Cars & Bombs & VHS

Cars & Bombs & VHS

The Awkward Legacy of Sana’a Mehaidli

Sana’a Mehaidli

Sana’a Mehaidli was just 16 years old in 1985 when she drove her car packed with explosives into an Israeli army convoy in Lebanon. She was a member of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party and died willingly in their name. Sana’a is widely regarded as the first female suicide bomber and came to be remembered as The Bride Of The South. Like most militants and penniless party magicians, she left behind a legacy that is actually quite sad, chilling and stupid.

Most people probably have no idea why the SSNP were so pissed off with everybody. Basically their 80 year old political campaign had been fought on land-grabbing ideology and a Zionist paranoia. Like every extremist organization on Earth, their actual manifesto is so fucking boring that people simply tune out rather than try to keep up. And like every extremist organization on Earth, the SSNP lacks a crucial sense of humour. No one wants to listen to a muddled, earnest lecture about historical land rights when we now have Spotify and Tinder. Modern extremists have learnt to grab our attention in a way that The West has not. This, in essence, is the awkward legacy of Sana’a Mehaidli.   Read More