US Air Disaster, AI Stock Impact & Syria’s Economic Future | Media Arabic Booster 01/25

In this month’s Media Arabic Booster, we’re tackling three big stories I saw in the news.

We’ll look at the media coverage of the airplane disaster in Washington, see how a Chinese AI company is shaking up the tech world, and examine Syria’s effort to bring back influential businessmen.

I’ll talk you through the main headlines and sentences from newspapers such as Al-Shorouk and Al-Akhbar. I’ll explain the difficult Arabic media vocabulary about the economy used in Arabic media and show you how these topics are discussed.

A close look at a headline

We will start with some tragic events in Washington.

al-Shorouk (Egypt): Air plane crash in Washington DC

On January 30, 2025, a tragic accident happened in Washington, D.C., when an American Airlines flight collided with a military helicopter over the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Sadly, all 67 people on both aircraft lost their lives.

The Egyptian newspaper al-Shorouk featured it on the front page of their January 31 issue.

Let’s focus on the headlines:

al-Sharq al-Awsat: DeepSeek and the stock exchange

In January, the stock market showed many ups and downs after DeepSeek, a Chinese AI startup, announced that it created an AI model for much less money than the top models in the US.

On January 28, the Saudi-owned newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat (جريدة الشرق الأوسط), based in London and noted for its green-tinted pages, published a story in its economic section.

Let’s focus on the headlines:

Translation of an article

Let’s look at parts of a longer newspaper article in Arabic. We will translate each sentence carefully. The highlighted words are in the vocabulary list below.

al-Akhbar (Lebanon): The return of businessmen affiliated with Al-Assad to Syria

On 15 January 2025, the Lebanese daily newspaper al-Akhbar (جريدة الأخبار اللبنانية) published the following analysis:

The new Syrian administration, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa (أحمد الشرع), is urging businessmen who left during Bashar al-Assad’s regime to come back and help rebuild the economy, including some associated with the former regime. They are trying to protect their assets and restart their businesses. Although this has stirred some debate, the administration aims to boost the economy and demonstrate openness to all.

Let’s now take a closer look at a few complete paragraphs.

عودة رجال أعمال مرتبطين بالأسد: الاقتصاد أولويّة الشرع

The return of businessmen affiliated with Al-Assad: Economy is Al-Sharaa’s priority

Section 1

في محاولة لدفع الاقتصاد السوري المنهك والمدمر، بدأت القيادة الجديدة في سوريا، برئاسة أحمد الشرع، فتح قنوات تواصل مع رجال أعمال سوريين غادروا البلاد عقب سقوط سلطة بشار الأسد، بسبب مخاوف من عمليات انتقامية على خلفية علاقتهم بتلك السلطة. وأثمرت المحاولة المشار إليها، حتى الآن، عودة عدد من أبرز رجال الأعمال…

In an attempt to boost the battered and devastated Syrian economy, the new Syrian administration (leadership) under Ahmed al-Sharaa has begun to open channels of communication with Syrian businessmen who left the country after the fall of the regime of Bashar al-Assad, due to fears of reprisals for their ties to that regime. The aforementioned attempt has so far resulted in the return of a number of prominent businessmen…

Section 2

ودخل رجال الأعمال الذين عادوا إلى سوريا، أو الذين هم في طريق عودتهم، حسبما ذكرت مصادر مطلعة، قبل نحو أسبوعين، في حوار مع السلطة السورية الجديدة بوساطة عربية، لمعرفة مصير أملاكهم أولاً، وبحث سبل عودة نشاطهم ثانياً.

وعاد محمد حمشو، أحد أبرز رجال الأعمال في سوريا، وأحد شركاء ماهر الأسد، إلى سوريا في زيارة قصيرة، التقى خلالها مسؤولين في الحكومة السورية المؤقتة لمناقشة وضعه ووضع ممتلكاته. وبحسب ما سربته وسائل إعلام سورية، فقد حصل حمشو على تعهد بعدم المساس به مقابل «إجراءات خاصة» عليه أن يقوم بها، من دون الإفصاح عن ماهية تلك الإجراءات، ما أفسح المجال للحديث عن تعهده بدفع مبلغ مليار دولار، وهو ما لم تؤكده أو تنفه أية جهة مسؤولة في سوريا.

According to the sources, the returning businessmen or those who are planning to return engaged in a dialogue with the new Syrian administration through Arab mediation about two weeks ago, to first find out the fate of their properties, and secondly to discuss ways to resume their activities.

