name	Ahmed El-Sakka
birth name	Ahmed Mohamed Salah Eldin El-Sakka
birth date	March 01, 1973
birth place	Cairo , Egypt
occupation	Actor
spouse	Maha Al-Saghir }}

Ahmed El-Sakka () (born on March 1, 1973) is an Egyptian Action actor. Early in his acting career he appeared in popular series like ''Nesf Rabeea El-Akhar''. The role that introduced him to a large audience was a co-starring role with actor Mohamed Henedi in ''Sa'eedi fil gamaa el amrekeia'' (Arabic for "A Country Man in the American University") (1998). The following year he co-starred with Mohamed Henedi in ''Hamam fi Amsterdam'', but in a larger role of the tough guy, which seemed to be his role in most of his hit movies afterwards. His next films were all action movies where he played the main character. Probably the most famous of these movies is ''Mafia'' (2002) which was a big success for El Sakka and is considered by many as one of the best action actors in the history of Egyptian movies.

Filmography

Harmonica (1996).

Saeedi Fi El Gamaa El Amrekiia (Saeedi In The AUC) (1998).

Hammam Fi Amsterdam (Hammam In Amsterdam) (1999).

Short we Fanellah we Cap (Short, T-Shirt And A Cap) (2000).

Ayyam El Sadat (2001).

Africano (2001).

Mafia (2002).

Tito (2004).

Harb Atalia(Atalia War).

An El Eshq Wel Hawa (2006).

Taymour We Shafika (2007).

El Gezeira (The Island) (2007).

Ibrahim El Abyad (2009).

The Dealer (2010).

Ibn El Konsol (Son Of The Consul) (2010).

Television

"Lahazat Harega" ''"Critical moments"''

Al Nawah

Nesf Rabeea El Akhar.

Man Allazi La Yoheb Fatima (Who Doesn't Love Fatima).

Gawaz Ala Waraa Solofan(Sahra).

Tarrweed El Sharessa (Taming The Shrew).

Zezinia

Theatre

Alabnda.

Afrotto.

Keda Okay (That's Okay).

External links

Ahmed El Sakka at ElCinema.com (Arabic)

Ibrahim Labyad Official Web Site

Ahmed El Sakka Photoalbum and Filmography

Category:1973 births Category:Living people Category:Egyptian actors

ar:أحمد السقا arz:أحمد السقا

name	Mona Zaki منى زكى
birth name	Mona Ali Mohamed Zaki
birth date	November 18, 1976
birth place	Cairo , Egypt
occupation	Actress
spouse	Ahmed Helmy (2002-present)
children	Lily }}

Mona Zaki () (born November 18, 1976) is an Egyptian actress. Although she had no interest at all on being an actress, Mona Zaki is now a remarkable leading star. Mona started her career in acting accidentally, when she met Mohamed Sobhi, the famous Egyptian Actor and Director. Mona is a Mass Communication student at the fourth grade. Her dream is to prove herself as a good actress. She wants to make good remarkable roles in her career as a Super Star. 'There is a lot to do'. She is married to Ahmed Helmi, an Egyptian actor. They are the parents of a daughter named Lily.

Biography

Mona Zaki was born to parents Ali Mohamed Zaki and Tahani, on November 18, 1976. Until the age of 13, Zaki had been living in Kuwait. At the age of 16 and after seeing an advertisement by Mohamed Sobhi for new faces, she applied merely in hope of getting a chance to meet the famous Egyptian actor and director. Luckily, Zaki was casted by Sobhy and had her first acting role in his play ''Bel Araby El Faseeh''.

When it was time for Mona to go to university, she enrolled in the Faculty of Mass Communications at Cairo University. During that time, she was introduced to director Ismail Abdel Hafez who chose her to play a part in ''El A'elah'', a Ramadan series that marked her TV debut.

Acting became more than just a hobby to Mona after that; she later acted in a number of popular TV series: Khalti Safiya wel Deir, Nisf Rabi' El Akhar, Ahalina, Ded El Tayyar and El Daw' El Sharid.

The promising star's TV roles opened the doors of the big silver screen for her. Mona invaded the cinema with El Katl ElLaziz, with Mervat Amin, then went on to play lead roles in Idhak El Soura Titla' Hilwa - a performance for which she received an award - Sa'idi fil Gam'a Al-Amrikiya, Omar 2000, El Hobb El Awal, and Leih Khallitni Ahibbak - all of which were box office hits.

