Are Arabs more superstitious than the rest of the world? Here are 13 superstitions that are common in the Middle East to help you decide. It’s that time of the year. It’s Friday the 13th. It’s time to get superstitious. Stepping into a bathroom with your right foot? Stop! Entering the toilet with the correct foot first is just one of many wacky superstitions to pay attention to in the jittery Middle East. Are you the type of person who’s also superstitious for the remainder of the year? Do you ...

At a critical time charged with war-fever - when the majority Muslim Middle East is spoiling for a fight, we have mined the globe's remote realms untapped by Muslim mayhem. While everybody and their aunty are ramping up the rhetoric for regional war, and the U.S. is on the cusp of spurring the Syrian crisis by wading in, we cast a faint light in the direction of the peaceful part of the planet where Islam abounds and calm rules the roost over Muslim militancy and Islam-inspired war-mongering. Contrary to common ...

The Middle East remains one of the most promising and misunderstood markets in the world. While plagued by poverty and economic inequality, it is still home to the highest GDP/capita rates. That means that along with a plethora of economic hurdles, the MENA’s wealth opens up unlimited potential. While doing business the ‘Arab’ way became synonymous with notions of nepotism, cronyism, and unprofessionalism, the Middle East is undergoing times of huge social and political transitions. A more pragmatic attitude to hold is that Arab businesses come with a very particular ...

We argued against the US cruise missile strike on Syria already, so now here's the rejoinder. Knowing that Obama is an avid follower of Al Bawaba, we thought we'd (playing devil's advocate) back him up! Well, we can’t say the iron isn’t scorching. Should Obama go ahead and strike, here’s why it might not be such a warped or at least misguided scheme after all. Those in support say that this intervention is hardly guns blazing nor to serve as a deal breaker or game-changer. It may have no bearing ...

Last night, Lebanon and the Lebanese lovers in the Arab world forgot about the war next door (now on their own doorstep) as they tuned in to the annual cat parade from Miss Lebanon 2013, aired Live on LBC and LDC TV. On September 1, 2013, 15 flawless women strutted and sashayed on stage to compete for the coveted title, but only one lucky lady was crowned Queen of the Year. The draw The final panel of 10 of the finest and fittest included a body beautiful line-up of Josette ...

The sight of dozens of young children laying dead in makeshift morgues in the outskirts of Damascus last Wednesday elicited a knee-jerk humanitarian reaction all the world over. The reported use of chemical agents against a residential suburb of Damascus immediately resulted in the international community crying foul and calling for immediate action in Syria. Despite more than 100,000 people dying in Syria since the onset of violence in 2011, the reports of chemical attacks made the world sit up and listen. And, crucially, it seems the Syrian civil war ...

Oh Em Gee, did that really happen? These scandals may be oldies, but they're goldies. Oh, how we love a scandal or two with our morning coffee! And, we can surely count on our trusty Arab celebs to deliver them on cue! In the cray-cray celebosphere, our Arab papzz are always on patrol, never sleeping on the job even on the hottest of summer days. Ready to capture the stars' most cringe-worthy moments and reveal their dirtiest secrets, the Arab media gives as good as the West's most unscrupulous photogs ...

When protests shook the streets of Tunisia in response to the tyrannical rule of leader President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, no one could have expected the domino effect that would ripple through the region. Dubbed the ‘Arab Spring’, the Tunisian uprising set a precedent for countries across the Middle East to cast off their dictatorship shackles and demand a new system of government. There is barely a country in the Middle East that the Arab Spring (or rather, Arab Summer) that has not tarred with the revolutionary brush. With the ...

For the past couple of years, the Muslim Brotherhood has dominated the political scene in Egypt and beyond. But the extent of its involvement in business and economics is also worth investigating as many high-ranking Brotherhood members are millionaires in both their bank balance and their wasta. As once was said, the Brotherhood has more in common with the Republican Party than Al-Qaeda . A keen eye for business and a sharp mind has allowed many Ikhwan members to dominate the healthcare, manufacturing and fast-food sectors in the Egyptian economy ...

Across cultures and languages and even religious traditions, words and often concepts can get lost in translation. Nuances and subtle undertones don't stand a chance on border crossings and cryptic idioms, well they can just forget it! The Arabs as much as the next people, maybe more, have their own unique phrases and peculiar linguistically- contained notions that cannot conceivably be translated into any other frame of reference. Neologisms and international-speak are a force for universal understanding, making languages more transferrable and providing solutions for the overlaps and fringes, yet ...

It may be an eye-opener to first-timers in the Middle East - those who envision Arab women as Hollywood’s depiction of them in burqas and abayas - to find out that all Arabs are not cut from the same cloth. Although when walking the Arab street you will see women decked from head to toe in conservative Muslim attire, you will also see female fashionistas kitted out in the latest designer gear and towering high heels. And of course, the trend differs from the Levant to the Islamic Republic of ...