The Markaz Review:

Roger Assaf, Zeina Hashem Beck

Beirut, My City is a 1982 documentary by Lebanese filmmaker Jocelyn Saab (1948-2019), filmed during the 1982 Israeli siege on Beirut. It’s considered part of the Beirut Trilogy, which also includes Beirut, Never Again (1976) and Letter from Beirut (1978). The film’s script is written in French by Lebanese actor, playwright, and director Roger Assaf. As I watched Beirut, My City in Oakland a few months ago, I listened to the script and thought, “This is a poem!”

I was haunted by Assaf’s words for weeks and decided I wanted to see them on the page and translate them. They were beautiful and heartbreaking, and I wanted them to exist for English readers. I contacted the Jocelyn Saab Association, and they were generous enough to send me a pdf of the French script. It’s funny that, as I was translating it, it never occurred to me to refer to the English subtitles. As far as I was concerned, I was translating a poem or a lyric essay. I hope this translation resonates with readers as much as the French did with me. Tragically, it feels as if Assaf wrote this today.

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