Both in the United Arab Emirates and the wider Middle East, we have come a long way as poets. In days of old, our words gave inspiration to the crescendo of political voices in countries such as Egypt, Iran and Iraq. Today, poetry plays to a different tune. We no longer need to amplify tribal pride or espouse a national political ideology. Arabic poetry now embraces the humanist sentiment. This is the reality of our new, globalised world.
When tragedy unfolded in Gaza earlier this year, I understood that here was a deeply disturbing human story which transcended politics. Here was a case above and beyond the "us versus them" stereotype. In my poetry at the time, I hope the message I tried to convey was appreciated as much by an Israeli humanist as by a Palestinian. Both have one thing in common: both are global citizens of our modern world today.
Of course, this does not mean that all discussion of politics should be discouraged. But the raison d'être of the Arabic poem today is to communicate with the conscience of humanity, regardless of whether we are Syrian or Palestinian or Israeli or American. This also applies to whatever our political leanings might be. This idea is now crystallising our new identity.
Centuries ago, before there were states and empires in our region, the Arab poet played many roles, all of them central and essential to his tribe and clan. He was the defence ministry, the ministry of social affairs, foreign ministry and the ministry of information. But when the Arab state was born, the poet retreated into a smaller role. The state established ministries of defence and information and foreign affairs, and the poet became just the voice of his political party and ideological affiliation.
In the Fifties and Sixties, poets saw their fortunes revived in Arab lands. Arab political parties benefited from the poets in their midst, who loaded their songs with political messages. At a time when many governments sought to keep a close eye on all social gatherings, for fear of subversion and political opposition, poetry gatherings and performances could easily slip under the radar.
But even then, many poets could not resist their instinctive bias towards humanity. Take the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish. His early poetry was about fighting the occupation of his homeland: his poems have a clear call for jihad. But his later work started to reveal something else: he wrote about the poet's relationship with death. In these later poems by Darwish, we find that his political ideology begins to disappear. What takes its place is an observation of humanity.
The same is also true of Ahmed Shawqi, dubbed the Prince of Poets. He was initially acquiescent of authority, delivering eulogies to the Khedive, where he worked. He even revived the genre of praising authority. But his later work about religion, children and even animals, much of it written after he returned to Egypt from exile in Spain, reveals his sense of humanity.
Poetry today is regarded as entertainment, and perhaps rightly so. In the modern world, it has to compete against a host of other distractions: football, cinema and music. It has never been more important for the poet to entertain an audience. At the same time, poetry should also deliver a cultural message.
The Prince of Poets, which returns for another series next week, has succeeded in turning Arabic poetry into cultural entertainment. I speak from personal experience.
Over the years, after reaching out to my audience with my cultural message, I have received a great deal of praise. I have been honoured by the Sudanese president, the Mauritanian vice president and ministers and dignitaries from Algeria and Tunisia, to name but a few.
The oral tradition has taught me that when a poet revives an incident from history, the audience appreciates the connection. In the same way when a poet captivates a state of mind, a moment from the human condition that all of us share, audiences relate to the connection. A poem that beautifies our country in our eyes is equally a moment to relish. Unfortunately, some Arabs seem to have little appreciation for our country of origin, until we migrate and become expatriates elsewhere. Only then do we relate to the myriad poems out there that capture the all too familiar nostalgia of being homesick and feeling alienated in a strange land.
In our cultural dialogue with the rest of the world, poetry should be impregnated with our own values. We can infuse our verses with a culture of peace instead of a culture of violence.
Arab poetry is also best served when stripped of dogmatic misconceptions about the West. For example, we should not use words like "enemy" to describe the United States, a country that is part of the same global village in which we live. The notion of "us versus them" is antiquated at a time when many wealthy Arabs send their sons and daughters to American schools for an education. This notion was once missing in the past because many poets were prisoners of local politics and regional power players. Today's poets must strive to be independent from the political mainstream.
As a poet, I have a natural bias to represent the hungry, the distraught and the disenfranchised in any part of the world. In this way, the Arab poet can deliver a humanist message to as wide an audience as possible, regardless of the audience's socio-economic and educational background. As a poet, it is my responsibility to engage with my audience. And indeed we need today a thousand poets to do just that.
Abdul Kareem Maatouk was the winner of the first Prince of Poets
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier
Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August
Group A
Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar
Group B
UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
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Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Scores in brief:
Boost Defenders 205-5 in 20 overs
(Colin Ingram 84 not out, Cameron Delport 36, William Somerville 2-28)
bt Auckland Aces 170 for 5 in 20 overs
(Rob O’Donnell 67 not out, Kyle Abbott 3-21).
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
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Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Itcan profile
Founders: Mansour Althani and Abdullah Althani
Based: Business Bay, with offices in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and India
Sector: Technology, digital marketing and e-commerce
Size: 70 employees
Revenue: On track to make Dh100 million in revenue this year since its 2015 launch
Funding: Self-funded to date
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How do Sim card scams work?
Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.
They involve criminals conning mobile phone operators into issuing them with replacement Sim cards by claiming to be the victim, often pretending their phone has been lost or stolen in order to secure a new Sim.
They use the victim's personal details - obtained through criminal methods - to convince such companies of their identity.
The criminal can then access any online service that requires security codes to be sent to a user's mobile phone, such as banking services.
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Results
6.30pm: Mazrat Al Ruwayah Group Two (PA) US$55,000 (Dirt) 1,600m; Winner: Rasi, Harry Bentley (jockey), Sulaiman Al Ghunaimi (trainer).
7.05pm: Meydan Trophy (TB) $100,000 (Turf) 1,900m; Winner: Ya Hayati, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
7.40pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Bochart, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
8.15pm: Balanchine Group Two (TB) $250,000 (T) 1,800m; Winner: Magic Lily, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,000m; Winner: Waady, Jim Crowley, Doug Watson.
9.25pm: Firebreak Stakes Group Three (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Capezzano, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
10pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,410m; Winner: Eynhallow, Mickael Barzalona, Charlie Appleby.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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Company%20Profile
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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
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
- October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
- December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
- February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.
