The Arab World Institute in Paris today is honoring Saudi poet Ibrahim Al-Juraifani as part of a ceremony the institute is holding to celebrate its 25th anniversary.
Saudi Ambassador to France Mohammed bin Ismail Al Al-Sheikh and the Saudi delegate to the UNESCO Ziyad Al-Durais were expected to attend the ceremony.
President of United Writers of Tunisia Muhammad Badawi, Lebanese journalist Gorge Raji and Egyptian writer Osama Al-Khaleel are also expected to attend.
Participants will present critical working papers on Al-Juraifani’s works during the ceremony, which will also include several cultural activities, critical discussions, recitation of poems, short music shows and an art exhibition of a number of artists who produced more than 20 paintings based on Al-Juraifani’s poems. They are Nawal Al-Ajmi from Kuwait, Ukadi Matar from Bahrain and Pascal Masoud and Ahlam Abbas from Lebanon.
Al-Juraifani says the message he wants to deliver to French society through his work is the importance of dialogue between different religions and cultures.
Through his themes, he highlights the issue of women's rights in the Arab world, as well as different social and humanitarian issues aiming to clarify the vague image French intellectuals have about the Arab World.
In the collection of his poems, there are several texts that were translated into English and French.
“The translated texts are for French university students and eastern literature researchers who have been invited to the occasion,” he said.
Al-Juraifani said a society couldn’t be judged by individual acts coming from individuals or barely known newspapers that are looking for fame through attacking religious sanctities.
Al-Juraifani was born in 1958 in the city of Onaiza. He worked with Saudi television from 1975 to 1980 and has produced several collections of poems.
As part of the celebration the institute is also holding an exhibition on Islamic art and Arabian civilizations and their pre-Islamic Arabic, Kurdish and Syrian dialects. The exhibition will also showcase 12th-century copies of the Qur’an, Torah and Injil (the original gospel).
Countries funding the establishment of the institution are Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Algeria, Bahrain, the UAE, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Palestine, Morocco, Mauritania, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
Arab World Institute honors poet Al-Juraifani
Arab World Institute honors poet Al-Juraifani
Saudi Cabinet reviews cooperation and agreements with other nations
- Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman chairs meeting and briefs ministers on his recent meeting with Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi
- Cooperative efforts includes projects focusing on development and education, political consultations, environmental protection, health, investment and air transport
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Council of Ministers reviewed a number of domestic and international matters during a session in Jeddah on Tuesday chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The crown prince briefed the Cabinet on his recent meeting with the Egyptian president, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, which included discussions about regional security and stability, the latest developments in the Middle East, and other topics of importance to the Arab and Islamic world, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
He also shared with ministers the contents of a letter he received from the president of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
The council discussed progress in cooperative efforts involving Saudi Arabia and other countries including Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Estonia, Cuba and Kiribati, and approved a number of memorandums of understanding.
The cooperation includes projects focusing on development and education, political consultations, environmental protection, health, investment and air-transport services, the press agency said. Ministers also approved an agreement between the Saudi General Authority for Awqaf and its Omani counterpart relating to endowments.
They reviewed national initiatives, including one for the promotion of charitable work, and the enhancement of humanitarian and developmental efforts across the country.
A merger of the National Competitiveness Center with the Saudi Center for Economic Business to create a combined Saudi Competitiveness and Business Center was authorized.
