Perched on a small cushioned stool, the 28-year-old Mahmoud Khalifeh sits facing a 1,400-degree oven door, quickly turning a metal rod, which, every now and then, he blows into. A glowing blob of glass lengthens and expands with his movements.
Khalifeh is carrying on the glass-blowing trade his grandfather began more than 50 years ago in the southern Lebanese town of Sarafand. When Husein Khalifeh started the small workshop on the main road running through the town, business was good: locals were employed to continue the seaside town's ancient tradition. Now, it's a different story.
Expensive running costs
Sarafand, once known as Serepta, was a trading post filled with artisans. The Khalifehs now run one of two glass-blowing workshops in the whole of Lebanon. Decrease in demand and lack of interest in the craft now mean that the Khalifehs turn the oven on for one month, then keep it off for two. Running costs are high. "In Syria, it's like US$20 [Dh74] a day," says Mahmoud's sister, Nisrine. "For us, it's $200 a day."
Most of the Khalifehs' business comes from stores in Beirut such as Artisans du Liban, or from weddings and private orders - but it's not enough to keep the ovens on full-time. In the off months, fishing and construction are the order of the day.
Glass-blowing is not Lebanon's only dying art. Nazih Baz is the last weaver of his family still practising. He has been working on his loom every day for 25 years, and contrary to what passersby might assume, it's not a hobby: "It's a job."
Baz carries out the technique on a nearly 200-year-old loom, creating unique designs that sell for prices ranging from $800 to $6,000. While the prices might seem steep, the time and effort each piece requires demands the higher cost.
Marketing is the key
Low demand and high production costs are constant hurdles for these trades. The global economic slowdown and regional problems don't help, either. But it's not all bad news. Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and high-end designers are making their own contributions to keeping these once-dying crafts going.
Baz works with the NGO Beyond Beirut and the Lebanon Mountain Trail organisation to keep people aware of his work.
Azm for Crafts, the corporate social responsibility arm of a Lebanese multinational company, has been working with Lebanese artisans since 2010 to either revive or keep going the practices that were quickly fading.
The group's general manager Ohannes Khoustekian is working on four sectors: blown glass, soap, herbal infusions and hammered brass, largely based in the northern city of Tripoli.
"This city has the highest rates of unemployment in Lebanon," says Khoustekian, "and our mission is to develop the craftsmen, to lead them to produce market-demanded handmade crafts, create jobs and keep people in their homeland."
Indeed, the glass-blower he works with had turned off his oven at the start of the century due to lack of demand, but started working again two years ago.
Glass and soap produced with help from Azm for Crafts are now being supplied to hotels, restaurants and boutiques from Beirut to Qatar and Paris.
Preserving the trade
The work with local artisans is done to make sure their precious skills are preserved for future generations.
This is part of the "manifesto" laid out by the Bokja furniture designers Hoda Baroudi and Maria Hibri. The embroiderer Abou Yousef, 53, credits them with helping him retain his passion as his source of income. "I studied history at university but this has been my trade," he says. "I love it. It's my life."
Reviving old needlepoint techniques is just one part of Baroudi's and Hibri's work with artisans from Lebanon. Mahmoud, in his 50s, is responsible for their woodwork. "When we came across Mahmoud 12 years ago, he was squatting," says Baroudi. "He had been doing woodwork but we worked with him to improve his skills and now he's earning more than $2,000 a month working with us."
"Compared to many countries in the region, Lebanon is blessed," says Frank Luca, the co-founder of the Middle Eastern artisan boutique Orient 499. Since opening in 2006, he and his partner Aida Kawas have worked with an increasing number of artists. "We started with five and now we work with more than 50 people."
The future
While admitting that she doesn't have a Facebook page for the family business - something that would undoubtedly expand their client base - Nisrine Khalifeh says glass-blowing is hard work for her brother. Khoustekian is more positive, however, saying that in the next 10 years, handicrafts such as glass-blowing and weaving will be in a far better state: "In this era of globalisation, people will work harder to bring out their own culture that distinguishes them from the rest of the world."
Visit www.orient499.com, www.bokjadesign.com and www.beyondbeirut.com
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Tips for newlyweds to better manage finances
All couples are unique and have to create a financial blueprint that is most suitable for their relationship, says Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial. He offers his top five tips for couples to better manage their finances.
Discuss your assets and debts: When married, it’s important to understand each other’s personal financial situation. It’s necessary to know upfront what each party brings to the table, as debts and assets affect spending habits and joint loan qualifications. Discussing all aspects of their finances as a couple prevents anyone from being blindsided later.
Decide on the financial/saving goals: Spouses should independently list their top goals and share their lists with one another to shape a joint plan. Writing down clear goals will help them determine how much to save each month, how much to put aside for short-term goals, and how they will reach their long-term financial goals.
Set a budget: A budget can keep the couple be mindful of their income and expenses. With a monthly budget, couples will know exactly how much they can spend in a category each month, how much they have to work with and what spending areas need to be evaluated.
Decide who manages what: When it comes to handling finances, it’s a good idea to decide who manages what. For example, one person might take on the day-to-day bills, while the other tackles long-term investments and retirement plans.
Money date nights: Talking about money should be a healthy, ongoing conversation and couples should not wait for something to go wrong. They should set time aside every month to talk about future financial decisions and see the progress they’ve made together towards accomplishing their goals.
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
If you go
The Flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Johannesburg from Dubai and Abu Dhabi respectively. Economy return tickets cost from Dh2,650, including taxes.
The trip
Worldwide Motorhoming Holidays (worldwidemotorhomingholidays.co.uk) operates fly-drive motorhome holidays in eight destinations, including South Africa. Its 14-day Kruger and the Battlefields itinerary starts from Dh17,500, including campgrounds, excursions, unit hire and flights. Bobo Campers has a range of RVs for hire, including the 4-berth Discoverer 4 from Dh600 per day.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
England's Ashes squad
Joe Root (captain), Moeen Ali, Jimmy Anderson, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Joe Denly, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes.
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BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Fixtures
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UAE SQUAD
Ali Khaseif, Mohammed Al Shamsi, Fahad Al Dhanhani, Khalid Essa, Bandar Al Ahbabi, Salem Rashid, Shaheen Abdulrahman, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Mohammed Al Attas, Walid Abbas, Hassan Al Mahrami, Mahmoud Khamis, Alhassan Saleh, Ali Salmeen, Yahia Nader, Abdullah Ramadan, Majed Hassan, Abdullah Al Naqbi, Fabio De Lima, Khalil Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Tahnoun Al Zaabi, Muhammed Jumah, Yahya Al Ghassani, Caio Canedo, Ali Mabkhout, Sebastian Tagliabue, Zayed Al Ameri
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Company Fact Box
Company name/date started: Abwaab Technologies / September 2019
Founders: Hamdi Tabbaa, co-founder and CEO. Hussein Alsarabi, co-founder and CTO
Based: Amman, Jordan
Sector: Education Technology
Size (employees/revenue): Total team size: 65. Full-time employees: 25. Revenue undisclosed
Stage: early-stage startup
Investors: Adam Tech Ventures, Endure Capital, Equitrust, the World Bank-backed Innovative Startups SMEs Fund, a London investment fund, a number of former and current executives from Uber and Netflix, among others.
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Understand What Black Is
The Last Poets
(Studio Rockers)
Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
Company%20Profile
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
A Bad Moms Christmas
Dir: John Lucas and Scott Moore
Starring: Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell, Susan Sarandon, Christine Baranski, Cheryl Hines
Two stars
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
