Rula Jebreal

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Rula Jebreal

Jebreal in October 2010.
Born (1973-04-24) April 24, 1973
Haifa, Israel
Alma mater University of Bologna
Occupation Journalist, commentator, author
Website
Official Website

Rula Jebreal (Arabic: رولا جبريل; born April 24, 1973) is an Italo-Palestinian journalist,[1][2] novelist, and screenwriter with both Israeli[3] and Italian citizenship. She is a commentator on MSNBC.[4]

Early life and education

Jebreal was born in Haifa, Israel, and grew up in Jerusalem. Jebreal's father worked as a groundskeeper at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Her mother committed suicide[5] when she was 5.[6] She and her sister Rania were put into the Dar El-Tifel orphanage by their father,[5][6] in 1978, until 1991. She was educated in the orphanage, and then received a scholarship from the Italian government to study medicine at the University of Bologna, where she graduated with a degree in physiotherapy. She worked as a physiotherapist while she went back to the University of Bologna and earned her masters in Journalism and Political Science.

Career

Jebreal became the first foreign anchorwoman in the history of Italian television, winning a Media Watch award for her coverage of the Iraq War, and by age 33 earned the highest journalism award, the International Ischia Award for Best Journalist of the Year. Jebreal worked as a journalist in Italy for twelve years, earning a reputation for being one of the toughest interviewers for her interviews with such figures as Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema, Silvio Berlusconi, Bill Gates, President Abu Mazen, Bernard Kouchner, Mohammed ElBaradei, and Ingrid Betancourt. In 2006 she became the co-presenter of AnnoZero, an important and controversial political television show in Italy, together with Michele Santoro. In 2008 Jebreal created her own television show in Cairo at Al-Qahira Wal-Nas, (Cairo Centric) television station, where she filmed 30 episodes covering politics, economy, and the collapse of society in Egypt under the Mubarrak regime.[7]

Books and films

Jebreal's first novel Miral, written in 2003, was translated into 15 languages, selling millions of copies worldwide, and was eventually made into a film that was directed by Julian Schnabel, from Jebreal's screenplay.[2][5][8][9] The movie premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 2, 2010, and won the Unicef Protection of Children award.[10] Miral held its U.S. premiere at the United Nations General Assembly Hall on March 14, 2011.[11] Miral was the first film ever to have a premiere at the General Assembly Hall.

Jebreal's 2nd novel The Bride of Aswan was published in 2007, and was translated into five languages, winning the International Fince Europa Award. Her third book, Rejected, is a non-fiction study about the history of immigration in Europe. It was published in Italy and France, and is used in universities in Italy.

As a filmmaker, Jebreal wrote and produced a documentary titled Permesso di Soggiorno about the death penalty in China, the United States and Iran during the United Nations debate over the death penalty moratorium in 2008. The critically acclaimed documentary aired on Italian television in 2008.

Personal life

She has a teenage daughter whose father is an Italian artist.[8] She dated Julian Schnabel from 2007 to 2011.[12] In 2013, she married Arthur Altschul, Jr., son of Goldman Sachs banker Arthur Altschul.[13]

She is fluent in five languages: Italian, English, Arabic, Hebrew, and German.

Works

Rula Jebreal and Julian Schnabel, 2010

References

  1. ↑ "Palestinian broadcaster in Italy, Rula Jebreal, enjoys increasing acclaim". Haaretz. December 11, 2008. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Arifa Akbar (3 September 2010). "Schnabel's true romance inspires tale of love across cultural divide". The Independent (London). 
  3. ↑ Sert, Aysegul (December 2010). "Rula Jebreal: Born into Conflict, Striving for Peace". Venice Magazine. Retrieved 5 May 2011. 
  4. ↑ "Rula Jebreal". MSNBC. Retrieved 6 May 2013. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Julian Schnabel falls for Palestinian tale, then for its writer". McClatchy Newspapers. 2011-01-13. Retrieved 2011-03-24. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Malle, Chloe (2011-03-23). "One Turbulent World Readied Her for Another". New York: The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-03-24. 
  7. ↑ "Palestinian Journalist and Author Rula Jebreal | Arab Girls, Arabic Girls Blog". Earabgirls.com. Retrieved 2011-03-31. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Kazanjian, Dodie (2010-10-26). "Rula's View". Vogue.com. Retrieved 2011-05-05. 
  9. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1366409/
  10. ↑ "Rula Jebreal Pictures – Miral – Premiere: 67th Venice Film Festival". Zimbio. Retrieved 2011-03-31. 
  11. ↑ Sacks, Rebecca. "For Rula Jebreal and Julian Schnabel, Miral Is a Labor of Love | Little Gold Men". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2011-03-31. 
  12. ↑ "Schnabel’s new young love". The New York Post. April 17, 2012. Retrieved 9 March 2013. 
  13. ↑ New York Post: "Arthur Altschul, Jr. engaged to Rula Jebreal" May 2, 2013

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