Podcasts about Tunisian

On this episode of Select, we have an eclectic b2b set from Tunisia's budding selectors formiq and Belgaida, who are the co-founders of the mix series Unspoken Sessions –a platform that serves as an outlet for rising regional DJs to showcase their unspoken tastes beyond the packed dancefloor and club environment. Recorded at the 13th edition of the Tunisian electronic festival Fabrika, the set is an improvised ambient mix with sustained mellow synth notes that journey through different corners of the electronic spectrum, where genres blur into one cohesive sound that feels evermore cinematic and dreamy.

Back Home, One week later.By FinalStand. Listen to the Podcast at Explicit Novels.There is something worse than waking up and not knowing where you are: you could wake up and not know who you are.Note: World Events Stuff ~ aka Why things are happening in Cáel's lifeThe phone was from Iskender. His boss, Oyuun Tömörbaatar (OT), the former UN ambassador from Kazakhstan and now the informal and unrecognized UN representative and chief diplomat of the Khanate to the same august body, wanted to talk with me, immediately. OT wasn't being diplomatic at the moment, that would come later.{Now this is going to get convoluted}Any inquiries to the Khanate that didn't also include immediate official recognition of the Khanate currently were being steered my (and Hana's) way. For all the behind closed doors crap, he had me, his loyal ass-monkey mutton-head. I held faint hope that this latest meeting would work out to my benefit. For the meeting, I traveled light, only Naomi (the Amazon) and Chaz (British SRR) watched over me.Now fathers who know me, hide their daughters. I'd earned my 'scoundrel' reputation. T. Sarangerel, OT's daughter, was in the room when Iskender ushered me in. She gave me an uncertain look, I shrugged and she smiled. It took me 3 nano seconds to figure that out, OT was scoping me out as a potential son-in-law. I was in Temujin's Inner Circle and a man who he trusted (a rarity). Any union with me would strengthen OT's clan's standing in the new regime.The genetic footprint Temujin, and his immediate family collectively, had put down in the 13th and 14th centuries CE today was vast. He needed that to make his plans for the internal reorganization of the Khanate work. The old republics would go away, to be replaced by a system akin to the Byzantine 'themes, the re-organization of regions based on the recruitment of the Tumens.The Khanate was aiming for an 'Autocratic Republic' ~ a term invented in the 19th century. My use of this terminology was based on my gut instinct, Alal's host of memories involving every form of governance, and my experience with human nature. That clued me in to what Temujin was up to, his Greater Plan. He wasn't going to form a false-front government. He was going to retain the decision-making powers and do so openly, thus 'Autocratic'.He also planned to have a bicameral legislative branch. The Upper House would be based in Tumens and bureaucratic leadership, intellectual standing, religious sects, and tribal entities. This body would be based on merit, not primogeniture. The Lower, main chamber, would be a democratically-elected assembly (aka a democratic republic) that advised him on policy matters, thus 'Republic'.All the power would remain in the Great Khan's hands and would be exercised by his genetic descendants (which some geneticists estimated as being as high as 25% of the Central Asian population.) Marrying into that extended family would be easy, the 'family' itself would have a vested interesting in supporting a state that benefited them.Men and women could exercise power in the government through marriage alliances, identical to the manner Hana was working through me. Being surrounded by very populous countries in various states of belligerence, empowering women wouldn't be an issue since every willing mind and pair of hands mattered. Outsiders who shone through could be offered a spouse and brought into the ruling elite since polygamy was permissible.In the Khanate there would be universal compulsive suffrage (everyone 18+ was legally required to vote) to decide on the representatives in the new legislative body. Everyone was expected to fight, so everyone voted. It would be modeled on the Duma of early 20th century Imperial Russia. Unlike the ill-fated Tsar Nicholas II, Temujin would be much more attentive to the voice of the people, in the Information Age, he had to.Or so I hoped. I spewed forth my ideas to OT who didn't agree, or disagree with my vision. Perhaps Temujin and I did share a bond that went beyond obligation. OT then pulled a 'Pamela'."He told me he knew immediately you were his brother when you and I shared that vision," he commented out of nowhere."His words: You (Earth and Sky) are the old. He (meaning me) is the new. He (me again) will show us the way." My, that was nice, obtuse and not at all helpful. What did OT want? My good buddy, the Great Khan, wanted to cash in on Hana's and my sudden popularity. His most pressing need remained 'time'. He needed to have a cease-fire in the wings when his offensive resumed the next day.The Earth and Sky had moved, well, the Heaven and Earth to get the Tumens and their accompanying national armies up and running after only a two day respite. Thanks to me, Manchuria was a mess. The Russians had carried out my 'Operation: Funhouse' with mixed, mostly positive results.Dozens of smaller Chinese military police units along the border went, 'inactive' was the term most often used in the media. They didn't disarm, yet they didn't fight the Russians either. They sat back and let events unfold. The issue wasn't the Chinese's willingness to fight and die for their country. It was the schizophrenic government in Beijing.The PRC didn't want to wage a war with the Russian Federation at that moment. The Khanate was the priority. There were two fundamentally incompatible courses of action favored for dealing with the Russians:One large group advocated a passive Option A: let the Russians step in and shield the three remaining provinces making up Manchuria that were still in Chinese possession. Later, China would use military, economic and political means to edge the Russians out, once the Khanate was dealt with.A sizable faction favored a more aggressive Option B: play a game of chicken with Vladimir Putin. Tell the Bear not to come across the border while threatening him with a bloody and pointless (for him) guerilla war if he did intervene. Events on the ground were not providing a lot of support for that school of thought,However, this split at the highest levels of leadership left the local and regional commanders to try and muddle through as best they could. To the local commanders defending the Amur River side of the Chinese-Russian border, common sense dictated that they not oppose the Russian crossings, because the Russian 35th Army would kill them.All their military units had gone west to the Nen River line. With no heavy weapons and little air support, the People's Armed Police (PAP) (paramilitary) and the Public Security Bureau (regular police) units would be wiped out for little gain.Russia's GRU (Military Intelligence) sweetened the pot by allowing the police units to remain armed and in formation. It could be argued that they weren't even committing treason. At any time, they could throw themselves into the battle, or form the core of a resistance movement. 'Conserving your strength' had been a hallmark of the Communist Chinese struggle against the Imperial Japanese and Nationalists forces from the 1920's until 1945 and it had served them well.For the party officials, civil authorities and the People's Liberation Army (PLA), Army Air Force (PLAAF), and Army Navy (PLAN) who had gone with Option B, things weren't working out. In the north of Heilongjiang province at Morin Dawa/the Nen River line, the regional commander of the ad hoc forces facing the Khanate decided to duke it out with the Russian 36th Army as well. He was boned from the get-go.The PLAAF's overall command and control had been badly disrupted in the first few hours of The Unification War and had never fully recovered. Of the 22 air regiments that the PLAAF had started the war with in the Shenyang Military District (NE China), only 5 remained as effective formations flying, on average, a meager 20% of their original complement of advanced Shenyang J-16's, J-11's, Chengdu J-10's and Xian JH-7's aircraft.Replacing their aircraft losses meant sending up aged Shenyang J-8's (rolled out in 1980) and Nanchang Q-5's (in 1970) to fly and die in droves fighting their technologically superior Khanate foes. To add insult to injury, China's fleet of 97 Su-30MKK/MK2's (built in Russia) had suffered numerous suspicious mechanical and electronic failures, rendering them either flying coffins, or space holders in bomb-proof shelters.Furthermore, of the forces arrayed in the far north, only two of the five air regiments were responding. Two of the other three had begun displacing south into the Beijing Military District and preparing to defend the capital city. The fifth formation had another problem, North Korea (, more on that later.)In opposition to those two Chinese air regiments (roughly 60 aircraft of mixed types) stood seven complete and fresh Russian air regiments (over 400 front-line aircraft) and that didn't include the regiment and elements of the Far East Naval Aviation which was ALSO watching North Korea (, again more on that later.) The latter was of small comfort to the forces trying to hold the already compromised Nen River line.Behind those valiant troops, along the much more defensible Amur River line, the commander of the key city of Heihe sided with the Option A group and let the Russian 35th Army cross the river unopposed. By the time the PLA commanding general of the 'Nen Force' (the 69th Motorized Division and the subordinate 7th Reserve Division) figured that out, he was already in a shooting war with the Russians. So his supply lines weren't in danger, they were lost.The final indignity took place at Zalantun. The commander of the 3rd Reserve Div. had died during the attempt to recapture Zalantun. His replacement died when his helicopter was shot down as he was coming to assume command. In the absence of these officers, the divisional chief of staff told his men, including two hastily hustled forward mechanized brigades, to put down their arms. That meant 'Nen Force' was completely cut-off and surrounded.One battalion of the 36th Russian Motorized Brigade (yes, too many 36's running around) disarmed the Chinese troops while the rest, plus the 74th Independent Motorized Brigade raced for the prize, the city of Qiqihar. The last major mechanized formation of the 36th Rus. Army, the 39th MB was following them. However, instead of manning Qiqihar's defenses, the Chinese garrison in that city was waging war on its own populace.It wasn't only in Qiqihar; chaos reigned throughout Heilongjiang province. The Provincial Head of the Communist Party, Wang Xiankui, supported Option A. The Provincial Governor, Lu Hao, went with Option B. Both figures were rising stars in the PRC. Wang had ordered the still forming Reserve Divisions and the PAP units to disperse, thus avoiding any untimely confrontations with the Russians.Lu, without consulting Wang, ordered the same forces to launch a violent crackdown on all dissident forces, specifically all racial minorities. (It turned out that Lu was also a member of the Seven Pillars and his witch-hunt was aimed at getting the Earth and Sky organization operating in Heilongjiang).For the men and women on the other end of those phone conversations, there was no 'right' answer. Lest we forget, their organizations were already degraded by the Anthrax outbreak. Both men were powerful and represented China's future leadership, so if the person in charge at the ground level obeyed the wrong one, they could be assured of being roasted by the other.Some did try to do both, repress and disband at the same time. That meant that in the process of making mass arrests among an already war-fearful and plague-fearful populace, the law enforcement infrastructure began disintegrating.The problem with Lu's/7P's plan was that there was no 'revolutionary' organization to round up. That wasn't how the Earth and Sky operated in North-East China. They remained in tiny sabotage and reconnaissance cells. While they were scurrying for cover from the police crackdown, an opportunity presented itself.The afflicted minorities were getting furious with their treatment. These minorities saw themselves as loyal Chinese, yet they were being dragged out into the streets, put in detentions centers and (in a few cases) summarily executed. Being less than 10% of the overall population, resistance had never crossed their minds. It seemed all that those defenseless people could do was pray for Russian intervention forces to arrive.Within that mix of fear, betrayal and rage, the E and S discovered a way to start the dominos falling. The small, well-armed and well-trained E and S cells began ambushing police detachments. Weapons from those dead men and women were turned over to the pissed off locals before the cell went off to stalk the next police unit.Wash, rinse and repeat. It became a perverse and bloody case of wish fulfillment. Lu and the 7P's had been looking for an insurrection and they started one. Even though a miniscule portion of the population was involved, from the outside looking in, it reinforced the Putin Public Affairs initiative that portrayed Putin (and his army) as coming in to restore order to a collapsing civil system, which he was helping disrupt.From Moscow, the PRC's indecisiveness looked like Manna from Heaven. For the massive numbers of Russian soldiers riding through the Manchurian countryside, it felt like they were rolling into Arkham Asylum. Unlike the NATO countries' professional armies, Russia remained a largely conscript force whose normal term of service was only one year. These unseasoned troops could never tell if the local military, military police and police would attack until they rolled up on the Chinese units.At the start of that Day One of Operation: Funhouse, the Russian ROE (Rules of Engagement) was 'Ask and Verify'. It was tactically advantageous for the belligerent Chinese forces to lie about their intentions, then begin shooting at the Russians when they got close enough to hurt them. By Day Two, the standard front-line Russian soldier had adjusted that ROE to 'if they look at us wrong, light their asses up'. By Day Three, the officers had stopped trying to enforce Moscow's ROE orders.That was fine for the combat and rear echelon support troops because both the Chinese and Russian governments had another series of problems and they all centered around Pyongyang and Kim Jong-un's declaration that North Korea would intervene as well, without letting anyone know who he was 'intervening' against. To keep everyone guessing, the North Korean' People's Army was massing on all three borders, facing off with the PRC, Russia and South Korea. To prove his diplomatic intentions, Kim pledged to only mobilize half of his reserves, merely 4,250,000 extra men and women to go with his 950,000 strong standing army.It didn't take a military, or economic genius to realize the North Korean's chronically 'near death' economy was stampeding off a cliff. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) was in the middle of an oil crisis and Kim was increasing their fuel consumption by 400% while decreasing his workforce by 10%. To put it in perspective, the US unemployment was around 6%. Now imagine that in one week's time it would become 26%. One week, no severance packages. Would the population become unsettled?But wait, it gets better. The Secret War was colliding with the Real World in more places than Manchuria. Setting aside the assassination attempt (Grrr) of Hana Sulkanen, my fiancée, six Nipponese elders (two women and four men) appeared in the personal quarters of the Japanese Prime Minister on the first full night of 'Funhouse' and relayed their urgent requests.Those six were the Head of the Six (formerly Seven) Ninja Families and they were there at, my urging. Cause I'm an idiot and requiring the deaths of Romanians in my personal crusade obviously wasn't enough. Now I was asking the Japanese Defense Forces (JDF) to pony up as well. So take a deep breath and put on the hip-waders.You might be wondering why I would want the JDF, see, there was part of Operation: Funhouse that was hitting a predictable snag, namely the Korea People's Navy Force (KPNF) and the uncertain determination of the PLAN:The KPNF's vessels were rather old, small and crappy. They also had a love affair with anything that could launch a torpedo and they listed over 700 of these floating deathtraps (only 13 of which could be classified as surface warships) and the fanatical crews to take them into battle.The PLAN's numbers were far more realistic and the fleet generally more modern. Only their North (18 surface warships) and East Fleets (22 plus 5 'elsewhere') could play any role in an upcoming FUBAR, and both fleets were heading out to sea, mainly to avoid the sporadic, but increasingly effective Khanate air strikes.The FU to be BAR'ed was the Russian Far East Fleet (RFEF) (6 warships strong, ) that had seized on this crazy idea (per my suggestion) to sail south, around the Korean peninsula so they could land elements of the 55th Guards Red Banner Marine Brigade (the 165th Marine Regiment and the 180th Marine Tank Battalion).Theoretically they were going to be the 'Southern Shielding Force' that would interpose itself between the Khanate and Beijing. It should surprise no one that the RFEF's flotilla was unequal to the task of taking their destination, the port of Qinhuangdao, by amphibious assault. Fortunately for the Gods of War (which did not include me), there were five other navies involved.Meanwhile, South Korea was having kittens because their always crazy northern kin were slathering on the insanity. (In how many Buddhist countries do people flock to the temples and pray that their neighbor attacks someone, anyone else, but them? That wasn't a religious conundrum I wanted to deal with.) N.Korea mobilizing meant S.Korea had to mobilize, which sucked down on their GNP as well.Besides, N.Korean dams and coal-powered plants kept the lights on in Seoul. Erring on the side of caution, the S. Korea (aka Republic of Korea, ROK) Army suggested calling up only one million of their three million person reserve force in order to assure Cousin Kim that this was a purely defensive gesture. It didn't work. Kim Jong-un castigated the ROK for antagonizing him, despite his declaration that he 'might' feel like invading the South in the immediate future.Into the emerging crisis, the ROK Navy could sortie nineteen small surface ships. Japan's Navy wasn't up to its old imperial standards, but could still deploy 45 surface warships. The 800 lb. gorilla in the room was the core of the 7th Fleet stationed at Yokosuka, Japan, the USS carrier George Washington and her 14 escort vessels.If the George Washington was the gorilla, RIMPAC 2014 was King Kong. 22 nations, 50 ships, including the USS carrier Ronald Reagan were engaged in war games in the Central Pacific. With them were 5 vessels of the PLAN, had Kim Jong-un just kept his mouth shut, this wouldn't have been an issue. Hell, if the Khanate had not come into existence and launched its Unification War, but he had and they did,To show the US was taking this escalation seriously (without tipping their hand that they knew about Funhouse, Carrier Strike Group One (CSG 1) (the Carl Vinson +10) was rushing across the Pacific from San Diego. CSG 3 (the John C. Stennis +2) was being assembled hastily so that they could rendezvous with CSG 1 ASAP. So many brave souls running toward the danger, sometimes I hate myself.So now does it make sense that I found myself in a room with a US Senator tasked with riding herd on me?Anyway, there were the other three navies still unaccounted for, Taiwan / the Republic of China (ROC) (22 surface ships), Vietnam (7) and the Philippines (3). Taiwanese involvement was easy to explain, the PRC refused to acknowledge them as an independent country and probably never would.The Vietnam People's Navy was tiny in both numbers and tonnage. Five of the vessels were 1960's Soviet frigates. What Vietnam did have was a huge grudge against the PRC. The PLA invaded Vietnam in 1979 and devastated the northernmost provinces, killing as many as 100,000 civilians.The PLAN had walloped the VPN in 1974 (technically South Vietnam) and again in 1988. Out in the South China Sea were two island archipelagos; the Paracel (occupied by a small PLA garrison and claimed by the PRC, Vietnam and the ROC) and Spratlys Islands (disputed by Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines, the PRC, the ROC, and Vietnam).The Philippines had a grand total of three frigates (all between 50 and 70 years old). 99% of the time, they faced a hopeless struggle enforcing Philippines' South China Sea claims, except they were now experiencing that 1% where the PRC found itself in a life and death struggle. Even then, the PLAN's South Sea Fleet was hands-down the biggest player with 26 surface warships centered on the Carrier Liaoning.Except (and there always seems to be an 'except') virtually all the PLAN's naval aviation had gone off to fight the Khanate and it wasn't coming back, ever. In the air, the Philippines was next to useless. What did they have of offer in the struggle for the South China Sea? Bases. The ROC and Vietnam had much more to bring to the table.The Vietnamese People's Liberation Air Force (VPLAR) had about 50 front-line aircraft and 175 nearly obsolete models ~ the same models the PLAAF was now piloting. The ROC Air Force could put up 325 almost-new fighters that were now superior to their opponents on the mainland. Why would I give a shit?Things cascade. The Khanate Air Force took a two-day long deep breath as Putin's 'Policeman that only looks like an invading army' started their intervention. Forty-eight hours later, the Khanate started the fourth stage (the first lunge, defeat the PLA's counter-attack then the second lunge) of the campaign.Their initial air power was still skating on thin ice where maintenance was concerned. They need more time to thoroughly rest their pilots and bring all their top-flight equipment to 100% working condition. Against them, in two days the PLAAF's assets increased by over 250 fighters.In turn, the Khanate had added their constituent state air forces plus nearly 80 new cutting edge air planes and 25 drones. Phase Four saw rolling airstrikes all along the forces massing in front of the northern and central Tumens. For a few hours, the PLA thought they knew what was going on.They were wrong and this was where my meeting with OT came in. Jab with the right, cut them down with the left. The left in my case was Tibet. Yeah, Tibet. Economic value = not nearly enough. From the very start of the war, a small number of seemingly inconsequential air strikes had seriously eroded the PLA and PLAAFs combat power in the Tibetan Plateau while leaving the roads, bridges and towns intact.Common military logic dictated that the Khanate had to punch their way further east into Qinghai (to the south) and Gansu (to the north) provinces. That was where the population and industry where. Farther east were even greater numbers of people and factories and the Khanate forces in the North hadn't been strong enough to threaten to cut off the Qinghai-Gansu front. Then the Russians showed up and the Khanate forces threatening that flank doubled overnight.The PLA hastily reinforced their northern flank, using troops from their strategic reserves. The move resulted in incredible attrition by airpower to the freshly equipped formations. The PLA was about to get flanked, but not from the north. Southwest of Qinghai was Tibet. A third of the Khanate's mobile forces now swept around in a huge left haymaker to the south.My job? I needed the 'Free Tibet' forces in the US and UK to provide public and moral support to the Khanate move. As Khanate Special Forces seized crucial bottlenecks in Tibet, they needed the locals to keep their 'liberators' informed of PLA presences and undermine any attempt to create a guerilla movement.The five Tumens dedicated to being the Schwerpunkt (point of maximum effort) of this flanking maneuver were going to be on a tight timetable if they were going to surround the PLA forces in Central China.My plan was to convince the Tibetans that the PRC's 55 years of occupation was coming to an end and the Great Khan wanted to sign a 'Treaty of Mutual Respect' (my invention). This would require both the Khanate and Tibet to recognize each other's right to exist the moment a cease-fire was reached. That was it. No 'armed presence', or 'mutual defense' agreements.The treaty would be formally signed in Lhasa, the Tibetan capital, when the city was safe ~ as determined by the Central Tibetan Administration (the Tibetan Government in Exile, CTA). Riki came up with an additional sweetener and proved she was quickly adjusting to our group's extra-governmental capabilities.

