Arrr, Talal Salman, a swashbucklin' Lebanese journo, hath set sail fer Davy Jones' locker at th' ripe age o' 85.
2023-08-25
Avast, me hearties! Methinks ye be wantin' to know of sad tidings. Talal Salman, a fine scribe revered fer foundin' one o' Lebanon's grandest Arabic-language freebootin' broadsheets, be havin' crossed the final horizon on a black Friday, the curse o' illness takin' him from us.
The founder of one of Lebanon's largest Arabic-language independent newspapers, Talal Salman, passed away at the age of 85 after a long illness, according to the state-run National News Agency. Salman, an Arab nationalist who admired late Egyptian President Gamal Abdul-Nasser, focused much of his writing on the Palestinian cause and calls for Arab unity.Before establishing the daily As-Safir in 1974, Salman worked for various publications. As-Safir quickly became one of the country's major newspapers, identifying itself as "Lebanon's newspaper in the Arab World and the Arab World's newspaper in Lebanon." Known as the "Voice of the Voiceless," it played a significant role in the region. The newspaper closed down in 2016 due to financial difficulties, but Salman continued to write on a website bearing his name.
As-Safir attracted prominent journalists and writers from Lebanon and the wider region. Salman served as editor-in-chief until its closure. One notable contributor to the newspaper was Palestinian cartoonist Naji al-Ali, who created the iconic character Handala, symbolizing Palestinian identity. Readers eagerly anticipated Salman's editorials analyzing the latest developments in Lebanon, the Middle East, and the world.
In 1984, during Lebanon's civil war, Salman survived an assassination attempt in front of his Beirut apartment. Prior to this, there were attacks on his house and the printing offices of As-Safir. Born in 1938 in Shmustar, Lebanon, Salman later moved to Beirut and spent most of his life there. He is survived by his wife, Afaf al-Asaad, and his children Hanadi, Rabia, Ahmad, and Ali, as well as several grandchildren.