Free Republic

New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani releases a campaign ad in Arabic. Mamdani, who is a Muslim and recently gave a landmark speech about Islamophobia, is the frontrunner to win Tuesday’s election. “I know what you’re thinking — I might look like your brother-in-law from Damascus, but my Arabic needs some work,” Mamdani, who is of Indian descent, says in the video. “Still, I would love to ask for your support on November 4th.” In the ad, Mamdani pitches his promises to make New York more affordable, pets a bodega cat, and jokes about knafeh — an Arabic dessert...

Hamas has recalled about 7,000 members of its security forces to reassert control over areas of Gaza recently vacated by Israeli troops, according to local sources. The Palestinian group also appointed five new governors all with military backgrounds, some of whom previously commanded brigades in its armed wing. The mobilisation order was reportedly issued via phone calls and text messages which said the aim was to "cleanse Gaza of outlaws and collaborators with Israel" and told fighters to report within 24 hours. Reports from Gaza suggest that armed Hamas units have already deployed across several districts, some wearing civilian clothes...

Leaflets found at the site of the Marine Corps headquarters in Quantico, Virginia, Wednesday may have ties to the international terrorist organization ISIS, a source told the Tatler today. The leaflets, which portray the flag of the Islamic State, include a message in Arabic that says “We came from Mexico on a train.” The leaflets raise the questions of whether the Islamic State has operatives in the heart of the United State’s Marine Corps headquarters, or alternatively, whether someone is testing security responses and military command communications. The Tatler obtained a digital copy of the leaflet today, which is being...

DEARBORN HTS, Mich. (FOX 2) - The Dearborn Heights Police Department is unveiling a new officer-designed police patch that will be the first one in the country to feature Arabic. Police confirmed to FOX 2 on Wednesday that the department has a new optional patch that officers can wear as part of their uniform. The patch includes the Michigan seal in the center with the words ‘Dearborn Heights Police’ written in both English and Arabic. According to police, the patch was created by Officer Ermily Murdoc, who designed it to reflect and honor the diversity of our community. Dearborn Heights'...

An even more devastating terrorism charge could be laid on Iran's doorstep if intelligence reports linking Iran to al-Qaeda are confirmed. Insight has learned of new links between top Iranian intelligence officials and the al-Qaeda leadership that suggest direct Iranian government involvement in the Sept. 11 attacks on the U.S. mainland. Documents and information provided to this magazine by a recent Iranian defector, if confirmed as authentic, could open a new front in the war on terror. The defector, Hamid Reza Zakeri, says he worked in the intelligence office of Supreme Leader Ali Khameini and personally handled security at two...

In a troubling revelation from Vienna, a concerned grandparent, Bernhard K., has exposed a growing crisis in Austria’s kindergartens. Speaking to the Austrian news outlet Heute, he described the stark reality at his grandson’s school, where only three of 25 classmates are fluent German speakers. During breaks and after-school activities, the children revert to Arabic, leaving his grandson isolated. When asked how the boy copes, Bernhard’s response was shocking: “He’s trying to learn Arabic! How else is he supposed to communicate with his schoolmates?” This is not an isolated incident but a symptom of a broader demographic shift. According to...

According to an Islam tradition, Muslim martyrs will go to paradise and marry 72 black-eyed virgins. But some Koran scholars point to a less sexy paradise. While beautifully written, Islamic texts are often obscure. The Arabic language was born as a written language with the Koran, and growing evidence suggests that many of the words were Syriac or Aramaic. Specifically, the Koran says martyrs going to heaven will get “hur,” and the word was taken by early commentators to mean “virgins,” hence those 72 concubines. But in Aramaic, hur actually meant “white” and was commonly used to specifically mean “white...

According to author Christoph Luxenberg, due to a possible mistranslation of the Koran (if one were to read certain words as Syriac instead of Arabic), the "virgins" some terrorists believe they will be rewarded with in paradise may be "white raisins" of "crystal clarity" instead.

If there is no emotional connection to their own children, how could there ever be a desire for peace, coexistence, and mutual respect for the Israeli people? Speaking to the children of Jenin in their native Arabic language, N12 Israeli television reporter Ohad Hemo confirmed what we’ve all known for a long time: the realization of why there can never be peace between Israel and the so-called Palestinians who live in Samaria. With special permission from the IDF, Hemo made his way through the rubble, which was once home to 14,000 people who lived in the Jenin Palestinian refugee camp,...

illing is still ongoing. Watch this video. According to my sources in the Alawites in Syria, he is one of the leaders of the Al-Julani army, from ISIS, he is openly telling his mercenaries to kill and slaughter the Alawites today, the tenth of March. The massacres continue. ... I am a Syrian Alawite citizen, I beg you with all forms of begging and request, help us stop the rivers of blood in Syria, the blood of the Alawites fills the streets, the New Syrian Army led by al-Julani is a terrorist army of mercenaries, more than 4 thousand have...

