Asharq Al-Awsat's Columnist Amal Moussa Wins Int’l Catullo Award for Poetry

Tunisia Minister of Family, Women, Children and the Elderly Amal Belhadji Moussa
Tunisia Minister of Family, Women, Children and the Elderly Amal Belhadji Moussa
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Asharq Al-Awsat's Columnist Amal Moussa Wins Int’l Catullo Award for Poetry

Tunisia Minister of Family, Women, Children and the Elderly Amal Belhadji Moussa
Tunisia Minister of Family, Women, Children and the Elderly Amal Belhadji Moussa

The Tunisian poet and writer, Amal Belhadj Moussa, won the Catillo International Prize for Poetry 2022, granted by the World Poetry Academy.

The World Poetry Academy was established in June 2001 in Italy with the support of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The jury indicated that it wanted to crown the sentiment and thought described in the poetic experience of the poet.

It also indicated that it chose Moussa from among international candidates to present a certificate of appreciation for the beautiful, thriving contemporary female poetry in the Arab countries and a tribute to the poet.

Amal Moussa is considered a symbolic figure among the few Arab female creators to be published in Italy.

Moussa currently holds the position of Minister of Family, Women, Children, and the Elderly, in Tunisia.

She has six collections of poetry, which have been translated into Italian, French, Turkish, English, and Spanish.

Her collections include Female of Water (1996), Emerald's Bashfulness (1998), Like Me the Stars Sparkle (2010, Rainy Body (2010), Life Has Not Put Its Makeup Yet (2017), In Love, and Don't Look into the River (2021).

The Minister received many awards, namely the first prize for the best Arab production on women's issues from the Arab Women's Organization in 2006, the Zubaida Bashir award for the best Literary Production in 2018, and several honors in many Tunisian poetry festivals, and various Arab countries, Europe, and the US.

Moussa is an academic and a weekly columnist in Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper. She has written publications in sociology, political Islam, youth and religiosity, and the sociology of daily life.



Strongest Winds in Over a Decade Could Increase Fire Risk to Southern California

FILE - Flags fly under heavy winds before sunset as a plume of smoke from the Franklin Fire rises over the ocean Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes,File)
FILE - Flags fly under heavy winds before sunset as a plume of smoke from the Franklin Fire rises over the ocean Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes,File)
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Strongest Winds in Over a Decade Could Increase Fire Risk to Southern California

FILE - Flags fly under heavy winds before sunset as a plume of smoke from the Franklin Fire rises over the ocean Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes,File)
FILE - Flags fly under heavy winds before sunset as a plume of smoke from the Franklin Fire rises over the ocean Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes,File)

The strongest winds in more than a decade could hit Southern California on Tuesday, potentially causing structural damage and bringing extreme fire risk to areas that haven't seen substantial rain in months.

Beginning Tuesday afternoon, the windstorm will affect Los Angeles and Ventura counties and peak in the early hours of Wednesday, when gusts could reach 80 mph (129 kph), the National Weather Service said Monday.

Isolated gusts could top 100 mph (160 kph) in mountains and foothills, The Associated Press reported.

The weather service warned of downed trees and knocked over big rigs, trailers, and motorhomes. Powerful offshore gusts will also bring dangerous conditions off the coasts of Orange County and LA, including Catalina Island, and potential delays and turbulence could arise at local airports.
Public safety power shutoffs are being considered for nearly 300,000 customers across the region, according to Southern California Edison’s website.

The upcoming winds will act as an “atmospheric blow-dryer” for vegetation, bringing a long period of fire risk that could extend into the more populated lower hills and valleys, according to Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with the University of California, Los Angeles and the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

“We really haven't seen a season as dry as this one follow a season as wet as the previous one,” Swain said during a Monday livestream. “All of that extra abundant growth of grass and vegetation followed immediately by a wind event of this magnitude while it's still so incredibly dry," elevates the risk.
Recent dry winds, including the notorious Santa Anas, have contributed to warmer-than-average temperatures in Southern California, where there’s been very little rain so far this season.
Southern California hasn’t seen more than 0.1 inches (0.25 centimeters) of rain since early May. Much of the region has fallen into moderate drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Meanwhile, up north, there have been multiple drenching storms.
Areas where gusts could create extreme fire conditions include the charred footprint of last month’s wind-driven Franklin Fire, which damaged or destroyed 48 structures, mostly homes, in and around Malibu.
The blaze was one of nearly 8,000 wildfires that added up to scorch more than 1,560 square miles (more than 4,040 square kilometers) in the Golden State last year.
The last wind event of this magnitude occurred in November 2011, according to the NWS, during which more than 400,000 customers throughout LA County lost power, the Los Angeles Times reported. At night, normally bustling streets were dim and left without traffic signals.
Planned power shutoffs for the public's safety, if deemed necessary, are projected to happen Tuesday and Wednesday, according to Southern California Edison.
“The grid is built to withstand strong winds,” said Jeff Monford, a spokesperson for the utility. “The issue here is the possibility of debris becoming airborne and hitting wires ... or a tree coming down.”