Reporting

Featured Iran Reporting

Poetry fills Tehran streets as Iranians adapt Nowruz rituals to Corona restrictions

March 24, 2020 by Alex Shams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on March 24, 2020. This is the second article in a series about how Iranians are adjusting their lives as they enter the second

Iran Reporting

Quarantine Kitchen: Iranians share recipes, flavors, and joy despite the threat of coronavirus

March 15, 2020 by Alex Shams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on March 15, 2020. Tehran has been under a state of semi-quarantine for 20 days. For weeks, millions have avoided leaving the house for

Arab World Featured Oman Reporting

Muscat: Where the Arab World Meets the Indian Ocean

August 27, 2019 by Alex Shams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on August 27, 2019. All photos by author Alex Shams. In Muscat’s souq, Arabic, Baluchi, Urdu, Hindi, and Malayalam mix freely, alongside a variety

Iraq Reporting

A Jewish Shrine inside a Mosque: the History of Ezekiel’s Tomb in Iraq

March 3, 2019 by Alex Shams

Originally published on Ajam Media Collective on March 3, 2019. Along either side of the Euphrates river as it passes through southern Iraq, a narrow band of fertile soil blossoms

India Iran Pakistan Reporting

On Persian pilgrimages, Pakistanis and Indians reconnect with Iran

December 6, 2018 by Alex Shams

Originally published by Dawn on December 6, 2018. Atop a rocky hill southeast of Tehran sits the shrine of Bibi Shahrbanu, a Persian princess who was the daughter of the last Sassanian

Featured India Iraq Israel Palestine Reporting

Amba: The Iraqi Mango Pickle from India That Tops Palestinian Shawarma

October 22, 2018 by Alex Shams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on October 22, 2018. Step into any Palestinian shawarma shop and the choice of toppings traverse a mouth-watering array of options: thick tahini-and-parsley bakdoonsiyyeh, crushed shatta peppers

India Iran Reporting

How Nowruz is Celebrated Around the World

March 21, 2018 by Alex Shams

Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on March 21, 2018. Nowruz is an ancient festival marking the arrival of Spring that is celebrated in parts of the Middle East, Central

Iran Reporting

Samuel Jordan, the American missionary whose name graces Tehran’s most glamorous street

March 9, 2018 by Alex Shams

Originally published by “Ajam Media Collective” For residents of Tehran, the name “Jordan” conjures up images of luxury apartment towers, expensive brand names, and twenty-somethings in fancy cars who spend

El Salvador Reporting USA

Reconstructing the Village of the Divino Salvador

October 31, 2017 by Alex Shams

Originally published by Los Angeles Review of Books on October 31, 2017. EVERY AUGUST, Salvadorans around the world celebrate the Festival of El Salvador del Mundo, the patron saint and

Iraq Reporting

The Iraqi Soundtrack to the War Against ISIS

October 12, 2017 by Alex Shams

Originally published by “Ajam Media Collective” The Iraqi military has conquered the last urban stronghold of the Islamic State group in Iraq. Following victories in Ramadi, Fallujah, Mosul, and Tel