Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Behind-the-Scenes Quote of the Week

يجب على الناس الذين يعيشون في خيام لا رمي السكاكين

Muammar Gaddafi with Hasni Mubarak in 1992 - Photo from the Time, Inc. Photo Essay titled Inside the tents of Muammar Gaddafi

PPPS (Cairo) This week's Behind-the-Scenes Quote of the Week is credited to PPPS Chief Middle East Correspondent, Palestinian Pete. On assignment in Cairo, Pete has been covering the Arab League meeting convened to address a no-fly zone over Libya. During a break in the contentious negotiations, Pete overheard this comment from one Arab diplomat discussing Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's prospects for remaining in power,

يجب على الناس الذين يعيشون في خيام لا رمي السكاكين       

Roughly translated, this classic Arabic saying means,

"People who live in tents should not throw knives."

Important Note & Disclaimer: PPPS is not responsible for mistranslation of Arabic sayings  in this or any other PPPS articles, or for misinterpretation of any mistranslation of Arabic or other language sayings or phrases, or for misinterpretation of cultural or religious references to tents, or to certain middle eastern religions, or for any resulting riots which might occur in Arab cities or neighborhoods around the world. 

If threatened, PPPS will disavow any prior knowledge of, or professional relationship with, PPPS Chief Middle East Correspondent Palestinian Pete, any of his friends, family or associates, and will immediately remove any misinterpreted or objectionable content from this posting.