Al Qafilah

Bahraini weekly newspaper (1952–1956)

Al QafilahType| Weekly

|

Founder(s)| Ali bin Abdullah Sayyar
Editor| Ali bin Abdullah Sayyar
Founded| 1952
Language| Arabic
Ceased publication| 1956
Headquarters| Manama, Bahrain

Al Qafilah (Arabic: The Qaravan) was a weekly newspaper published in Manama, Bahrain, between 1952 and 1956.[1][2]

## History and profile[edit]

Al Qafilah was founded by progressive Arab nationalists, including Ali Sayyar,[3] one of the members of the High Executive Committee (HEC; al-Hay'a al-Tanfidhiyya al-Uliya) which was a cross-sectarian nationalist political movement.[4][5] He was also the editor of the paper and its successor, Al Watan.[6] The secretary of the HEC, Abdul Rahman Al Bakir, was one of the editorial members of Al Qafilah.[7]

The paper was not subject to any censorship until 3 October 1953 when it featured articles on the recent riots in the country.[7] It praised the abolition of the monarchy in Egypt in 1952 and supported the Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh when he was overthrown in the 1953 Iranian coup d'état.[7] The paper's constant target was the Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) which was run by foreigners.[7] Together with the nationalist magazine Sawt al-Bahrain the company was labelled as Tyrannical BAPCO, a small state, and the colonialist company.[7] The publication of an advertisement of the Egyptian musical Khadd al Jami in June 1953 caused controversy due to its appearance in Ramadan.[1]

Following the riots at the end of 1954 the newspaper published its last issue on 26 November and was closed by the Bahraini authorities in December 1954.[7] The same year the monthly magazine Sawt al-Bahrain was also closed, and the advisor of the king, Charles Belgrave, reported the reason for these closures as their "offensive remarks about neighbouring friendly states."[8]

From 1955 the paper was published under title Al Watan for one year and ceased publication in 1956.[7][9]

Al Qafilah managed to sold four thousand and five thousand copies during its lifetime.[1]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c Nelida Fuccaro (2013). "Shaping the urban life of oil in Bahrain: Consumerism, leisure, and public communication in Manama and in the oil camps, 1932-1960s". Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East. 33 (1). doi:10.1215/1089201x-2072721. S2CID 145722279.
2. ^ Fahim I. Qubain (1955). "Social Classes and Tensions in Bahrain". The Middle East Journal. 9 (3): 269–280. JSTOR 4322721.
3. ^ "Veteran Bahraini journalist Ali Sayyar mourned". GDN Life. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
4. ^ Who's Who in the Arab World 2007-2008. Beirut: Publitec Publications. 2011. p. 722\. ISBN 978-3-11-093004-7.
5. ^ Toby Matthiesen (2014). "Migration, Minorities, and Radical Networks: Labour Movements and Opposition Groups in Saudi Arabia, 1950–1975". International Review of Social History. 59 (3): 473–504. doi:10.1017/S0020859014000455.
6. ^ Rebecca Torr. "Pioneering journalist Sayyar to be honoured". Gulf Daily News. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
7. ^ a b c d e f g Hamad Ebrahim Abdulla (2016). Sir Charles Belgrave and the Rise and Fall of Bahrain's National Union Committee (PhD thesis). University of East Anglia.
8. ^ Marc Owen Jones (2016). Methods of Repression in Bahrain during the 20th and 21st Century: From the Civil List to Social Media (PhD thesis). Durham University. p. 234.
9. ^ Jehad Abdulla Al Fadhel (March 2009). The Role and Impact of the Press in Bahrain in the Process of Democratization: Special Reference to the Discourse of Pre and Post Reforms in Bahraini Newspapers (1996-2006) (PhD thesis). University of Bedfordshire. hdl:10547/133569.