A 32 year old woman from Iran has admitted to have killed at least six other Iranian women. She took her ideas from Agatha Christie, a British murder-mystery writer, novels. The women said that she would offer middle-aged to elderly women rides home from praying shrines. Then in her car she would give them fruit juice spiked with anesthetic so that her victims would fall asleep. After she would strangle them until they died, steal all of their jewelry and belongings then dispose of their bodies in various secluded spots. The 32 year old Iranian women killed and stole so that she would be able to pay off her debts that were at about 25,000 USD. She told the police that she committed all of the crimes over a four month period. This women has been described as Iran’s first female serial killer.
The Iranian government has blocked all access to the popular social network, Facebook. Mir Hossein Mousavi is a reformist candidate for the presidential elections of Iran, which shall be held in June. Mousavi has been using Facebook to gain supporters, which is why Iran’s government banned Facebook. The Iranian Labour News Agency said that ”according to certain Internet surfers, the site was banned because supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi were using Facebook to better disseminate the candidate’s positions”. The ILNA believes that this social networking website was banned due to Mousavi’s use to gain supporters and how in modern times people are turning to the Internet for information about presidential candidates.
Both of us used Facebook quiet regularly, to talking to friends. One of us can also relate to the now Facebook-less people of Iran, since one of our parents have blocked Facebook from our household, however their reason has nothing to do with presidential elections.
‘Persepolis’ is an animated film about a girl, Marji, who grows up in Tehran, Iran, during the time of the Iranian Revolution (1979). After many political problems affecting the family directly, Marji’s mother decides to send her to study abroad, in Vienna, Austria. Morgan watched this movie on Saturday and found it interesting and funny, yet confusing at times.
The film is based on an autobiographical graphic novel (comic) by Marjane Satrapi, who Marji is based on. Both the graphic novel and the animation were originally in French. The film received the Jury Prize from the 2007 Cannes Film Festivle and a lot of praise, as did the book.
Here is the trailer of the film (french with English subtitles):
When I was young I went skiing in Australia, my friends all believed Australia to be hot and desert like, however their characterizations were wrong. Many people think that the Middle East is hot and dry, and it is, but in some places it is also cold, for example areas in the north. Some of the hottest and driest places on Earth are found on the Arabian Peninsula, in the deserts temperatures over 45°C are quiet common. To the north of Iran rain fall tends to be around 200cm per year, where as some places in Iran go without rain for a few years. In Turkey the temperature can range from 0°C to 23°C whereas towards the south, in Saudi Arabia it ranges from 24°C to 31°C. There are many perceptions about the Middle East, about the culture, politics, religion and even climate, however most of them are wrong.
Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Booksby Azar Nafisi
This novel is about a teacher who secretly took seven of her hardworking female students to a secret book club during the time when books were banded. This book takes place in Iran and is based on a true story. Here are a trailer made by a student about the book:
The Bookseller of Kabul by Åsne Seierstand
This novel is set in Kabul the capital city of Afghanistan. It features a family who the author, a Norwegian journalist, spend four months living with. The family have been the booksellers in Kabul for more than twenty years. This book is about her time spent with the family and their lives. This book was an international bestseller.
“Stunning…[and] fascinating, in a good measure because Seierstad has clearly made the difficult decision to tell it like it was… it deserves to sell well: it is quiet unlike anything else” Observer
Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women by Geraldine Brooks
This book is also about the author’s experiences in the Middle East. This non-fiction book is about the Islamic culture and the oppresion of women. The ‘Nine Parts of Desire’ was an international best seller and many respected organizations have praised it.
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
‘The Kite Runner’ tells the story of a twelve year old boy, Amir, who lives in Kabul. Amir betrays his best friend, who is his father’s servant’s son and forever lives in regret. This book was very successful and it was even adapted to film. Here is the movie trailer:
Exile by Richard North Patterson
This novel is about a lady who is accused of a crime and for her trial is defended by her past lover, a Jewish-American lawyer. ‘Exile’ deals with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The story also deals with the background, cultural and religious influence that created the conflicts.