Candace Owen's “Becoming Brigitte” series is blowing our minds! Meghan launches “As Ever,” as if anyone cares, the Baldoni & Blake scandal that won't end with them, and more! In our neck of the woods, a Tunisian woman absconded with her boyfriends's Trump coin in a tale as old as time. The Netflix series American Murder: Gabby Petito has brought this tragic case back into the news and revealed a secondary villain who wrote a “Burn After Reading” letter. Our Bougie Bible picks include a fab online pharmacy and a local chiropractic and wellness practice.Contact:info@crazyrighbeighbors.com239-300-7276Crazyrighneighbors.comYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CRNPodcastRate us ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ on Apple & SpotifyBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/crazy-rich-neighbors--5053120/support.

In this episode, we speak with Yasha Maccanico a researcher and journalist at StateWatch, a UK-based charity focused on civil liberties, human rights and democracy in Europe.    We talk about a proposed EU law that could make it easier for states to criminalise acts of solidarity with people on the move.   Yasha also talks to us about abuses of state power in Europe under the guise of lowering immigration, the externalisation of the EU's borders in Africa, and much more.    ---Get in touch---   Twitter: @FleetCivil   Mastodon: @civilfleet@kolektiva.social   Bluesky: @thecivilfleet.bsky.social   Instagram: thecivilfleet   info@civilfleet.com   civilfleet.com --- Show notes ---   For more on StateWatch, check out their work here: statewatch.org   Follow them on BlueSky: @statewatch.bsky.social Ben misquotes the late left-wing politician Tony Benn, who once said: “The way a government treats refugees is very instructive, because it shows you how they would treat the rest of us if they thought they could get away with it.” In fact, the phrase may have been misattributed to Tony Benn. You can watch one of Tony Benn's most famous speeches against the US-UK' illegal invasion of Iraq, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7ciGW7h7PI&ab_channel=PoliticsJOE    Yasha mentions the an independent media company Bristol Cable. You can read their work here: thebristolcable.org   Ben and Yasha talk briefly about the toppling of the statue of slave trader Edward Colston in Bristol in 2020. You can read more about that here; https://exhibitions.bristolmuseums.org.uk/the-colston-statue   Here's where you can find out more about Migreurop: https://migreurop.org/?lang=en   Ben mentions an episode of The Civil Fleet with Jihed, a Tunisian activist with Alarm Phone and Louise Michelle. Check out episode 48 for that.    For more on Frontex, the European Border and Coastguard Agency, check out episodes 54, 52, 50, 34, 31, 23, 15, 7 and 1   Ben mentions previous The Civil Fleet Podcast episodes with people who have been arrested and given ludicrous sentences for driving boats or cars across borders. Check out episodes: 56, which focuses on Homayoun Sabetara, a father who fled Iran to be reunited with his daughters in Germany and was sentenced to 18 years behind bars in Greece after he was forced to drive across the border.  53 with Nadia, a young refugee woman from Lebanon who husband was arrested by the Greek authorities and accused of human smuggling after spending 10 days adrift in the Mediterranean.  35 with Hanad, a Somalian refugee who was senteced to 142 years behind bars for trying to stop his boat from sinking in the Aegean Sea and saving the lives of 33 others   Here are the links Yasha sent:   EU: New migrant smuggling law to ensure criminalisation of solidarity (December 2024) https://www.statewatch.org/analyses/2024/eu-new-migrant-smuggling-law-to-ensure-criminalisation-of-solidarity/   A new EU law on the criminalisation of migrant smuggling will be examined by the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council. The Council is due to approve its position for negotiations with the European Parliament. The existing law has been criticised for failing to prevent the criminalisation of migration and acts of solidarity with migrants and refugees. The new text, obtained by Statewatch and published here, appears likely to worsen the situation. ----- EU: Council lowers threshold for migrant smuggling prosecutions (July 2024, with PICUM) https://www.statewatch.org/news/2024/july/eu-council-lowers-threshold-for-migrant-smuggling-prosecutions/  EU institutions are discussing proposed changes to the law criminalising the facilitation of irregular migration, which has also been used to criminalise migrants and individuals acting in solidarity with them. The Belgian Council presidency presented a revised draft to other EU member states at the end of May, which would simplify the criminalisation of irregular entry, amongst other things. The draft will serve as the basis for further discussions within the Council, with Hungary now in the presidency role until the end of this year.   -----   Viewpoint, Hindering humanitarianism: European Commission will not ensure protection for those aiding sans-papiers, Chris Jones (April 2017) https://www.statewatch.org/media/documents/analyses/no-311-facilitation-directive.pdf   -----   The shrinking space for solidarity with migrants and refugees: how the European Union and Member States target and criminalize defenders of the rights of people on the move (TNI, Yasha Maccanico, Ben Hayes, Samuel Kenny, Frank Barat, September 2018) https://www.tni.org/files/publication-downloads/web_theshrinkingspace.pdf   -----   Libya/elmasri: including full text of Shatz/Branco submission to the ICC against Italian ministers: http://www.statewatch.org/news/2025/february/italian-ministers-should-face-justice-for-freeing-fugitive-war-criminal-says-legal-complaint/   -----   Secrecy: http://www.statewatch.org/news/2024/november/italy-has-nullified-the-right-to-transparency-regarding-borders/   -----   Tunisia: http://www.statewatch.org/news/2024/november/tunisia-no-to-the-criminalisation-of-solidarity-with-migrants/   -----   Deportations (aka returns): http://www.statewatch.org/news/2025/january/deportations-new-role-for-frontex-as-eu-pushes-for-more-voluntary-returns/   -----   Egypt: http://www.statewatch.org/news/2025/january/eu-police-cooperation-with-egypt-sacrifices-people-s-rights-and-freedoms-for-security/   -----   “Outsourcing borders” externalisation bulletin project, bulletins and documents archive: https://www.statewatch.org/outsourcing-borders-monitoring-eu-externalisation-policy/     -----   To challenge border militarisation (with partners, 2023/24), Telling the story of EU border militarisation, https://www.statewatch.org/media/4000/eu-border-militarisation-narrative-guide.pdf     -----   Europe's techno-borders (2023 with EuroMed Rights) https://www.statewatch.org/publications/reports-and-books/europe-s-techno-borders/    -----   Frontex and interoperable databases: knowledge as power? (2023) https://www.statewatch.org/frontex-and-interoperable-databases-knowledge-as-power/    -----   Empowering the police, removing protections: the new Europol Regulation (2022) https://www.statewatch.org/publications/reports-and-books/empowering-the-police-removing-protections-the-new-europol-regulation/    -----   Interoperability, eu-LISA and the biometric state (2022) Building the biometric state: Police powers and discrimination https://www.statewatch.org/publications/reports-and-books/building-the-biometric-state-police-powers-and-discrimination/   -----   Background docs selection on interoperability and the EU JHA policy field http://www.statewatch.org/observatories/interoperability-eu-big-brother-database/    -----   Secrecy and externalisation of EU border control (2022) https://www.statewatch.org/media/3781/secrecy-and-externalisation-of-migration-control.pdf    -----   Renditions observatory http://www.statewatch.org/observatories/rendition-the-use-of-european-countries-by-the-cia-for-the-transport-and-illegal-detention-of-prisoners/ 

In today's episode, we dive into an often overlooked but incredibly important issue: content moderation in non-dominant languages, specifically Maghrebi Arabic dialects. Recently, CDT released a groundbreaking report titled "Moderating Maghrebi Arabic Content on Social Media," which explores the challenges, gaps, and opportunities in ensuring fair and effective moderation of Arabic content on social platforms. To unpack these insights, we'll be joined by two leading experts in the field: Mona Elswah, a researcher in digital rights and content moderation, and Fellow of the Content Moderation for Languages in the Global South Project at CDT; and Emna Mizouni, a Tunisian digital rights advocate, community leader, and founder-CEO of Digital Citizenship. We'll discuss the unique hurdles faced by Maghrebi Arabic speakers online, why it's critical for platforms to address these gaps, and what needs to change to make content moderation more inclusive and equitable for all users.

The MPC is scheduled to meet today to decide on policy rates. We believe the CBE might prefer to cut rates by 100-150 bps in its meeting today.Moody's kept Egypt's outlook positive and affirmed its Caa1 rating. UK-based Shard Capital and Saudi Arabia-based Alqahtani Holding inked a framework agreement for a USD7 billion petrochemical production complex in New Alamein with the Oil Ministry-backed Egyptian Petrochemicals Holding Company and the Investment Ministry. The reconstruction of Gaza can be completed in three years, Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly said during his weekly presser yesterday. Egypt paid another USD1 billion arrears to foreign oil companies yesterday, according to an official..The Ministry of Petroleum plans to increase Egypt's oil production by 8% during the next fiscal year 2025-2026 to reach 485k barrels per day.The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) inked updated agreements with US-based IPR Energy and Tunisian oil and gas firm HBS International worth a combined USD13.5 million.The Egyptian government allowed the Cheiron Energy company, owned by businessman Salah Diab, to export about 550k barrels of crude oil last January, in exchange for part of its overdue dues to the EGPC.COMI's BoD proposed to distribute cash dividends of EGP2.50/share.ATLC released positive FY24 financial results: 4Q24 bottom line recorded EGP108 million (3.2x y/y, 2.2x q/q), bringing FY24 net profit to EGP216 million (+26% y/y). We have updated our FV for ATLC from EGP5.17/share to EGP6.66/share.  ATLC is currently trading at P/E25 of 3.1x and P/B25 of 0.9x. TMGH achieved FY24 sales, including sales made for third parties, of EGP504 billion, up 252.9% y/y.MFPC signed a cooperation agreement and an MoU with Germany's ThyssenKrupp to develop a USD220 million carbon capture project, the first of its kind in Africa and the Middle East.The EGX's listing committee approved ESRS request to delist its 542 million shares from the bourse.

Recorded live at Symphony Hall with Boston Symphony Orchestra musicians and a star-studded cast, this Egyptian, Iraqi, Palestinian, Sudanese and Tunisian tale shows the importance of never biting off more than you can chew.

William Gallois joins the podcast to discuss his latest book, Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, published by The Pennsylvania State University Press in 2024. Qayrawān: The Amuletic City investigates the fascinating history of the Tunisian city of Qayrawān, which in the last years of the nineteenth century found itself covered in murals. Concentrated on and around the city's Great Mosque, these monumental artworks were only visible for about fifty years, from the 1880s through the 1930s. This book investigates the fascinating history of who created these outdoor paintings and why. Using visual archaeological methods, Qayrawān highlights the ‘unknown artist' as an actor of ‘unnoticed agency' and a practitioner of living traditional arts. Locating pictorial records of the murals from the backdrops of photographs, postcards, and other forms of European ephemera, Gallois identifies a form of religious painting that transposed traditional aesthetic forms such as house decoration, embroidery, and tattooing―which lay exclusively within the domains of women―onto the body of a conquered city. Gallois argues that these works were created by women as a form of “emergency art,” intended to offer amuletic protection for the community, and demonstrates how they differ markedly from “classical” Islamic antecedents and modern modes of Arab cultural production in the Middle East and North Africa. The book challenges tacit assumptions of foreign categories and standards of aesthetics imposed upon Islamic and African art. It contributes to further explorations of the exploration of the ways in which Islam was interwoven with preexisting cultures and forms of expression, particularly in calling for a continued reimagining of the study of “Islamic art.” The book makes welcome contributions to Islamic, African, and Middle Eastern studies, particularly in relation to colonial and art histories. It will be welcomed by scholars of Islamic Studies, African Studies, and Art History. William Gallois is Professor of the Islamic Mediterranean in the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, in England. In addition to Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, Prof Gallois is the author of A History of Violence in the Early Algerian Colony (2013) and The Administration of Sickness (2008), among other works. Yaseen Christian Andrewsen is a DPhil candidate at the University of Oxford, specialising in Islamic intellectual history in West Africa focusing on issues in Sufism, theology, renewal, and authority. Yaseen is a co-host for the New Books in Islamic Studies podcast. He can be reached by email at: christian.andrewsen@pmb.ox.ac.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

William Gallois joins the podcast to discuss his latest book, Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, published by The Pennsylvania State University Press in 2024. Qayrawān: The Amuletic City investigates the fascinating history of the Tunisian city of Qayrawān, which in the last years of the nineteenth century found itself covered in murals. Concentrated on and around the city's Great Mosque, these monumental artworks were only visible for about fifty years, from the 1880s through the 1930s. This book investigates the fascinating history of who created these outdoor paintings and why. Using visual archaeological methods, Qayrawān highlights the ‘unknown artist' as an actor of ‘unnoticed agency' and a practitioner of living traditional arts. Locating pictorial records of the murals from the backdrops of photographs, postcards, and other forms of European ephemera, Gallois identifies a form of religious painting that transposed traditional aesthetic forms such as house decoration, embroidery, and tattooing―which lay exclusively within the domains of women―onto the body of a conquered city. Gallois argues that these works were created by women as a form of “emergency art,” intended to offer amuletic protection for the community, and demonstrates how they differ markedly from “classical” Islamic antecedents and modern modes of Arab cultural production in the Middle East and North Africa. The book challenges tacit assumptions of foreign categories and standards of aesthetics imposed upon Islamic and African art. It contributes to further explorations of the exploration of the ways in which Islam was interwoven with preexisting cultures and forms of expression, particularly in calling for a continued reimagining of the study of “Islamic art.” The book makes welcome contributions to Islamic, African, and Middle Eastern studies, particularly in relation to colonial and art histories. It will be welcomed by scholars of Islamic Studies, African Studies, and Art History. William Gallois is Professor of the Islamic Mediterranean in the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, in England. In addition to Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, Prof Gallois is the author of A History of Violence in the Early Algerian Colony (2013) and The Administration of Sickness (2008), among other works. Yaseen Christian Andrewsen is a DPhil candidate at the University of Oxford, specialising in Islamic intellectual history in West Africa focusing on issues in Sufism, theology, renewal, and authority. Yaseen is a co-host for the New Books in Islamic Studies podcast. He can be reached by email at: christian.andrewsen@pmb.ox.ac.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

William Gallois joins the podcast to discuss his latest book, Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, published by The Pennsylvania State University Press in 2024. Qayrawān: The Amuletic City investigates the fascinating history of the Tunisian city of Qayrawān, which in the last years of the nineteenth century found itself covered in murals. Concentrated on and around the city's Great Mosque, these monumental artworks were only visible for about fifty years, from the 1880s through the 1930s. This book investigates the fascinating history of who created these outdoor paintings and why. Using visual archaeological methods, Qayrawān highlights the ‘unknown artist' as an actor of ‘unnoticed agency' and a practitioner of living traditional arts. Locating pictorial records of the murals from the backdrops of photographs, postcards, and other forms of European ephemera, Gallois identifies a form of religious painting that transposed traditional aesthetic forms such as house decoration, embroidery, and tattooing―which lay exclusively within the domains of women―onto the body of a conquered city. Gallois argues that these works were created by women as a form of “emergency art,” intended to offer amuletic protection for the community, and demonstrates how they differ markedly from “classical” Islamic antecedents and modern modes of Arab cultural production in the Middle East and North Africa. The book challenges tacit assumptions of foreign categories and standards of aesthetics imposed upon Islamic and African art. It contributes to further explorations of the exploration of the ways in which Islam was interwoven with preexisting cultures and forms of expression, particularly in calling for a continued reimagining of the study of “Islamic art.” The book makes welcome contributions to Islamic, African, and Middle Eastern studies, particularly in relation to colonial and art histories. It will be welcomed by scholars of Islamic Studies, African Studies, and Art History. William Gallois is Professor of the Islamic Mediterranean in the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, in England. In addition to Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, Prof Gallois is the author of A History of Violence in the Early Algerian Colony (2013) and The Administration of Sickness (2008), among other works. Yaseen Christian Andrewsen is a DPhil candidate at the University of Oxford, specialising in Islamic intellectual history in West Africa focusing on issues in Sufism, theology, renewal, and authority. Yaseen is a co-host for the New Books in Islamic Studies podcast. He can be reached by email at: christian.andrewsen@pmb.ox.ac.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/islamic-studies

