Beirut Radical

The book tells the life story of a little-known Druze leftist who fought and died in the Lebanese Civil War. As a global microhistory, it allows us to appreciate a number of important historical trends in the third quarter of the twentieth century, including the rise of American empire; the emergence of pan-Arab, pro-Palestinian, left-wing activism; and a politics of memorializing “martyrs” that has important resonance in Lebanon today. * Kyle J. Anderson, Associate Professor, SUNY Old Westbury, USA * ""Beirut Radical"" will become an essential read for scholars and students involved in Lebanese Studies, Syrian Studies, Arab Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, Islamic Studies, and the History of the Left in the Middle East. It brings biographical history and archival research to bear on socio-economic and political history of Lebanon and the Arab World. More specifically, it sheds light on the aspirations of an important segment of the society and its struggles against the Lebanese state and its sectarian system while espousing the cause of the Palestinians and their fight for justice and liberation. These types of studies, which explore the deep connections between several local, national, and Arab struggles and analyze the context and aims of the revolutionary movements that emerged from 1960 until 1975, are simply not available. .. The author has consulted a rich body of archival sources in various languages, family records, newspapers reports, and oral history. He produced a comprehensive study and analysis of a complex history that integrated the central events in the life and experiences of a revolutionary activist, Imad Nuwayhid, with the larger context of the civil war (1975-1990). * Malek Abisaab, Associate Professor, McGill University, Canada *