“A thriller so important it absolutely demands to be read” The Times
Roxana Saberi was a journalist of diverse heritage. Ms. Saberi was born and grew up in the United States. Her mother, Akiko, is of Japanese heritage and her father, Reza, is Iranian. Ms. Saberi was in the top ten of the Miss America finalists in 1998 as Miss North Dakota. As Miss North Dakota she aimed to help people understand other cultures, this aim eventually led to her career in journalism. Ms. Saberi attended Concordia College, and earned degrees in mass communication and French. She also studied at Northwestern University of Chicago, where she received a master’s degree in journalism. Ms. Saberi graduated from Cambridge University with another master’s degree, yet this time in international relations. She is presently studying for a third master’s degree, in Iranian studies.
Ms. Saberi moved to Iran in 2003 to work as a journalist for many news companies, such as the BBC. Reza, her father, said she had always wanted to go to Iran, although he had worried about her going. A few weeks ago Ms. Saberi was accused of spying by the Iranian government. While she awaited her trial she was held in Evin prison, a prison nearby Tehran, Iran’s capital city. Her original accusation in January 2009, was of buying alcohol and working as a journalist without a press card. However later she was also accused of spying on Iran for the United States. The American Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton, demanded Ms. Saberi’s release; however the Iranian government kept her in their custody. For two weeks Ms. Saberi has been on hunger strike as a form of protesting against her eight year prison sentence for spying, however today, May 6, she stopped her hunger strike. The United States’ president, Barack Obama, has even appealed for the journalist’s release, yet the Iranian government still has Roxana Saberi in their custody.
‘Children of Heaven’ is a film about a two Iranian siblings and how they recover a pair of lost shoes. The older brother, Ali, one day loses his little sister’s, Zhara, running shoes on his way home from the shoe repair shop. Ali made a plan to come in second place in a running race, since the prize for second place was a pair of new shoes. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1998. ‘Children of Heaven’ also had a movie inspired by it called ‘Homerun’ which is set in Singapore and deals more with friendship.
During the first semester of school we watched this movie, since it connected to our unit of ‘Consumer Economics and Identity’. The film connects to our unit since we learnt about the economy of Iran and how it affected people’s lifestyles and identities. We disliked the movie since the ending did not do the rest of the film justice.
‘King Without a Crown’ is a song by Matisyahu, a Hasidic (a Orthodox Judaism sect) reggae singer. Matisyahu is known for mixing traditional Jewish music with reggae, rock and hip hop. Many of his songs are about God, finding meaning and other spiritual and religious concepts. Matisyahu’s songs, including ‘King Without a Crown’ were quiet popular in the United States. Here is the song’s music video and the lyrics:
You’re all that I have and you’re all that I need
Each and every day I pray to get to know you please
I want to be close to you, yes I’m so hungry
You’re like water for my soul when it gets thirsty
Without you there’s no me
You’re the air that I breathe
Sometimes the world is dark and I just can’t see
With these, demons surround all around to bring me down to negativity
But I believe, yes I believe, I said I believe
I’ll stand on my own two feet
Won’t be brought down on one knee
Fight with all of my might and get these demons to flee
Hashem’s rays fire blaze burn bright and I believe
Hashem’s rays fire blaze burn bright and I believe
Out of darkness comes light, twilight unto the heights
Crown Heights burnin’ up all through till twilight
Said thank you to my God, now I finally got it right
And I’ll fight with all of my heart, and all a’ my soul, and all a’ my might Read the rest of this entry »
Judaism is one of the three major religions in the Middle East. The people who follow the religion of Judaism are called Jews. Judaism is a monotheistic religion, meaning they only believe in once God. The holy book of Judaism is called the TeNaKh, a book written in Hebrew, the sacred language of Judaism, and is made of three parts, Torah, Nevi’im and Ketuvim. Here is a video of how Torah plays a large role in people’s lives around the world:
A 32 year old woman from Iran has admitted to have killed at least six other Iranian women. She took her ideas from Agatha Christie, a British murder-mystery writer, novels. The women said that she would offer middle-aged to elderly women rides home from praying shrines. Then in her car she would give them fruit juice spiked with anesthetic so that her victims would fall asleep. After she would strangle them until they died, steal all of their jewelry and belongings then dispose of their bodies in various secluded spots. The 32 year old Iranian women killed and stole so that she would be able to pay off her debts that were at about 25,000 USD. She told the police that she committed all of the crimes over a four month period. This women has been described as Iran’s first female serial killer.
