A prominent contemporary Arab poet. Born in 1945 in southern Lebanon, he studied Arabic Literature at the Lebanese University in Beirut then travelled to Europe to study Islamic Studies at the Sorbonne in France. He worked as editor of the cultural pages for various Lebanese newspapers. He has published several collections of poetry and novels, his first being Tahlil Damm, or Blood Test, (2002), and his latest novel to date,  Sa3et Takhalli or, The Hour of Abandonment(2012). He has been the editor in chief of the cultural department of the Lebanese daily newspaper, "as-Safir," from 1997 to the present day.