Background
Samir Atallah was born near Jezzine, Lebanon in a small village called Bteddine El Loqch.
Samir Atallah was born near Jezzine, Lebanon in a small village called Bteddine El Loqch.
Atallah is married to May Francis, from a Southern town called (Mieh ou Mieh ) near Saida and has two children, Nasri and Maria. He resides in Beirut. Atallah writes a daily column in the Arab newspaper Asharq First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Awsat and a weekly editorial in the Lebanese daily An-Nahar.
Atallah has written his daily column in Asharq First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Awsat since 1987 and has been with An Nahar in various roles intermittently since the late 1950s.
He has been the paper"s correspondent in various European capitals as well as correspondent to the United Nations. Atallah was also managing editor of First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Anba in Kuwait, editor-in-chief of First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Sayad in London and First Rate (at Lloyd's) Osbo" il Arabi in Beirut.
He is the author of a number of novels, historical books and travelogues.
Atallah was awarded the Order of Merit (Lebanon) medal by President Michel Suleiman in June 2013 for his contribution to Lebanese journalism and literature. In 2008, he was awarded the Newspaper Column Award by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid First Rate (at Lloyd's) Maktoum during a ceremony at the Arab Media Forum in Dubai.
He is a regular guest on Lebanese and Arab television and radio stations as a political and social commentator. In a career spanning five decades, he has met and interviewed many leading figures in the contemporary world from Margaret Thatcher and Jacques Chirac to Indira Gandhi and Queen Elizabeth World War II
