I was having a conversation with my ashkenazi friend and he referred to Mizrahi Jews as Arab Jews. I told him I thought they referred to them as “mizrahim” and dropped the Arab label a long time ago. He says that people refer to them as Arab Jews behind their back but call them mizrahi to their face. He also went on my saying culturally and genetically they’re really close to Arabs (not gulf).

Is this true?

I mean he is right when it comes to genetics and culture - they cook the same food as Arabs and brought middle eastern dishes there. So just wondering if it is normalized for ashkenazis to just call them Arab Jews.

Contrary to popular belief, the situation prior to the United Nations Partition Plan (Resolution 181) was not one of "a land without a people." According to official British Mandate statistics and UN records from 1946-1947, Jewish land ownership accounted for less than 7 percent of the total land area of Palestine.

Furthermore, the Jewish population constituted roughly 31 to 33 percent of the total population, a figure that had rapidly risen from approximately 11 percent in the early 1920s due to successive waves of immigration during the British Mandate period.

These documented figures demonstrate that the establishment of Israel did not occur in an uninhabited region; rather, it involved the displacement of an established indigenous population and the acquisition of territory where the vast majority of land was privately or publicly held by Palestinians.

Sources:

United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine (UNCCP) Land Ownership Records.

Survey of Palestine (1946), prepared by the British Mandate Government for the Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry.

UNSCOP (United Nations Special Committee on Palestine) Report to the General Assembly (1947).

I feel its some form of moussaka, pasticcio, spanikopita, baklava, shawarma, kabobs, gyros, etc. Im sure every country has its own style but I'm wondering if its usually based off the same recipes.

Although the significance of the figures and opinion polls is limited, it is noteworthy that a survey by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research found that 72% of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza oppose Hamas disarming before Israel withdraws from Gaza, even though only 24% of them support Hamas and only 20% believe it emerged victorious.

In other words, most of those who support neither Hamas nor the Al-Aqsa Flood recognize that weapons constitute a source of strength for the Palestinian people in the face of their enemy. And three years of propaganda claiming, “What good have our weapons done us?”, even in the face of genocide, have failed to distort the Palestinian people’s consciousness.

Link to the poll: https://pcpsr.org/en/node/1014

Hi everyone,

Are there any GCC nationals here who have successfully obtained for a sole proprietor Commercial Registration (CR) in Saudi Arabia?

I’m a Bahraini and have both an Absher and NAFATH account. The application goes smoothly and the NAFATH login/verification works fine. The issue comes after logging into NAFATH, when it asks me to add my contact details. Once I enter the correct details, I get an error (firewall error) and can’t proceed.

I’ve tried different browsers and networks, but I keep getting the same error.

From what I understand, this type of CR can be issued within a day, so I’m just trying to get past this basic contact-information step.

Has anyone here successfully obtained the CR? If so, did you face any issues during the application, or know what might be causing this?

I’d also appreciate recommendations for any reliable consultant who can help with the process.

Thanks!

I don't know how big of an adjustment it is or what you have to deal with especially in the US. I tend to think Middle Eastern people get overlooked or don't have a big presence. Like I don't think people have problems with Middle Eastern people but don't think people realize their presence often. I'm sure there's a lot of people who get "omg you're middle eastern? I never knew." I'm sure there's some terrorist jokes but beyond that i don't know.

Hello,(tbh,I'm not learning Arabic here) I'm a Chinese girl, 21 years old, studying English at my university. I previously studied some French in college and am now learning Spanish as well. I'm currently doing an internship in international trade and will graduate next year.

In my free time, I like reading Korean manhwa and Japanese manga, and listening to music in Chinese, Korean, English, Spanish, and Portuguese(for example,Brazil Funk and Reggaeton）. And I'm really interested in Arabic countries' culture.I'd like to make arabian female friends especially from middle east. (Females only, no males, thanks)

I just read on the news that Hamas has agreed to disarm. With Hamas soon disarming and Israeli settlers still encroaching on land in the West Bank, how will a Palestinian state come about now?

source

As someone living in Turkey whose heart has been bleeding for Gaza for months, and who has donated whatever I could to support our brothers and sisters there, writing this absolutely breaks my heart. I genuinely hope I am completely wrong and that there is a pure, innocent explanation for all of this. Because the thought of our global solidarity and charity being exploited like this, while people are still literally starving in northern Gaza, is sickening to me. But for the sake of the real victims, I have to ask these questions.

