journalistic and documentary photography
I.n째 003
Jun+Jul/08
www.sowarmag.com
Lebanon : L.L. 7,500
Issue n° 003 June+July/2008 Lebanon : L.L. 7,500
Contents 10 Damage & Demise 30 Offbeat & Timeout 46 Weapons & Clashes
Editorial Director Hassan Osman
Editor’s note
Responsible Manager Laure Raphael Account Director Maisaa Hamadeh Contributing Editors Eric Keller Jesse Biggs Kevin Wiley Design Mïchelle Bezdikian Masthead Calligraphy Ali Assi © Cover photo Jean Guichard/Corbis
Printed in Lebanon by Dots-Dar El Kotob Sowar is a bi-monthly journalistic and documentary photography magazine
Out of all the Sowar Magazine issues I had the pleasure of working on, this has probably been the most exciting. We asked nine distinguished photographers to send in their top photos taken during the Lebanese Civil War, and our task was to sift through the dozens of pictures we received. Our approach for selection was simple: to choose pictures from a purely historical, journalistic and documentary perspective, as opposed to a politically-based or religiously-based one. In retrospect, we ended up publishing the most powerful pictures, regardless of how many were tied to a specific area, militia or party. Even the captions, which were supplied by the photographers themselves, were barely modified to mask any affiliations. “Snapshots from the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990)” is a special edition dedicated to those who lost, and still are losing, their lives in an unfair and unjust cause. It is also dedicated to the photojournalists who risked their lives to capture those phenomenal shots. As always, I would love to hear your feedback and I hope you’ll enjoy this issue as much as I did. You could reach me at: hassan@sowarmag.com
Sincerely Yours,
For advertising, please call 03-909666 or e-mail info@sowarmag.com For submissions, please e-mail your sample photos and ideas to submissions@sowarmag.com Copyright © Pix S.A.R.L. and photographers. All rights reserved.
Pix S.A.R.L Sowar Magazine P.O.Box 14-5242 Beirut, Lebanon Tel: 03-909666 info@sowarmag.com www.sowarmag.com
Hassan Osman Editorial Director
Contributors
Roger Moukarzel
Roger Moukarzel is a prominent photographer who began his photography career as a war photojournalist, working with international agencies such as Sygma and Reuters. He has published several books, including “Trait Portrait” and “Wadi Qadisha”, and his personal work has been showcased in more than 15 exhibitions worldwide. Roger currently runs his own studio, Minime Production, in Beirut, Lebanon. www.rogermoukarzel.com
Saleh Rifai
Maher Attar
Maher Attar is a highly renowned photographer with over 25 years of experience working at international photo agencies such as AFP and Sygma. He has published several photography books including “Bonheur” and “Morio Matsui.” In 2002, Maher set up his own photo press agency in Paris, MGA Production, and is currently serving as the director of the photo library of HH Sheikha Mozah in Qatar. www.maherattar.com
Pierre Sabbagh
Bill Foley
Pierre Sabbagh is the general manager of Gulbenk trading company, an exclusive distributor of high-end photography products such as Nikon, Hasselblad, and Elinchrom based in Beirut, Lebanon. Pierre worked as a stringer photojournalist with UPI from 1980 until late 1985. He was the only photographer inside the US marine barracks compound in Beirut in 1983 when a truck blew up. pierresabbagh@nikon.com.lb
Jean Guichard
Claude Salhani is the Editor of the Middle East Times and a political analyst specializing in the Middle East and terrorism. He is a contributing editor with United Press International and a regular in the commentary pages of the Washington Times and Dubai’s Khaleej Times. Over a span of some 30 years, Salhani has traveled to 78 countries, covered 12 wars and interviewed numerous world leaders. He is the author of “Black September to Desert Storm” and a contributing author of “The Iraq War.” politicspolicies.wordpress.com
Bill Foley is a Pulitzer prize winning photojournalist who has worked in 47 countries over the last 30 years. His work has been published in every major newspaper and magazine around the world, and his photos have been seen in museums and galleries in New York, Beirut, Cairo, Indianapolis and Europe. Bill’s series on the Sabra and Shatilla Massacre in Beirut in 1982 earned him the Pulitzer prize in 1983, an award regarded as the highest honor in print journalism. www.billfoley.com
Jean Guichard is a French photographer internationally known for his photos of lighthouses. He worked as a photojournalist with agencies such as Sygma covering everything from political personalities and wars, to sports events and news. Jean’s work has been showcased in the international press (in magazines such as TIME, Newsweek, and Paris-Match), and he has published several books including “Phares,” and “De Phare en Phare.” www.jean-guichard.com
Harry Koundakjian