Mohammad Hamsho, one of Syria’s most prominent businessmen and one of Maher al-Assad’s partner [Maher is the younger brother of Baashar al-Assad], returned to Syria for a short visit, during which he met with officials in the Syrian interim government to discuss his situation and the status of his assets. According to leaks in the Syrian media, Hamsho received a pledge not to be touched in exchange for “special measures” that he had to take, without disclosing the nature of those measures. This opened the door to rumors about his pledge to pay a billion dollars, which has not been confirmed or denied by any official party in Syria…

Section 3

وبالإضافة إلى حمشو، عاد إلى سوريا مستثمرون آخرون، بعضهم متهمون بإدارة أملاك ماهر الأسد، كرئيف قوتلي، وخالد قدور، اللذين أجريا لقاءات أيضاً مع مسؤولي الإدارة السورية الجديدة. وفي وقت سابق، بدأ سامر فوز، أحد أبرز المستثمرين في سوريا، وأحد أبرز داعمي النظام السابق، إعادة تشغيل استثماراته، بعد اتفاقات مباشرة تمّت بينه وبين الإدارة من دون وساطة عربية، وأفضت إلى تقديم تسهيلات كبيرة لنشاط الإدارة، بما فيها التحكم بسلسلة فنادق يملكها فوز، أبرزها فندق «الفورسيزنس» في دمشق، والذي تحوّل إلى مركز نشاط سياسي واقتصادي للحكومة المؤقتة ومسؤوليها.

In addition to Hamsho, other investors returned to Syria, some of whom are accused of managing Maher al-Assad’s properties, such as Raif Quwatli and Khaled Qaddour, who also held meetings with officials of the new Syrian administration. Earlier, Samer Foz, one of the most prominent investors in Syria and one of the most prominent supporters of the former regime, began to relaunch his investments, after direct agreements were reached between him and the administration without Arab mediation, which led to providing significant facilities for the administration’s activity, including control over a chain of hotels owned by Foz, most notably the Four Seasons Hotel in Damascus, which has become a center of political and economic activity for the interim government and its officials.

Section 4

وفي وقت أثارت فيه عودة رجال الأعمال المرتبطين بالسلطة السابقة جدلاً في الشارع، وسط مطالبات بمحاسبتهم أو مصادرة أملاكهم، تُصِرّ الإدارة الجديدة على إفساح المجال لعودة من يرغب منهم. وهي تستهدف من وراء ذلك دفع الاقتصاد وتنشيطه أولاً، وتصدير نفسها على أنها منفتحة على الجميع في سبيل بناء الدولة، ما يضمن طيّ صفحة تاريخها المتشدد. وإذ ستكشف الأيام المقبلة حقيقة التعهدات التي تقدمت بها للمستثمرين العائدين، فقد يكون من شأن ذلك تشجيع آخرين على العودة.

At a time when the return of businessmen linked to the former regime has sparked controversy in the streets, amid demands to hold them accountable or confiscate their properties, the new administration insists on making room for (allowing) the return of those who wish to do so. The administration aims to boost and revitalize the economy first and to present itself as open to everyone in order to build the state, which ensures turning the page on its extremist history. As the coming days will reveal the truth about the pledges it has made to returning investors, this may encourage others to return.

Vocabulary list

All the words in the above article marked in color can be found in this table with explanations.

Part 1: Analysis of a headline

The following vocabulary list covers the yellow-marked words we saw in the headlines.

Part 2: Translation of an article

This month, the focus of the Media Arabic vocabulary will be on the economy.

You can also purchase individual Anki files.

Media Arabic Booster 01-25

1.49 € excl. VAT

All the Arabic words from Media Arabic Booster, episode 01-25.

in stock

Media Arabic Booster 01-25 quantity

Add to cart

Category: Anki Files, Digital Products

Latest Media Arabic Booster Episodes:

Fragile Truces & The UAE’s War Gamble | Media Arabic Booster 05/26

From Macron's staged morning jog in Egypt to deep geopolitical analysis on the UAE's future. We translate Youm7's diplomatic PR and dissect Al-Akhbar's take on Mohammed bin Zayed's war gamble, revealing key Media Arabic vocabulary.

Sandstorms in Egypt & The Survival of Civilizations | Media Arabic Booster 04/26

From paralyzing Egyptian sandstorms to deep geopolitical analysis on the survival of civilizations. We translate Al-Masry Al-Youm's weather alerts and dissect Al-Akhbar's take on US threats against Iran, revealing key Media Arabic vocabulary.

The Language of “Epic Fury” and Houthi Restraint | Media Arabic Booster 03/26

As US-Israeli strikes hit Iran, Arab front pages capture a region on the brink. Yet, for the war's first 4 weeks, the Houthis kept quiet. We translate reports exposing their exhausted arsenals and break down the key Media Arabic vocab.

Note: The feature image was created by AI and is used for illustration purposes only.