But Mona played the role of Gihan El Sadat in the masterpiece Ayam El Sadat(which was about the Egyptian President Anwar El Sadat). The young actress was given an award, along with the rest of the cast of the movie, by President Hosni Mubarak.

Success remained close to the talented star and her dedication was well rewarded with the huge popularity of her next movies Africano and Mafia. She went on from one movie to another, presenting Sahar El Layali, Men Nazret Ein, Khalti Faransa and many more.

Despite her huge success in the cinema, Mona also acted in several plays, among which were Le'b Eyal, Ya Messafer Wahdak, Afrouto and Keda OK.

Mona Zaki is married to actor, Ahmed Helmy, and is the mother of a young girl: Lily.

Mona Zaki launches blood type campaign

Mona Zaki is preparing to take part in the new charity campaign 'Know your Blood type'. "Al Ahram" newspaper reports that the campaign launched by Mona Zaki as Yanabee El-Hayah ambassador in coordination with Yanabee El-Hayah for blood donation and in cooperation of the United Nations public health arm, the World Health Organization.

Political View

Mona Zaki is deeply saddened by the state of affairs on the Egyptian arena now, after the start of the demonstrations, which calls for dropping the Egyptian regime based on 25 January. And carried the responsibility for Mona lawlessness plaguing Egypt is now the Ministry of Interior, denouncing the security forces deal with the demonstrators from the first day of protests broke out and marches.

Said Mona crying in the program, "the tenth night interview," when I remembered, "What right out of the indignities and insults, indecent by the security men when i joined the demonstration of January 25th", but said that "President Mubarak's speech make her cry also said the demonstrations achieved a historic achievement", describing his speech, as "OK" and demanded the trial of Habib al-Adli, the former interior minister, saying that the cops was verbally insult her dirty and almost hit her.

Filmography

El Qatl El Laziz (1997) AKA "Tasty Murder".

Saeedi Fil Gamaa El Amrekeia (1998) AKA "Countryman in the American University".

Edhak El Soura Tetlaa Helwa (1998) AKA "Smile, And The Photo Will Come Out Good" with Ahmad Zaki.

Al Hob Al Awal (2000) AKA "First Love" with Moustafa Amar.

Fares Zahr El Kheil (2000) AKA "The Horse-Riding Knight" with Fadia Abdel Ghani.

Leih Khaletny Ahebak (2000) AKA "Why Did You Make Me Love You?" with Kareem Abdel Aziz.

Omar 2000 (2000) with Khaled El Nabawi.

Ayyam Al Sadat (2001) AKA "Days of Sadat" with Ahmad Zaki.

Africano (2001) with Ahmed El Sakka.

Mafia (2002) with Ahmed El Sakka.

Men Nazret Aeen (2003) AKA "By An Eye's Look" with Amr Waked.

Sahar El Layaly (2003) as Berrihan (Awake Nights) with Ahmed Helmi.

Khalty Faransa (2004) as Batta (Auntie Faransa) with Abla Kamel.

Abou Ali (2005) as Salma

Ahlam Omrena (2005) as Nada (Dreams of Our Life) with Moustafa Shaban.

Dam El Ghazal (2006) as Hanan (Gazelle's Blood) with Nour El Sherif.

An El Eshq Wel Hawa (2006) as Alia (About Love and Passion) with Ahmed El Sakka.

Halim (film) (2006) as Nawal

Taymoor W Shafeqa (2007) as Shafiqa

Ehky ya Scheherazade (2009)

Welad Ela'm (2009) (Cousins)

18 Youm (2011)

Series

Alaaeila (the Family)

Sindrella

Zizinia

Ahalina (our family)

AlDoo Alchared (Light Waif)

Joha elmasry (Egyptian Juha)

Lahazat Harega (Critical Moments)

Layaly ElHelmya (El Helmya Nights - Part 5)

Theatre

Belaraby el fasih (Eloquent Arabic)

Keda okay (it is okay)

Afroto (Genie)

