Bashoura – The political imagery of migration

Situated on the edge of the green line many of Bashoura's buildings lie abandoned and derelict. Relics of civil conflict. 20/02/2013.

Situated on the periphery of the Green line that separated East from West Beirut during the Lebanese Civil War, the neighbourhood of Bashoura was one of Beirut’s first urban suburbs – along with Zokak el Blatt and Minet el Hosn.

Bashoura’s development preceded that of areas such as Ras el-Nabah, Gemmayzeh, Ras Beirut, and Moussaitbeh urbanized by the end of the 19^th century as Beirut expanded from a small port and local commercial centre of around 10,000 inhabitants (  – primarily Arab Sunni and Greek Orthodox Christian) into a more substantial urban conurbation numbering some 80,000 by 1880 and 160,000 by 1932.

Over the course of the civil war the once prosperous neighbourhood was subject to both the destruction and the migratory ebbs and flows that characterized areas situated close to the Green Line (particularly in West Beirut) especially following the Israeli invasion of 1982. The more affluent fled the area in search of safe-haven elsewhere to be replaced by lower echelons of Lebanese society themselves fleeing the Israeli occupation in the mainly Shia south of the country.

Today, walking through the area, one can feel the weight of this history. It is manifest in a decaying architectural heritage, in wanton need of investment and restoration, and in the Shia – mainly Amal with a splattering of Hezbollah – imagery, that covers most street corners in the area...

Entering Bashoura from the airport road. From top: Grand Ayatollah Muhammad Hussein Fadlallah, Hezbollah Chief Sayyid Hassan Nasrallah and Imam Musa Sadr, founder of the Movement of the Disinherited from which the Amal movement developed. Sadr, of course, went missing during a diplomatic visit to Libya in 1978, never to be seen again. Bashoura, 20/02/13.

Up close and personal: The Amal (امل) logo. Bashoura, 20/02/2013.

The above image is replete with Shia political symbols evident in the exhaltations to Ali (between windows and below window on right), the 4th Rashidun caliph, whom the Shia believe to have been appointed the rightful leader of the Muslim community following the death of Muhammad. The Amal logo can also be seen under each window. Bashoura, 20/02/13.

Nabih Berri, leader of the Amal movement and speaker of the Lebanese parliament, whose name translates roughly into English as "wild intellect", beside one of the most stunning buildings in the neighbourhood. Bashoura, 20/02/2013.

Musa Sadr (left) and Berri (right) pictured together. "Haidar", written below is another name for the Imam Ali. The caption in the poster reads: "Our victory in (our) unity." Bashoura, 20/02/2013. 

A bodyless Nabih Berri levitates outside a carpenters. Bashoura, 20/02/2013. 

مرة تانية . Bashoura, 20/02/2013.

Sadr and Berri once again pictured together. Check the "VIVA SPAIN" tag (bottom left). No doubt a throw back to a particular allegiance during last year's European Championship or the previous World Cup. Bashoura, 20/02/2013.

Memorial to a martyr. Imam Musa Sadr looks down from the top-right corner of the poster, a position he is often found in in Amal political imagery. 20/02/2013.

A small stall selling recordings of popular Shia traditions. Pictured right is Imam Hussein ibn Ali, martyred at the Battle of Karbala - which in itself forms the centre-piece of the Shia theodicy of suffering. Pictured left is Abbas ibn Ali who fell alongside his half-brother during the battle. The prominence of visual representations of figures important in Shia tradition distinguishes it from its Sunni counterpart. Bashoura, 20/02/2013.

Carpets hang from an old palace. Bashoura, 20/02/2013.

Young girl in back alley. Bashoura, 20/02/2013.

Sayyid Hassan Nasrallah watches over a fleet of civil defence ambulances. In the foreground "Manchester United" prepares to take a penalty against "Messi". Bashoura, 20/02/13.

"Manchester United" celebrates having made the score 8-5. "Messi" looks disconsolate, Nasrallah - impartial. 20/02/2013.

Leaving Bashoura: Another memorial to fallen soldiers. 20/02/2013.