BENJAMIN ASHRAF on Muck Rack

BENJAMIN ASHRAF

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London
As seen in: The New Arab, Al Jazeera English, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, Mondoweiss, CAMERA, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, QOSHE
Analyst @opennuclear

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Articles

Syrians mark Christmas amid economic hardship and security fears Original

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By Hadia Al Mansour, BENJAMIN ASHRAF Verified
| The New Arab Verified
Christmas returns to Syria this year, carrying both fragile joy and lingering fear. The season feels markedly different, as Syrians search for moments of spiritual warmth in a country worn down by years of war and compounded crises. Celebrations are quieter, and traditions have adapted, shaped by uncertainty and loss, yet core rituals endure — sustained by a shared longing for calm, dignity, and a more peaceful year ahead.
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Loubna Mrie's Defiance and the cost of witnessing the Syrian War

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By BENJAMIN ASHRAF Verified
| The New Arab Verified
Book Club: In 'Defiance', Loubna Mrie recounts growing up inside Assad's Syria and the painful unlearning that turned privilege and silence into witness Loubna Mrie grew up calling two men father. When the family needed money, her mother would press the phone into her daughter's hand and guide her words: "Tell him the fridge is empty. Tell him his hands are blessed." The man, known within Syrian intelligence as the 'doctor', kept them dependent.
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Loubna Mrie's Defiance: An Alawite daughter's reckoning with Assad's Syria

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By BENJAMIN ASHRAF Verified
| The New Arab Verified
Loubna Mrie grew up calling two men father. When the family needed money, her mother would press the phone into her daughter's hand and guide her words: "Tell him the fridge is empty. Tell him his hands are blessed." The man, known within Syrian intelligence as the 'doctor', kept them dependent. The other, Hafez al-Assad, waited in Arnous Square in Damascus, cast in marble, his sculpted quiff too high to cover his forehead.
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