William Gallois joins the podcast to discuss his latest book, Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, published by The Pennsylvania State University Press in 2024. Qayrawān: The Amuletic City investigates the fascinating history of the Tunisian city of Qayrawān, which in the last years of the nineteenth century found itself covered in murals. Concentrated on and around the city's Great Mosque, these monumental artworks were only visible for about fifty years, from the 1880s through the 1930s. This book investigates the fascinating history of who created these outdoor paintings and why. Using visual archaeological methods, Qayrawān highlights the ‘unknown artist' as an actor of ‘unnoticed agency' and a practitioner of living traditional arts. Locating pictorial records of the murals from the backdrops of photographs, postcards, and other forms of European ephemera, Gallois identifies a form of religious painting that transposed traditional aesthetic forms such as house decoration, embroidery, and tattooing―which lay exclusively within the domains of women―onto the body of a conquered city. Gallois argues that these works were created by women as a form of “emergency art,” intended to offer amuletic protection for the community, and demonstrates how they differ markedly from “classical” Islamic antecedents and modern modes of Arab cultural production in the Middle East and North Africa. The book challenges tacit assumptions of foreign categories and standards of aesthetics imposed upon Islamic and African art. It contributes to further explorations of the exploration of the ways in which Islam was interwoven with preexisting cultures and forms of expression, particularly in calling for a continued reimagining of the study of “Islamic art.” The book makes welcome contributions to Islamic, African, and Middle Eastern studies, particularly in relation to colonial and art histories. It will be welcomed by scholars of Islamic Studies, African Studies, and Art History. William Gallois is Professor of the Islamic Mediterranean in the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, in England. In addition to Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, Prof Gallois is the author of A History of Violence in the Early Algerian Colony (2013) and The Administration of Sickness (2008), among other works. Yaseen Christian Andrewsen is a DPhil candidate at the University of Oxford, specialising in Islamic intellectual history in West Africa focusing on issues in Sufism, theology, renewal, and authority. Yaseen is a co-host for the New Books in Islamic Studies podcast. He can be reached by email at: christian.andrewsen@pmb.ox.ac.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/middle-eastern-studies

William Gallois joins the podcast to discuss his latest book, Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, published by The Pennsylvania State University Press in 2024. Qayrawān: The Amuletic City investigates the fascinating history of the Tunisian city of Qayrawān, which in the last years of the nineteenth century found itself covered in murals. Concentrated on and around the city's Great Mosque, these monumental artworks were only visible for about fifty years, from the 1880s through the 1930s. This book investigates the fascinating history of who created these outdoor paintings and why. Using visual archaeological methods, Qayrawān highlights the ‘unknown artist' as an actor of ‘unnoticed agency' and a practitioner of living traditional arts. Locating pictorial records of the murals from the backdrops of photographs, postcards, and other forms of European ephemera, Gallois identifies a form of religious painting that transposed traditional aesthetic forms such as house decoration, embroidery, and tattooing―which lay exclusively within the domains of women―onto the body of a conquered city. Gallois argues that these works were created by women as a form of “emergency art,” intended to offer amuletic protection for the community, and demonstrates how they differ markedly from “classical” Islamic antecedents and modern modes of Arab cultural production in the Middle East and North Africa. The book challenges tacit assumptions of foreign categories and standards of aesthetics imposed upon Islamic and African art. It contributes to further explorations of the exploration of the ways in which Islam was interwoven with preexisting cultures and forms of expression, particularly in calling for a continued reimagining of the study of “Islamic art.” The book makes welcome contributions to Islamic, African, and Middle Eastern studies, particularly in relation to colonial and art histories. It will be welcomed by scholars of Islamic Studies, African Studies, and Art History. William Gallois is Professor of the Islamic Mediterranean in the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, in England. In addition to Qayrawān: The Amuletic City, Prof Gallois is the author of A History of Violence in the Early Algerian Colony (2013) and The Administration of Sickness (2008), among other works. Yaseen Christian Andrewsen is a DPhil candidate at the University of Oxford, specialising in Islamic intellectual history in West Africa focusing on issues in Sufism, theology, renewal, and authority. Yaseen is a co-host for the New Books in Islamic Studies podcast. He can be reached by email at: christian.andrewsen@pmb.ox.ac.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/art

Natural history presenter and cameraman Gordon Buchanan's new book In The Hide is a look back at some of his greatest adventures across the world, from Mumbai to Mongolia. In 2015 Mhairi Black became the youngest MP elected to the House of Commons since the 1800s. After stepping down at the 2024 General Election, she turned her mind to her tell-all comedy show Politics Isn't For Me which took last year's Fringe by storm. She's now taking it on tour. Cal MacAninch is well known for roles in Downton Abbey, Mr Selfridge, Vigil and Wild At Heart amongst much else. He plays Banquo in a production of Macbeth that has wowed audiences at the Donmar Warehouse and the West End and can be seen in cinemas in February. Edinburgh's Makar Michael Pedersen writes about friendship, grief and pretending to be a cat. The newest addition to his expanding body of works is his debut novel, Muckle Flugga.Tunisian singer-songwriter EMEL has performed across the world, and rose to fame with her protest song Kelmti Horra which became an anthem for revolution. She performs from her latest album is MRA. Irish-Scottish contemporary folk duo LÉDA share a new track ahead of their debut album launch later this year.

At Sundance 2025, Alex saw a lovely debut feature from a Tunisian woman director, Where the Wind Comes From. And it made her think about how difficult it can be to find films by women from Africa and the Middle East. But she can recommend several first features from Tunisian women directors that you can watch right now. In this episode, Alex discusses why it's so hard to see films by women from Africa and the Middle East. She talks about why you should watch for Where the Wind Comes From in the future and two films by Tunisian women that you can watch now: As I Open My Eyes (2015) and Under the Fig Trees (2022). ***Join the Seventh Row newsletter to stay updated on Reel Ruminators, free Q&As, and unique opportunities to watch under-the-radar films: http://email.seventh-row.com Related Episodes Women at Cannes Ep. 5: Reviews of Cannes 2022 films by women, including Under the Fig Trees ------- Stay updated on Seventh Row Follow Seventh Row on Twitter, Bluesky and Instagram. Read our articles at seventh-row.com. Follow Alex Heeney on Bluesky, Twitter and Instagram.   

We sat down with the Tunisian Davis Cupper Aziz Dougaz in the lounge at The NTC, a couple days after he lost his 1st round match against Yoshihito Nishioka, and the Tunisian world #219 did not disappoint. The 27 year old former FSU player came thru qualies and played in his first main draw major, his elbow taped up, and was literally waiting for his winnings to hit his bank account as we were talking. but that is just the beginning. We discussed his path to this moment, from Tunisia to Morocco to France and then to Tallahassee. We discussed the lack of support he has gotten, and how the scales are tipped against players that do not have vigorous federations, as well as why he has an optimistic view of his prospects for the future. Recorded 1.16 Released 1.18 The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast is Powered By Diadora and The Golden Ticket Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Continuing the end of year 2024 edition of Unearthed!, this installment includes these categories: potpourri, edibles and potables, and books and letters Research: Giuffrida, Angela. “Painting found by junk dealer in cellar is original Picasso, experts claim.” The Guardian. 10/1/2024. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2024/oct/01/painting-found-by-junk-dealer-in-cellar-is-original-picasso-experts-claim Lawson-Tancred, Jo. “‘Horrible’ Painting Found by a Junk Dealer Could Be a Picasso Worth $6 Million.” ArtNet. 10/1/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/junk-dealer-picasso-2545786 Kuta, Sarah. “This Shipwreck’s Location Was a Mystery for 129 Years. Then, Two Men Found It Just Minutes Into a Three-Day Search.” Smithsonian. 9/30/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-shipwrecks-location-was-a-mystery-for-129-years-then-two-men-found-it-just-minutes-into-a-three-day-search-180985165/ Peru murals https://archaeology.org/news/2024/10/01/additional-moche-murals-uncovered-in-peru-at-panamarca/ Leung, Maple. “Team makes distilled wine in replica of bronze vessel found at emperor’s tomb.” MyNews. 12/13/2024. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3290709/team-makes-distilled-wine-replica-bronze-vessel-found-emperors-tomb Feldman, Ella. “Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers From ‘The Wizard of Oz’ Sell for a Record-Breaking $28 Million.” Smithsonian. 12/10/2024. s-from-the-wizard-of-oz-sell-for-a-record-breaking-28-million-180985620/ Tamisiea, Jack. “Hairballs Shed Light on Man-Eating Lions’ Menu.” The New York Times. 10/11/2024. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/11/science/tsavo-lions-man-eating-dna.html Spears, Nancy Marie. “First-ever oral histories of Indian boarding school survivors, collected with care.” ICT. 10/16/2024. https://ictnews.org/news/first-ever-oral-histories-of-indian-boarding-school-survivors-collected-with-care Kuta, Sarah. “Biden Issues a ‘Long Overdue’ Formal Apology for Native American Boarding Schools.” Smithsonian. 10/25/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/biden-issues-a-long-overdue-biden-formally-apologizes-for-native-american-boarding-schools-180985341/ Schrader, Adam. “A New Monument Confronts the Dark Legacy of Native American Boarding Schools.” ArtNet. 12/13/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/indian-boarding-school-national-monument-2586044 Boucher, Brian. “This Contemporary Artist Will Complete a Missing Scene in the Millennium-Old Bayeux Tapestry.” Artnet. 10/29/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/helene-delprat-complete-bayeux-tapestry-2560937 Reuters. “Ancient Pompeii site uncovers tiny house with exquisite frescoes.” 10/24/2024. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ancient-pompeii-site-uncovers-tiny-house-with-exquisite-frescoes-2024-10-24/ The History Blog. “Tiny house frescoed like mansion in Pompeii.” 10/25/2024. http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/71444 Bowman, Emma. “New DNA evidence upends what we thought we knew about Pompeii victims.” NPR. 11/9/2024. https://www.npr.org/2024/11/08/g-s1-33553/pompeii-dna-evidence-vesuvius-victims Benzine, Vittoria. “Pompeii Experts Back Up Pliny’s Historical Account of Vesuvius Eruption.” ArtNet. 12/13/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/pompeii-pliny-vesuvius-eruption-date-2587228 Willsher, Kim. “‘Bodies were dropped down quarry shafts’: secrets of millions buried in Paris catacombs come to light.” The Guardian. 10/19/2024. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/19/bodies-quarry-shafts-millions-buried-paris-catacombs Kuta, Sarah. “See the Wreck of Ernest Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ in Astonishing Detail With This New 3D Scan.” Smithsonian. 10/18/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-the-wreck-of-ernest-shackletons-endurance-in-astonishing-detail-with-this-new-3d-scan-180985274/ Boucher, Brian. “In a Rare Move, Boston’s Gardner Museum Snaps Up a Neighboring Apartment Building.” ArtNet. 10/18/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/boston-gardner-museum-buys-apartment-building-2555811 Whipple, Tom. “Letters reveal the quiet genius of Ada Lovelace.” The Times. 6/14/2024. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/history/article/ada-lovelace-letters-shed-light-woman-science-1848-kdztdh9x0 Lawson-Tancred, Jo. “This 18th-Century Painting Could Rewrite Black History in Britain.” ArtNet. 10/14/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/this-18th-century-painting-could-rewrite-black-history-in-britain-2552814 Factum Foundation. “William Blake’s Earliest Engravings.” 2024. https://factumfoundation.org/our-projects/digitisation/archiox-analysing-and-recording-cultural-heritage-in-oxford/william-blakes-earliest-engravings/ Whiddington, Richard. “William Blake’s Earliest Etchings Uncovered in Stunning High-Tech Scans.” ArtNet. 10/23/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/william-blake-earliest-engravings-copper-plates-bodleian-2558053 Kinsella, Eileen. “X-Ray Analysis of Gauguin Painting Reveals Hidden Details… and a Dead Beetle.” ArtNet. 12/2/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/gauguin-little-cat-analysis-van-gogh-museum-2577081 Oster, Sandee. “Archaeologists reveal musical instruments depicted in Zimbabwe's ancient rock art.” Phys.org. 11/29/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-archaeologists-reveal-musical-instruments-depicted.html Niskanen, Niina. “Prehistoric hunter-gatherers heard the elks painted on rocks talking.” EurekAlert. 11/25/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1065949 Metcalfe, Tom. “WWII British sub that sank with 64 on board finally found off Greek Island.” LiveScience. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/wwii-british-sub-that-sank-with-64-on-board-finally-found-off-greek-island Medievalists.net. “Tudor Sailors’ Bones Reveal Link Between Handedness and Bone Chemistry.” https://www.medievalists.net/2024/11/tudor-sailors-bones-reveal-link-between-handedness-and-bone-chemistry/ Benzine, Vittoria. “Astonishing Trove of Rare Roman Pottery Uncovered Beneath Sicilian Waters.” 11/7/2014. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/rare-richborough-pottery-underwater-sicily-2565780 Kuta, Sarah. “Divers Recover 300-Year-Old Glass Onion Bottles From a Shipwreck Off the Coast of Florida.” Smithsonian. 10/31/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/divers-recover-300-year-old-glass-onion-bottles-from-a-shipwreck-off-the-coast-of-florida-180985358/ Babbs, Verity. “This Sunken Ship May Be the 1524 Wreckage From Vasco da Gama’s Final Voyage.” ArtNet. 11/30/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/sunken-ship-vasco-da-gama-2577760 Roberts, Michael. “Researchers locate WWI shipwreck off Northern Ireland.” PhysOrg. 12/3/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-wwi-shipwreck-northern-ireland.html ACS Newsroom. “New hydrogel could preserve waterlogged wood from shipwrecks.” EurekAlert. 12/3/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1066769 Dedovic, Yaz. “Bad weather led Dutch ship into Western Australian coast.” EurekAlert. 12/8/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1067496 Bassi, Margherita. “1,200 years ago, a cat in Jerusalem left the oldest known evidence of 'making biscuits' on a clay jug.” LiveScience. 8/28/2024. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/1-200-years-ago-a-cat-in-jerusalem-left-the-oldest-known-evidence-of-making-biscuits-on-a-clay-jug Oster, Sandee. “Tunisian snail remains provide insights on a possible 7700-year-old local food tradition.” Phys.org. 10/8/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-tunisian-snail-insights-year-local.html Medievalists.net. “Vikings and Indigenous North Americans: New Walrus DNA Study Reveals Early Arctic Encounters.” https://www.medievalists.net/2024/10/vikings-and-indigenous-north-americans-new-walrus-dna-study-reveals-early-arctic-encounters/ Billing, Lotte. “Early interactions between Europeans and Indigenous North Americans revealed.” Lund University. Via EurekAlert. 9/28/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1059638 Bliege Bird, R., Bird, D.W., Martine, C.T. et al. Seed dispersal by Martu peoples promotes the distribution of native plants in arid Australia. Nat Commun 15, 6019 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-50300-5 Tutella, Francisco. “Landscape effects of hunter-gatherer practices reshape idea of agriculture.” 10/10/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1060928 aranto, S., Barcons, A.B., Portillo, M. et al. Unveiling the culinary tradition of ‘focaccia’ in Late Neolithic Mesopotamia by way of the integration of use-wear, phytolith & organic-residue analyses. Sci Rep 14, 26805 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-78019-9 Brinkhof, Tim. “People Were Making Focaccia Bread 9,000 Years Ago.” ArtNet. 12/15/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/ancient-focaccia-recipe-study-2580239 Ward, Kim. “How MSU is bringing shipwrecked seeds back to life.” MSU Today. 11/6/2024. https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2024/how-msu-is-bringing-shipwrecked-seeds-back-to-life Kuta, Sarah. “Seeds That Were Submerged in a Lake Huron Shipwreck for Nearly 150 Years.” Smithsonian. 11/25/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-are-trying-to-make-whiskey-using-rye-seeds-that-were-submerged-in-a-lake-huron-shipwreck-for-nearly-150-years-180985493/ Tutella, Francisco. “Peaches spread across North America through Indigenous networks.” Penn State. Via EurekAlert. 11/22/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1065907 Irish Central Staff. “2000-year-old fig discovered by Irish archaeologists in Dublin.” Irish Central. 11/25/2024. https://www.irishcentral.com/news/archaeologists-fig-drumanagh-dublin Kieltyka, Matt. “Genetic study of native hazelnut challenges misconceptions about how ancient Indigenous peoples used the land.” EurekAlert. 12/5/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1067317 Pflughoeft, Aspen. “2,800-year-old bakery — with tools and food remains — uncovered in Germany” Miami Herald. 11/29/2024. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/article296316409.html#storylink=cpy Chinese Academy of Sciences. “Traces of 10,000-year-old ancient rice beer discovered in Neolithic site in Eastern China.” Phys.org. 12/9/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-year-ancient-rice-beer-neolithic.html#google_vignette McHugh, Chris. “Medieval origins of Oxford college unearthed.” BBC. 12/15/2024. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd0el584nrvo Morgan Library and Museum. “New Work by Frédéric Chopin Recently Discovered in the Collection of the Morgan Library and Museum.” https://host.themorgan.org/press/Morgan_Chopin_MediaRelease.pdf Henley, Jon. “Remains of man whose death was recorded in 1197 saga uncovered in Norway.” The Guardian. 10/27/2014. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/27/remains-of-man-whose-death-was-recorded-in-1197-saga-uncovered-in-norway Babbs, Verity. “Archaeologists Unearth a 2,000-Year-Old Inscription Honoring an Ancient Wrestler.” ArtNet. 10/26/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/archaeologists-unearth-a-2000-year-old-inscription-honoring-an-ancient-wrestler-2557032 Whiddington, Richard. Amateur Sleuth Uncovers Bram Stoker’s Lost Supernatural Tale—A Precursor to ‘Dracula’?” ArtNet. 11/22/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/lost-bram-stoker-story-gibbet-hill-found-2557360 British Library. “An unknown leaf from the Poor Clares of Cologne.” Medieval Manuscripts Blog. https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2024/12/poor-clares-of-cologne.html Thompson, Karen. “The Incas used stringy objects called 'khipus' to record data—we just got a step closer to understanding them.” Phys.org. 11/13/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-incas-stringy-khipus-closer.html Whiddington, Richard. “An Archaeologist’s 150-Year-Old Message in a Bottle Is Uncovered by Norwegian Researchers.” ArtNet. 11/20/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/archaeologists-150-year-old-message-uncovered-norwegian-lorange-2572859 Kuta, Sarah. “Read the 132-Year-Old Message in a Bottle Found Hidden Inside the Walls of a Scottish Lighthouse.” Smithsonian. 11/26/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/read-the-132-year-old-message-in-a-bottle-found-hidden-inside-the-walls-of-a-scottish-lighthouse-180985528/ Benzine, Vittoria. “Professor Translates 2,600-Year-Old Inscription That Linguists Claimed Could Never Be Read.” ArtNet. 11/20/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/2600-year-old-inscription-decoded-2572494 Alberge, Dalya. “16th-century graffiti of Tower of London prisoners decoded for first time.” The Observer. 12/1/2024. https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2024/dec/01/16th-century-graffiti-of-tower-of-london-prisoners-decoded-for-first-time Oster, Sandee. “Ancient Iberian slate plaques may be genealogical records.” Phys.org. 12/3/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-ancient-iberian-slate-plaques-genealogical.html Robbins, Hannah. “Oldest known alphabet unearthed in ancient Syrian city.” EurekAlert. 11/20/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1065620 Göttingen University. “Press release: Skill and technique in Bronze Age spear combat.” 8/10/2024. https://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/3240.html?id=7562 Jackson, Justin. “'Getting high' in Paleolithic hunting: Elevated positions enhance javelin accuracy but reduce atlatl efficiency.” Phys.org. 10/16/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-paleolithic-hunters-benefited-high.html#google_vignette Diamond, L.E., Langley, M.C., Cornish, B. et al. Aboriginal Australian weapons and human efficiency. Sci Rep 14, 25497 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-76317-w Langley, Michelle and Laura Diamond. “First-ever biomechanics study of Indigenous weapons shows what made them so deadly.” Phys.org. 10/28/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-biomechanics-indigenous-weapons-deadly.html Babbs, Verity. “Rare Portrait of the Last Byzantine Emperor Unearthed in Stunning Greek Find.” ArtNet. 12/18/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/byzantine-emperor-constantine-xi-fresco-greece-2589737 Nelson, George. “Archeologists Discover Hidden Tomb in Ancient City of Petra and a Skeleton Holding Vessel Resembling Indiana Jones’s ‘Holy Grail’.” 10/22/2024. https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/petra-ancient-city-jordan-secret-hidden-tomb-archaeology-1234721828/ Osho-Williams, Olatunji. “Archaeologists in Petra Discover Secret Tomb Hiding Beneath a Mysterious Structure Featured in ‘Indiana Jones’.” Smithsonian. 10/15/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-in-petra-discover-secret-tomb-hiding-beneath-a-mysterious-structure-featured-in-indiana-jones-180985275/ Anderson, Sonja. “Archaeologists Say This Tiny Amulet Is the Oldest Evidence of Christianity Found North of the Alps.” Smithsonian. 12/19/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-say-this-tiny-amulet-is-the-oldest-evidence-of-christianity-found-north-of-the-alps-180985674/ UCL News. “Stonehenge may have been built to unify the people of ancient Britain.” 12/20/2024. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2024/dec/stonehenge-may-have-been-built-unify-people-ancient-britain Casey, Michael. “Centuries-old angels uncovered at Boston church made famous by Paul Revere.” Associated Press. 12/24/2024. https://apnews.com/article/boston-old-church-angels-uncovered-paul-revere-4656e86d3f042b8ab8f7652a7301597c Benzine, Vittoria. “Thousands of Stolen Greek Artifacts Just Turned Up in an Athens Basement.” ArtNet. 12/19/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/stolen-greek-artifacts-found-athens-basement-2589662 The History Blog. “Unique 500-year-old wooden shoe found in Netherlands cesspit.” 12/24/2024. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/71988 Anderson, Sonja. “Archaeologists Discover Rare Clay Commander Among Thousands of Life-Size Terra-Cotta Soldiers in China.” Smithsonian. 12/31/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-discover-rare-clay-commander-among-thousands-of-life-size-terra-cotta-soldiers-in-china-180985747/ Gammelby, Peter F. “Water and gruel—not bread: Discovering the diet of early Neolithic farmers in Scandinavia.” Phys.org. 12/20/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-gruel-bread-diet-early-neolithic.html#google_vignette See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lea Glob on her mesmerising doc Apolonia, Apolonia, which covers 13 years in the life of talented artist Apolonia Sokol.Producer Nadim Cheikhrouha discusses the inventive Oscar-nominated documentary Four Daughters, about a Tunisian woman whose two eldest daughters were radicalised by Islamic extremists.Ukrainian filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov's Oscar-nominated 20 Days in Mariupol is a raw, unflinching account of the Ukrainian siege through the courageous reporting of AP journalists. 

