Tower of Babel, Saudi Style

Architecture, Bible and Holy Land, camels, Development, Film and Video, Humor and Satire, Journalism and Media, Languages, Osama Bin Laden, Saudi Arabia, Wahhabi, YouTube Watch
the official website is https://www.neom.com/en-us

Long before Abraham/Ibrahim left Ur of the Chaldees for the promised land and became the ancestral icon of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, there was that architectural wonder called the Tower of Babel. As noted in the eloquent phrasing of the King James Version of Genesis 11:4: “And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” Readers of the text know what happened with that bravado venture. As a refresher, here is how the artist Pieter Bruegel the Elder imagined that ziggurat tower in 1563.

Now what if instead of a massive tower, such an old-fashioned idea, a new world wonder was created with the narrow ribbon of an artificial skyscraper city some 75 miles long, and some 656 feet wide? One set of plans would make this the most eco-friendly living space ever conceived:

THE LINE will eventually accommodate 9 million people and will be built on a footprint of just 34 square kilometers. This will mean a reduced infrastructure footprint, creating never-before-seen efficiencies in city functions. The ideal climate all-year-round will ensure that residents can enjoy the surrounding nature. Residents will also have access to all facilities within a five-minute walk, in addition to high-speed rail – with an end-to-end transit of 20 minutes.

This rival to The Pyramids would reach 1600 feet into the sky, thus becoming taller than the World Trade Center that several Saudi citizens destroyed in 2001 by crashing an airplane into the building. Of course such a major building enterprise would cost a lot of money, like a trillion dollars. I wonder what country would have that kind of funding available and what kind of resurrected Nimrod would think of such an idea?

Guess what? The plans are now on the board with the NEOM project known as “The Line”. You can read all about it on all kinds of websites, like NPR, The Independant, The Guardian, Time Out, and many other sources by typing “NEOM The Line” into Google. The patron of this marvel is His Royal Highness (I guess the Highness in his title inspired the idea to have the highest city in the world) MBS of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It would have been nice to read a review of this fiasco by the Saudi journalist Jamal Kashoggi, but he is no longer around.

Of all the places on earth, where would be the best location for this ethereal construction project? Why not at the crossroads of the planet? Now that all roads no longer lead to Rome, I guess that would be the Arabian desert in Saudi Arabia. After all who would not want to live in a natural setting with miles and miles of sand and rocks and hardly any sign of wildlife? Unfortunately there are only a few camels left in the Saudi desert, since most are now getting ready for beauty pageants. But at least there will not be the nuisance of fast-driving joy-riding by Saudi youth through the streets, since there will not be any streets. Instead, I suspect that people will get around by doing what they did on the TV show The Jetsons. Of course, Saudi lifestyles will still be enforced, so women will need a male escort and be veiled before taking that five-minute walk to anything they desire.

World reaction to this marvel of marvels is just beginning. Carlos Felipe Pardo informed NPR that “This solution is a little bit like wanting to live on Mars because things on Earth are very messy.” The choice of Mars is proper, since Venus would not be a good metaphor for Saudi censors due to all the naked images of the goddess Venus that are available on the web. I think there would be a positive response from endangered dictators like Vladimir Putin, since the Saudi government has given sanctuary to all kinds of nasty rulers in exile in the past, most recently Ben Ali of Tunisia. Idi Amin, the brutal ruler of Uganda, but clearly thought to still be a good Muslim in the Saudi style, spent his latter years in luxury as a guest of the Saudis.

The Tower of Babel was doomed from the start, but then Nimrod and his like did not realize the vast oil and gas wealth underneath their feet in the Middle East. If they had, we would all be speaking the same language that Adam and Noah spoke. Even Star Trek never imagined that.

Omar Dewachi on Iraq

Anthropology/Sociology, Books You Should Read, Ethics, Iraq, Iraq War

Omar Dewachi, an anthropologist who was an Iraqi physician during the Gulf War, has published an article from his forthcoming book, which is entitled “When Wounds Travel: Ecologies of War and Healthcare East of the Mediterranean”.

Here is the start of the article. To read the whole article, click here.