References

External links

Official website

Category:Egyptian actors Category:1976 births Category:Living people

ar:منى زكي arz:منى زكي

Name	Bashar al-Assad بشار الأسد
Office	President of Syria
Primeminister	Muhammad Mustafa MeroMuhammad Naji al-OtariAdel Safar
Vicepresident	Farouk al-SharaaNajah al-Attar
Term start	17 July 2000
Predecessor	Abdul Halim Khaddam (Acting)
Office2	Leader of the Ba'ath Party
Term start2	10 June 2000
Predecessor2	Hafez al-Assad
Birth date	September 11, 1965
Birth place	Damascus, Syria
Party	Ba'ath Party
Spouse	Asma al-Akhras
Alma mater	Damascus University
Profession	Ophthalmologist
Religion	Alawi
Website	The President }}

Bashar al-Assad (, ''''; born 11 September 1965) is the President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death. Al-Assad was elected in 2000 and 2007, but was unopposed each time.

Early life, education and career

Bashar al-Assad was born in Damascus on 11 September 1965, the son of Aniseh (née Makhluf) and Hafez al-Assad. Initially Bashar had few political aspirations. His father had been grooming Bashar's older brother, Basil al-Assad, as a future president. Bashar studied ophthalmology at Damascus University 1988 and arrived in London in 1992 to continue his studies. He was recalled in 1994 to join the Syrian army after Basil's death in an automobile accident. Bashar entered the military academy at Homs, north of Damascus, following the death of Basil, and was propelled through the ranks to become a colonel in January 1999. The accident made Bashar his father's new heir-apparent.

When the elder Assad died in 2000, Bashar was appointed leader of the Baath-Party and the Army and was elected president unopposed with what the regime claimed to be a massive popular support (97.2% of the votes), after the Majlis Al Sha'ab (Parliament) swiftly voted to lower the minimum age for candidates from 40 to 34 (Assad's age when he was elected). On 27 May 2007 Bashar was approved as president for another seven-year term, with the official result of 97.6% of the votes in a referendum without another candidate.

Assad stands about 189 cm (6 ft 2 in). He speaks English fluently and also speaks casual conversational French, having studied at the Franco-Arab al-Hurriyah school in Damascus, before going on to medical school at the University of Damascus Faculty of Medicine. He completed his ophthalmology residency training in Tishreen Military Hospital of Damascus and subsequently went on to receive sub-specialty training in ophthalmology at the Western Eye Hospital in London. (He did not finish his formal training, due to the unexpected death of his brother.) Bashar was a staff colonel in the Syrian military.

In December 2000, Assad married Asma Assad, née Akhras, a Syrian from Acton (west London) whom he met in the United Kingdom, where she was born and raised. On 3 December 2001, they became the parents of their first-born child, named Hafez after his late grandfather. Zein was born on 5 November 2003, and Karim on 16 December 2004.

Presidency

In his domestic policy, he has been criticized for a disregard for human rights, economic lapses, and corruption. In his foreign policy, Al-Assad is an outspoken critic of the United States and Israel. The Ba'ath Party remains in control of the parliament, and is constitutionally the "leading party" of the state. Until he became president, Bashar al-Assad was not greatly involved in politics; his only public role was head of the Syrian Computer Society, which introduced the Internet to Syria in 2001. Al-Assad was confirmed as president by an unopposed referendum in 2000. He was expected to take a more liberal approach than his father. In an interview he stated that he saw democracy in Syria as 'a tool to a better life' but then argued that it would take time for democracy to come about and that it could not be rushed. Politically and economically, Syrian life has changed only slightly since 2000. Immediately after he took office a reform movement made cautious advances during the Damascus Spring, which led al-Assad to shut down Mezzeh prison and release hundreds of political prisoners. However, security crackdowns commenced again within the year.

Economy

Economic liberalization in Syria has been limited, with industry still heavily state-controlled. However some changes have occurred including the introduction of private banking and the encouragement of foreign involvement, most notably in the oil sector. The need for a diversification of the economy has been pressed for by some as it has been predicted that Syria will change from exporting to having to import oil by 2015. The reliance upon oil is reflected by manufacturing exports representing only 3.1 percent of Syria’s GDP. These issues are especially relevant as Syria’s population is predicted to more than double to over 34 million by 2050. There have been mild economic sanctions (the Syria Accountability Act) applied by the United States which further complicate the situation. Of major importance are the negotiations for a free trade association agreement with the European Union.

Human rights

A 2007 law required internet cafes to record all the comments users post on chat forums. Websites such as Wikipedia Arabic, YouTube and Facebook were blocked intermittently between 2008 and February 2011.