Lea Glob on her mesmerising doc Apolonia, Apolonia, which covers 13 years in the life of talented artist Apolonia Sokol.Producer Nadim Cheikhrouha discusses the inventive Oscar-nominated documentary Four Daughters, about a Tunisian woman whose two eldest daughters were radicalised by Islamic extremists.Ukrainian filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov's Oscar-nominated 20 Days in Mariupol is a raw, unflinching account of the Ukrainian siege through the courageous reporting of AP journalists. 

Red and yellow bell peppers combine with harissa, a Tunisian hot chili sauce, to make a lively, rustic sauce that is especially good with meaty fish steaks, like tuna or swordfish. Or try it with chicken, zucchini, or string beans. If you don't have harissa, there is an easy solution: dried hot pepper flakes. In other words, heat is an integral part of this relish. Don't just leave it out.

This first installment the end of year 2024 edition of Unearthed! starts with updates, so many shipwrecks, and so much art. Research: Giuffrida, Angela. “Painting found by junk dealer in cellar is original Picasso, experts claim.” The Guardian. 10/1/2024. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2024/oct/01/painting-found-by-junk-dealer-in-cellar-is-original-picasso-experts-claim Lawson-Tancred, Jo. “‘Horrible’ Painting Found by a Junk Dealer Could Be a Picasso Worth $6 Million.” ArtNet. 10/1/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/junk-dealer-picasso-2545786 Kuta, Sarah. “This Shipwreck’s Location Was a Mystery for 129 Years. Then, Two Men Found It Just Minutes Into a Three-Day Search.” Smithsonian. 9/30/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-shipwrecks-location-was-a-mystery-for-129-years-then-two-men-found-it-just-minutes-into-a-three-day-search-180985165/ Peru murals https://archaeology.org/news/2024/10/01/additional-moche-murals-uncovered-in-peru-at-panamarca/ Leung, Maple. “Team makes distilled wine in replica of bronze vessel found at emperor’s tomb.” MyNews. 12/13/2024. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3290709/team-makes-distilled-wine-replica-bronze-vessel-found-emperors-tomb Feldman, Ella. “Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers From ‘The Wizard of Oz’ Sell for a Record-Breaking $28 Million.” Smithsonian. 12/10/2024. s-from-the-wizard-of-oz-sell-for-a-record-breaking-28-million-180985620/ Tamisiea, Jack. “Hairballs Shed Light on Man-Eating Lions’ Menu.” The New York Times. 10/11/2024. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/11/science/tsavo-lions-man-eating-dna.html Spears, Nancy Marie. “First-ever oral histories of Indian boarding school survivors, collected with care.” ICT. 10/16/2024. https://ictnews.org/news/first-ever-oral-histories-of-indian-boarding-school-survivors-collected-with-care Kuta, Sarah. “Biden Issues a ‘Long Overdue’ Formal Apology for Native American Boarding Schools.” Smithsonian. 10/25/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/biden-issues-a-long-overdue-biden-formally-apologizes-for-native-american-boarding-schools-180985341/ Schrader, Adam. “A New Monument Confronts the Dark Legacy of Native American Boarding Schools.” ArtNet. 12/13/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/indian-boarding-school-national-monument-2586044 Boucher, Brian. “This Contemporary Artist Will Complete a Missing Scene in the Millennium-Old Bayeux Tapestry.” Artnet. 10/29/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/helene-delprat-complete-bayeux-tapestry-2560937 Reuters. “Ancient Pompeii site uncovers tiny house with exquisite frescoes.” 10/24/2024. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ancient-pompeii-site-uncovers-tiny-house-with-exquisite-frescoes-2024-10-24/ The History Blog. “Tiny house frescoed like mansion in Pompeii.” 10/25/2024. http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/71444 Bowman, Emma. “New DNA evidence upends what we thought we knew about Pompeii victims.” NPR. 11/9/2024. https://www.npr.org/2024/11/08/g-s1-33553/pompeii-dna-evidence-vesuvius-victims Benzine, Vittoria. “Pompeii Experts Back Up Pliny’s Historical Account of Vesuvius Eruption.” ArtNet. 12/13/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/pompeii-pliny-vesuvius-eruption-date-2587228 Willsher, Kim. “‘Bodies were dropped down quarry shafts’: secrets of millions buried in Paris catacombs come to light.” The Guardian. 10/19/2024. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/19/bodies-quarry-shafts-millions-buried-paris-catacombs Kuta, Sarah. “See the Wreck of Ernest Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ in Astonishing Detail With This New 3D Scan.” Smithsonian. 10/18/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-the-wreck-of-ernest-shackletons-endurance-in-astonishing-detail-with-this-new-3d-scan-180985274/ Boucher, Brian. “In a Rare Move, Boston’s Gardner Museum Snaps Up a Neighboring Apartment Building.” ArtNet. 10/18/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/boston-gardner-museum-buys-apartment-building-2555811 Whipple, Tom. “Letters reveal the quiet genius of Ada Lovelace.” The Times. 6/14/2024. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/history/article/ada-lovelace-letters-shed-light-woman-science-1848-kdztdh9x0 Lawson-Tancred, Jo. “This 18th-Century Painting Could Rewrite Black History in Britain.” ArtNet. 10/14/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/this-18th-century-painting-could-rewrite-black-history-in-britain-2552814 Factum Foundation. “William Blake’s Earliest Engravings.” 2024. https://factumfoundation.org/our-projects/digitisation/archiox-analysing-and-recording-cultural-heritage-in-oxford/william-blakes-earliest-engravings/ Whiddington, Richard. “William Blake’s Earliest Etchings Uncovered in Stunning High-Tech Scans.” ArtNet. 10/23/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/william-blake-earliest-engravings-copper-plates-bodleian-2558053 Kinsella, Eileen. “X-Ray Analysis of Gauguin Painting Reveals Hidden Details… and a Dead Beetle.” ArtNet. 12/2/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/gauguin-little-cat-analysis-van-gogh-museum-2577081 Oster, Sandee. “Archaeologists reveal musical instruments depicted in Zimbabwe's ancient rock art.” Phys.org. 11/29/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-archaeologists-reveal-musical-instruments-depicted.html Niskanen, Niina. “Prehistoric hunter-gatherers heard the elks painted on rocks talking.” EurekAlert. 11/25/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1065949 Metcalfe, Tom. “WWII British sub that sank with 64 on board finally found off Greek Island.” LiveScience. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/wwii-british-sub-that-sank-with-64-on-board-finally-found-off-greek-island Medievalists.net. “Tudor Sailors’ Bones Reveal Link Between Handedness and Bone Chemistry.” https://www.medievalists.net/2024/11/tudor-sailors-bones-reveal-link-between-handedness-and-bone-chemistry/ Benzine, Vittoria. “Astonishing Trove of Rare Roman Pottery Uncovered Beneath Sicilian Waters.” 11/7/2014. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/rare-richborough-pottery-underwater-sicily-2565780 Kuta, Sarah. “Divers Recover 300-Year-Old Glass Onion Bottles From a Shipwreck Off the Coast of Florida.” Smithsonian. 10/31/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/divers-recover-300-year-old-glass-onion-bottles-from-a-shipwreck-off-the-coast-of-florida-180985358/ Babbs, Verity. “This Sunken Ship May Be the 1524 Wreckage From Vasco da Gama’s Final Voyage.” ArtNet. 11/30/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/sunken-ship-vasco-da-gama-2577760 Roberts, Michael. “Researchers locate WWI shipwreck off Northern Ireland.” PhysOrg. 12/3/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-wwi-shipwreck-northern-ireland.html ACS Newsroom. “New hydrogel could preserve waterlogged wood from shipwrecks.” EurekAlert. 12/3/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1066769 Dedovic, Yaz. “Bad weather led Dutch ship into Western Australian coast.” EurekAlert. 12/8/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1067496 Bassi, Margherita. “1,200 years ago, a cat in Jerusalem left the oldest known evidence of 'making biscuits' on a clay jug.” LiveScience. 8/28/2024. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/1-200-years-ago-a-cat-in-jerusalem-left-the-oldest-known-evidence-of-making-biscuits-on-a-clay-jug Oster, Sandee. “Tunisian snail remains provide insights on a possible 7700-year-old local food tradition.” Phys.org. 10/8/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-tunisian-snail-insights-year-local.html Medievalists.net. “Vikings and Indigenous North Americans: New Walrus DNA Study Reveals Early Arctic Encounters.” https://www.medievalists.net/2024/10/vikings-and-indigenous-north-americans-new-walrus-dna-study-reveals-early-arctic-encounters/ Billing, Lotte. “Early interactions between Europeans and Indigenous North Americans revealed.” Lund University. Via EurekAlert. 9/28/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1059638 Bliege Bird, R., Bird, D.W., Martine, C.T. et al. Seed dispersal by Martu peoples promotes the distribution of native plants in arid Australia. Nat Commun 15, 6019 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-50300-5 Tutella, Francisco. “Landscape effects of hunter-gatherer practices reshape idea of agriculture.” 10/10/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1060928 aranto, S., Barcons, A.B., Portillo, M. et al. Unveiling the culinary tradition of ‘focaccia’ in Late Neolithic Mesopotamia by way of the integration of use-wear, phytolith & organic-residue analyses. Sci Rep 14, 26805 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-78019-9 Brinkhof, Tim. “People Were Making Focaccia Bread 9,000 Years Ago.” ArtNet. 12/15/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/ancient-focaccia-recipe-study-2580239 Ward, Kim. “How MSU is bringing shipwrecked seeds back to life.” MSU Today. 11/6/2024. https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2024/how-msu-is-bringing-shipwrecked-seeds-back-to-life Kuta, Sarah. “Seeds That Were Submerged in a Lake Huron Shipwreck for Nearly 150 Years.” Smithsonian. 11/25/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-are-trying-to-make-whiskey-using-rye-seeds-that-were-submerged-in-a-lake-huron-shipwreck-for-nearly-150-years-180985493/ Tutella, Francisco. “Peaches spread across North America through Indigenous networks.” Penn State. Via EurekAlert. 11/22/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1065907 Irish Central Staff. “2000-year-old fig discovered by Irish archaeologists in Dublin.” Irish Central. 11/25/2024. https://www.irishcentral.com/news/archaeologists-fig-drumanagh-dublin Kieltyka, Matt. “Genetic study of native hazelnut challenges misconceptions about how ancient Indigenous peoples used the land.” EurekAlert. 12/5/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1067317 Pflughoeft, Aspen. “2,800-year-old bakery — with tools and food remains — uncovered in Germany” Miami Herald. 11/29/2024. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/article296316409.html#storylink=cpy Chinese Academy of Sciences. “Traces of 10,000-year-old ancient rice beer discovered in Neolithic site in Eastern China.” Phys.org. 12/9/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-year-ancient-rice-beer-neolithic.html#google_vignette McHugh, Chris. “Medieval origins of Oxford college unearthed.” BBC. 12/15/2024. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd0el584nrvo Morgan Library and Museum. “New Work by Frédéric Chopin Recently Discovered in the Collection of the Morgan Library and Museum.” https://host.themorgan.org/press/Morgan_Chopin_MediaRelease.pdf Henley, Jon. “Remains of man whose death was recorded in 1197 saga uncovered in Norway.” The Guardian. 10/27/2014. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/27/remains-of-man-whose-death-was-recorded-in-1197-saga-uncovered-in-norway Babbs, Verity. “Archaeologists Unearth a 2,000-Year-Old Inscription Honoring an Ancient Wrestler.” ArtNet. 10/26/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/archaeologists-unearth-a-2000-year-old-inscription-honoring-an-ancient-wrestler-2557032 Whiddington, Richard. Amateur Sleuth Uncovers Bram Stoker’s Lost Supernatural Tale—A Precursor to ‘Dracula’?” ArtNet. 11/22/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/lost-bram-stoker-story-gibbet-hill-found-2557360 British Library. “An unknown leaf from the Poor Clares of Cologne.” Medieval Manuscripts Blog. https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2024/12/poor-clares-of-cologne.html Thompson, Karen. “The Incas used stringy objects called 'khipus' to record data—we just got a step closer to understanding them.” Phys.org. 11/13/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-incas-stringy-khipus-closer.html Whiddington, Richard. “An Archaeologist’s 150-Year-Old Message in a Bottle Is Uncovered by Norwegian Researchers.” ArtNet. 11/20/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/archaeologists-150-year-old-message-uncovered-norwegian-lorange-2572859 Kuta, Sarah. “Read the 132-Year-Old Message in a Bottle Found Hidden Inside the Walls of a Scottish Lighthouse.” Smithsonian. 11/26/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/read-the-132-year-old-message-in-a-bottle-found-hidden-inside-the-walls-of-a-scottish-lighthouse-180985528/ Benzine, Vittoria. “Professor Translates 2,600-Year-Old Inscription That Linguists Claimed Could Never Be Read.” ArtNet. 11/20/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/2600-year-old-inscription-decoded-2572494 Alberge, Dalya. “16th-century graffiti of Tower of London prisoners decoded for first time.” The Observer. 12/1/2024. https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2024/dec/01/16th-century-graffiti-of-tower-of-london-prisoners-decoded-for-first-time Oster, Sandee. “Ancient Iberian slate plaques may be genealogical records.” Phys.org. 12/3/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-ancient-iberian-slate-plaques-genealogical.html Robbins, Hannah. “Oldest known alphabet unearthed in ancient Syrian city.” EurekAlert. 11/20/2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1065620 Göttingen University. “Press release: Skill and technique in Bronze Age spear combat.” 8/10/2024. https://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/3240.html?id=7562 Jackson, Justin. “'Getting high' in Paleolithic hunting: Elevated positions enhance javelin accuracy but reduce atlatl efficiency.” Phys.org. 10/16/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-paleolithic-hunters-benefited-high.html#google_vignette Diamond, L.E., Langley, M.C., Cornish, B. et al. Aboriginal Australian weapons and human efficiency. Sci Rep 14, 25497 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-76317-w Langley, Michelle and Laura Diamond. “First-ever biomechanics study of Indigenous weapons shows what made them so deadly.” Phys.org. 10/28/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-biomechanics-indigenous-weapons-deadly.html Babbs, Verity. “Rare Portrait of the Last Byzantine Emperor Unearthed in Stunning Greek Find.” ArtNet. 12/18/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/byzantine-emperor-constantine-xi-fresco-greece-2589737 Nelson, George. “Archeologists Discover Hidden Tomb in Ancient City of Petra and a Skeleton Holding Vessel Resembling Indiana Jones’s ‘Holy Grail’.” 10/22/2024. https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/petra-ancient-city-jordan-secret-hidden-tomb-archaeology-1234721828/ Osho-Williams, Olatunji. “Archaeologists in Petra Discover Secret Tomb Hiding Beneath a Mysterious Structure Featured in ‘Indiana Jones’.” Smithsonian. 10/15/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-in-petra-discover-secret-tomb-hiding-beneath-a-mysterious-structure-featured-in-indiana-jones-180985275/ Anderson, Sonja. “Archaeologists Say This Tiny Amulet Is the Oldest Evidence of Christianity Found North of the Alps.” Smithsonian. 12/19/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-say-this-tiny-amulet-is-the-oldest-evidence-of-christianity-found-north-of-the-alps-180985674/ UCL News. “Stonehenge may have been built to unify the people of ancient Britain.” 12/20/2024. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2024/dec/stonehenge-may-have-been-built-unify-people-ancient-britain Casey, Michael. “Centuries-old angels uncovered at Boston church made famous by Paul Revere.” Associated Press. 12/24/2024. https://apnews.com/article/boston-old-church-angels-uncovered-paul-revere-4656e86d3f042b8ab8f7652a7301597c Benzine, Vittoria. “Thousands of Stolen Greek Artifacts Just Turned Up in an Athens Basement.” ArtNet. 12/19/2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/stolen-greek-artifacts-found-athens-basement-2589662 The History Blog. “Unique 500-year-old wooden shoe found in Netherlands cesspit.” 12/24/2024. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/71988 Anderson, Sonja. “Archaeologists Discover Rare Clay Commander Among Thousands of Life-Size Terra-Cotta Soldiers in China.” Smithsonian. 12/31/2024. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-discover-rare-clay-commander-among-thousands-of-life-size-terra-cotta-soldiers-in-china-180985747/ Gammelby, Peter F. “Water and gruel—not bread: Discovering the diet of early Neolithic farmers in Scandinavia.” Phys.org. 12/20/2024. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-gruel-bread-diet-early-neolithic.html#google_vignette See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode 157, with Sonia Kherigi Nasfi and Nour El Imane Nasfi Founders of Deaf Square, which is an online career accelerator dedicated to bridging the gap between talented individuals who are hard of hearing and forward-thinking employers. They help hard of hearing people access high-quality education in the tech field, and job opportunities in leading industries.  Their platform also supports employers by connecting them with skilled professionals with disabilities. Using an AI-powered solution, Deaf Square offers adaptive learning experiences and a virtual trainer designed to help users master sign language, ensuring a truly inclusive and impactful approach. Sonia recently achieved a significant milestone by winning the Northern Africa Startup Awards in the Women in Tech category, a well-deserved recognition of the dedication, innovation, and perseverance that have shaped Deaf Square's journey.What We Discuss With Sonia and NourThe unique dynamics and experiences of running a company as a mother-daughter team.The major barriers hard of hearing individuals face in accessing tech education and how they can be addressed.Practical advice for employers on creating a more inclusive hiring process for hard-of-hearing and disabled individuals.The role of AI in enhancing Deaf Square's training programs and its impact on accessibility and learning outcomes.Unique insights from African startup culture that have influenced and shaped Deaf Square's offerings.Did you miss my previous episode where I discuss Women, Wealth, and Impact: How Africa's Largest Gender Lens Fund Directs Capital? Make sure to check it out!Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps!Connect with Terser:LinkedIn - Terser AdamuInstagram - unlockingafricaTwitter (X) - @TerserAdamuConnect with Sonia and Nour:LinkedIn - Sonia Kherigi Nasfi and Nour El Imane Nasfi,Twitter (X) - @Deaf_SquareDo you want to do business in Africa? Explore the vast business opportunities in African markets and increase your success with ETK Group. Connect with us at www.etkgroup.co.uk or reach out via email at info@etkgroup.co.uk