A call from the surgical residence in the outpatient clinic informing us of a new admission to the ward. “It is a burn case,” he warns, “Najwa Abdul Hadi, female, in her early 30s, transferred from a local hospital with burn injuries covering nearly 90% of her body following the explosion of a cooking gas container at her home.” Mohammed and I, the two junior doctors on the floor, rushed to the other side of the ward, impatiently waiting at the service elevators to receive our new admission. Only days into our surgery rotation on the second floor of Baghdad Teaching Hospital—Iraq’s largest referral hospital and medical complex—we had finished medical school a month earlier, in May 1997. This was our first job as “real” doctors. Unlike Mohammed who had studied medicine at another med school, I had spent the past 6 years of my training in this teaching medical complex, and was familiar with the ins and outs of the hospital. Still, this was a new terrain for me. No longer a student, this night was my first time “on call”, and I was getting a bit anxious.

For many of us who lived through the first Gulf war, the sight of a burnt body became a doppelgänger of that war. One such doppelgänger was the charred body of one Iraqi soldier in the carnage of tanks which littered what became known as the “Highway of Death”—where the retreating convoys of thousands of Iraqi soldiers from Kuwait were attacked by the US military with Depleted Uranium (DU) weaponry. DU was developed in the US during the Cold War era and experimented with for the first time in real combat during the 1991 Iraq War. It was designed to burn through thick metal surfaces, namely tanks and fortified armored vehicles. The artillery tips burn through the thick alloy, incinerating them inside and out upon impact.

Another image of that war, which I witnessed for myself, was the silhouette of two skeletal remains fossilized into the concrete walls inside the famous Amiriya Shelter, where 408 people were killed with so-called bunker busting, “smart bombs.” US pilots nicknamed them “the hammer” for their massively destructive capabilities and wide-ranging blast radii. I visited the Amiriya shelter in 1991 after the cessation of the bombing campaign. I remember thinking that it was a blessing that those in the bunker did not suffer for long. It was more merciful and dignified to die on the spot than to endure the effects of surviving such brutalization. 

Seasonal Knowledge and Arab Gulf Almanacs

Agriculture, Animals, Anthropology/Sociology, Bahrain, Books You Should Read, camels, Environment, Folklore and Proverbs, Kuwait, Oman, Plants, Poetry, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Travel, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

I am pleased to announce the publication of my new book: Seasonal Knowledge and the Almanac Tradition of the Arab Gulf. Details about the book, including a free online pdf of the table of contents can be obtained here: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-95771-1

Below is the start of the Introduction…


Before the middle of the twentieth century, everyday life in the Arab Gulf was oriented to the sea and the land. Along the coast and for the island of Bahrain there had been a thriving pearl diving industry until the 1920s, while fishing remained one of the most important food production activities. Trade around and beyond the peninsula was still largely carried out by traditional dhows. Apart from Oman, which has a long tradition of irrigated and rainfed agriculture, most of the Gulf states faced a harsh, arid environment with limited water and only a few fertile oases. Herding of camels, sheep and goat was one of the main ways of surviving in the arid areas. It should not be surprising that prior to the oil wealth that created a lush economic transformation, the main topic of concern was the weather. Successful navigation, pearl diving and fishing required an intimate knowledge of seasonal change, as did pastoralism and farming.

Information on the seasonal sequence for the Arabian Peninsula stems back over a thousand years in collections of poetry, star lore and almanacs. One of the most important Arabic texts is the Kit?b al-Anw?’ (Book of Weather Stars) of Ibn Qutayba (d. 276/879), who is quoted by almanac compilers in the Gulf to this day. Ibn Qutayba describes in detail local knowledge about star risings and settings, weather seasons, pastoral activities, agriculture and a range of environmental conditions. Unfortunately, much of this indigenous heritage has disappeared, as the folklore of generations is now rarely passed on orally within families. In recent years older individuals in the Gulf have written memoirs, preserving their knowledge of life before the Petro Utopia. This gives us a glimpse of the past, a puzzle with many missing pieces, but not the full understanding that comes with actual contact.

Resurrecting the history of seasonal knowledge in the Arab Gulf and the entire Arabian Peninsula thus requires a textual archaeology. It is not enough to simply document what is written, as though one is showing off museum objects; this knowledge needs to be placed into a lived context to have a better understanding of how people went about their lives off the land and on the sea.

The past is like an ocean in which we can sample only a small part of the vast number of ideas and customs that have passed by over the years. To follow this metaphor, most of our sampling is along the shore, learning from individuals we can ask directly or engage with in ethnographic fieldwork. We can only cast our research net a short distance in trying to reach back into what really happened and was said in the past. A historian can sail as well, dropping an anchor where there seems to be something worth exploring. But there are depths in this ocean of knowledge that can never be reached. There are also reefs, barriers that make it difficult to have smooth sailing through our disciplined search for the past. To what extent can we know what local knowledge was shared? Then there is the question of what kind of fish we are trying to catch. Is everything that has been done and said, no matter how many generations back, something we should call “heritage”? If we read about it in a book, even one written centuries ago, does that automatically make it “heritage”? How can we vouch for the accuracy of what has been written down when we cannot see it for ourselves or question the interpreter? These are not insurmountable hurdles, but they do caution us to recognize the limitations of reconstructing the past.

