baithak: Baithak World Jun 17: Muslim Brotherhood, Arabic Narrratives, Fidel's Heir, News & Views, Brodner, Cartoons, RealNews

The Muslim Brotherhood and other moderate groups are losing their appeal before the Arab public, perhaps because they are focussing on politics and neglecting religion. And mainstream religious organisations, such as Al-Azhar and Muslim youth societies, are not doing so well either. No wonder Salafis are sidling up to centre stage. If anything, this is a moment of truth for moderates. Either they connect once again with the public, or they embrace irrelevance. Salafists' ascendant- Khalil El-Anani

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Clockwise from left: Ghada Samman; Edward al-Kharrat; Salma Khadra Jayyusi; Yahya Haqqi; Emile Habiby; Ghassan Kanafani

Professor Jayyusi -- poet, critic, translator, and editor -- has done it again: another anthology of Arabic literature that puts modern Arabic narratives on the global and academic map. She started in 1978 with a distinguished anthology of Modern Arabic Poetry followed by other anthologies: Literature of Modern Arabia: An Anthology (1988), Modern Palestinian Literature (1992), Anthology of Modern Arabic Drama (with Roger Allen, 1995), and Anthology of Short Arabic Plays (2002) -- not to mention a long series of translations of individual Arabic works and several scholarly and critical works, including The Legacy of Muslim Spain (1992), Human Rights in Arabic Thought (2002) and Jerusalem in Ancient History and Tradition (2003). Not surprisingly, Jayyusi has been said to have done more for diffusing Arabic culture than the 22 Arab ministries of culture put together. Arabic narratives galore

A Reporter at Large: Fidel’s Heir - The rising influence of Hugo Chávez. by Jon Lee Anderson

Venezuela’s oil money has brought better living standards for the country’s poorest citizens. It has also given Chávez the means to buy influence with his neighbors, usually at the expense of the United States. Photograph by Chris Anderson.

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