Human Rights groups, such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have detailed how Bashar's regime and secret police routinely torture, imprison, and kill political opponents, and those who speak out against the regime.

Since 2006 it expanded the use of travel bans against dissidents, a practice that is illegal under international law. In that regard, Syria is the worst offender among Arab states.

In an interview with ABC News in 2007 he stated: "We don't have such [things as] political prisoners," yet the ''New York Times'' reported the arrest of 30 political prisoners in Syria in December 2007.

''Foreign Policy'' magazine analyzed his position in the wake of the 2011 protests:

Foreign relations

Assad's first official foreign trip was to meet Jacques Chirac in France, who had warm relations with him. The Middle Eastern Quarterly noted that "As in the case of Iraq, there are lingering questions of Syrian payments to French politicians. Many French politicians join associations and charitable boards both for financial and political gain. The board of the L'Association d'Amitié France-Syrie (France-Syria Friendship Association) boasts among its members former prime minister Raymond Barre, former secretary of state Claude Cheysson, and 2007 presidential hopeful Nicolas Sarkozy".

The United States, European Union, the March 14 Alliance, Israel, and France accuse Assad of logistically supporting militant groups aimed at Israel and any opposing member to his government. These include most political parties other than Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad. According to MEMRI, Assad claimed the United States could benefit from the Syrian experience in fighting organizations like the Muslim Brotherhood at the Hama Massacre.

Assad opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq despite a long-standing animosity between the Syrian and Iraqi governments. Assad used Syria's seat in one of rotating positions on the United Nations Security Council to try to prevent the invasion of Iraq. Following the Iraq invasion by coalition forces, Assad was accused of supporting the Iraqi insurgency. A US general accused him of providing funding, logistics, and training to Iraqi and foreign Muslims to launch attacks against U.S. and coalition forces in Iraq.

The February 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and the accusation of Syrian involvement and support for anti-Israeli groups, helped precipitate a crisis in relations with the United States. Assad was criticized for Syria's presence in Lebanon which ended in 2005, and the US put Syria under sanctions partly because of this. At Pope John Paul II's funeral in 2005, Assad shook hands with the Israeli president Moshe Katsav.

In the Arab world, Assad mended relations with the Palestine Liberation Organization but relations with many Arab states, in particular Saudi Arabia, have been deteriorating. This is in part due to Assad's continued intervention in Lebanon and his alliance with Iran. Around the time of the 2008 South Ossetia war, Assad made an official visit to Russia. In an interview with the Russian TV channel Vesti, he asserted that one cannot separate the events in the Caucasus from the US presence in Iraq, which he condemned as a direct threat to [Syria's] security."

After the 2005 assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, many media outlets accused Syria of being involved. as Hariri was anti-Syrian. However, Assad argued that Syria's gradual withdrawal of troops from Lebanon, beginning in 2000, was precipitated as a result of the event and ended on may 2005.

In 2011, Assad told the Wall Street Journal that he considered himself "anti-Israel" and "anti-West", and that because of these policies he was not in danger of being overthrown.

Involvement in Lebanon

Despite gaining re-election in 2007, al-Assad’s position was considered by some to have been weakened by the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon following the "Cedar Revolution" in 2005. There has also been pressure from the US concerning claims that Syria is linked to terrorist networks, exacerbated by Syrian condemnation of the assassination of Imad Mughniyeh, Hezbollah military leader, in Damascus in 2008. Interior Minister Bassam Abdul-Majeed stated that, "Syria, which condemns this cowardly terrorist act, expresses condolences to the martyr family and to the Lebanese people.”

Arab-Israeli conflict

In a speech about the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict in August 2006, Bashar al-Assad said that Hezbollah had "hoisted the banner of victory," hailing its actions as a "successful resistance." He claimed that Arab resistance was growing stronger, and warned Israel that "your warplanes, rockets, and your atomic bomb will not protect you in the future." He called Israel an enemy with whom no peace could be achieved as long as they and their allies (especially the U.S.) support the practice of preemptive war. In the same speech, he also called Arab leaders that have criticized Hezbollah "half-men."