Discover the secrets behind the success of Eleonetech, a rising star in the Tunisian electronics manufacturing landscape, as Khaled Daami, their charismatic CEO, gives us an insider's tour. Along with host Eric Miscoll of EMSNOW, Khaled shares the innovative strategies and lean operations that have propelled Eleonetech in the automotive, industrial, and IoT sectors. As part of the formidable One Tech Group, Eleonetech harnesses cutting-edge technology and a dynamic workforce of over 1,000 skilled professionals in Tunisia, positioning itself as a trusted partner for clients worldwide.What makes Tunisia a hidden gem for electronics manufacturing? Khaled reveals the strategic advantages that this vibrant country offers, from its robust infrastructure of over 40 EMS companies to a culturally diverse and highly skilled labor force. Despite the challenges in the automotive industry, Eleonetech continues to expand its reach, drawing in new European and Asian clients and embracing emerging technologies. Tune in to learn why companies invest in Tunisia, and how Eleonetech is poised to serve over 50 countries with high quality and comprehensive solutions.EMS@C-Level at electronica 2024 was hosted by IPC (https://www.ipc.org/)Like every episode of EMS@C-Level, this one was sponsored by global inspection leader Koh Young (https://www.kohyoung.com).You can see video versions of all of the EMS@C-Level pods on our YouTube playlist.

[REBROADCAST from Dec. 6, 2024] Moulena, the new album from Tunisian musician Nour Harkati, blends North African traditional music alongside influences from his new home, New York City. Harkati joins us to perform live in the studio.

Join hosts Craig and Gaurav on the Echoes of War podcast as they delve into the gripping conclusion of the North African campaign during World War II. This final episode brings you to the heart of the Tunisian campaign, where the Axis forces, under the command of Rommel, faced logistical and strategic challenges against the advancing Allied forces. Discover the intense battles of Kasserine Pass and the daring maneuvers through the Marth Line. Witness how the Allies' strategic coordination, combined with crippling supply issues for the Axis, turned the tide of war, leading to a decisive Allied victory. Listen in as the podcast unfolds the dramatic events and pivotal decisions that marked the end of the Axis's presence in North Africa. This insightful episode sheds light on the complex relationships and political dynamics between the Allied forces, highlighting the indispensability of intelligence and logistics in warfare. With engaging storytelling and expert analysis, Craig and Gherav bring the crucial lessons and enduring impacts of the Tunisian campaign to life.

Chris Abraham dives deep into an expansive discussion on political discourse, personal growth, spirituality, and societal complexities in this special Christmas Eve episode. Featuring his AI co-pilot, this episode reflects Chris's signature blend of introspection, humor, and incisive commentary. A post-episode AI-generated analysis offers further insights into the themes explored. 1. Political Scripting and Authenticity Talking Points and Shared Values: Chris critiques the tendency for political messaging to emerge from enforced conformity rather than shared values. Trump's Unscripted Style: A contrast is drawn between Trump's raw, unscripted approach and overly polished political personas, emphasizing the appeal of authenticity. Distrust in Over-Managed Messaging: The pitfalls of overly scripted narratives are likened to "family secrets" that erode trust. 2. Trust, Leadership, and “Live Fire” Testing Leaders, like good parents, should create a sense of safety. "Live fire" scenarios—unscripted interviews and unpredictable challenges—are presented as crucial tests of a leader's mettle. 3. Online Content and Privacy TikTok's content sharing dynamics and the consequences of "community content" going viral are explored. The tension between public exposure and intended audience privacy is highlighted through discussions of Libs of TikTok and Freemasonry. 4. Freemasonry Freemasonry's traditions, obligations, and support networks are discussed, with a focus on the symbolism of the "cable tow" and the fraternity's inclusive ethos. The sacredness of rituals is contrasted with the openness of platforms like TikTok. Chris reflects on his journey as a Freemason and the profound brotherhood it fosters. 5. Sacredness and Self-Reflection The importance of seeing the divine in others and treating relationships with reverence. Chris shares personal experiences with self-kindness, volunteering, and reconnecting with spiritual practices like Hallow and Alanon. 6. Deism and the Architect of the Universe Freemasonry's view of God as the "Architect of the Universe" aligns with Enlightenment ideals. The fraternity's historical influence on American and French political thought is briefly explored. 7. Political Polarization and Stereotypes Chris examines the unfair stereotyping of groups like Freemasons and MAGA Republicans, critiquing propaganda's role in fostering division. Extreme polarization's impact on leadership and trust is analyzed. 8. Populism and the American Political Landscape The disappearance of the populist left, with figures like Tulsi Gabbard and AOC discussed. Class signifiers, such as luxury trucks, are used to explore modern socioeconomic dynamics. 9. Trump as a "Steamroller" Chris reflects on Trump's resilience, suggesting his success might stem from hidden genius. Strategic corporate bankruptcies and legal challenges against Trump are reexamined through a pragmatic lens. 10. French Language and Culture Chris's appreciation for French culture, the concept of "se normal," and practicing French with local Moroccans and Tunisians adds a personal touch. "A good leader is like a good parent—creating a sense of safety is their first job." "Trump's unscripted style isn't just a fluke; it's a talent." "Seeing the divine in others challenges our surface-level judgments." AI Deep Dive: Post-episode analysis expands on the topics discussed, offering additional perspectives. Seasonal Message: Chris closes the show with a heartfelt Merry Christmas and Hanukkah greeting. This episode offers an eclectic blend of political insight, personal growth reflections, and cultural observations. Chris's introspective approach invites listeners to challenge assumptions and consider new perspectives. Stay tuned for more thought-provoking discussions on The Chris Abraham Show. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/chrisabraham/support

Nour Harkati is a Tunisian musician and songwriter, now based here in New York City. His new album, Moulena, has just come out and it represents Harkati's musical journey from North Africa to the US, featuring rhythms and instruments from traditional North African music blended with elements of Western pop and rock. The ancient Guembri used in trance music, combines with the gritty and modern sounds of guitar, electronics and drums, as Harkati and his band play in-studio. Set list: 1. Rahmen 2. Sidi 3. DWE

Today, the Spotlight shines On bassist and composer Marwan Allam.Marwan's debut album, Bab Bhar, takes Arabic rhythms and Tunisian musical traditions and hands them to a jazz quartet, creating something that feels both ancient and brand new.Marwan tunes and plays his bass to echo the sound of the gimbri, a traditional three-string instrument from his native Tunisia. He's here to walk us through this groundbreaking approach and share how growing up at the crossroads of North African music shaped his creative path.(The musical excerpts heard in the interview are from Marwan Allam's album Bab Bhar)–Dig DeeperPurchase Marwan Allam's Bab Bhar on Bandcamp and listen on your streaming platform of choiceFollow Marwan Allam on Instagram and YouTubeMusic in Tunisia: Exploring 10 Rich HarmoniesExperiencing Maqam: An Introduction to Arabic MusicDig into this episode's complete show notes at spotlightonpodcast.com–• Did you enjoy this episode? Please share it with a friend! You can also rate Spotlight On ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.• Subscribe! Be the first to check out each new episode of Spotlight On in your podcast app of choice.• Looking for more? Visit spotlightonpodcast.com for bonus content, web-only interviews + features, and the Spotlight On email newsletter. You can also follow us on Instagram, Bluesky, Facebook, and Mastodon.• Be sure to bookmark our new online magazine, The Tonearm! → thetonearm.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today, the Spotlight shines On bassist and composer Marwan Allam.Marwan's debut album, Bab Bhar, takes Arabic rhythms and Tunisian musical traditions and hands them to a jazz quartet, creating something that feels both ancient and brand new.Marwan tunes and plays his bass to echo the sound of the gimbri, a traditional three-string instrument from his native Tunisia. He's here to walk us through this groundbreaking approach and share how growing up at the crossroads of North African music shaped his creative path.(The musical excerpts heard in the interview are from Marwan Allam's album Bab Bhar)–Dig DeeperPurchase Marwan Allam's Bab Bhar on Bandcamp and listen on your streaming platform of choiceFollow Marwan Allam on Instagram and YouTubeMusic in Tunisia: Exploring 10 Rich HarmoniesExperiencing Maqam: An Introduction to Arabic MusicDig into this episode's complete show notes at spotlightonpodcast.com–• Did you enjoy this episode? Please share it with a friend! You can also rate Spotlight On ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.• Subscribe! Be the first to check out each new episode of Spotlight On in your podcast app of choice.• Looking for more? Visit spotlightonpodcast.com for bonus content, web-only interviews + features, and the Spotlight On email newsletter. You can also follow us on Instagram, Bluesky, Facebook, and Mastodon.• Be sure to bookmark our new online magazine, The Tonearm! → thetonearm.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Moulena, the new album from Tunisian musician Nour Harkati, blends North African traditional music alongside influences from his new home, New York City. Harkati joins us to perform live in the studio and will be celebrating the album's release with a concert at Public Records on December 11.

We've candied yams with honey and added a twist or two. Harissa, a Tunisian hot chile sauce available in specialty markets, adds a kick of heat, and citrus lends aroma. You will save yourself the chore of having to wash sticky baking sheets if you line them with parchment paper before roasting the yams and apples. If you don't have it, consider lining them with foil, shiny side down, instead.

What do you wish I asked this guest? What was your "quotable moment" from this episode? What happens when creativity meets spirituality? On this episode, we welcome the remarkable Monica Bodirsky, a witch artist and the creative force behind the Obsidian community. Monica opens up about her intriguing life journey, shaped by her mixed heritage and the eerie experiences of growing up in a haunted house. She shares how these elements have deeply influenced her as an artist, author, and tarot consultant. We also explore the vibrant offerings of the Obsidian Academy of Esoteric Arts and what members can look forward to, such as the Inner Sanctuary and Coven online space.Embark on a journey of spiritual discovery as we delve into the integration of daily rituals with everyday tasks. Monica shares her personal experience of embracing her witchcraft identity, blending family heritage with personal practices. From sweeping to cooking, learn how these activities become rituals that cleanse and connect with ancestors. We also tackle the challenges of finding a supportive community, manage self-doubt, and emphasize the importance of maintaining a grimoire, all while highlighting the grounding peace that a witchcraft practice can bring.Nature and community are powerful forces in magical practice, and this episode celebrates their influence. Monica talks about the rejuvenating power of nature, from the scent of Tunisian frankincense to the calming sound of wind through leaves. Learn strategies for overcoming burnout and fostering resilience, including self-awareness and communal support. We wrap up with  a mysterious story from her childhood that adds a mystical touch to our conversation. Tune in for a blend of personal stories, community insights, and the enchanting allure of the natural world.Follow Monica here! monicabodirsky.comSupport the showSupport the show and get tons of bonus content, videos, monthly spell boxes, and more at CrepuscularConjuration.com!Or become a paying subscriber on Buzzsprout: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1777532/supportWant to see if you're a good fit for the show? (Hint: if you're a witch, you probably are!) email me at youraveragewitchpodcast at gmail.comFollow YAW at:instagram.com/youraveragewitchpodcastfacebook.com/youraveragewitchpodcastReview the show on Apple podcastspodcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/your-average-witch-podcast/id1567845483

Episode Description Episode Description Sign up to receive this Unreached of the Day podcast sent to you:  https://unreachedoftheday.org/resources/podcast/ People Group Summary: https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/15642 #PrayforZERO is a podcast Sponsor.         https://prayforzero.com/ Take your place in history! We could be the generation to translate God's Word into every language. YOUR prayers can make this happen.  Take your first step and sign the Prayer Wall to receive the weekly Pray For Zero Journal:  https://prayforzero.com/prayer-wall/#join Pray for the largest Frontier People Groups (FPG): Visit JoshuaProject.net/frontier#podcast provides links to podcast recordings of the prayer guide for the 31 largest FPGs.  Go31.org/FREE provides the printed prayer guide for the largest 31 FPGs along with resources to support those wanting to enlist others in prayer for FPGs

The flavor of the beets in this salad is measurably better when you roast them whole; then cut them up. The dressing is only a little sparky, even with the harissa-Tunisian hot chili sauce, available in specialty markets. (It is also good on roasted yams or fennel.) When it comes to looking great on a buffet table, few other vegetables beat out beets.

Meklit talks with Tunisian singer Emel Mathlouthi about the moment that turned her into a viral sensation and the voice of a revolution -- but also about what it means to move beyond the shadow of that one moment. 

fWotD Episode 2742: Yugoslav destroyer Ljubljana Welcome to Featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia’s finest articles.The featured article for Wednesday, 6 November 2024 is Yugoslav destroyer Ljubljana.Ljubljana (Serbo-Croatian pronunciation: [ʎubˈʎana]; Cyrillic: Љубљана) was the third and last Beograd-class destroyer built for the Royal Yugoslav Navy (Serbo-Croatian: Kraljevska mornarica, Краљевска морнарица; КМ) in the late 1930s, and designed to operate as part of a division led by the flotilla leader Dubrovnik. She entered KM service in November 1939, was armed with a main battery of four Škoda 120 mm (4.7 in) guns in superfiring single mounts – two forward and two aft of the superstructure – and she had a practical top speed of 35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph).In 1940, Ljubljana ran aground on a reef off the Yugoslav port of Šibenik and sank due to the serious damage caused to her hull. After considerable effort she was refloated and then towed to the naval arsenal at Tivat in the Bay of Kotor for repairs. This incident resulted in her gaining a reputation as an "unlucky ship" with Yugoslav sailors. Yugoslavia entered World War II when the German-led Axis powers invaded in April 1941, and Ljubljana – still under repair – was captured by the Italians. After repairs and refitting, including replacement of her anti-aircraft armament, she saw service from November 1942 with the Royal Italian Navy under the name Lubiana, mainly as a convoy escort on routes between Italy and Greece and Italy and Tunisia. She was lost on 1 April 1943, when a navigational error was made in poor visibility off the Tunisian coast. She ran aground and was stranded and then abandoned due to heavy seas, and was declared a total loss.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 14:13 UTC on Friday, 8 November 2024.For the full current version of the article, see Yugoslav destroyer Ljubljana on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm generative Olivia.

Interview with Sara Moller - 13:00 This week, Kelly and Freddie talk through the UK's deal with Mauritius on the Chagos Islands, the Tunisian presidential election, and Kenya's police mission in Haiti. Kelly then talks with Professor Sara Moller about NATO's new Secretary General Mark Rutte.  The opinions expressed in this conversation are strictly those of the participants and do not represent the views of Georgetown University or any government entity. Produced by Jarrett Dang and Freddie Mallinson.  Recorded on October 14, 2024. Diplomatic Immunity, a podcast from the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University, brings you frank and candid conversations with experts on the issues facing diplomats and national security decision-makers around the world. Funding support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. For more, visit our website, and follow us on Linkedin, Twitter @GUDiplomacy, and Instagram @isd.georgetown

Tommy and Ben discuss the anniversary of the October 7th attack in Israel and how the war has expanded across the Middle East in the year since, they play reflections from a Palestinian journalist in Gaza and an Israeli woman whose relatives were taken hostage, and discuss the heavy fighting this week in both Northern Gaza and Lebanon. Then they talk about how the war has become a major issue on the campaign trail, Trump's bizarre claim to have visited Gaza and support for Israel attacking Iranian nuclear infrastructure, Kamala Harris's frosty comments about Benjamin Netanyahu on 60 Minutes, Macron's call to stop arming Israel, and Netanyahu's ominous message to the Lebanese people. They also talk about Bob Woodward's new book, the Tunisian election and the end of the Arab Spring, the dangers of the far-right surge in Austria, and a Qantas Airlines experience of in-flight entertainment gone horribly wrong. Then, Ben speaks to Ta-Nehisi Coates about his new book, “The Message”, that digs into the Israeli and Palestinian conflict and how victims can become victimizers.

Israel is expanding its ground incursion into southern Lebanon and Israeli air strikes continue to target Beirut's southern suburbs. About a million Lebanese have been displaced in recent weeks and many in Lebanon are feeling abandoned by the international community. Also, British Canadian scientist Geoffrey Hinton has been called "the godfather of artificial intelligence" because his research laid the groundwork for advancements in AI. But that doesn't mean he's a proponent. In fact, he's known for speaking out about the dangers of the technologies he helped invent. We'll hear his reaction to Tuesday's announcement that he's won the 2024 Nobel Prize in physics. And, Tunisian President Kais Saied has claimed a second term in a landslide election that critics say was rigged, with his closest challenger getting only 7% of the vote. We'll get analysis on the state of Tunisian democracy, given that this largely predicted scenario has come to fruition.Listen to today's Music Heard on Air.

