Jeremy Kroeker

This is an account of my visit to the Two Saints Church, the Coptic Church that suffered an attack last New Years Eve in Alexandria, Egypt.
Alexandria – Hundreds of people, Muslims and Christians, gathered outside The Two Saints Church in Alexandria to ring in the New Year. The military and police were in charge of security, but the mass of people were the first line of defense. They were out to show solidarity with Coptic Christians. They were out to make sure that no violence occurred on this night. The crowd cheered and sang songs, while inside the congregation stood in quiet prayer as they remembered the 24 people who died in last years explosion.

Mario Raefat, age 24, was there. Just after midnight, as the church was winding down its New Year’s Eve service, “there was a bang and something like an earthquake,” he said. “People were screaming. One of our priests said ‘don’t worry, don’t worry.’”

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Along with two other journalists, I traveled by car from Cairo, Egypt to Tripoli, Libya. We made stops in Tobruk, El-Beida, Benghazi, Sirte and Misrata, to name a few. In Sirte, we stayed for free in a bombed out hotel guarded by Gaddafi loyalists turned last-minute revolutionaries. (One of them claimed to have joined the revolution on October 20, the day Gaddafi was killed.) We arrived at night and left before dawn, so I don’t have any photos of the charred exterior, but the photo below is from the lobby. Picture it this way: Gaddafi loyalist inside, frantically pushing the “Door Close” button while overhead speakers play “The Girl from Ipamema.”

All the windows in our rooms had been smashed out, so it was a chilly evening, but we had electricity and hot water. And it was free, so who complains?
In the morning we sought out Gaddafi’s culvert — the place where revolutionaries finally tracked him down. It’s not marked, and our driver was reluctant to ask about it. He’s from Benghazi, you see. Historically, people from under-privileged Benghazi resented people from luxurious Sirte — the place where Gaddafi was born. But we did track the place down, photo below.

I’ve been in Tripoli for the past two nights. I planned to change my flight so that I could spend Christmas with the Catholic church here. But then I remembered, I’m not Catholic. Instead, I’ll return to Cairo tomorrow. I did, however, sit down for an interview with Bishop of Libya. That was sort of interesting. Now I need to figure out what to write.
(Below is a photo of a shop door painted with the new Libyan flag.)

The following article is another one of those pieces that I wrote, but just couldn’t sell. The Toronto Star liked it a week ago, but they didn’t have room in their run-up-to-Christmas issues. (They needed more heart-warming references to Christians and Muslims getting along for the holidays, I guess.) Then, when things kicked off in Cairo as they did yesterday, the story was no longer “fresh.” So, I tacked on an admittedly weak few paragraphs at the end, submitted to other papers, and… well. Here it is on my website. Sigh. The life of a freelancer.
Cairo – Angry men cast silhouettes that flickered in and out focus on the tent’s white wall like some kind of shadow puppet play. It was after midnight. The tent, just blocks away from Tahrir Square, was anchored to the iron fence of Egypt’s parliament building and the fabric billowed from all the commotion. Outside, the crowd shouted angry slogans against Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and his Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, or SCAF. Inside, the men argued over what they should do with their prisoner. The young Tahrir Square revolutionaries had caught a spy.

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Looking forward to another trip to Libya. The last time I went was in 2008 as part of a convoy of vehicles. To read the beginning of that story, click HERE. (For the rest of the story, click “Newer Post” at bottom of each page.)
This time I’m traveling with two journalists in hired cars all the way from Cairo to Tripoli. We leave tomorrow. I look forward to seeing what has changed since 2008. My guess is… lots.
Switching topics now, here’s my most recent article for the Toronto Star: Link HERE.
It’s about a “revolutionary” of sorts who merely wants people in Lebanon to reexamine their attitudes towards garbage. If you like, check out the Facebook page for Reversed Garbage.

Since leaving Syria last month, I spent some time in Lebanon. From Beirut I rented a car with two other journalists. We headed northeast to the border region where we met Syrian refugees and defectors from the Syrian army. To read that story in the Toronto Star, click HERE.
I’m in Egypt now, in Cairo, not sure where I’ll head next. I’ll keep you posted here and on Twitter: @Jeremy_Kroeker
Below is an article I wrote from Beirut about an interesting “Cyber-Warrior” I met. The stories can’t all be winners, I guess. I couldn’t sell it, so I’ll just post it here.
Beirut – At the moment, the Syrian regime and President Bashar Assad have the upper hand in any violent confrontation with anti-government protestors. However, there is an increasing trend toward armed resistance, either by frustrated activists who see no alternative, or military deserters who have loosely coalesced under the banner of the Free Syria Army. To be fair, other groups are likely firing upon the Syrian forces as well, and have been for months, but it is unclear who those groups are as foreign media is practically banned from operating inside Syria. Either way, so far these campaigns have paled in comparison to the Syrian response.

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