Kareem Shaheen

Montreal

Dad & journalist. MidEast and Newsletters Writer/Editor @newlinesmag. Former @guardian MidEast correspondent. @warstudies alum.

Articles

Elon Musk Wanted Gamers’ Respect, Instead He Got a Scandal

2 months ago | newlinesmag.com | Kareem Shaheen

While Elon Musk was hobnobbing with other tech industry titans at President Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony, he was in two places at the same time. Though he was seated next to Barron Trump in the cavernous hall where the president ushered in his second term, one of his video game characters was busy slaying monsters and collecting treasures in a new game called Path of Exile 2.
Dawn in Damascus

Dec 8, 2024 | newlinesmag.com | Kareem Shaheen

The last time I set foot on Syrian soil was in 2017, when I went to the town of Khan Sheikhun to report on a chemical attack carried out by the now-deposed regime of Bashar al-Assad. I remember sitting next to a man named Abdul Hamid al-Youssef, who had buried his wife and two infant children a day earlier. They had choked on poison gas while he rushed to help the wounded, fainting and waking up in a nearby hospital.
Why the West may have to start negotiating with the new ‘Islamist’ rulers of Aleppo

Dec 2, 2024 | telegraph.co.uk | Kareem Shaheen

Syrian opposition forces, led by the Islamist militant group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), have taken control of Aleppo’s Al-Nayrab military airport Credit: BILAL AL HAMMOUD/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK Syria’s battlefield has always been so diverse it would put any DEI initiative to shame. Long before the American-led coalition against the Islamic State terror group, regional powers such as Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Iran were funding and arming local militias and military divisions with the...
A Hezbollah Assassin and the Meaning of Justice

Nov 18, 2024 | newlinesmag.com | Kareem Shaheen

Early last week, Arab and Israeli media outlets reported that an Israeli airstrike had targeted the town of al-Qusayr in Syria. The area, near the Lebanese border, rose to prominence in 2013 at a critical inflection point in the Syrian war — Hezbollah, the Lebanese party-cum-militia, argued that it needed to intervene alongside dictator Bashar al-Assad in order to protect the Lebanese border from extremists.
The Exploding Pagers and the Future of Terrorism

Sep 19, 2024 | newlinesmag.com | Kareem Shaheen

On Tuesday and Wednesday, pagers and walkie-talkies apparently belonging to Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon and Syria exploded in an attack the group laid blame for on Israel. The explosions killed 37 people and wounded 3,000. Hassan Nasrallah, the group’s leader, said in a speech on Thursday that the attacks had crossed a red line. The scenes in the videos were surreal.
Exodus, Ghosts and Grief: Our Best Books of 2023

Jan 1, 2024 | newlinesmag.com | Kareem Shaheen

In our annual tradition, New Lines' editors choose their favorite reads of the past year Dear New Lines readers,As has become tradition in our magazine, we wanted to usher in the new year with a list of the best books our editors read in 2023. These are not necessarily books published that year — the idea is to pick reads that were especially meaningful or delightful. We hope you’ll check out some of these books as you embark on your journey in the new year.
Bassem Youssef’s Darkest Act - Jordan News | Latest News from Jordan, MENA

Oct 19, 2023 | jordannews.jo | Kareem Shaheen

“Let’sfor a minute imagine a world without Hamas. And let’s name this world ‘the WestBank.’”TheEgyptian satirist Bassem Youssef gave an interview on“Piers Morgan Uncensored,” shortly after news emerged of the explosion atAl-Ahli Al-Arabi Baptist Hospital in Gaza, in which possibly hundreds ofPalestinians, including many women and children, were killed.
Bassem Youssef’s Darkest Act

Oct 18, 2023 | newlinesmag.com | Kareem Shaheen

A TV interview with the Egyptian satirist highlights the absurdity of the media’s coverage of the Israel-Gaza war “Let’s for a minute imagine a world without Hamas. And let’s name this world ‘the West Bank.’”The Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef gave an interview on “Piers Morgan Uncensored,” shortly after news emerged of the explosion at Al-Ahli Al-Arabi Baptist Hospital in Gaza, in which possibly hundreds of Palestinians, including many women and children, were killed.
Siblings’ Killing of Kin Shocks Saudi Arabia

Jul 26, 2023 | newlinesmag.com | Kareem Shaheen

On Monday, Saudi Arabia executed a man and his sister for murdering their parents and siblings, then burning their bodies. The official details of the crime are as grisly as a horror movie. The pair drugged their siblings and their mother. The next morning they shot their two brothers in cold blood. They proceeded to their mother’s bedroom, where they shot her too. They lived in a room adjacent to the corpses of their family members for perhaps a day or two.
Turkey’s Election and Its Malcontents

May 22, 2023 | newlinesmag.com | Kareem Shaheen