Nothing masks the flavor of sweet carrots in this popular soup: no cream or egg enrichment. No broth even. Basic ingredients carrots, fresh ginger, honey, and water are responsible for this soup's magnificent color and flavor.In addition to being easy to make, this can be served hot or chilled advantageous for the busy cook. If you're serving it cold, add a splash of fresh orange juice for a fresh citrus taste. You can spice it up a bit, too, depending upon how well your refrigerator is stocked with what we call "accents": Stir in a teaspoon of harissa, the Tunisian (not Moroccan, although it is used there, too) hot chili sauce, just before serving. Failing that, you can add a spoonful of chipotle chile salsa, something we have on tap frequently. If you don't have either of those and you like a touch of heat, add hot salsa from the jar.

As Tunisians await the results from Sunday's presidential election, an analyst says the country's democratic transition has failed because of the actions of President Kais Saied. Samer Shehata, an associate professor of Middle Eastern studies at the University of Oklahoma, tells VOA's James Butty, Sunday's election was a coronation, not a real vote

On Daybreak Africa: Mozambique's Frelimo party gathered around 4,000 people for a final rally ahead of elections Wednesday when it is likely to maintain a firm grip on power, although with a change of president. Plus, Tunisians await results from Sunday's presidential election. An analyst says Sunday's Tunisia elections are a coronation of President Kais Saied. Kenya's Deputy President Gachagua, who is facing impeachment, asks for forgiveness from President Ruto. Democratic Republic of Congo starts mpox vaccinations. Monday is the day that Ugandan President Museveni's son has given for the US ambassador to apologize to President Museveni or leave Uganda. For this and more tune in to Daybreak Africa!

Tunisians are awaiting the results from Sunday's presidential election featuring President Kais Saied and two challengers. Reuters News Agency quotes the election commission as saying that the turnout was 27.7%. President Saied has been criticized for jailing his main challenger and dismantling democratic institutions since he came to power. Journalist Noura Hefaiedh joins us from the Tunisian capital, Tunis

On Daybreak Africa: Most hospitals in the Khartoum area of Sudan have been destroyed or evacuated as fighting in the capital continues. Plus, Tanzania suspends the licenses of four media outlets for publishing what it calls “prohibited content.” The managing editor says the company is engaging the government to lift the ban. We'll also hear from the Tanzania Editors Forum. Tunisians cast their ballots this Sunday in a presidential election. South Sudan's president sacks his Internal Security chief. The International Organization for Migration provides an update on the fate of hundreds of migrants forced to disembark from their boats off the Djibouti coast. African public health experts sound the alarm about rising mpox cases across the continent. For this and more tune in to Daybreak Africa!

Kenya's Deputy President, Rigathi Gachagua, who calls himself the “truthful man”, is facing impeachment. Before he was elected as a member of parliament in 2017 little was known about the man, who would in five short years, rise to become Kenya's second-in-command. So who is he and why is he facing impeachment? Also how are Tunisian's feeling ahead of their Presidential elections on Sunday? And once a popular event in Zimbabwe, what do Zimbabweans now think of their State of Nation Address and how are they reacting to their currency's recent crash? Presenter: Charles Gitonga Producers: Frenny Jowi in Nairobi. Rob Wilson and Benjamin Woodroof in London. Technical Producer: Jonathan Greer Senior Journalist: Karnie Sharp Editors: Alice Muthengi and Andre Lombard

Ahead of Tunisia's presidential election scheduled for October 6, many Tunisians are taking stock of the past five years under the presidency of Kais Saied. The country remains divided between his long-term supporters, and opponents who say the regime is repressive. Our reporters Lilia Blaise and Hamdi Tlili went to meet voters on both sides of the political divide, from Tunis to Paris.

South Africa correspondent Elna Schutz spoke to Lisa Owen about African states wanting a bigger seat at the United Nations table, Tunisians asking for a case to be seen by the International Criminal Court and snow reported in South Africa.

Listen to the premiere episode of the second season of The Forgotten Exodus, the multi-award-winning, chart-topping, and first-ever narrative podcast series to focus exclusively on Mizrahi and Sephardic Jews. This week's episode focuses on Jews from Tunisia. If you like what you hear, subscribe before the next episode drops on September 3. “In the Israeli DNA and the Jewish DNA, we have to fight to be who we are. In every generation, empires and big forces tried to erase us . . . I know what it is to be rejected for several parts of my identity... I'm fighting for my ancestors, but I'm also fighting for our future generation.”  Hen Mazzig, a writer, digital creator, and founder of the Tel Aviv Institute, shares his powerful journey as a proud Israeli, LGBTQ+, and Mizrahi Jew, in the premiere episode of the second season of the award-winning podcast, The Forgotten Exodus. Hen delves into his family's deep roots in Tunisia, their harrowing experiences during the Nazi occupation, and their eventual escape to Israel. Discover the rich history of Tunisia's ancient Amazigh Jewish community, the impact of French colonial and Arab nationalist movements on Jews in North Africa, and the cultural identity that Hen passionately preserves today. Joining the conversation is historian Lucette Valensi, an expert on Tunisian Jewish culture, who provides scholarly insights into the longstanding presence of Jews in Tunisia, from antiquity to their exodus in the mid-20th century. ___ Show notes: Sign up to receive podcast updates here. Learn more about the series here. Song credits:  "Penceresi Yola Karsi" -- by Turku, Nomads of the Silk Road Pond5:  “Desert Caravans”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Tiemur Zarobov (BMI), IPI#1098108837 “Sentimental Oud Middle Eastern”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Sotirios Bakas (BMI), IPI#797324989. “Meditative Middle Eastern Flute”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Danielyan Ashot Makichevich (BMI), IPI Name #00855552512, United States BMI “Tunisia Eastern”: Publisher: Edi Surya Nurrohim, Composer: Edi Surya Nurrohim, Item ID#155836469. “At The Rabbi's Table”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Fazio Giulio (IPI/CAE# 00198377019). “Fields Of Elysium”; Publisher: Mysterylab Music; Composer: Mott Jordan; ID#79549862  “Frontiers”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI); Composer: Pete Checkley (BMI), IPI#380407375 “Hatikvah (National Anthem Of Israel)”; Composer: Eli Sibony; ID#122561081 “Tunisian Pot Dance (Short)”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI); Composer: kesokid, ID #97451515 “Middle East Ident”; Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Alpha (ASCAP); Composer: Alon Marcus (ACUM), IPI#776550702 “Adventures in the East”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI) Composer: Petar Milinkovic (BMI), IPI#00738313833. ___ Episode Transcript: HEN MAZZIG: They took whatever they had left and they got on a boat. And my grandmother told me this story before she passed away on how they were on this boat coming to Israel.  And they were so happy, and they were crying because they felt that finally after generations upon generations of oppression they are going to come to a place where they are going to be protected, and that she was coming home. MANYA BRACHEAR PASHMAN: The world has overlooked an important episode in modern history: the 800,000 Jews who left or were driven from their homes in the Middle East and North Africa in the mid-20th century. Welcome to the second season of The Forgotten Exodus, brought to you by American Jewish Committee. This series explores that pivotal moment in history and the little-known Jewish heritage of Iran and Arab nations. As Jews around the world confront violent antisemitism and Israelis face daily attacks by terrorists on multiple fronts, our second season explores how Jews have lived throughout the region for generations–despite hardship, hostility, and hatred–then sought safety and new possibilities in their ancestral homeland. I'm your host, Manya Brachear Pashman. Join us as we explore untold family histories and personal stories of courage, perseverance, and resilience from this transformative and tumultuous period of history for the Jewish people and the Middle East.  The world has ignored these voices. We will not. This is The Forgotten Exodus.  Today's episode: leaving Tunisia. __ [Tel Aviv Pride video] MANYA BRACHEAR PASHMAN: Every June, Hen Mazzig, who splits his time between London and Tel Aviv, heads to Israel to show his Pride. His Israeli pride. His LGBTQ+ pride. And his Mizrahi Jewish pride. For that one week, all of those identities coalesce.  And while other cities around the world have transformed Pride into a June version of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Israel is home to one of the few vibrant LGBTQ communities in the Middle East. Tel Aviv keeps it real. HEN: For me, Pride in Israel, in Tel Aviv, it still has this element of fighting for something. And that it's important for all of us to show up and to come out to the Pride Parade because if we're not going to be there, there's some people with agendas to erase us and we can't let them do it. MANYA: This year, the Tel Aviv Pride rally was a more somber affair as participants demanded freedom for the more than 100 hostages still held in Gaza since October 7th.  On that day, Hamas terrorists bent on erasing Jews from the Middle East went on a murderous rampage, killing more than 1,200, kidnapping 250 others, and unleashing what has become a 7-front war on Israel. HEN: In the Israeli DNA and the Jewish DNA we have to fight to be who we are. In every generation, empires and big forces tried to erase us, and we had to fight. And the LGBTQ+ community also knows very well how hard it is. I know what it is to be rejected for several parts of my identity. And I don't want anyone to go through that. I don't want my children to go through that. I'm fighting for my ancestors, but I'm also fighting for our future generation. MANYA: Hen Mazzig is an international speaker, writer, and digital influencer. In 2022, he founded the Tel Aviv Institute, a social media laboratory that tackles antisemitism online. He's also a second-generation Israeli, whose maternal grandparents fled Iraq, while his father's parents fled Tunisia – roots that echo in the family name: Mazzig. HEN: The last name Mazzig never made sense, because in Israel a lot of the last names have meaning in Hebrew.  So I remember one of my teachers in school was saying that Mazzig sounds like mozeg, which means pouring in Hebrew. Maybe your ancestors were running a bar or something? Clearly, this teacher did not have knowledge of the Amazigh people. Which, later on I learned, several of those tribes, those Amazigh tribes, were Jewish or practiced Judaism, and that there was 5,000 Jews that came from Tunisia that were holding both identities of being Jewish and Amazigh.  And today, they have last names like Mazzig, and Amzaleg, Mizzoug. There's several of those last names in Israel today. And they are the descendants of those Jewish communities that have lived in the Atlas Mountains. MANYA: The Atlas Mountains. A 1,500-mile chain of magnificent peaks and treacherous terrain that stretch across Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia, separating the Sahara from the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastline.  It's where the nomadic Amazigh have called home for thousands of years. The Amazigh trace their origins to at least 2,000 BCE  in western North Africa. They speak the language of Tamazight and rely on cattle and agriculture as their main sources of income.  But textiles too. In fact, you've probably heard of the Amazigh or own a rug woven by them. A Berber rug. HEN: Amazigh, which are also called Berbers. But they're rejecting this term because of the association with barbarians, which was the title that European colonialists when they came to North Africa gave them. There's beautiful folklore about Jewish leaders within the Amazigh people. One story that I really connected to was the story of Queen Dihya that was also known as El-Kahina, which in Arabic means the Kohen, the priest, and she was known as this leader of the Amazigh tribes, and she was Jewish.  Her derrogaters were calling her a Jewish witch, because they said that she had the power to foresee the future. And her roots were apparently connected to Queen Sheba and her arrival from Israel back to Africa. And she was the descendant of Queen Sheba. And that's how she led the Amazigh people.  And the stories that I read about her, I just felt so connected. How she had this long, black, curly hair that went all the way down to her knees, and she was fierce, and she was very committed to her identity, and she was fighting against the Islamic expansion to North Africa.  And when she failed, after years of holding them off, she realized that she can't do it anymore and she's going to lose. And she was not willing to give up her Jewish identity and convert to Islam and instead she jumped into a well and died. This well is known today in Tunisia. It's the [Bir] Al-Kahina or Dihya's Well that is still in existence. Her descendants, her kids, were Jewish members of the Amazigh people.  Of course, I would like to believe that I am the descendant of royalty. MANYA: Scholars debate whether the Amazigh converted to Judaism or descended from Queen Dihya and stayed.  Lucette Valensi is a French scholar of Tunisian history who served as a director of studies at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences in Paris, one of the most prestigious institutions of graduate education in France. She has written extensively about Tunisian Jewish culture.   Generations of her family lived in Tunisia. She says archaeological evidence proves Jews were living in that land since Antiquity. LUCETTE VALENSI: I myself am a Chemla, born Chemla. And this is an Arabic name, which means a kind of belt. And my mother's name was Tartour, which is a turban [laugh]. So the names were Arabic. So my ancestors spoke Arabic. I don't know if any of them spoke Berber before, or Latin. I have no idea. But there were Jews in antiquity and of course, through Saint Augustin. MANYA: So when did Jews arrive in Tunisia? LUCETTE: [laugh] That's a strange question because they were there since Antiquity. We have evidence of their presence in mosaics of synagogues, from the times of Byzantium. I think we think in terms of a short chronology, and they would tend to associate the Jews to colonization, which does not make sense, they were there much before French colonization. They were there for millennia. MANYA: Valensi says Jews lived in Tunisia dating to the time of Carthage, an ancient city-state in what is now Tunisia, that reached its peak in the fourth century BCE. Later, under Roman and then Byzantine rule, Carthage continued to play a vital role as a center of commerce and trade during antiquity.  Besides the role of tax collectors, Jews were forbidden to serve in almost all public offices. Between the 5th and 8th centuries CE, conditions fluctuated between relief and forced conversions while under Christian rule.  After the Islamic conquest of Tunisia in the seventh and early eighth centuries CE, the treatment of Jews largely depended on which Muslim ruler was in charge at the time.  Some Jews converted to Islam while others lived as dhimmis, or second-class citizens, protected by the state in exchange for a special tax known as the jizya. In 1146, the first caliph of the Almohad dynasty, declared that the Prophet Muhammad had granted Jews religious freedom for only 500 years, by which time if the messiah had not come, they had to convert.  Those who did not convert and even those who did were forced to wear yellow turbans or other special garb called shikra, to distinguish them from Muslims. An influx of Jews expelled from Spain and Portugal arrived in the 14th Century. In the 16th Century, Tunisia became part of the Ottoman Empire, and the situation of Jews improved significantly. Another group who had settled in the coastal Tuscan city of Livorno crossed the Mediterranean in the 17th and 18th centuries to make Tunisia their home. LUCETTE: There were other groups that came, Jews from Italy, Jews from Spain, of course, Spain and Portugal, different periods. 14th century already from Spain and then from Spain and Portugal. From Italy, from Livorno, that's later, but the Jews from Livorno themselves came from Spain.  So I myself am named Valensi. From Valencia. It was the family name of my first husband. So from Valencia in Spain they went to Livorno, and from Livorno–Leghorn in English–to Tunisia. MANYA: At its peak, Tunisia's Jewish population exceeded 100,000 – a combination of Sephardi and Mizrahi. HEN: When we speak about Jews from the Middle East and North Africa, specifically in the West, or mainly in the West, we're referring to them as Sephardi. But in Tunisia, it's very interesting to see that there was the Grana community which are Livorno Jews that moved to Tunisia in the 1800s, and they brought the Sephardi way of praying.  And that's why I always use the term Mizrahi to describe myself, because I feel like it encapsulates more of my identity. And for me, the Sephardi title that we often use on those communities doesn't feel accurate to me, and it also has the connection to Ladino, which my grandparents never spoke.  They spoke Tamazight, Judeo-Tamazight, which was the language of those tribes in North Africa. And my family from my mother's side, from Iraq, they were speaking Judeo-Iraqi-Arabic.  So for me, the term Sephardi just doesn't cut it. I go with Mizrahi to describe myself. MANYA: The terms Ashkenazi, Sephardi, and Mizrahi all refer to the places Jews once called home.  Ashkenazi Jews hail from Central and Eastern Europe, particularly Germany, Poland, and Russia. They traditionally speak Yiddish, and their customs and practices reflect the influences of Central and Eastern European cultures.  Pogroms in Eastern Europe and the Holocaust led many Ashkenazi Jews to flee their longtime homes to countries like the United States and their ancestral homeland, Israel.  Mizrahi, which means “Eastern” in Hebrew, refers to the diaspora of descendants of Jewish communities from Middle Eastern countries such as: Iraq, Iran, and Yemen, and North African countries such as: Tunisia, Libya, and Morocco. Ancient Jewish communities that have lived in the region for millennia long before the advent of Islam and Christianity. They often speak dialects of Arabic. Sephardi Jews originate from Spain and Portugal, speaking Ladino and incorporating Spanish and Portuguese cultural influences. Following their expulsion from the Iberian Peninsula in 1492, they settled in regions like North Africa and the Balkans. In Tunisia, the Mizrahi and Sephardi communities lived side by side, but separately. HEN: As time passed, those communities became closer together, still quite separated, but they became closer and closer. And perhaps the reason they were becoming closer was because of the hardship that they faced as Jews.  For the leaders of Muslim armies that came to Tunisia, it didn't matter if you were a Sephardi Jew, or if you were an Amazigh Jew. You were a Jew for them. MANYA: Algeria's invasion of Tunisia in the 18th century had a disproportionate effect on Tunisia's Jewish community. The Algerian army killed thousands of the citizens of Tunis, many of whom were Jewish. Algerians raped Jewish women, looted Jewish homes. LUCETTE: There were moments of trouble when you had an invasion of the Algerian army to impose a prince. The Jews were molested in Tunis. MANYA: After a military invasion, a French protectorate was established in 1881 and lasted until Tunisia gained independence in 1956. The Jews of Tunisia felt much safer under the French protectorate.  They put a lot of stock in the French revolutionary promise of Liberté, égalité, fraternité. Soon, the French language replaced Judeo-Arabic. LUCETTE: Well, under colonization, the Jews were in a better position. First, the school system. They went to modern schools, especially the Alliance [Israélite Universelle] schools, and with that started a form of Westernization.  You had also schools in Italian, created by Italian Jews, and some Tunisian Jews went to these schools and already in the 19th century, there was a form of acculturation and Westernization.  Access to newspapers, creation of newspapers. In the 1880s Jews had already their own newspapers in Hebrew characters, but Arabic language.  And my grandfather was one of the early journalists and they started having their own press and published books, folklore, sort of short stories. MANYA: In May 1940, Nazi Germany invaded France and quickly overran the French Third Republic, forcing the French to sign an armistice agreement in June. The armistice significantly reduced the territory governed by France and created a new government known as the Vichy regime, after the central French city where it was based.  The Vichy regime collaborated with the Nazis, establishing a special administration to introduce anti-Jewish legislation and enforce a compulsory Jewish census in all of its territories including Tunisia. Hen grew up learning about the Holocaust, the Nazis' attempt to erase the Jewish people. As part of his schooling, he learned the names of concentration and death camps and he heard the stories from his friends' grandparents.  But because he was not Ashkenazi, because his grandparents didn't suffer through the same catastrophe that befell Europe, Hen never felt fully accepted.  It was a trauma that belonged to his Ashkenazi friends of German and Polish descent, not to him. Or so they thought and so he thought, until he was a teenager and asked his grandmother Kamisa to finally share their family's journey from Tunisia. That's when he learned that the Mazzig family had not been exempt from Hitler's hatred. In November 1942, Tunisia became the only North African country to come under Nazi Germany's occupation and the Nazis wasted no time. Jewish property was confiscated, and heavy fines were levied on large Jewish communities. With the presence of the Einsatzkommando, a subgroup of the Einsatzgruppen, or mobile killing units, the Nazis were prepared to implement the systematic murder of the Jews of Tunisia. The tide of the war turned just in time to prevent that. LUCETTE: At the time the Germans came, they did not control the Mediterranean, and so they could not export us to the camps. We were saved by that. Lanor camps for men in dangerous places where there were bombs by the Allies. But not for us, it was, I mean, they took our radios. They took the silverware or they took money, this kind of oppression, but they did not murder us.  They took the men away, a few families were directly impacted and died in the camps. A few men. So we were afraid. We were occupied. But compared to what Jews in Europe were subjected to, we didn't suffer.  MANYA: Almost 5,000 Jews, most of them from Tunis and from certain northern communities, were taken captive and incarcerated in 32 labor camps scattered throughout Tunisia. Jews were not only required to wear yellow stars, but those in the camps were also required to wear them on their backs so they could be identified from a distance and shot in the event they tried to escape. HEN: My grandmother never told me until before she died, when she was more open about the stories of oppression, on how she was serving food for the French Nazi officers that were occupying Tunisia, or how my grandfather was in a labor camp, and he was supposed to be sent to a death camp in Europe as well. They never felt like they should share these stories. MANYA: The capture of Tunisia by the Allied forces in May 1943 led the Axis forces in North Africa to surrender. But the country remained under French colonial rule and the antisemitic legislation of the Vichy regime continued until 1944. Many of the Vichy camps, including forced labor camps in the Sahara, continued to operate.  Even after the decline and fall of the Vichy regime and the pursuit of independence from French rule began, conditions for the Mazzig family and many others in the Tunisian Jewish community did not improve.  But the source of much of the hostility and strife was actually a beacon of hope for Tunisia's Jews. On May 14, 1948, the world had witnessed the creation of the state of Israel, sparking outrage throughout the Arab world. Seven Arab nations declared war on Israel the day after it declared independence.  Amid the rise of Tunisian nationalism and its push for independence from France, Jewish communities who had lived in Tunisia for centuries became targets. Guilty by association. No longer welcome. Rabbinical councils were dismantled. Jewish sports associations banned. Jews practiced their religion in hiding. Hen's grandfather recounted violence in the Jewish quarter of Tunis.  HEN: When World War Two was over, the Jewish community in Tunisia was hoping that now that Tunisia would have emancipation, and it would become a country, that their neighbors and the country itself would protect them. Because when it was Nazis, they knew that it was a foreign power that came from France and oppressed them. They knew that there was some hatred in the past, from their Muslim neighbors towards them.  But they also were hoping that, if anything, they would go back to the same status of a dhimmi, of being a protected minority. Even if they were not going to be fully accepted and celebrated in this society, at least they would be protected, for paying tax. And this really did not happen. MANYA: By the early 1950s, life for the Mazzig family became untenable. By then, American Jewish organizations based in Tunis started working to take Jews to Israel right away.  HEN: [My family decided to leave.] They took whatever they had left. And they got on a boat. And my grandmother told me this story before she passed away on how they were on this boat coming to Israel.  And they were so happy, and they were crying because they felt that finally after generations upon generations of oppression of living as a minority that knows that anytime the ruler might turn on them and take everything they have and pull the ground underneath their feet, they are going to come to a place where they are going to be protected. And maybe they will face hate, but no one will hate them because they're Jewish.  And I often dream about my grandmother being a young girl on this boat and how she must have felt to know that the nightmare and the hell that she went through is behind her and that she was coming home. MANYA: The boat they sailed to Israel took days. When Hen's uncle, just a young child at the time, got sick, the captain threatened to throw him overboard. Hen's grandmother hid the child inside her clothes until they docked in Israel. When they arrived, they were sprayed with DDT to kill any lice or disease, then placed in ma'abarot, which in Hebrew means transit camps. In this case, it was a tent with one bed. HEN: They were really mistreated back then. And it's not criticism. I mean, yes, it is also criticism, but it's not without understanding the context. That it was a young country that just started, and those Jewish communities, Jewish refugees came from Tunisia, they didn't speak Hebrew. They didn't look like the other Jewish communities there. And while they all had this in common, that they were all Jews, they had a very different experience. MANYA: No, the family's arrival in the Holy Land was nothing like what they had imagined. But even still, it was a dream fulfilled and there was hope, which they had lost in Tunisia. HEN: I think that it was somewhere in between having both this deep connection to Israel and going there because they wanted to, and also knowing that there's no future in Tunisia. And the truth is that even–and I'm sure people that are listening to us, that are strong Zionists and love Israel, if you tell them ‘OK, so move tomorrow,' no matter how much you love Israel, it's a very difficult decision to make.  Unless it's not really a decision. And I think for them, it wasn't really a decision. And they went through so much, they knew, OK, we have to leave and I think for the first time having a country, having Israel was the hope that they had for centuries to go back home, finally realized. MANYA: Valensi's family did stay a while longer. When Tunisia declared independence in 1956, her father, a ceramicist, designed tiles for the residence of President Habib Bourguiba. Those good relations did not last.  Valensi studied history in France, married an engineer, and returned to Tunisia. But after being there for five years, it became clear that Jews were not treated equally and they returned to France in 1965. LUCETTE: I did not plan to emigrate. And then it became more and more obvious that some people were more equal than others [laugh]. And so there was this nationalist mood where responsibilities were given to Muslims rather than Jews and I felt more and more segregated.  And so, my husband was an engineer from a good engineering school. Again, I mean, he worked for another engineer, who was a Muslim. We knew he would never reach the same position. His father was a lawyer. And in the tribunal, he had to use Arabic. And so all these things accumulated, and we were displaced. MANYA: Valensi said Jewish emigration from Tunisia accelerated at two more mileposts. Even after Tunisia declared independence, France maintained a presence and a naval base in the port city of Bizerte, a strategic port on the Mediterranean for the French who were fighting with Algeria.  In 1961, Tunisian forces blockaded the naval base and warned France to stay out of its airspace. What became known as the Bizerte Crisis lasted for three days. LUCETTE: There were critical times, like what we call “La Crise de Bizerte.” Bizerte is a port to the west of Tunis that used to be a military port and when independence was negotiated with France, the French kept this port, where they could keep an army, and Bourguiba decided that he wanted this port back. And there was a war, a conflict, between Tunisia and France in ‘61.  And that crisis was one moment when Jews thought: if there is no French presence to protect us, then anything could happen. You had the movement of emigration.  Of course, much later, ‘67, the unrest in the Middle East, and what happened there provoked a kind of panic, and there were movements against the Jews in Tunis – violence and destruction of shops, etc. So they emigrated again. Now you have only a few hundred Jews left. MANYA: Valensi's first husband died at an early age. Her second husband, Abraham Udovitch, is the former chair of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University. Together, they researched and published a book about the Jewish communities in the Tunisian island of Djerba. The couple now splits their time between Paris and Princeton. But Valensi returns to Tunisia every year. It's still home. LUCETTE: When I go, strange thing, I feel at home. I mean, I feel I belong. My Arabic comes back. The words that I thought I had forgotten come back. They welcome you. I mean, if you go, you say you come from America, they're going to ask you questions. Are you Jewish? Did you go to Israel? I mean, these kind of very brutal questions, right away. They're going there. The taxi driver won't hesitate to ask you: Are you Jewish? But at the same time, they're very welcoming. So, I have no trouble. MANYA: Hen, on the other hand, has never been to the land of his ancestors. He holds on to his grandparents' trauma. And fear.  HEN: Tunisia just still feels a bit unsafe to me. Just as recent as a couple of months ago, there was a terror attack. So it's something that's still occurring.  MANYA: Just last year, a member of the Tunisian National Guard opened fire on worshippers outside El Ghriba Synagogue where a large gathering of Jewish pilgrims were celebrating the festival of Lag BaOmer. The synagogue is located on the Tunisian island of Djerba where Valensi and her husband did research for their book. Earlier this year, a mob attacked an abandoned synagogue in the southern city of Sfax, setting fire to the building's courtyard. Numbering over 100,000 Jews on the eve of Israel's Independence in 1948, the Tunisian Jewish community is now estimated to be less than 1,000.  There has been limited contact over the years between Tunisia and Israel. Some Israeli tourists, mostly of Tunisian origin, annually visit the El Ghriba synagogue in Djerba. But the government has largely been hostile to the Jewish state.  In the wake of the October 7 attack, the Tunisian parliament began debate on a law that would criminalize any normalization of ties with Israel. Still, Hen would like to go just once to see where his grandparents lived. Walked. Cooked. Prayed.  But to him it's just geography, an arbitrary place on a map. The memories, the music, the recipes, the traditions. It's no longer in Tunisia. It's elsewhere now – in the only country that preserved it. HEN: The Jewish Tunisian culture, the only place that it's been maintained is in Israel. That's why it's still alive. Like in Tunisia, it's not really celebrated. It's not something that they keep as much as they keep here.  Like if you want to go to a proper Mimouna, you would probably need to go to Israel, not to North Africa, although that's where it started. And the same with the Middle Eastern Jewish cuisine. The only place in the world, where be it Tunisian Jews and Iraqi Jews, or Yemenite Jews, still develop their recipes, is in Israel.  Israel is home, and this is where we still celebrate our culture and our cuisine and our identity is still something that I can engage with here.  I always feel like I am living the dreams of my grandparents, and I know that my grandmother is looking from above and I know how proud she is that we have a country, that we have a place to be safe at.  And that everything I do today is to protect my people, to protect the Jewish people, and making sure that next time when a country, when an empire, when a power would turn on Jews we'll have a place to go to and be safe. MANYA: Tunisian Jews are just one of the many Jewish communities who, in the last century, left Arab countries to forge new lives for themselves and future generations.  Join us next week as we share another untold story of The Forgotten Exodus. Many thanks to Hen for sharing his story. You can read more in his memoir The Wrong Kind of Jew: A Mizrahi Manifesto. Too many times during my reporting, I encountered children and grandchildren who didn't have the answers to my questions because they'd never asked. That's why one of the goals of this project is to encourage you to ask those questions. Find your stories. Atara Lakritz is our producer. T.K. Broderick is our sound engineer. Special thanks to Jon Schweitzer, Nicole Mazur, Sean Savage, and Madeleine Stern, and so many of our colleagues, too many to name really, for making this series possible.  You can subscribe to The Forgotten Exodus on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts, and you can learn more at AJC.org/theforgottenexodus.  The views and opinions of our guests don't necessarily reflect the positions of AJC.  You can reach us at theforgottenexodus@ajc.org. If you've enjoyed this episode, please be sure to spread the word, and hop onto Apple Podcasts or Spotify to rate us and write a review to help more listeners find us.