My career as a scholar began in the highland mountains of Yemen, where I carried out ethnographic research on traditional water resource use and local agriculture in the late 1970s. Talking with farmers and observing their work for over a year allowed me to gain an understanding of local practices that no book could give me. While in the field I had access to a fourteenth century Yemeni agricultural text, which described many of the agricultural activities I was seeing for myself. My first book was an edition and translation of a thirteenth century Yemeni agricultural almanac. Over the years I have become what is best called a historical anthropologist, someone who looks at heritage as a product evolving from a past and not simply what one sees, without hindsight, functioning in the present. As an anthropologist I focus on the diversity of what people do and say, giving voice to them rather than plugging them into an outside theoretical package from the start. As a historian I have an opportunity in examining texts to see the strands of past knowledge that survive and still influence the present.

Qatar Airways airplane with FIFA World Cup 2022 branding.

Qatar and the World Cup – Questions and Answers

Qatar, Sports, , , , ,

A while ago, a Swedish reporter asked me to answer a few questions about Qatar and the World Cup. The segment eventually got cut, but since I had already written the answers, I will instead post them here.

How would you describe Qatar as a country, politically/economically?

Qatar is a small country, slightly smaller than Connecticut, and the number of citizens is less than half of the population of New Haven metropolitan area. However, almost 90% of everyone living in Qatar are so called guest workers, or migrant workers, meaning their residency is tied up to their work. Before the discovery of oil in the area, Qatar was a relatively poor country and its economy centered on pearl diving. Today, Qatar is an oil and gas country and one of the richest countries in the world per capita. However, it is a very segregated country, and the riches are largely built on exploitation of cheap foreign labor, mainly from South Asia (such as Pakistan, India and Bangladesh). The country is a type of monarchy, headed by an Emir, and with limited possibilities of political influence of its citizens. They do have a consultative assembly, the members of which are elected, but there are no political parties, and the assembly is mainly advisory to the government.

In recent years, Qatar has been keen on building “soft power,” meaning cultural and social means of gaining support for its activities and politics and means of improving the country’s image abroad. This includes a purchase of the large department store Harrods in London and the Hollywood production company Miramax. Qatar Airways has invested internationally and expanded to make Doha a popular airport-hub, as well as creating hubs around the world, especially in countries with members of the FIFA executive committee. Of course, Qatar is also internationally known as the owner of the news and media conglomerate Al Jazeera, which now operates around the world, and dominates Arabic-language news.

Car spray painted with the text "Qatar 2022" and people waving the Qatari flag.
Image by: Kefah51

There is a lot of discussion about the upcoming World Cup in Qatar. Why?

The controversy on Qatar hosting the FIFA World Cup centers mainly on two issues. The first is accusations of corruption and irregularities surrounding the election process, although the critique has mostly been directed towards FIFA rather than Qatar. The irregularities include for example a meeting between then-emir of Qatar, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, then-president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, and then-president of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), Michel Platini, where it is believed an agreement was made that Qatar would buy the French football team Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), in exchange for Platini’s support for the World Cup in Qatar. PSG officially came under Qatari ownership the year after Qatar had been chosen as the host, although the discussions had then been going on for a while. Furthermore, Platini’s son was given a high-paying position in Qatar shortly after Platini had voted for Qatar in the host-election.

No investigations have been able to prove that Qatari representatives directly bribed FIFA, although the accusations of corruption and other scandals led to Platini and the FIFA president, Sepp Blatter, being banned from football administration until 2023 and forced to resign from FIFA. They are now facing charges in Switzerland related to fraudulent payments from FIFA to Platini, and FIFA has since changed how they decide the World Cup host.

