Ahmad Abu Matar

Ahmad Abu Matar (1944–2016 ) was a Palestinian academic, researcher, literary critic, political analyst and writer who often wrote on human rights issues.

Early life and education Ahmad Abu Matar was born in Beersheba in 1944. He was expelled with his family to the Rafah refugee camp in the Gaza Strip in 1948.

He holds a PhD in Literature from the Department of Arabic Language at Alexandria University in 1979. His thesis was on Palestinian literature from 1950 to 1975, and was supervised by Professor Dr. Muhammad Zaki Al-Ashmawy.

Biography Al Jazeera hosted Ahmad Abu Matar on several of its programs, most notably in "The Opposite Direction," in which he expressed views that strongly criticized dictatorial regimes and conservative trends in Arab societies. Abu Matar resided in Oslo, where he obtained Norwegian citizenship and spent most of his time devoted to studies and research.