“Israel’s” war on intellectual life among untold stories of summer conflict

"Israel's" war on intellectual life among untold stories of summer conflict
Bombed-out publishing houses, research institutes vow to rebound
By Mirella Hodeib
Source: Daily Star, 20-7-2007
BEIRUT: Piles of books, religious tomes, academic studies and years of effort were among the collateral damage caused by the war in Lebanon last summer. During 34 days of bombardment, "Israel" targeted more than 20 publishing houses and research institutes in the southern suburbs of Beirut - including warehouses for Dar al-Saqi, the popular London- and Beirut-based publisher of novels and literary nonfiction, and Dar al-Fikr Lubnani, a purveyor of educational guides and children`s books.
"Since Lebanon produces 60 to 75 percent of Arab books, it certainly is an appealing target for `Israel`," notes Issam Khalifeh, a professor who teaches history at the Lebanese University (LU). "Israel" seems to do whatever it can to prevent the Arabs from getting educated and enlightened, he adds, citing as evidence the numerous cultural establishments that have been hit by "Israeli" war machines over the years.
"`Israel` has bombed the archives of An-Nahar newspaper," he says, "the library of the Ecoles des Lettres School and the laboratories of LU`s Faculty of Sciences."
In the past 12 months since the latest war with "Israel" began, much attention has been paid to the destruction of power stations, telecoms towers, industrial warehouses, small factories, dairy farms and vegetable trucks - all non-strategic targets whose wreckage seemed part and parcel of a campaign to cripple the Lebanese economy more so than weaken Hizbullah positions. But little attention has been given to "Israel's" targeting of Lebanese intellectual and scholarly life.
The publisher Dar al-Hadi`s is located between Haret Hreik and Bir al-Abed, two neighborhoods in the southern suburbs that were heavily bombed during the war. Dar al-Hadi`s headquarters and its two storage warehouses were all reduced to rubble last summer.
A year later, the four-storey office building is still being repaired. A larger-than-life portrait of Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah spans the building`s main facade, alongside the slogan: "It will become prettier than it was," a quotation appropriated from one of Nasrallah`s speeches about the reconstruction of the Dahiyeh.
The smell of fresh paint nearly overwhelms visitors to the Dar al-Hadi offices, where staff members are currently cataloguing stacks upon stacks of books.
"When I came here on August 15, exactly one day after the end of military operations, I could not believe the amount of damage - doors, windows and computers, all disappeared," says Abdel-Wadoud al-Amine, Dar al-Hadi`s general manager. "I realized then that our books could not have survived," he added.
By Amine`s count, the publishing house lost its entire stock of more than 800 titles and was able to recover a just 20 percent of its publications. "Both our warehouses are located in buildings that collapsed," he says.
Dar al-Hadi publishes numerous books on religion and politics, including titles by Hizbullah`s number two in command, the prolific writer Sheikh Naeem Qassem.
When asked if the house was targeted for having ties with Hizbullah, Amine says it has no such connections with the party.
"We are in not affiliated with Hizbullah, we are not a section of Hizbullah and we do not get funding from Hizbullah," says Amine.
"Nevertheless," he says. "We are not afraid to say that we share the same ideological principles as Hizbullah. We cherish resistance and want to live with dignity."
Amine says the house is relying on the Lebanese government, not the Waad Project, to fund the reparation of its buildings. The Waad Project, which takes its name from the Arabic word for "promise," was created to oversee the rebuilding of Beirut`s battered southern suburbs and restore the neighborhood to its how it was prior the "Israeli" bombardment.
In addition to religious and political books, Dar al-Hadi also publishes novels, books on nutrition, pedagogical resources and books on philosophy and the sciences.
"Among our newest projects is the establishment of a publishing house for children, Little al-Hadi," says Amine.
As Amine explains it, "Israel" targeted publishing houses because Hizbullah fighters "are first and foremost first-rate readers; they do not decide to engage in a cause randomly. [`Israel`] wanted to weaken the resistance militarily and ideologically." Amine believes "Israel's" actions were counterproductive. "The "Israeli" assaults motivated us to become more productive," he added.
Ahmad Kharsa, owner of the Mahajja publishing house, whose buildings were also hit during last summer`s war, echoes Amine`s sentiments.
"While an artillery warehouse is easily replaced, [rebuilding] a library [is] extremely difficult," says Kharsa, whose losses due to war damage amount to more than $2 million. Mahajja lost more than 800 books last summer.
On a recent visit, Kharsa showed off the burned remains of $100 bills, which he discovered inside the publishing house`s safe after the cessation of hostilities on August 14, 2006.
"The safe contained around $15,000," he recalls, "All burnt. I don`t want to replace the [money]," he says. "I am thinking of offering [the bunt bills] to the National Museum as a witness to `Israel`s` atrocity."
Mahajja`s bookshop was located in Haret Hreik, in the same building that housed Hizbullah`s press office. It was completely destroyed by "Israeli" missiles.
"A number of Hizbullah fighters who died during the latest war used to visit our stores, we couldn`t have won the war if our fighters were not so well-read and educated," he said.
Kharsa described attacks on publishing houses as "a conspiracy against the culture of resistance. And it is much more than that. It is a conspiracy against culture in Lebanon, since a number of non-Shiite publishing houses such as Rissala and Ibn Hazm`s houses, which are Sunni, [were] targeted."
Researcher centers, such as the Consultative Center for Studies and Documentation (CCSD), were also bombed during the war.
The CCSD is considered Hizbullah`s primary think thank. It was established in 1988 by a group of researchers and social activists.
"The sufferings of our people, in addition to the courage displayed by Hizbullah during the war, alleviates our pain and we no longer think of our great losses," says Ali Fayad, CCSD`s director and a member of Hizbullah`s politburo.
"We conduct research in the fields of economy, sociology and politics. We have an impressive databank and press archive. We publish a number of periodicals, among other things," says Fayad.
CCSD`s 11-storey-building was located in Haret Hreik. It was shelled three times, starting on July 20, 2006. The center`s library, its microfilms and its maps were all pulverized. Fayyad says the center was able to retrieve digital copies of its material.
Fayad says he believes "Israel" targeted because it is "Hizbullah`s thinking brain."
"The center is one of the few productive think tanks in the Middle East. [It] offers yet another image of a civilized and disciplined liberation movement," he says.
"`Israel` is pretty much aware of the prominent cultural role Lebanon plays but it is certainly not comfortable with this role," Khalifeh, the Lebanese University professor, concludes.