The Iranian government has blocked all access to the popular social network, Facebook. Mir Hossein Mousavi is a reformist candidate for the presidential elections of Iran, which shall be held in June. Mousavi has been using Facebook to gain supporters, which is why Iran’s government banned Facebook. The Iranian Labour News Agency said that ”according to certain Internet surfers, the site was banned because supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi were using Facebook to better disseminate the candidate’s positions”. The ILNA believes that this social networking website was banned due to Mousavi’s use to gain supporters and how in modern times people are turning to the Internet for information about presidential candidates.
‘Persepolis’ is an animated film about a girl, Marji, who grows up in Tehran, Iran, during the time of the Iranian Revolution (1979). After many political problems affecting the family directly, Marji’s mother decides to send her to study abroad, in Vienna, Austria. Morgan watched this movie on Saturday and found it interesting and funny, yet confusing at times.
When I was young I went skiing in Australia, my friends all believed Australia to be hot and desert like, however their characterizations were wrong. Many people think that the Middle East is hot and dry, and it is, but in some places it is also cold, for example areas in the north. Some of the hottest and driest places on Earth are found on the Arabian Peninsula, in the deserts temperatures over 45°C are quiet common. To the north of Iran rain fall tends to be around 200cm per year, where as some places in Iran go without rain for a few years. In Turkey the temperature can range from 0°C to 23°C whereas towards the south, in Saudi Arabia it ranges from 24°C to 31°C. There are many perceptions about the Middle East, about the culture, politics, religion and even climate, however most of them are wrong.
Roxana Saberi was a journalist of diverse heritage. Ms. Saberi was born and grew up in the United States. Her mother, Akiko, is of Japanese heritage and her father, Reza, is Iranian. Ms. Saberi was in the top ten of the Miss America finalists in 1998 as Miss North Dakota. As Miss North Dakota she aimed to help people understand other cultures, this aim eventually led to her career in journalism. Ms. Saberi attended Concordia College, and earned degrees in mass communication and French. She also studied at Northwestern University of Chicago, where she received a master’s degree in journalism. Ms. Saberi graduated from Cambridge University with another master’s degree, yet this time in international relations. She is presently studying for a third master’s degree, in Iranian studies.
Iran’s capital city. Her original accusation in January 2009, was of buying alcohol and working as a journalist without a press card. However later she was also accused of spying on Iran for the United States. The American Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton, demanded Ms. Saberi’s release; however the Iranian government kept her in their custody. For two weeks Ms. Saberi has been on hunger strike as a form of protesting against her eight year prison sentence for spying, however today, May 6, she stopped her hunger strike. The United States’ president, Barack Obama, has even appealed for the journalist’s release, yet the Iranian government still has Roxana Saberi in their custody.
‘Children of Heaven’ is a film about a two Iranian siblings and how they recover a pair of lost shoes. The older brother, Ali, one day loses his little sister’s, Zhara, running shoes on his way home from the shoe repair shop. Ali made a plan to come in second place in a running race, since the prize for second place was a pair of new shoes. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1998. ‘Children of Heaven’ also had a movie inspired by it called ‘Homerun’ which is set in Singapore and deals more with friendship.
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