Ghosts of Beirut

Ghosts of Beirut is very well written and depicts its time periods accurately. The acting is solid most of the time and I like the documentary pieces that were added.

The series should be 3 episodes longer, however. What I really missed, was the 90s and how Imad managed to be the so called ghost. In my opinion this is an essential part of his reputation.

I also would have liked the Arabic actors to be Lebanese, as most of them have a an Israeli Arabic background. This does not entirely capture the Lebanese vibe, although Dina Shahibi has lived in Beirut.

But this is well worth your time and attention.

What a tremendous look back at some very important events in the ongoing horror that is Israel and their surrounding Arab enemies.

The enmity and hatred between the Jewish state and Iran, The Lebanon and American assistance to Tel Aviv and Israel is well displayed here. The pure love between Imad and his lovely wife cut deep throughout the series. I found it to be a marvelous juxtaposition between the love and loathing that is on display throughout this short but amazing series.

The amazing actress Dina Shihabi and her character is mesmerizing, entrancing, absorbing and demands the camera. She is enthralling with her lovely voice, hair and pure intelligence and empathy. I found myself pausing the show and going back to her and her scenes. She is thrilling!

Highly recommend this show to everyone. You most certainly will not regret it.

This line is so apropos imo regarding the ongoing hell that is the state of Israel, the USA and all the nebulous nefarious and righteous activities of their rivals and friends in the roiled region of tumult and turbulence. 'In the turmoil of knowledge, insanity abides.' I long ago decided to pay as little attention to the horrors there as possible. It is so sad and sorrowful and does not seem to ever ever end because an ending of it is impossible or may be the next WWIII flashpoint and the end of all things within that region.

I want to end this review with, "Peace out", but I can't for obvious reasons. May all the deities bless you all. Shokran.

Well, it seems that some people can't grasp that this is a dramatisation, based on real events, that took place in Beirut in the mid-80s. The facts that the some of the actual people involved in the incidents are talking about them at various points in each episode seems to have also passed them by.

The characters are well-drawn by the actors and it soon becomes clear that, at this time, many in the CIA were thoroughly incompetent when it came to understanding what was happening with the development of many radical Muslim groups in the Middle East. Most of them were completely clueless about what was going on Iran and how that was fomenting radicalism in Lebanon.

This is a very interesting miniseries that demonstrates the level of incompetence in the upper levels of the CIA.

Sitting in 2024 while the 10/7 war is still unfolding, this is a good reminder of the original events that led to the disaster we are facing today. "Radwan" is today the name of the Hezbollah unit that most threatens Israel. USA and the world allowed this monster to grow into a powerful Iranian proxy that threatens the region with hundreds of thousands of missiles (not a typo). A few quibbles: the English subtitles of Arabic spoken language are overlaid by the "regular" subtitles when turned on, making this tough to watch. The journalist interviews while informative, aren't really necessary for the educated viewer. Last words: God how could we have been so dumb?

So I just started watching this and finished episode 1. I will continue watching the story and will update my comment when I finish.

So far I am impressed with the story telling, the acting and production.

The story interests me and I recall watching this unfold in the news and having discussions with friends and others in my community. It was quite scary to learn about even though we didn't have the information speedway that is available now...but I like to think that there was a little more integrity in journalism. I'm interested to see how this story unfolds and compare it to what we were told at the time.

But I just had to comment now because one thing that has stood out for me so far is the relationship and dialogue between young Imad and his wife Saada. It resembles and reminds me so much of Michael and Kay (the Godfather). I can't help but think...same crap, same lies, broken promises, insincere reassurances and terms of endearment, same hell bent vendettas, hatreds that go on for thousands of years, "this Sicilian thing", everyone at the helm is guilty and responsible, different people, different place, different time. Nothing changes. Wives, mothers and innocent children pay the price and bear the pain.