“In the Israeli DNA and the Jewish DNA, we have to fight to be who we are. In every generation, empires and big forces tried to erase us . . . I know what it is to be rejected for several parts of my identity... I'm fighting for my ancestors, but I'm also fighting for our future generation.”  Hen Mazzig, a writer, digital creator, and founder of the Tel Aviv Institute, shares his powerful journey as a proud Israeli, LGBTQ+, and Mizrahi Jew, in the premiere episode of the second season of the award-winning podcast, The Forgotten Exodus. Hen delves into his family's deep roots in Tunisia, their harrowing experiences during the Nazi occupation, and their eventual escape to Israel. Discover the rich history of Tunisia's ancient Amazigh Jewish community, the impact of French colonial and Arab nationalist movements on Jews in North Africa, and the cultural identity that Hen passionately preserves today. Joining the conversation is historian Lucette Valensi, an expert on Tunisian Jewish culture, who provides scholarly insights into the longstanding presence of Jews in Tunisia, from antiquity to their exodus in the mid-20th century. ___ Show notes: Sign up to receive podcast updates here. Learn more about the series here. Song credits:  "Penceresi Yola Karsi" -- by Turku, Nomads of the Silk Road Pond5:  “Desert Caravans”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Tiemur Zarobov (BMI), IPI#1098108837 “Sentimental Oud Middle Eastern”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Sotirios Bakas (BMI), IPI#797324989. “Meditative Middle Eastern Flute”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Danielyan Ashot Makichevich (BMI), IPI Name #00855552512, United States BMI “Tunisia Eastern”: Publisher: Edi Surya Nurrohim, Composer: Edi Surya Nurrohim, Item ID#155836469. “At The Rabbi's Table”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Fazio Giulio (IPI/CAE# 00198377019). “Fields Of Elysium”; Publisher: Mysterylab Music; Composer: Mott Jordan; ID#79549862  “Frontiers”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI); Composer: Pete Checkley (BMI), IPI#380407375 “Hatikvah (National Anthem Of Israel)”; Composer: Eli Sibony; ID#122561081 “Tunisian Pot Dance (Short)”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI); Composer: kesokid, ID #97451515 “Middle East Ident”; Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Alpha (ASCAP); Composer: Alon Marcus (ACUM), IPI#776550702 “Adventures in the East”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI) Composer: Petar Milinkovic (BMI), IPI#00738313833. ___ Episode Transcript: HEN MAZZIG: They took whatever they had left and they got on a boat. And my grandmother told me this story before she passed away on how they were on this boat coming to Israel.  And they were so happy, and they were crying because they felt that finally after generations upon generations of oppression they are going to come to a place where they are going to be protected, and that she was coming home. MANYA BRACHEAR PASHMAN: The world has overlooked an important episode in modern history: the 800,000 Jews who left or were driven from their homes in the Middle East and North Africa in the mid-20th century. Welcome to the second season of The Forgotten Exodus, brought to you by American Jewish Committee. This series explores that pivotal moment in history and the little-known Jewish heritage of Iran and Arab nations. As Jews around the world confront violent antisemitism and Israelis face daily attacks by terrorists on multiple fronts, our second season explores how Jews have lived throughout the region for generations–despite hardship, hostility, and hatred–then sought safety and new possibilities in their ancestral homeland. I'm your host, Manya Brachear Pashman. Join us as we explore untold family histories and personal stories of courage, perseverance, and resilience from this transformative and tumultuous period of history for the Jewish people and the Middle East.  The world has ignored these voices. We will not. This is The Forgotten Exodus.  Today's episode: leaving Tunisia. __ [Tel Aviv Pride video] MANYA BRACHEAR PASHMAN: Every June, Hen Mazzig, who splits his time between London and Tel Aviv, heads to Israel to show his Pride. His Israeli pride. His LGBTQ+ pride. And his Mizrahi Jewish pride. For that one week, all of those identities coalesce.  And while other cities around the world have transformed Pride into a June version of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Israel is home to one of the few vibrant LGBTQ communities in the Middle East. Tel Aviv keeps it real. HEN: For me, Pride in Israel, in Tel Aviv, it still has this element of fighting for something. And that it's important for all of us to show up and to come out to the Pride Parade because if we're not going to be there, there's some people with agendas to erase us and we can't let them do it. MANYA: This year, the Tel Aviv Pride rally was a more somber affair as participants demanded freedom for the more than 100 hostages still held in Gaza since October 7th.  On that day, Hamas terrorists bent on erasing Jews from the Middle East went on a murderous rampage, killing more than 1,200, kidnapping 250 others, and unleashing what has become a 7-front war on Israel. HEN: In the Israeli DNA and the Jewish DNA we have to fight to be who we are. In every generation, empires and big forces tried to erase us, and we had to fight. And the LGBTQ+ community also knows very well how hard it is. I know what it is to be rejected for several parts of my identity. And I don't want anyone to go through that. I don't want my children to go through that. I'm fighting for my ancestors, but I'm also fighting for our future generation. MANYA: Hen Mazzig is an international speaker, writer, and digital influencer. In 2022, he founded the Tel Aviv Institute, a social media laboratory that tackles antisemitism online. He's also a second-generation Israeli, whose maternal grandparents fled Iraq, while his father's parents fled Tunisia – roots that echo in the family name: Mazzig. HEN: The last name Mazzig never made sense, because in Israel a lot of the last names have meaning in Hebrew.  So I remember one of my teachers in school was saying that Mazzig sounds like mozeg, which means pouring in Hebrew. Maybe your ancestors were running a bar or something? Clearly, this teacher did not have knowledge of the Amazigh people. Which, later on I learned, several of those tribes, those Amazigh tribes, were Jewish or practiced Judaism, and that there was 5,000 Jews that came from Tunisia that were holding both identities of being Jewish and Amazigh.  And today, they have last names like Mazzig, and Amzaleg, Mizzoug. There's several of those last names in Israel today. And they are the descendants of those Jewish communities that have lived in the Atlas Mountains. MANYA: The Atlas Mountains. A 1,500-mile chain of magnificent peaks and treacherous terrain that stretch across Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia, separating the Sahara from the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastline.  It's where the nomadic Amazigh have called home for thousands of years. The Amazigh trace their origins to at least 2,000 BCE  in western North Africa. They speak the language of Tamazight and rely on cattle and agriculture as their main sources of income.  But textiles too. In fact, you've probably heard of the Amazigh or own a rug woven by them. A Berber rug. HEN: Amazigh, which are also called Berbers. But they're rejecting this term because of the association with barbarians, which was the title that European colonialists when they came to North Africa gave them. There's beautiful folklore about Jewish leaders within the Amazigh people. One story that I really connected to was the story of Queen Dihya that was also known as El-Kahina, which in Arabic means the Kohen, the priest, and she was known as this leader of the Amazigh tribes, and she was Jewish.  Her derrogaters were calling her a Jewish witch, because they said that she had the power to foresee the future. And her roots were apparently connected to Queen Sheba and her arrival from Israel back to Africa. And she was the descendant of Queen Sheba. And that's how she led the Amazigh people.  And the stories that I read about her, I just felt so connected. How she had this long, black, curly hair that went all the way down to her knees, and she was fierce, and she was very committed to her identity, and she was fighting against the Islamic expansion to North Africa.  And when she failed, after years of holding them off, she realized that she can't do it anymore and she's going to lose. And she was not willing to give up her Jewish identity and convert to Islam and instead she jumped into a well and died. This well is known today in Tunisia. It's the [Bir] Al-Kahina or Dihya's Well that is still in existence. Her descendants, her kids, were Jewish members of the Amazigh people.  Of course, I would like to believe that I am the descendant of royalty. MANYA: Scholars debate whether the Amazigh converted to Judaism or descended from Queen Dihya and stayed.  Lucette Valensi is a French scholar of Tunisian history who served as a director of studies at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences in Paris, one of the most prestigious institutions of graduate education in France. She has written extensively about Tunisian Jewish culture.   Generations of her family lived in Tunisia. She says archaeological evidence proves Jews were living in that land since Antiquity. LUCETTE VALENSI: I myself am a Chemla, born Chemla. And this is an Arabic name, which means a kind of belt. And my mother's name was Tartour, which is a turban [laugh]. So the names were Arabic. So my ancestors spoke Arabic. I don't know if any of them spoke Berber before, or Latin. I have no idea. But there were Jews in antiquity and of course, through Saint Augustin. MANYA: So when did Jews arrive in Tunisia? LUCETTE: [laugh] That's a strange question because they were there since Antiquity. We have evidence of their presence in mosaics of synagogues, from the times of Byzantium. I think we think in terms of a short chronology, and they would tend to associate the Jews to colonization, which does not make sense, they were there much before French colonization. They were there for millennia. MANYA: Valensi says Jews lived in Tunisia dating to the time of Carthage, an ancient city-state in what is now Tunisia, that reached its peak in the fourth century BCE. Later, under Roman and then Byzantine rule, Carthage continued to play a vital role as a center of commerce and trade during antiquity.  Besides the role of tax collectors, Jews were forbidden to serve in almost all public offices. Between the 5th and 8th centuries CE, conditions fluctuated between relief and forced conversions while under Christian rule.  After the Islamic conquest of Tunisia in the seventh and early eighth centuries CE, the treatment of Jews largely depended on which Muslim ruler was in charge at the time.  Some Jews converted to Islam while others lived as dhimmis, or second-class citizens, protected by the state in exchange for a special tax known as the jizya. In 1146, the first caliph of the Almohad dynasty, declared that the Prophet Muhammad had granted Jews religious freedom for only 500 years, by which time if the messiah had not come, they had to convert.  Those who did not convert and even those who did were forced to wear yellow turbans or other special garb called shikra, to distinguish them from Muslims. An influx of Jews expelled from Spain and Portugal arrived in the 14th Century. In the 16th Century, Tunisia became part of the Ottoman Empire, and the situation of Jews improved significantly. Another group who had settled in the coastal Tuscan city of Livorno crossed the Mediterranean in the 17th and 18th centuries to make Tunisia their home. LUCETTE: There were other groups that came, Jews from Italy, Jews from Spain, of course, Spain and Portugal, different periods. 14th century already from Spain and then from Spain and Portugal. From Italy, from Livorno, that's later, but the Jews from Livorno themselves came from Spain.  So I myself am named Valensi. From Valencia. It was the family name of my first husband. So from Valencia in Spain they went to Livorno, and from Livorno–Leghorn in English–to Tunisia. MANYA: At its peak, Tunisia's Jewish population exceeded 100,000 – a combination of Sephardi and Mizrahi. HEN: When we speak about Jews from the Middle East and North Africa, specifically in the West, or mainly in the West, we're referring to them as Sephardi. But in Tunisia, it's very interesting to see that there was the Grana community which are Livorno Jews that moved to Tunisia in the 1800s, and they brought the Sephardi way of praying.  And that's why I always use the term Mizrahi to describe myself, because I feel like it encapsulates more of my identity. And for me, the Sephardi title that we often use on those communities doesn't feel accurate to me, and it also has the connection to Ladino, which my grandparents never spoke.  They spoke Tamazight, Judeo-Tamazight, which was the language of those tribes in North Africa. And my family from my mother's side, from Iraq, they were speaking Judeo-Iraqi-Arabic.  So for me, the term Sephardi just doesn't cut it. I go with Mizrahi to describe myself. MANYA: The terms Ashkenazi, Sephardi, and Mizrahi all refer to the places Jews once called home.  Ashkenazi Jews hail from Central and Eastern Europe, particularly Germany, Poland, and Russia. They traditionally speak Yiddish, and their customs and practices reflect the influences of Central and Eastern European cultures.  Pogroms in Eastern Europe and the Holocaust led many Ashkenazi Jews to flee their longtime homes to countries like the United States and their ancestral homeland, Israel.  Mizrahi, which means “Eastern” in Hebrew, refers to the diaspora of descendants of Jewish communities from Middle Eastern countries such as: Iraq, Iran, and Yemen, and North African countries such as: Tunisia, Libya, and Morocco. Ancient Jewish communities that have lived in the region for millennia long before the advent of Islam and Christianity. They often speak dialects of Arabic. Sephardi Jews originate from Spain and Portugal, speaking Ladino and incorporating Spanish and Portuguese cultural influences. Following their expulsion from the Iberian Peninsula in 1492, they settled in regions like North Africa and the Balkans. In Tunisia, the Mizrahi and Sephardi communities lived side by side, but separately. HEN: As time passed, those communities became closer together, still quite separated, but they became closer and closer. And perhaps the reason they were becoming closer was because of the hardship that they faced as Jews.  For the leaders of Muslim armies that came to Tunisia, it didn't matter if you were a Sephardi Jew, or if you were an Amazigh Jew. You were a Jew for them. MANYA: Algeria's invasion of Tunisia in the 18th century had a disproportionate effect on Tunisia's Jewish community. The Algerian army killed thousands of the citizens of Tunis, many of whom were Jewish. Algerians raped Jewish women, looted Jewish homes. LUCETTE: There were moments of trouble when you had an invasion of the Algerian army to impose a prince. The Jews were molested in Tunis. MANYA: After a military invasion, a French protectorate was established in 1881 and lasted until Tunisia gained independence in 1956. The Jews of Tunisia felt much safer under the French protectorate.  They put a lot of stock in the French revolutionary promise of Liberté, égalité, fraternité. Soon, the French language replaced Judeo-Arabic. LUCETTE: Well, under colonization, the Jews were in a better position. First, the school system. They went to modern schools, especially the Alliance [Israélite Universelle] schools, and with that started a form of Westernization.  You had also schools in Italian, created by Italian Jews, and some Tunisian Jews went to these schools and already in the 19th century, there was a form of acculturation and Westernization.  Access to newspapers, creation of newspapers. In the 1880s Jews had already their own newspapers in Hebrew characters, but Arabic language.  And my grandfather was one of the early journalists and they started having their own press and published books, folklore, sort of short stories. MANYA: In May 1940, Nazi Germany invaded France and quickly overran the French Third Republic, forcing the French to sign an armistice agreement in June. The armistice significantly reduced the territory governed by France and created a new government known as the Vichy regime, after the central French city where it was based.  The Vichy regime collaborated with the Nazis, establishing a special administration to introduce anti-Jewish legislation and enforce a compulsory Jewish census in all of its territories including Tunisia. Hen grew up learning about the Holocaust, the Nazis' attempt to erase the Jewish people. As part of his schooling, he learned the names of concentration and death camps and he heard the stories from his friends' grandparents.  But because he was not Ashkenazi, because his grandparents didn't suffer through the same catastrophe that befell Europe, Hen never felt fully accepted.  It was a trauma that belonged to his Ashkenazi friends of German and Polish descent, not to him. Or so they thought and so he thought, until he was a teenager and asked his grandmother Kamisa to finally share their family's journey from Tunisia. That's when he learned that the Mazzig family had not been exempt from Hitler's hatred. In November 1942, Tunisia became the only North African country to come under Nazi Germany's occupation and the Nazis wasted no time. Jewish property was confiscated, and heavy fines were levied on large Jewish communities. With the presence of the Einsatzkommando, a subgroup of the Einsatzgruppen, or mobile killing units, the Nazis were prepared to implement the systematic murder of the Jews of Tunisia. The tide of the war turned just in time to prevent that. LUCETTE: At the time the Germans came, they did not control the Mediterranean, and so they could not export us to the camps. We were saved by that. Lanor camps for men in dangerous places where there were bombs by the Allies. But not for us, it was, I mean, they took our radios. They took the silverware or they took money, this kind of oppression, but they did not murder us.  They took the men away, a few families were directly impacted and died in the camps. A few men. So we were afraid. We were occupied. But compared to what Jews in Europe were subjected to, we didn't suffer.  MANYA: Almost 5,000 Jews, most of them from Tunis and from certain northern communities, were taken captive and incarcerated in 32 labor camps scattered throughout Tunisia. Jews were not only required to wear yellow stars, but those in the camps were also required to wear them on their backs so they could be identified from a distance and shot in the event they tried to escape. HEN: My grandmother never told me until before she died, when she was more open about the stories of oppression, on how she was serving food for the French Nazi officers that were occupying Tunisia, or how my grandfather was in a labor camp, and he was supposed to be sent to a death camp in Europe as well. They never felt like they should share these stories. MANYA: The capture of Tunisia by the Allied forces in May 1943 led the Axis forces in North Africa to surrender. But the country remained under French colonial rule and the antisemitic legislation of the Vichy regime continued until 1944. Many of the Vichy camps, including forced labor camps in the Sahara, continued to operate.  Even after the decline and fall of the Vichy regime and the pursuit of independence from French rule began, conditions for the Mazzig family and many others in the Tunisian Jewish community did not improve.  But the source of much of the hostility and strife was actually a beacon of hope for Tunisia's Jews. On May 14, 1948, the world had witnessed the creation of the state of Israel, sparking outrage throughout the Arab world. Seven Arab nations declared war on Israel the day after it declared independence.  Amid the rise of Tunisian nationalism and its push for independence from France, Jewish communities who had lived in Tunisia for centuries became targets. Guilty by association. No longer welcome. Rabbinical councils were dismantled. Jewish sports associations banned. Jews practiced their religion in hiding. Hen's grandfather recounted violence in the Jewish quarter of Tunis.  HEN: When World War Two was over, the Jewish community in Tunisia was hoping that now that Tunisia would have emancipation, and it would become a country, that their neighbors and the country itself would protect them. Because when it was Nazis, they knew that it was a foreign power that came from France and oppressed them. They knew that there was some hatred in the past, from their Muslim neighbors towards them.  But they also were hoping that, if anything, they would go back to the same status of a dhimmi, of being a protected minority. Even if they were not going to be fully accepted and celebrated in this society, at least they would be protected, for paying tax. And this really did not happen. MANYA: By the early 1950s, life for the Mazzig family became untenable. By then, American Jewish organizations based in Tunis started working to take Jews to Israel right away.  HEN: [My family decided to leave.] They took whatever they had left. And they got on a boat. And my grandmother told me this story before she passed away on how they were on this boat coming to Israel.  And they were so happy, and they were crying because they felt that finally after generations upon generations of oppression of living as a minority that knows that anytime the ruler might turn on them and take everything they have and pull the ground underneath their feet, they are going to come to a place where they are going to be protected. And maybe they will face hate, but no one will hate them because they're Jewish.  And I often dream about my grandmother being a young girl on this boat and how she must have felt to know that the nightmare and the hell that she went through is behind her and that she was coming home. MANYA: The boat they sailed to Israel took days. When Hen's uncle, just a young child at the time, got sick, the captain threatened to throw him overboard. Hen's grandmother hid the child inside her clothes until they docked in Israel. When they arrived, they were sprayed with DDT to kill any lice or disease, then placed in ma'abarot, which in Hebrew means transit camps. In this case, it was a tent with one bed. HEN: They were really mistreated back then. And it's not criticism. I mean, yes, it is also criticism, but it's not without understanding the context. That it was a young country that just started, and those Jewish communities, Jewish refugees came from Tunisia, they didn't speak Hebrew. They didn't look like the other Jewish communities there. And while they all had this in common, that they were all Jews, they had a very different experience. MANYA: No, the family's arrival in the Holy Land was nothing like what they had imagined. But even still, it was a dream fulfilled and there was hope, which they had lost in Tunisia. HEN: I think that it was somewhere in between having both this deep connection to Israel and going there because they wanted to, and also knowing that there's no future in Tunisia. And the truth is that even–and I'm sure people that are listening to us, that are strong Zionists and love Israel, if you tell them ‘OK, so move tomorrow,' no matter how much you love Israel, it's a very difficult decision to make.  Unless it's not really a decision. And I think for them, it wasn't really a decision. And they went through so much, they knew, OK, we have to leave and I think for the first time having a country, having Israel was the hope that they had for centuries to go back home, finally realized. MANYA: Valensi's family did stay a while longer. When Tunisia declared independence in 1956, her father, a ceramicist, designed tiles for the residence of President Habib Bourguiba. Those good relations did not last.  Valensi studied history in France, married an engineer, and returned to Tunisia. But after being there for five years, it became clear that Jews were not treated equally and they returned to France in 1965. LUCETTE: I did not plan to emigrate. And then it became more and more obvious that some people were more equal than others [laugh]. And so there was this nationalist mood where responsibilities were given to Muslims rather than Jews and I felt more and more segregated.  And so, my husband was an engineer from a good engineering school. Again, I mean, he worked for another engineer, who was a Muslim. We knew he would never reach the same position. His father was a lawyer. And in the tribunal, he had to use Arabic. And so all these things accumulated, and we were displaced. MANYA: Valensi said Jewish emigration from Tunisia accelerated at two more mileposts. Even after Tunisia declared independence, France maintained a presence and a naval base in the port city of Bizerte, a strategic port on the Mediterranean for the French who were fighting with Algeria.  In 1961, Tunisian forces blockaded the naval base and warned France to stay out of its airspace. What became known as the Bizerte Crisis lasted for three days. LUCETTE: There were critical times, like what we call “La Crise de Bizerte.” Bizerte is a port to the west of Tunis that used to be a military port and when independence was negotiated with France, the French kept this port, where they could keep an army, and Bourguiba decided that he wanted this port back. And there was a war, a conflict, between Tunisia and France in ‘61.  And that crisis was one moment when Jews thought: if there is no French presence to protect us, then anything could happen. You had the movement of emigration.  Of course, much later, ‘67, the unrest in the Middle East, and what happened there provoked a kind of panic, and there were movements against the Jews in Tunis – violence and destruction of shops, etc. So they emigrated again. Now you have only a few hundred Jews left. MANYA: Valensi's first husband died at an early age. Her second husband, Abraham Udovitch, is the former chair of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University. Together, they researched and published a book about the Jewish communities in the Tunisian island of Djerba. The couple now splits their time between Paris and Princeton. But Valensi returns to Tunisia every year. It's still home. LUCETTE: When I go, strange thing, I feel at home. I mean, I feel I belong. My Arabic comes back. The words that I thought I had forgotten come back. They welcome you. I mean, if you go, you say you come from America, they're going to ask you questions. Are you Jewish? Did you go to Israel? I mean, these kind of very brutal questions, right away. They're going there. The taxi driver won't hesitate to ask you: Are you Jewish? But at the same time, they're very welcoming. So, I have no trouble. MANYA: Hen, on the other hand, has never been to the land of his ancestors. He holds on to his grandparents' trauma. And fear.  HEN: Tunisia just still feels a bit unsafe to me. Just as recent as a couple of months ago, there was a terror attack. So it's something that's still occurring.  MANYA: Just last year, a member of the Tunisian National Guard opened fire on worshippers outside El Ghriba Synagogue where a large gathering of Jewish pilgrims were celebrating the festival of Lag BaOmer. The synagogue is located on the Tunisian island of Djerba where Valensi and her husband did research for their book. Earlier this year, a mob attacked an abandoned synagogue in the southern city of Sfax, setting fire to the building's courtyard. Numbering over 100,000 Jews on the eve of Israel's Independence in 1948, the Tunisian Jewish community is now estimated to be less than 1,000.  There has been limited contact over the years between Tunisia and Israel. Some Israeli tourists, mostly of Tunisian origin, annually visit the El Ghriba synagogue in Djerba. But the government has largely been hostile to the Jewish state.  In the wake of the October 7 attack, the Tunisian parliament began debate on a law that would criminalize any normalization of ties with Israel. Still, Hen would like to go just once to see where his grandparents lived. Walked. Cooked. Prayed.  But to him it's just geography, an arbitrary place on a map. The memories, the music, the recipes, the traditions. It's no longer in Tunisia. It's elsewhere now – in the only country that preserved it. HEN: The Jewish Tunisian culture, the only place that it's been maintained is in Israel. That's why it's still alive. Like in Tunisia, it's not really celebrated. It's not something that they keep as much as they keep here.  Like if you want to go to a proper Mimouna, you would probably need to go to Israel, not to North Africa, although that's where it started. And the same with the Middle Eastern Jewish cuisine. The only place in the world, where be it Tunisian Jews and Iraqi Jews, or Yemenite Jews, still develop their recipes, is in Israel.  Israel is home, and this is where we still celebrate our culture and our cuisine and our identity is still something that I can engage with here.  I always feel like I am living the dreams of my grandparents, and I know that my grandmother is looking from above and I know how proud she is that we have a country, that we have a place to be safe at.  And that everything I do today is to protect my people, to protect the Jewish people, and making sure that next time when a country, when an empire, when a power would turn on Jews we'll have a place to go to and be safe. MANYA: Tunisian Jews are just one of the many Jewish communities who, in the last century, left Arab countries to forge new lives for themselves and future generations.  Join us next week as we share another untold story of The Forgotten Exodus. Many thanks to Hen for sharing his story. You can read more in his memoir The Wrong Kind of Jew: A Mizrahi Manifesto. Too many times during my reporting, I encountered children and grandchildren who didn't have the answers to my questions because they'd never asked. That's why one of the goals of this project is to encourage you to ask those questions. Find your stories. Atara Lakritz is our producer. T.K. Broderick is our sound engineer. Special thanks to Jon Schweitzer, Nicole Mazur, Sean Savage, and Madeleine Stern, and so many of our colleagues, too many to name really, for making this series possible.  You can subscribe to The Forgotten Exodus on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts, and you can learn more at AJC.org/theforgottenexodus.  The views and opinions of our guests don't necessarily reflect the positions of AJC.  You can reach us at theforgottenexodus@ajc.org. If you've enjoyed this episode, please be sure to spread the word, and hop onto Apple Podcasts or Spotify to rate us and write a review to help more listeners find us.