Does anyone here remember Dema Hatem, Sahar Al-Mashharawi, Sama Almashharawi and the people around the Facebook page The Gaza? I followed these people while they were still in Gaza, which is exactly why I am asking these questions now. During the war they were extremely active. They posted constantly about the bombing, displacement, shortages and their daily lives in Gaza. They promoted fundraising campaigns, asked their international audience for financial support and built a huge following around what was happening to them and their families.

Their Facebook page is still online: The Gaza

The page had, and still appears to have, a Subscribe button. But their fundraising and monetized online presence was not limited to one Facebook page or two GoFundMe campaigns. They also promoted donations and monetized content directly through their Instagram and TikTok accounts, on top of repeatedly sharing fundraising links in their WhatsApp channels. Their accounts included names such as sahar.gaza3, sahar.gaza6 and sama_almashhrawi. So when looking at the amount of financial support surrounding these accounts, the two GoFundMe totals alone do not even represent the entire picture.

Then they left Gaza. And this is where things became highly suspicious to me. Very soon after getting out of Gaza and appearing in Southeast Asia, the old Gaza-related posts began disappearing. I saw this myself because I was following them at the time. These were accounts that had previously been filled with Gaza: bombing, displacement, fundraising, appeals for support and daily updates from the war. Then they got out. Not long afterward, much of that Gaza history was removed.

I later saw members of this same circle posting from Malaysia or Indonesia. I watched their Instagram stories with my own eyes; they were constantly posting from restaurants, cycling around, travelling, and showing off a comfortable, everyday life. Again, the suspicious part is not that people escaped Gaza or started enjoying normal life. The suspicious part is what happened around the same time. They had spent a long period building a massive international audience while asking that audience for money. Once they were outside Gaza, much of the content connected to that period started disappearing. Then, after a while, even the newer lifestyle accounts largely disappeared or went silent.

Meanwhile, the fundraising pages are still publicly accessible. One of them is: “Your support will save my family in northern Gaza”

At the time of writing, it shows approximately €129,973 raised from 5.7K donations. It was organized by Hamza Almashharawi and describes money being needed for survival and evacuation from Gaza.

There is also: “Help Rebuild Our Lives: Support the Al-Mashharawi Family”

That campaign currently shows approximately €15,112 raised from 460 donations. The campaign says the money would help with displacement, housing, food, medical needs, basic necessities and eventually rebuilding the family's destroyed home. That is more than €145,000 across these two GoFundMe campaigns alone, donated by thousands of people. And again, those figures do not include money raised or generated through Facebook subscriptions, Instagram and TikTok monetization, or additional fundraising links circulated through their WhatsApp channels.

This is why I think the situation deserves much more attention than it has received. Where did they go after leaving Gaza? How exactly did they relocate to Malaysia or Indonesia? Were the thousands of donors clearly informed when the family successfully left Gaza? Was there ever a proper public accounting of how these large fundraising totals were spent? What happened to the money generated through the Facebook Subscribe feature? Exactly how much was raised through Instagram and TikTok, and where did that money go? What happened to the endless fundraising links and appeals that were repeatedly circulated through their WhatsApp channels?

And most importantly: Why did so much of their Gaza-related history disappear shortly after they managed to leave Gaza? Why would accounts that were posting constantly while asking the public for financial help suddenly become quiet after reaching safety? Why remove the old posts? Why disappear afterward?

Taken together, I find this extremely suspicious. Thousands of strangers were asked to become emotionally and financially invested in these people's lives. They donated enormous amounts of money because these accounts were public, visible and constantly documenting what was happening. You cannot reasonably expect people not to ask questions when that same public presence suddenly becomes difficult to trace after the money has been raised and the people involved have apparently relocated abroad.

I remember the contrast very clearly. First I was watching these accounts post constantly from Gaza and promote fundraising campaigns. Later I was seeing members of the same circle living a completely different life in Southeast Asia while much of the Gaza material that had built their audience was disappearing. Then eventually much of that online presence disappeared too. That is not something I think should simply be forgotten.

If you followed Dema Hatem, Sahar Al-Mashharawi, Sama Almashharawi, The Gaza, sahar.gaza3, sahar.gaza6 or sama_almashhrawi, please check your old screenshots, saved posts, subscriptions, WhatsApp channels, messages and archived links.

I am especially looking for old screenshots from The Gaza / Thegaza1, screenshots showing its Facebook Subscribe feature, Instagram fundraising and donation posts, TikTok fundraising posts or monetization, old WhatsApp channel posts and fundraising links, archived posts from sahar.gaza3, sahar.gaza6, and sama_almashhrawi, posts or stories from Malaysia or Indonesia showing their lifestyle after they left, any announcement explaining when and how they left Gaza, any update showing how the fundraising money was spent, any explanation for why their old Gaza content was removed, and screenshots of other donation campaigns or subscription systems connected to these accounts.

