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Leila Shahid

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Leila Shahid
Leila Shahid (2015)
General Delegate of Palestine to the EU, Belgium and Luxembourg
In office
2006–2014
Ambassador of Palestine to France
In office
1993–2006
Ambassador of Palestine to The Netherlands
In office
1990–1993
Ambassador of Palestine to Ireland
In office
1989–1990
Personal details
BornBeirut, Lebanon
NationalityPalestinian
Parent(s)Munib Shahid (father), Serene Husseini Shahid (mother)
RelativesAl-Husayni clan, great-great granddaughter of Baha'u'llah (paternal lineage)
EducationPhD in Anthropology
Alma materAmerican University of Beirut
OccupationDiplomat, Anthropologist

Leila Shahid (born in Beirut in 1949) is a Palestinian diplomat.[1] She was the first woman ambassador of Palestine, serving the PLO in Ireland in 1989, in The Netherlands in 1990, then serving the PA in France where she had taken office in Paris in 1993.[2] From 2006 to 2014, she was the General Delegate of Palestine to the EU, Belgium and Luxembourg.[3]

She is the daughter of Munib Shahid and Serene Husseini Shahid and thus related to the Al-Husayni clan.[4][5][6] Shahid's parents were from Acre and Jerusalem, but she grew up with her two sisters in exile in Lebanon. After studying anthropology and psychology at the American University of Beirut, Leila worked in the Palestinian refugee camps until 1974 when she began her doctorate in anthropology in Paris, where she met Jean Genet. In 1976 she was elected president of the Union of Palestinian students in France.[7][8]

In September 1982, Shahid and Jean Genet went to Beirut. They arrived during the Sabra and Shatila massacres. Genet's account was published in "La revue d'études palestiniennes", in an article entitled Quatre heures à Chatila (Four Hours at Chatila) -- Catherine Biscovitch's film "Dancing Among the Dead" was based on this article by Genet.[9] While working as the Ambassador of Palestine to France, Shahid arranged for the safe storage of artefacts in that had been discovered during archaeological investigations in Gaza at sites such as Tell es-Sakan; they had been on display at the Institut du Monde Arabe for an exhibition on Gaza's history but could not be returned after the end of the exhibition due to the start of the Second Intifada.[10]

In 2004, she was with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat during his final days.[11]

She was a longtime director of "La revue d'études palestiniennes" (The Review of Palestinian Studies), while serving as a board member right now.[12]

The Russell Tribunal on Palestine was established in response to a call by Leila Shahid and Ken Coates (Chairperson of the Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation), Nurit Peled (Israeli, Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Speech 2001).[13]

Though not a follower of the Baháʼí Faith, she is the great-great granddaughter of the Baháʼí prophet Baha'u'llah through her father, who was a grandson of Abdu'l-Baha.[14] Her father was excommunicated from the Baháʼí Faith for opposition to Shoghi Effendi.[15]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Giblin, Blanc (2016). "Palestine, Arabs and the Arab world. An Interview with Leïla Shahid".
  2. ^ "Questions swirl around Arafat's health - Oct 30, 2004". edition.cnn.com. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  3. ^ "Leila Shahid leaves her function of Palestinian delegate to Belgium and the EU". Brussels Diplomatic. 2014-12-14. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  4. ^ Leila Shahid The resolve of a Palestinian envoy, Interview by Sophie Boukhari and Amy Otchet, Unesco
  5. ^ Leila Shahid Archived 2009-10-01 at the Wayback Machine, at the Russell Tribunal on Palestine
  6. ^ Mrs. Leila Shahid Archived 2010-05-13 at the Wayback Machine, Eurojar
  7. ^ Running-Johnson, Cynthia (2001). ""La Vision Invisible": Feminine Bodies in Jean Genet's "Quatre Heures À Chatila"". Romance Notes. 41 (3): 333–345. ISSN 0035-7995. JSTOR 43802796.
  8. ^ BBC World Service (2012). Leila Shahid – Palestinian Authority Ambassador to the EU (Audio).
  9. ^ "Leila Shahid, Jean Genet and the Position of Sudden Departure". www.mafhoum.com. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  10. ^ Armaly, Fareed (2008). "Crossroads and Contexts: Interviews on Archaeology in Gaza". Journal of Palestine Studies. 37 (2): 53–54. doi:10.1525/jps.2008.37.2.43. ISSN 0377-919X.
  11. ^ "Witness, The Last Days of Yasser Arafat". BBC. Retrieved 2018-12-04.
  12. ^ "14th edition – 2019". PCMMO - Panorama des Cinémas du Maghreb et du Moyen-Orient (in French). 2020-10-27. Archived from the original on 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  13. ^ "The Russell Tribunal on Palestine". CJPME - English. November 15, 2011. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  14. ^ Aghdasi, Farzin. "The Vision of Shoghi Effendi: A Study" Session 5: Covenant Breakers: in the East, the West, and at the World Center. http://www.bci.org/bahaistudies/courses/shoghi.htm Archive : https://web.archive.org/web/20140221112645/http://www.bci.org/bahaistudies/courses/shoghi.htm
  15. ^ Momen, Moojan. "Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit." p. 290. http://irfancolloquia.org/pdf/lights10_momen.pdf


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