Today's Article (18/9/2025)
Inside Beirutās Fight To Save Its Reading Culture (New Lines Magazine)
During Israelās latest war on Lebanon, a huge influx of refugees from the south of the country sought refuge in Hamra. āOnce displaced, there was nothing they could do, other than waiting, so I offered to lend them books from Kitabi to read for free,ā Khabbazeh says. Hundreds of books were borrowed from the shop by people staying within the 2-mile stretch of Hamra. They would read them within a day or two before coming back to exchange them for others.
When the ceasefire was announced in November 2024, those who had been displaced headed back to their homes immediately. By the time Khabbazeh returned to his bookshop at 10 a.m., over 150 of his books had already been returned to his neighbor next door. For Khabbazeh, it is instances like these that motivate him to continue.