In April 2008, Assad told a Qatari newspaper that Syria and Israel had been discussing a peace treaty for a year, with Turkey as a go-between. This was confirmed in May 2008, by a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. As well as a peace treaty, the future of the Golan Heights is being discussed. Assad was quoted in ''The Guardian'' as telling the Qatari paper: :''. . . there would be no direct negotiations with Israel until a new US president takes office. The US was the only party qualified to sponsor any direct talks, [Assad] told the paper, but added that the Bush administration "does not have the vision or will for the peace process. It does not have anything."''

According to leaked American cables, Bashar al Assad called Hamas an "uninvited guest" and said "If you want me to be effective and active, I have to have a relationship with all parties. Hamas is Muslim Brotherhood, but we have to deal with the reality of their presence.", comparing Hamas to the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood which was crushed by his father Hafez al Assad. He then claimed Hamas would disappear if peace was brought to the Middle East.

Assad has indicated that the peace treaty that he envisions would not be the same kind of peace treaty Israel has with Egypt where there is a legal border crossing and open trade. In a 2006 interview with Charlie Rose, Assad said “There is a big difference between talking about a peace treaty and peace. A peace treaty is like a permanent ceasefire. There’s no war, maybe you have an embassy, but you actually won’t have trade, you won’t have normal relations because people will not be sympathetic to this relation as long as they are sympathetic with the Palestinians: half a million who live in Syria and half a million in Lebanon and another few millions in other Arab countries.”

During the visit of Pope John Paul II to Syria in 2001, Bashar al-Assad requested an apology to Muslims for the medieval Crusades and criticized Israeli treatment of Palestinians. Comparing their suffering to that believed to have been endured by Jesus Christ in Palestine, Assad claimed that the Jews "tried to kill the principles of all religions with the same mentality in which they betrayed Jesus Christ and the same way they tried to betray and kill the Prophet Muhammad." Responding to claims that his comment was antisemitic, Assad said that whereas Judaism is a racially heterogeneous religion, the Syrian people are the core of the Semitic race and therefore are opposed to the term ''antisemitism''. When offered to retract his comment implying that the Jews were responsible for Jesus' suffering, Assad replied, "As always, these are historical facts that we cannot deny," and stressed that his remarks were not anti-Jewish. On the other hand, in February 2011 Bashar backed an initiative to restore 10 synagogues in Syria, which had a Jewish community numbering 30,000 in 1947 but has only 200 Jews today.

2011 uprising

Protests in Syria started on 26 January and were influenced by other protests in the region. Protesters have been calling for political reforms and the reinstatement of civil rights, as well as an end to the state of emergency which has been in place since 1963. One attempt at a "day of rage" was set for 4–5 February, though it ended up uneventful. Protests on 18–19 March were the largest to take place in Syria for decades and Syrian authorities have responded with violence against its protesting citizens.

On 18 May 2011, U.S. President Barack Obama signed an Executive order putting into effect sanctions against Bashar Assad in an effort to pressure his regime "to end its use of violence against its people and begin transitioning to a democratic system that protects the rights of the Syrian people." The sanctions effectively freeze any of the Syrian President's assets either in the United States proper or within U.S. jurisdiction. On May 23, 2011 EU Foreign ministers agreed at a meeting in Brussels to add Mr Assad and nine other officials to a list affected by travel bans and asset freezes. On May 24, 2011 Canada imposed sanctions on Syrian leaders, one of which is Assad.

On 20 June 2011, in a speech lasting nearly an hour, in response to the demands of protesters and foreign pressure, al-Assad promised a "national dialogue" involving movement toward reform, new parliamentary elections, and greater freedoms. He also urged refugees to return home from Turkey, while assuring them amnesty and blaming all unrest on a small number of "saboteurs".

In August 2011, Syrian security forces attacked the country's best-known political cartoonist, Ali Farzat, a noted critic of Syria's government and its five-month crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators and dissent. Relatives of the severely beaten humorist told Western media the attackers threatened to break Farzat's bones as a warning for him to stop drawing cartoons of government officials, particularly Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Ferzat, who recently celebrated his 60th birthday, was hospitalized with fractures in both hands and blunt force trauma to the head.

