Personal Info
- Country of residence: Palestine
Information
Abdel Bari Atwan (in English: Abdel Bari Atwan) is a Palestinian writer and journalist, born in the Deir al-Balah camp for Palestinian refugees in the city of Deir al-Balah in the Gaza Strip on February 17, 1950. He was the editor-in-chief of the daily Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper from 1989 until July 10, 2013, later He founded and editor-in-chief of the online newspaper Rai Al-Youm, and he is still in his position as editor-in-chief.
his life and career
Abd al-Bari Muhammad Nabhan Abu Atwan was born in a Palestinian refugee camp in the city of Deir al-Balah in the Gaza Strip, and he is one of eleven children of a family descending from Ashdod, after completing primary school in the Rafah refugee camp in Gaza. He completed his preparatory and secondary studies in Jordan, in 1967, and then in Cairo, Egypt. In 1970 he joined Cairo University. He graduated with honors from media college. He then obtained a diploma in translation from the American University in Cairo. After graduation, he worked for Al-Balagh newspaper in Libya, then Al-Madina newspaper in Saudi Arabia. In 1978, he moved to London, where he settled, to work for the Saudi newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat and Al-Majalla Magazine, which were published in London. In 1980 he established the London office of Al-Madina newspaper, and in 1984 he returned to Al-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper. In 1989, Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper was established in London, and Abdel Bari Atwan was offered its editor-in-chief, and he remained in this position until July 10, 2013, when he announced his resignation from the editor-in-chief of the newspaper to readers and people through an article entitled “Goodbye! Until we meet soon, God willing.” After that, he founded the electronic newspaper, “Rai Al-Youm,” which he heads as editor-in-chief.
Atwan has contributed chapters and articles to many academic and professional books and journals. He has regularly lectured internationally, including at the Edinburgh Festival and Harvard University.
his style
His articles and television interviews are characterized by frankness that raises many controversial issues, which will satisfy many, impress them and anger many. Although some consider him harsh, many consider him a hero and a voice expressing the feelings of the crushed and silent Arab masses. Atwan often appears on Arab and foreign satellite channels, especially on Al-Jazeera. Abd al-Bari Atwan was the last to meet Osama bin Laden, and he kept describing him as "Sheikh bin Laden," even in interviews with Western media.
His writings
After Bin Laden: Al-Qa'ida, the Second Generation, Dar Al-Saqi (an English version was issued under the title: After Bin Laden: Al-Qa'ida, the Next Generation)
A Country of Words: A Palestinian Journey from the Refugee Camp to the Front Page
Al-Qaeda: The Secret Organization, Dar Al-Saqi (an English version was issued under the title: The Secret History of al-Qa'ida)
The Islamic State: Roots, Savagery, and the Future, Dar Al Saqi, 2015
Islamic State: the digital caliphate, University of California Press, 2015
A homeland of words
The first edition of Abd al-Bari Atwan's memoirs "A Homeland of Words" was published by Al-Saqi Publishing House in London. Abdel Bari Atwan also put another title that summarizes its content, which is: “A Palestinian Journey from the Refugee Camp to the Front Page.” Abd al-Bari dedicates his journey, whose hardships began with the severity of the winter frosts in the Deir al-Balah camp in the Gaza Strip, to "refugee children all over the world, especially the children of the camps in Palestine and the exiles." He also dedicates it to the late writer Mai Ghossoub at the same time, as “without May Ghossoub’s insistence and persuasion, this book would not have been published.” The book contains 271 pages, in which Atwan records prominent stations on his difficult journey from Deir Al-Balah Palestinian refugee camp, in the Gaza Strip, to participating in making the front page of several Arab newspapers, from the Libyan “Al-Balagh”, to the Saudi “Al-Madina”, then “Al-Sharq Al-Awsat”. London, even Al-Quds Al-Arabi, also London, where he spent nineteen years in a distinguished professional and media experience. “A Homeland of Words” is addressed to an English-reading audience, so Atwan says that important details of his memoirs will be included in the Arabic version, which he does not know when it will see the light. As for the English version, there are three international publishing houses, Canadian, French, and Spanish, that have expressed interest in purchasing the publishing rights. The last cover of the book is a testimony from author Polly Toynbee, in which she agrees with the writer's perception of what he presented in his book. She says: “This depiction of the life and times of a distinguished journalist provides an inner view of the world as seen by someone born and raised in a Palestinian refugee camp in Gaza. The authoritative voice of Abd al-Bari Atwan, and his sharp graphic writing, bring to life an eventful childhood amid the hardships and events of the Middle East tragedy.
source
Achievements and Awards
- Years in active
: From
To