Photograph courtesy of © 2020 Marwan Chamaa
A few minutes after 6:00pm, Beirut time, on August 4th, I received an all too familiar WhatsApp message from a friend “Family in Beirut ok?”. I instantly knew what this meant: Something somewhere in Beirut must have exploded. I immediately go to Twitter, seeking an answer to my question: Gas leak or booby trapped car?
Ok, immediate family is safe WhatsApp confirms in parallel. I was not too worried at first. But the tone on Twitter was alarming.

Beirut book fair’s opening is scheduled for this evening, as officials make speeches and honor its alleys.

If you’re in Beirut for the book fair, do not miss Jabbour Douaihy’s conference on December 13th, at 7:00 pm, room#1 at the BIEL conference center.

For those of you who have contacted me regarding the Beirut Book Fair 2010, thank you! And below, a few precisions.

The 17th edition of the Beirut Francophone book fair, organized by the Lebanese syndicate of book importers, will be taking place from October 29th through November 7th, at the BIEL expo center.

The 21st edition of the Arab Federation for Libraries and Information annual reunion will be taking place in Beirut this year, from October 6th to 8th.