The second part of the critique is about workers’ rights, health and safety in the preparation for the World Cup. It is estimated that around 6500 migrant workers have died during the constructions of the many football stadiums built in Qatar since they won the host election, although many believe that the real number is even higher. In the recent past Qatar had a system for migrant workers called the kafala-system, which meant that the employer sponsors the workers and is responsible for their visas. This meant that if you lose your job, you also lose your visa, and it can be very difficult to change jobs or criticize working conditions due to fear of losing your job. There have been reports of employers confiscating their workers’ passports, and, as mentioned, extreme heat and dangerous working conditions has led to thousands of workers’ death. Some have asked – and FIFA happily repeats these questions – whether these working conditions had been given as much media attention if it was not for the World Cup. In 2020, Qatar became the first country in the Arab Gulf to stop the kafala system.

Other discussions – which in the light of possible corruption and the death of migrant workers may be seen as less important – deal with the fact that this will be the first time that the World Cup is not held in the summer. Since the temperature in Qatar can reach 40-50 degrees in June and July, the cup will be held in December, with the finale planned for Qatar’s national day, December 18th. Some believe this will mean a different experience for football fans who are used to their summer vacation and the World Cup coinciding, while others believe that this scheduling will mean a break for the players between the national football seasons and the World Cup, which in turn means more well-rested players.

One last thing that is in favor of Qatar hosting is that it is a small country, meaning that the stadiums are relatively close to each other, making it easier for attendees to catch several games in a day.

What does it mean to accept Qatar as the host?

This depends on who you ask. Some believe that it is symbolically important that this is the first time that a Muslim country hosts the World Cup, and that in times of increasing islamophobia, this can lead to an improved view and better understanding of Islam as a religion – particularly among football fans around the world. Sepp Blatter has said that they are opening up football, making it more inclusive. At the same time, the publicity coming out of Qatar at the moment is not precisely good, for example regarding the death of thousands of workers, and it is still necessary for the Qatar authorities to follow through on the new system for workers.

Social issues have also been raised, for example how FIFA views the fact that same-sex relations is criminalized in the country, or that alcohol consumption – often associated with football – is not allowed in public. FIFA will most likely put pressure on Qatar to make exemptions for alcohol sales at the stadiums, as they also did when the World Cup was held in Brazil, but I doubt that the same kind of pressure will be made for changes in the laws on same-sex relations or LGBTQ+ issues. Nevertheless, the Qatari government is pragmatic, and they are unlikely to cause troubles for attendees, yet some official World Cup hotels have already said that they do not accept LGBT guests to stay with them.

What demands should be put on Qatar ahead of the World Cup?

It is difficult in such a late state to place any demands. That should probably have been done directly in relation to Qatar being chosen as the host in 2010. Such demands could have been to guarantee the protection and safety of the workers that made the World Cup possibly by building stadiums around the country. Now they have already lost their lives, and that cannot be undone. Pressure on Qatar did lead to reform of the kafala-system, although some issues remain and more can be done to improve the conditions of the country’s workers. Beyond that, FIFA should take a clearer position on guaranteeing that both players and attendees will be safe in the country, regardless of religion or sexual orientation.

Yemen Film 1973

Agriculture, Anthropology/Sociology, Archaeology and Antiquities, Architecture, camels, Film and Video, Gender and Sexuality, Music and Dance, Qat (Catha edulis), Sanaa, Teaching Resources, Tihama, Travel, Tribalism, Yemen, Zaydi

This exquisite film was produced in 1973 and filmed in 1972, thus representing Yemen half a century ago. It is now available on Youtube. The filmmakers were Karen and Alain Saint Hilaire. The camera was a bolex ebm electric. It has filmed when Qadi al-Iryani was the head of government. There are scenes from the Tihama, Sanaa, Sa‘da, Ma’rib, etc, including many crafts, fishing, agriculture, a funeral, celebration of the end of the civil war and much more. It is well worth spending two hours to watch this archival film of a Yemen now largely past but not forgotten.

Qadi al-Iryani in 1972
Celebration in Sanaa on the anniversary of the end of the civil war

Where are the Himyarite Kings?

Archaeology and Antiquities, Books You Should Read, Poetry, Scholars, Yemen

The war that has dragged on in Yemen for seven years has created a major humanitarian disaster. Yemen has experienced war and conflict before since the early days of the Queen of Sheba. The last of the South Arabian kingdoms before the coming of Islam was captured in a qasida by the 12th century Yemeni scholar Nashwan b. Sa‘id al-Himyari. In reading this poem recently I was struck at how relevant the last lines of his poem are for the current political crisis and I share these with you. The full poem can be read online at https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%B5%D9%8A%D8%AF%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%A9. An English translation was made by W. F. Prideaux in 1879 and can be found here: https://archive.org/details/dli.granth.93715/page/n3/mode/2up.