies. First, the article examines the invention of BMENA as a meta-geography within Turkey’s new geopolitical imagination, as well as the new geopolitical codes underlying the new security discourses. Then, the article assesses the impact of the Arab Spring, which led to major changes in Turkey’s newly established geopolitical codes, formulated in the pre-Arab Spring period, and analyses the ruptures and continuities in Turkey’s security discourses in the light of those developments. Finally, the article concludes that the Arab Spring, especially the Syrian crisis, shifted the focus of Turkey’s foreign policy in BMENA from cooperation to conflict. This has led to a resecuritization of Turkey’s geopolitical codes, discourses and security practices in the region, revealing the limitation of Turkey’s current geopolitical imagination.

IDPs and refugees in the OSCE area

2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-125
Author(s):  
Volker Türk
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
United Nations ◽  
North Africa ◽  
50Th Anniversary ◽  
Internally Displaced Persons ◽  
60Th Anniversary ◽  
Internally Displaced ◽  
United Nations High Commissioner ◽  
High Commissioner ◽  
The Status

AbstractThis year marks the 60th anniversary of the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 50th anniversary of the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. And yet there are almost 5 million refugees and internally displaced persons in the OSCE area. The crisis in North Africa and the Middle East is creating a vast new displacement challenge, including for OSCE participating States. What are the legal and policy gaps in terms of protection? And what steps are the OSCE and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) taking to tackle the problem of IDPs, refugees and statelessness in the OSCE?

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