28 October 1978: The school’s primary job was to train British diplomats for service in the Arab world through a series of tall pressure coursesOne of the final bastions of Britain’s imperial tradition,where diplomats, spies, or businessmen mingled together is closing down after 30 years.
Officially,the Foreign Office’s Middle East Centre for Arab Studies (Mecas) is transferring its operations to London, to escape the violence in Lebanon. But in practice, and diplomats,students and local villagers all acknowledge that it is the end of the school as it was first conceived: to teach the Arabic language and Arab studies in a primarily Arab environment.
Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com