“This is not war. This is annihilation.” The UN won’t help them. On the contrary, they are aiding and abetting the jihad force. I am receiving hundreds of emails from people in Syria begging for help. How can the world stand by in the face of such atrocities? ... We, the Alawites on the Syrian coast, are facing extermination. Ethnic and religious cleansing is unfolding before the world’s silent eyes. They are burning our homes, slaughtering our families, and torturing our children. They rip out the eyes of our young, tear out their hearts, and leave their lifeless bodies as...

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is facing criticism over a campaign mailer featuring a nonsensical Arabic translation of election information, including the last day voters can cast their ballot. The campaign leaflet features Arabic script in which the characters appear in reverse order and are disconnected, deviating from standard Arabic script requirements. The mistake drew attention after Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, a journalist, criticized the gaffe on X (formerly Twitter). He remarked that the disorganized script was emblematic of Ocasio-Cortez’s disconnect with Arab voters. The incorrect Arabic also drew comments from Meir Javedanfar, an Iranian studies professor at Reichman University. He equated the...

Finnish is known for its challenging grammar and vocabulary, which can be daunting for learners. It features a complex system of cases—15 in total—which can change the endings of nouns based on their function in a sentence. Additionally, Finnish is a language isolated from other European languages, so there are few cognates for English speakers to rely on. Nevertheless, Finnish is a language worth learning for its unique position in the world. Finland boasts a high standard of living, stunning natural landscapes, and a rich cultural history. Learning Finnish can enhance your experience if you plan to travel or work...

Trump wrote that the documentary was 'incredibly difficult to watch because, sadly, it graphically portrays the death and destruction that Hamas has unleashed.' Former US President Donald Trump urged people to watch the film Screams Before Silence by Sheryl Sandberg, which documents Hamas's sexual violence on October 7, in a post on his social network Truth Social on Tuesday morning. Trump wrote that the documentary was "...incredibly difficult to watch because, sadly, it graphically portrays the Death and Destruction that Hamas has unleashed."

The number of people using Gaelic has increased across Scotland despite a decline in the language's heartland, according to the latest census data. Experts say the increase in Gaelic medium education (GME) accounts for the rise. However, Gaelic is now a minority language in the Western Isles - while 52% reported speaking Gaelic in 2011, the figure in 2022 was 45%. Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes told BBC Scotland that Scottish Gaelic was part of a "modern, diverse Scotland". Ms Forbes – who is also minister for Gaelic – said she was “extremely optimistic” about the future of the language....

Leftward-leaning German politicians have lauded the decision to erect the nation’s first street sign in Arabic script as a “a symbolic expression of social inclusion.” This month, the North Rhine-Westphalian state capital of Düsseldorf has begun exhibiting the name of Ellerstrasse in Arabic letters: شارع إلَرْ. Touted as a campaign to underscore the diversity and international flair of Düsseldorf, the Arabic street sign has been placed in Oberbilk, a district with a particularly large number of people with Moroccan roots. According to a decision by the city’s “integration council,” there will eventually be bilingual street signs in ten different places...

Gibraltar finally joined the official list of British cities on Monday (Aug 29), after 180 years in which its status, granted by Queen Victoria, had been overlooked due to an administrative error. The British overseas territory bid to become a city earlier this year as part of the celebrations for Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee, but research in the National Archives established it had in fact been granted city status in 1842. "It is excellent to see official recognition given to the City of Gibraltar, a huge accolade to its rich history and dynamism," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in...

ACI MENA will operate from the campus of Erbil’s Catholic University.EWTN Global Catholic Network has launched an Arabic-language news service headquartered in Erbil, Iraq, Michael P. Warsaw, EWTN's chairman of the board and CEO, announced March 25, on the Solemnity of the Annunciation. The Association for Catholic Information Middle East and North Africa, or ACI MENA, will publish original news content in Arabic using a network of correspondents across the region. The news agency will operate from the campus of Erbil’s Catholic University (CUE). A ceremony marking the occasion was held in Erbil, which included Archbishop Bashar Warda of the...

I don't speak Arabic -- though I recently ordered the beginner module from Rosetta Stone which still sits in its wrapper on my desk shelf. (I am in the Arab world a lot however and learning more each trip) Perhaps after the conventions.But a friend, Foued Mokrani, speaks Arabic just fine -- and reported on his Facebook page the following after watching a film during a flight to Paris:I watched the movie The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and noticed they translate the word ''gay" to ''pervert" in the Arabic subtitles!! Very dumb.Mokrani responded:Somehow there is no decent word to say...

In April, the language-learning app Duolingo added its 40th language to its program arsenal: Yiddish. A couple of decades ago, it would have been unthinkable for a mainstream non-Jewish language program to offer an expansive, comprehensive course in Yiddish. But Duolingo’s Yiddish addition only serves to reflect the increased global interest in learning a language that once had as many as 12 million speakers. Ladino, a Romance language of Sephardic Jews still spoken by hundreds of thousands worldwide, has also garnered much interest in recent years. Ladino classes, both online and in-person, are widely available to prospective learners. But while...