Lama Obeid

My interview with Gaza Journalist Ahmed Al-Najjar on the targeting of journalists in Gaza.

posted on: May 21, 2025
As the crisis in Gaza deepens and the humanitarian needs grow, many have turned to creative and sustainable ways to offer support—moving beyond one-time donations. Writers, poets, and publishers are responding by creating books that document and reflect on the situation through essays, poetry, and art. In a powerful show of solidarity, some initiatives are directing proceeds and royalties from these works to humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza or to support Palestinian...

In today’s newsletter, we’re excited to introduce Lama Obeid, a Palestinian writer based in Ramallah, whom we were connected to through our recent call for pitches for CELEBRATE. Lama writes about culture, gastronomy, and food politics in the context of the ongoing Israeli occupation and genocide. The day before publishing this, the Israeli government declared its intention to seize parts of the Gaza Strip and officially displace the population; Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has called f...

Lama Obeid scrive da Ramallah, in Cisgiordania. Attraverso il cibo racconta cosa significa vivere sotto occupazione: non in astratto, ma partendo da ciò che succede nelle case, nei forni ricostruiti con il fango, nei mercati svuotati. Ogni suo testo tiene insieme memoria familiare e realtà politica, restituendo l’esperienza palestinese nei dettagli di una ricetta. La cucina – come racconta anche nella newsletter pubblicata su Feminist Food Journal – è una forma di resistenza quotidiana, ma an...

I contributed a poem “My Father A Refugee” to the Sidhe Press anthology on Grief. All proceeds from the sales of the book and ebook go to the Sameer Project in Gaza.

I wrote the Red Sea Coast chapter for the first edition of Lonely Planet’s Experience Egypt which will be published Nov 18th 2025

Updated the Red Sea Coast Chapter for the 16th edition and wrote an essay on Egyptian Gastronomy this edition will be published Nov 18th 2025.

My film review for Farah Nabulsi’s debut feature film “The Teacher”

A podcast I had interviewing the Palestinian director Farah Nabulsi for Palestine in America podcast

Slingshot Books, 2025, $33
Reviewed by Lama Obeid
Mona Zahed’s debut cookbook was written in a tent during genocide.
During the past few years, we have seen more and more Palestinian cookbooks being written and published in English, sharing the richness of the cuisine with the world. Mona Zahed from Gaza has made the latest contribution to Palestinian cookbooks with her debut Tabkha: Recipes from Under the Rubble, featuring 20 recipes from Palestine, published by Slingshot Books on behalf of ...

posted on: Mar 5, 2025
By: Lama Obeid / Arab America Contributing Writer
In recent years, more Palestinian cookbooks have been written and published in English, sharing the richness of the cuisine with the world. Mona Zahed, from Gaza, has made the latest addition to this collection with her debut cookbook Tabkha: Recipes from Under the Rubble, featuring 20 recipes from Palestine. The book was published by Slingshot Books on behalf of Coffees for Gaza.
The title is quite literal, as Zahed wro...

Before October 2023, Palestinian chef and mother, Mona Zahed ran a successful catering business, putting her skills and passions to practice. But as Israel's genocide erupted, she was displaced from her home in Al-Mina, the seaport of Gaza, with her four children and husband Osama Khateeb.

Israeli airstrikes devastated homes and buildings, driving hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to evacuate their neighbourhoods, with nearly 90 percent of Gaza's population being displaced.

But not all ho...

Çevirmenin notu: Aşağıda çevirisini sunduğumuz röportaj, Filistinli şef Mona Zahed’in İsrail işgal rejiminin Gazze’de yürüttüğü soykırımın yıkımı altında, yalnızca bedensel varlığını değil, kültürel mirasını da koruma mücadelesini anlatıyor. Zahed’in yemek kitabı Tabkha, bir yemek tarifi koleksiyonundan öte, yok edilmek istenen bir halkın kimliğini ve direncini belgeleyen politik bir eylem olarak okunmalı belki de.
Zahed, bu kitap aracılığıyla, işgal devletinin emek ve geçim kaynaklarını yok ...

Accueil > Informations > Culture > « Tabkha » de Mona Zahed : le livre de cuisine palestinien écrit sous une tente pendant le génocide de Gaza
Culture
The New Arab par Lama Obeid
Au milieu de la destruction de Gaza, Mona Zahed a écrit « Tabkha », un livre de cuisine qui célèbre l’héritage et la culture palestiniens, ainsi que la volonté de survivre.
Photo : « Tabkha » de Mona Zahed © The New Arab
Avant octobre 2023, Mona Zahed, chef cuisinière et mère de famille palestinienne, dirigeait une e...

Article and interviews on Palestinian Gastronomy during times of war