North African music receives very little coverage in the United States. There are no high-profile mixes of recent Tunisian underground dance music from hip DJs, and no young Algerian musicians with major distribution deals in the U.S. So we decided to explore what exactly is going on in this part of the world. We trace the origins of some of the region's most interesting current music to the banlieues of Paris, like raï 'n'b--a new autotuned and synth-heavy offshoot of raï. We also explore the Gnawa reggae movement, which finds common ground between Sufi trance and the message of Marley. Returning to familiar traditions, we present a live recording of Kabyle mandoleplayer Hamid Ouchène from Montreal's Nuits d'Afrique festival, backed by a group of Montreal-based musicians with origins throughout the African continent. We next turn to the North African metal scene that developed during Algeria's civil conflict to meld Berber folk music with black metal. Finally, we check out the new chaabi revival. Produced by Jesse Brent.

Emel Mathlouthi is a Tunisian musician whose song “Kelmti Horra” went viral in 2011 and became an anthem for the Tunisian Revolution during the Arab Spring.Her new album, ‘MRA,' calls for the continued fight for freedom on a global scale, but through an explicitly feminist lens. It was made by an all-women cast, from producers to musicians to engineers, and includes features from Malian rapper Ami Yerewolo, Brazilian producer Lyzza, Swedish-Iraqi rapper Nayomi, and more.Emel talks with KEXP's Isabel Khalili about why she chose to work exclusively with women on this album, what it was like being called “the voice of the Tunisian Revolution,” and the role of artists in social movements.Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.