See also

List of state leaders

Cabinet of Syria

Assad family

References

Further reading

''Bashar Al-Assad (Major World Leaders)'' by Susan Muaddi Darraj, (June 2005, Chelsea House Publications) ISBN 0-7910-8262-8 for young adults

''Syria Under Bashar Al-Asad: Modernisation and the Limits of Change'' by Volker Perthes, (2004, Oxford University Press) ISBN 0-19-856750-2 (''Adelphi Papers'' #366)

''Bashar's First Year: From Ophthalmology to a National Vision (Research Memorandum)'' by Yossi Baidatz, (2001, Washington Institute for Near East Policy) ISBN B0006RVLNM

''Syria: Revolution From Above'' by Raymond Hinnebusch (Routledge; 1st edition, August 2002) ISBN 0-415-28568-2

''Bashar al-Assad and John F. Kennedy,'' Forward Magazine (Syria) ''Assad: We too were not very happy with Annapolis,'' Forward Magazine (Syria)

''Seven years of Bashar al-Assad’s rule 2000-2007,'' Forward Magazine (Syria)

External links

Official website

*Biography, decrees, speeches, interviews, press releases

*Transcript of 2010 conversation

Profile at the LookLex Encyclopedia

Unofficial website

Unofficial website with CV, Speeches, Pictures and Mideast Just Peace

;Articles

Syria’s Proxy Forces in Iraq, Al-Hayat (London), 12 April 2003 at Middle East Intelligence Bulletin

Profile: Syria's Bashar al-Assad ''BBC News'', 10 March 2005

Bashar al-Assad's Lebanon Gamble, William Harris, ''Middle East Quarterly'', Summer 2005

Assad on the Brink, David Hirst, ''The Nation'', 21 November 2005

Syria's Leaders, Esther Pan, Council on Foreign Relations, 10 March 2006

Connecting the dots in Lebanon, Omar Raad, Ya Libnan Volunteer, 2 December 2006

The Assad Dynasty in Syria: From Father to Son, Kristin Helberg, ''Deutsche Welle'', 2009 at ''qantara.de''

Interview With Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, ''The Wall Street Journal'', 31 January 2011

Profile: Bashar al-Assad, ''Al Jazeera English'', 25 March 2011

|-

Category:1965 births Category:Arab nationalist heads of state Category:Arab politicians Category:Assad family Category:Ba'ath Party (Syria) politicians Category:Current national leaders Category:Living people Category:Ophthalmologists Category:People from Damascus Category:People of the 2011 Syrian protests Category:Presidents of Syria Category:Syrian Alawites Category:Damascus University alumni

ar:بشار الأسد arc:ܒܫܐܪ ܐܠܐܣܕ az:Bəşər Əsəd bn:বাশার আল-আসাদ bcl:Bashar al-Assad, bg:Башар ал-Асад ca:Bashar al-Assad cs:Bašár al-Asad cy:Bashar al-Assad da:Bashar al-Assad de:Baschar al-Assad et:Bashār al-Asad el:Μπασάρ αλ Άσαντ es:Bashar Al Assad eo:Baŝar al-Asad fa:بشار اسد fr:Bachar el-Assad ga:Bashar al-Assad gl:Bashar al-Assad ko:바샤르 알아사드 hy:Բաշար ալ-Ասադ io:Bashar al-Assad id:Bashar al-Assad it:Bashar al-Asad he:בשאר אל-אסד ku:Beşar el-Ased lv:Bašārs al Asads hu:Bassár el-Aszad mr:बशर अल-अस्साद arz:بشار الاسد ms:Bashar al-Assad nl:Bashar al-Assad ja:バッシャール・アル＝アサド no:Bashar al-Assad nn:Bashar al-Assad oc:Bashar al-Assad pl:Baszar al-Assad pt:Bashar al-Assad ru:Башар аль-Асад sq:Bashar Al Assad scn:Bashar al-Assad sl:Bašar al Asad ckb:بەشار ئەسەد sr:Башар ел Асад fi:Bašar al-Assad sv:Bashar al-Assad ta:பஷர் அல்-அசாத் tr:Beşşar Esed uk:Башар аль-Асад vi:Bashar al-Assad yo:Bashar al-Assad zh:巴沙尔·阿萨德

Shahid Ahmed (born on 15 August 1988) is a Pakistani Cricketer, who plays for HBL Cricket Club. He is also a member of Pakistan national A team.

