Octavia Nasr | Blog

You can write all you want, demonstrate all you can and shout as loud as possible; nothing will change. Simply because those you are trying...

Additional Background Reading: Presidential Election: into the fray once more The Daily Star Lebanon Lower your voices and stop spewing y...

The Lebanese landmark war of fifteen years (1975 - 1990) fed books and articles, inspired slogans and headlines and was the focus of world ...

It’s a presidential race in a country that cannot come together or agree on anything. From the minuscule and mundane to the gigantic touchi...

How difficult it must be for Syria and the Syrians at this juncture.  It is hard not to feel depressed, desperate and unbelievably sorrowfu...

Not every act we define as heroic is in fact heroic. Subsequently, those we consider our heroes are sometimes nothing but rogue mad men. In...

Three years on, Syria is turned into ashes literally. Syrians scattered in heartbreaking ways incomprehensible by any logic or reasoning. T...

A major power shift is taking place in the Middle East, this time it signals leaderships waking up to realities long overlooked and left to...

What we are witnessing from Syria to Russia is not survival of the fittest, but rather prevalence of the maddest. How else would we describ...

Growing up in Lebanon, I always felt that some men and women assumed ownership over me, my body, my thought, even my feelings and my expre...

The only reason to celebrate the new government in Lebanon is that its formation could help avert a presidential election crisis and an ens...

US Secretary John Kerry is close to releasing a “framework agreement” for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Though it is only a “framework,...

They invented Geneva I and II and the sequel will likely continue providing audiences with hours of wasteful entertainment while Syria blee...

The Lebanese are loved the world over as a people, and loathed as groups, militias, and terrorists.  This fact is not easy to grapple with,...

In search of fresh and different news and views, we drown ourselves in a sea of opinion: Unfortunately, the loudest noise comes from celebr...

A fresh bombing in Lebanon, a militant tied to another bombing died in jail, and a complex tall tale about the identity of a suspect in yet...

A targeted assassination took the life of another Lebanese thinker along with companions and bystanders, exposing once more the evil of tho...

We have a little of bit of everything and all the drama lined up for a brand new end of the year. We’re invited to a wedding to close this ...

There was a time in my life when Christmas meant a lot more than a religious Holiday. As a child, I used to spend hours staring at the elab...

My grandmother taught me lessons in love and compassion. My mother taught me tolerance and patience. I thrive to teach my daughters the mea...

Not long ago, Dubai was simply a vast desert with modest neighborhoods scattered among sand dunes as far as the eyes could see. It was cozy...

There are times when measuring success does not necessarily involve using the terms “winners” and “losers.” This time is now and the opport...

On the 70th anniversary of my homeland’s Independence, I wish I could tell my children tales about the heroes who brought this nation freed...

The voyage down memory lane began with sentimental photos from my grandparents’ deserted home shared on a social network. In addition to fe...

The Saudi rejection of the UN Security Council seat and its open criticism of the U.S. policy on Syria it considers inconsistent and uncari...

I’m not the one to make light of kidnapping or hostage-taking. As a matter of fact I condemn both as acts of violence regardless of whether...

Editor's Note:   Background: Priest serving child molestation sentence in Lebanon monastery - The Daily Star - Lebanon His was th...

An important lesson life has taught me is to revisit old practices when new situations arise. For professionals who strive for fairness, wh...

Peace never comes at a cheap price.. In the Middle East, one might argue that peace never comes at all despite the best efforts, dedication...

Whether you feel affected by a spate of terrorist attacks against innocent civilians over the weekend in Kenya, Pakistan and Iraq in the na...

Before Syria was turned into a nation of ghosts and nightmares and before millions of Syrians were dispersed into the unknown and before hu...

Alarm bells ringing all over Syria and Bashar al-Assad is turning his deaf ear. Many tales, from mythology to historic facts and regional re...

The drama unfolded around Barack Obama’s speech as the world waited for the U.S.’s official position on intervening militarily in Syria. If ...

Russia called it “hysteria” over chemical use but the United States calls it its “red line.” A military intervention should not come as a su...

Editor's Note:   If you believe that Muslim fundamentalism and its ensuing terrorism pose serious threats to the world, you will begin t...

It might not be an all-out war like the one the Lebanese have lived between 1975 and 1990. It might be a political explosion at the nationa...

Nestled between the Alps and Leman Lake is an old castle turned conference center in the village of Caux in Southwest Switzerland. It turns...

In a time where every event has to be covered live down to its most boring detail, we find ourselves oversaturated with more information th...

The European Union has twisted Israel’s arm and hit the country where it hurts most: The Economy! The EU made it official and permanent tha...

Should the U.S. halt its military aid to Egypt or not is a hot debate consuming western and Arab pundits as if their lives depended on it. ...

When Egypt’s youth launched a campaign they named Tamarod (Rebellion in English) many pundits and world leaders were sleeping at the wheel....

The Muslim Brotherhood had the chance to govern Egypt after winning elections fair and square a year ago.

It’s a simple yet powerful motto that aims to build confidence raise self-esteem and teach people that they can choose their actions, be in...

The father of all Turks and founder of the modern secular Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, must be turning in his grave from the tu...

When Israel invaded Lebanon in 1982, I was a teenager, growing up in a peaceful household that was neither political nor sectarian. Althoug...

We see people being honored and decorated every day with medals, certificates and ceremonies for achievements that are truly merited at tim...

As he jogged casually with his troops, Yair Golan, the general who commands Israeli forces on the Syrian and Lebanese fronts sent what is s...

While on the surface it looks like Israel is intent on attacking Iran to prevent it from pursuing its nuclear ambition, the subtle but sign...

A horrific act of terror near the finish line of the Boston Marathon resulted in the death of three people and the maiming of hundreds. Jus...

This is not the Tunisia I know and love. That was my first impression as I recently visited the North African nation I have grown fond of o...

As soon as I landed in Cairo, I could feel the heaviness of life, economy, politics and breath. It didn’t take long for the first Egyptian ...