Harry Koundakjian is an honored photojournalist with over 40 years of experience shooting wellknown events. Known as “Harry the Horse,” he has covered all Middle East events, from military coup d’etats to highjackings to royal weddings. He also covered deaths and natural disasters in Turkey, Iran, Morocco, East Pakistan and Bangladesh. Harry currently lives in New York, where he works as an International Photo Editor at the Associated Press. hkoundakjian@yahoo.com
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Saleh Rifai has over 30 years of experience working as a professional photojournalist in the Lebanese and international press. His personal archive of photos runs from 1975 to 2005. Saleh is currently a photography professor at the Lebanese University. He also runs his own company called Orient Photos Agency (www.orientphotos-agency.com) for photo services, consulting and training. srifai2@gmail.com
Claude Salhani
Souheil Semaan
Souheil Semaan is an esteemed photographer who graduated with distinction in photography from the highly regarded MJM School of Photography. In 1992, Souheil moved to Dubai to set up his own studio and model agency, CONTRAST professional photography. He lectures at universities across the Middle East, North Africa and Europe and is frequently commissioned by professional photographers to hold private seminars. www.contrastpros.com
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Broken Glass
1975 Photo: Saleh Rifai
> Damage & Demise
A man looks out from the shattered windows of his apartment building at the beginning of the Civil War.
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> Damage & Demise 14
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1982 Photo: B i l l F ol e y
The Massacre A man rides a bicycle slowly as he views corpses on the street in Sabra afer a massacre that killed up to one thousand Palestinians. The event happened in the aftermath of Bashir Gemayel’s assassination.
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1990
Semaan
Makeshift barriers [ ] A school bus used as a barricade between the
Lebanese army and other militias. The picture, taken from the Lebanese army side, shows bullet holes in cloths which were apparently used to hide movements and positions.
1989
[>] Photo: M a h e r
Attar
> Damage & Demise
[ ] Photo: S o u h e i l
Total Destruction
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[>] The Virgin bears witness to East Beirut after it was bombarded by Syrian forces. The Dora reservoir explosion was equivalent to a one kiloton atomic blast.
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1987
> Damage & Demise
Photo: R o g e r M o u ka r z el
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A couple of kids peak out from their family home in Ain el Rimeineh. The bullet-ridden walls reflect the horrors of living on the green line.
On the Green Line sowar : June+July/08
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1983
Shedding a tear A U.S. Marine wipes a tear from his eye as he keeps low to avoid exploding bullets and explosives while rescue teams continue to search for survivors of the Marine base after a truck packed with explosives crashed into a building killing 241 U.S. Service personnel.
> Damage & Demise
Photo: Cl a u d e S al h a n i
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Casualties
U.S. Marines carry the body of another Marine out of the Battalion Landing Team (BLT) building after a truck packed with explosives crashed into it. The four story building was totally collapsed.
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1983
Photo: P i e r r e S a b b a g h
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> Offbeat & Timeout 34
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1983
Photo: Cl a u d e S al h a n i
Nadia Gamal World renowned Lebanese belly dance Nadia Gamal dances for U.S. Marine contingent commander James Mead (center) and French contingent commander Michel Datin (left). The show, which was sponsored by the Italian Peacekeepers, entertained American, French, Italian, and British soldiers of the Multi-National Forces.
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> Offbeat & Timeout
Relaxing Notes
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1975 [ ]
Photo: H a r r y K o u n d a k j i a n
A French mercenary fighting for the rightwing Phalange (Kataeb) party plays the piano at the Holiday Inn rooftop restaurant during the Civil Strife.
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1986
[ ] Photo: R o g e r
M o u k a r z el
Sandbag Aisle A bride walks down the aisle on her wedding day in Achrafiyeh. Sandbags were commonly used during the Civil War to defend against flying bullets and shrapnel.
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1975
> Weapons & Clashes
Photo: Saleh Rifai
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Downtown Militiamen shoot from the Lebanese parliament in the direction of the ministry building in Central Beirut.
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Clashes 55
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