Events played: Test Series vs Sri Lanka 2005, World Cup QR 2007, Islamic Games 2005, Indo Pak Series 2005, 14th Asian Cup Qualifiers 2006, 19th World Cup qualifiers 2007, Pakistan-Nepal Series 2008

References

Category:1988 births Category:Living people Category:Pakistani footballers Category:Pakistan international footballers

name	Mai Selim
background	solo_singer
origin	Middle East
genre	Arabic musicoriental music
years active	2004–present
notable instruments	}}

Mai Selim Hamdan () (born on November 6, 1983 in Dubai) commonly Known as Mai Selim, is a young Arabic artist who started off her singing career in early 2005. Sister of Comedian Mais Hamdan.

Biography

Musical debut

She made her appearance to the community through her two video clips which are "Alby Byehlam" and "Tāl" which were directed by both Ahmad Yousri and Caroline Labaki. The two video clips/songs noticed a huge acceptance by the Arabic audience, in fact they were both a remarkable successes for this new artist.and she has a sis working in the business as well

Like many Middle Eastern artists, Mai sings in the Egyptian dialect, though she was born to a Jordanian father and a Lebanese mother. She's been living in Egypt ever since she was at a young age and as stated she almost lived her whole life there. She gained a Degree of Business Studies from Maritime Academy in Egypt. Though the fact that Mai has always aspired to be a Ballerina when she was young, and at a later time of her life she wanted to join Institute Of Cinema in Egypt. Mai was talked out of it by her parents, who were worried for her to have an unstable future for her if she pursued in this field.

Mai herself admits that luck has played big part in her being of where she is right now. She said:

''"I won't lie and give you the clichéd line of I've been working towards this all my life since I was a child and all that stuff. ''I knew I had a very strong artistic side to me, and I had a strong passion towards music, but I never thought I'd ''make a career out of it one day"'' - source: www.fame-music.net

It all started when Mai was invited over to a dinner and she has met Tarek Al Arian, who is a well known director/producer and one of the co-founders of Fame Music (music production company & record label). Throughout the conversations and discussions, Al Arian knew about Mai's singing talent, and so he gave her an appointment to audition for Fame Music. Immediately, Mai has become one of Fame Music's artists and was off to the preparation.

The Workshop

Mai took around a year to prepare her debut album and appearance. She started off to get Vocal Rehearsals by Dr. Jehan Nasser (Professor at The Higher Institute of Arabic Music). Mai has described her experience through the preparation with the company as a total star makeover, where you get to learn how to Walk the walk, and talk the talk. It wasn't so hard for her, still it was something she enjoyed because she was pursuing her dream.

On another level, Mai had to prepare and record her album. Many well known composers and producers has worked with Mai on the album like Mamdouh Salah, Mahmoud Yehya, Amr Tantawi, Mohammad Nour, Ahmad Fahmi, Tarek Tawakkol and Osama el Hendi. Her album was titled "Albi Byehlam" which means My Heart Is Dreaming.

The Visuals

As stated, Mai's first video was "Alby Byehlam" which was directed by the talented Caroline Labaki and was shot in Beirut, Lebanon. The video is a story of a simple girl with a crush of the guy who is living right opposite to her flat. The video contains some chreography and slight acting.

The next video was "Tāl" by Ahmad Youssri, this video differs a bit from the first one. The video got no specific storyline, but just a theme of bright colours (white) and in a large studio. The director is Egyptian and the video was shot in Egypt.

Mai was also featured in the patriotic song "Akeed Fi Masr" (For Sure In Egypt) with Mahmoud El Esseily and Mahmoud El Keilany. The video was made along with others for an Egyptian patriotic campaign. Although many has directed questions to Mai of why she participated and she's originally Jordanian-Lebanese, but she stated that she considers Egypt her hometown because this is where she lived -still living- her whole life.

Mai had an appearance in Hala Sarhan's talkshow, ''Hala Show'' along with the first Arabic all boy band WAMA. Noticed that 3 out of 4 members of WAMA has contributed in Mai's debut Album. She showed other talents in the show, like acting and imitating in an atmosphere of humor. This was a big step for Mai to be widely recognized since ''Hala Show'' is an important art talk show in the Pan Arab audience.

Subsequent work

In 2008, she released the album ''Ehlawet El Ayam'' (Arabic: احلوت الأيام) In 2010, she released the album ''Lina Kalam Baaden'' (Arabic: لينا كلام بعدين).

References

External links

Mai Selim's Official Website

''Fame Music'' Music Production Company Official Website

Mai Selim Pictures and Wallpapers

Category:1983 births Category:Living people Category:Jordanian singers Category:Jordanian people

ar:مي سليم