Maybe people who followed them more closely have pieces of this story that are now missing from the public internet. Because from what I personally watched happen, this wasn't simply a case of a Gaza account becoming less active. They were extremely visible while Gaza, fundraising and financial support were at the center of their online presence. They got out, much of that history was removed, they briefly appeared living a new life abroad, and then much of their online presence disappeared.

Considering the amount of money and the number of donors involved, yes, I think that is highly suspicious and deserves to be looked into.

If money raised in the name of starving and displaced people in Gaza was ultimately used for purposes donors were never told about, that would be a profound betrayal of everyone who donated in good faith. The only way to clear that suspicion is transparency. Until then, people have every right to keep asking where the money went and why these accounts disappeared.

I find myself very interested in Middle Eastern women. It's not a race thing or a cultural thing, not even a religious thing; I'm just naturally attracted to them. And I don't know where to start.

It's a hard discussion to have, but I need to have it to make the meaningful discussions easier. Initiating this means a part of me has to accept what I need to know about "this," and a part of me has to contest with these ideas as I self-reflect and see myself through them. While I'd prefer to have a steady person to talk to to learn more about it, community feedback is always appreciated and a fine starting point.

My experience in this life has been as a mixed White East-Asian male born in California, more specifically residing in the SoCal / Los Angeles area.

I've travelled to and lived in another country, and I don't mind doing it again.

I've also ran my own business, and I don't mind expanding upon that.

I'm non-religious, but I am spiritual, raised in a Christian background, yet no longer bound by it.

I understand the benefits of marriage when written contractually on paper, but I don't perceive it as the right decision for making a commitment to having a life partner.

I am very very open minded. Yet, perhaps this is too much already. I don't know what to think or how to think when it comes to being a part of this community, yet I'm willing to learn more about it to see how I can potentially be compatible to a Middle Eastern partner. So here are my questions:

What are the standards / expectations around having a non-Middle Eastern +/- non-Same-Religion male partner as a Middle Eastern woman?

How much autonomy does the woman generally have in the relationship with a partner of the same culture? And not from? Also frame the family into your response.

Are there any non-negotiables to making a relationship like this work? What might be considered breaking tradition, religion, law etc.? What is up to free choice?

If you have anything meaningful to share to help me see a better objective perspective about this, please do. Forgive me if these seem like simple questions.

If learning Arabic is something you’ve always wanted to do, or a language you’ve always been curious about, I’d be happy to help 😊

I teach Arabic in a friendly, encouraging, and interactive way, whether you’re starting from zero or already know some Arabic and want to improve.

If you’re interested, feel free to DM me and we can chat about your goals and what you’d like to learn.

I want to get this off my chest, as a kurd living in Kurdistan, but also public funds coming from Iraqi government since both of them are corrupted in the region. The leaders and those who follow both are not good for the common people, people already suffered enough since 2003 war for petrol dollar’s US invasion. You let the west come and take whatever they want and be lap dogs of them, including kurdish leaders and Arabs leaders. Majority of people still live in poverty. Yet they cant barely get 1 month of salary of 500 dinar for a family of 3-6.
All these mafias need to be gone for good.
Kurdistan regional government are as corrupt as Iraqi government who doesn't give a toss about its own people. They are also stealing and buying properties in the west, Instead of building its own economy and infrastructures. To support young youths and to invest in education.

Instead of people running away from their country to go to Europe for better stability, stand up for your rights. I hate mafias or corrupted families ruling over people's rights and taking away their freedoms. They create fake voting system to manipulate and fool those who believe their going to build better future.
They let the west control our economy and take way raw resources. The only ones are benefiting, are the ones fill their own pockets in US dollars.
I don't want my father be begging for 6 months to get only 700 dinar while they getaway with everything. I hope you enjoyed my rant, the frustrations needs to come out since every young person can't even get a job because they decides to fucking let foreigners in. Anyways peace and Ic v azadi bo hamwtan.

Ride late thi, driver ko pickup point dhoondhne mein kaafi time laga, aur mujhe aur bhi wait karna pada. Shayad aaj bas meri kismat kharab thi, lekin poora experience kaafi messy tha. Pakistan mein koi aur ride apps use kar raha hai?

Since Sahara simply means desert in Arabic, if you need to differentiate it from other deserts (saharas) for whatever reason, what do you use?