Field recording/soundscape from Ivana Kupala, Brighton, 2023. Organised by members of the local Ukrainian community.

For more information:

https://kupalabrighton.org/

https://www.standforukrainebnh.org/

Mohammed Al Hameedi: Iraq Love, Richess Of Iraq by Best_Foot_Music

Recorded at a St Nicholas event organised by Stand for Ukraine Brighton and Hove.

https://www.standforukrainebnh.org/

Our interview on BBC Sussex, from The Riwaq

Best Foot Music, Promo Mixtape by Best_Foot_Music

2 Days in Banja Luka, Bosnia & Herzegovina. Recorded with my phone.

A mini mix of Ghoraba2 new album, featuring 6 of 12 tracks from the full album.

Pre-order now:

https://bestfootmusic.bandcamp.com/album/ghoraba2

Ghoraba2 is the name of the band which includes Youssef Sayouf as a founder and member.

He is a multi-instrumentalist and producer from Lebanon.

On the album, Youssef fuses modern Hip Hop production with Arabic instruments and rhythms. He plays flute and provides thoughtful lyrical comments on the complexities of life in Lebanon.

Along with local Lebanese stars, the album includes collaborations with talented youth from Syria & Palestine via the Mishwar Project, based in refugee camps in the Akkar region.

This is regarding someone who tried to buy one of the cookbooks, Paypal has singled it out as a questionable transaction. The person in question is a friend, they forwarded me the email they had from Paypal, I had already provided evidence the book is printed in the UK

“It has come to our attention that you initiated a payment for the purchase of an item or items originating from Syria that is currently prohibited by U.S. regulations.

We kindly request that you do not attempt to resend this payment or similar payments using PayPal.

Please note that we reserve our right to close your PayPal account if we continue to identify activity that is in apparent violation of our regulatory obligations.”

After a week of calling Paypal customer complaints, I was told that actually, I need to speak with a different department - the limitations department, as they are the ones that deal with restricted accounts. After a lengthy explanation of our situation, making very clear we are not selling/trading with anyone in Syria, this was the response. Halfway through this, they change the subject.

Customer serves 2nd April. Earlier that day, in a mother call a Paypal staff member stated ‘the concern is that you might be funding…’ they stopped half way through and wouldn’t comment further. I asked in this call, what they thought the previous person may be refereeing too. What is clear, that even though Paypal staff as individuals may recognise there is nothing being done wrong, the computer system and the central office in America, is the only place that can actually have any impact on an account.