SIDON, LEBANON // As a car pulls up to a petrol station in this southern Lebanese city, the driver gestures for an attendant to fill up the tank.
Amar Korjieh quickly rushes over to serve the customer at the station perched on a small hill above the ancient port town of Sidon. The 18-year-old is one of a group of young women working at the Queen Station, where about 80 per cent of the 40 workers are women.
Clad in their uniforms with requisite flashes of pink - woollen scarves and hats on this particularly cold winter's day - the women have taken on work in a field that in Lebanon is overwhelmingly dominated by men.
Many, including Miss Korjieh's own father, considered the job unsuitable for a Lebanese woman. The manual, outdoor work and constant interaction with men were seen as inappropriate.
"My father was shocked at the beginning, he didn't understand how a girl could work at a petrol station," Miss Korjieh says, after serving her customer. "But, he saw I liked the job, so he accepted it."
A well-known Sidon businessman, Merhi Abou Merhi and his wife, Huwaida, came up with the idea for the Queen Station as a place where women and their children would "feel comfortable" while refuelling their cars.
"Then, of course, it was also to find job positions for the girls," says Mrs Abou Merhi, sitting on a pink couch in the station's supermarket during a fleeting visit.
When it first opened in the residential neighbourhood of Hilaliyeh in February last year, the service station was viewed with suspicion by some and as an oddity by others.
Certainly, with its young female workers, pink decor and catchy name, the concept seems as much a marketing ploy as an effort to get women into the workforce.
Nearly a year on, staff - who pump petrol and work in the supermarket - say people have become accustomed to the idea. Customers pulling up appear unfazed by the female attendants at the station. It is clean, organised and does not have the normal, gritty garage feel.
"It's nice to be greeted by a smiling face," remarks 50-year-old engineer Mahmoud Hasoonah. "Half of the society accepts it, the other half may not."
Mohammed Samour, a 22-year-old staff member, distances himself from the "conservative mentality" he says is still prevalent in south Lebanon's largest city.
"I am with equality between men and women. My quote in life is 'real men aren't afraid to wear pink'!" he quips in fluent English.
These views are not necessarily shared by all in this conservative, majority Sunni Muslim town. During her shifts, Dania Kiblawi, 25, mostly stays working behind the checkout. Her father agreed to let her take a job at the station, but drew the line at her pumping petrol or cleaning windows.
"Some people, older people, said this is 'aib' [shameful]," she says. "They say, 'We're here in Lebanon, in Saida [Sidon]. Not in America'."
Sidon is a dry town where alcohol is not openly available. Just an hour from the capital, the city seems a world away from some parts of cosmopolitan, brash Beirut.
The security situation can also be volatile. This month a bomb was defused in the centre of the ancient town, thwarting what authorities believe was an assassination attempt against the head of a local political group.
Last year, two separate roadside bombs on the outskirts of Sidon targeted United Nations peacekeepers, injuring more than a dozen people.
Despite these unpredictable surroundings, the women working at the station seem determined to buck social expectations. There is a sense of camaraderie among the staff; they know they are doing something that goes against the grain.
Pumping petrol may not be even close to their ideal job - one of the young women is studying acting, another is an accounting graduate - but they say it is decent work. Earning a relatively decent wage - which at $500 (Dh1,836) is above the country's monthly minimum - also clearly doesn't hurt.
"It's changing the idea about how girls can work like boys, in the same jobs," says Aya Khairy Baik, an outgoing 20-year-old. "People need to change their minds. We're not doing anything wrong, just working."
The service station is not only operated by women; Samar Dakdouk also manages the place. Her own first job back in the 1980s was at a gas station in Los Angeles run by her brother.
Unlike the young women she now manages, the 45-year-old used to work night shifts, but always accompanied by two Dobermans.
"When I first heard about the station, I thought what a great idea," Ms Dakdouk says from behind the supermarket's bakery counter. "We're in the Middle East and especially in Saida, it's a male-dominated society."
"We just broke the rules," Mr Samoura interjects.
zconstantine@thenational.ae
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
Sri Lanka's T20I squad
Thisara Perera (captain), Dilshan Munaweera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ashan Priyanjan, Mahela Udawatte, Dasun Shanaka, Sachith Pathirana, Vikum Sanjaya, Lahiru Gamage, Seekkuge Prasanna, Vishwa Fernando, Isuru Udana, Jeffrey Vandersay and Chathuranga de Silva.
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
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The biog
Favourite colour: Brown
Favourite Movie: Resident Evil
Hobbies: Painting, Cooking, Imitating Voices
Favourite food: Pizza
Trivia: Was the voice of three characters in the Emirati animation, Shaabiyat Al Cartoon
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
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Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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Simran
Director Hansal Mehta
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Soham Shah, Esha Tiwari Pandey
Three stars
CRICKET%20WORLD%20CUP%20LEAGUE%202
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
The team
Videographer: Jear Velasquez
Photography: Romeo Perez
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory
Models: Meti and Clinton at MMG
Video assistant: Zanong Maget
Social media: Fatima Al Mahmoud
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry
Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
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Robbie Keane (Atletico de Kolkata) The Irish striker is, along with his former Spurs teammate Dimitar Berbatov, the headline figure in this season’s ISL, having joined defending champions ATK. His grand entrance after arrival from Major League Soccer in the US will be delayed by three games, though, due to a knee injury.
Dimitar Berbatov (Kerala Blasters) Word has it that Rene Meulensteen, the Kerala manager, plans to deploy his Bulgarian star in central midfield. The idea of Berbatov as an all-action, box-to-box midfielder, might jar with Spurs and Manchester United supporters, who more likely recall an always-languid, often-lazy striker.
Wes Brown (Kerala Blasters) Revived his playing career last season to help out at Blackburn Rovers, where he was also a coach. Since then, the 23-cap England centre back, who is now 38, has been reunited with the former Manchester United assistant coach Meulensteen, after signing for Kerala.
Andre Bikey (Jamshedpur) The Cameroonian defender is onto the 17th club of a career has taken him to Spain, Portugal, Russia, the UK, Greece, and now India. He is still only 32, so there is plenty of time to add to that tally, too. Scored goals against Liverpool and Chelsea during his time with Reading in England.
Emiliano Alfaro (Pune City) The Uruguayan striker has played for Liverpool – the Montevideo one, rather than the better-known side in England – and Lazio in Italy. He was prolific for a season at Al Wasl in the Arabian Gulf League in 2012/13. He returned for one season with Fujairah, whom he left to join Pune.
Wenger's Arsenal reign in numbers
1,228 - games at the helm, ahead of Sunday's Premier League fixture against West Ham United.
704 - wins to date as Arsenal manager.
3 - Premier League title wins, the last during an unbeaten Invincibles campaign of 2003/04.
1,549 - goals scored in Premier League matches by Wenger's teams.
10 - major trophies won.
473 - Premier League victories.
7 - FA Cup triumphs, with three of those having come the last four seasons.
151 - Premier League losses.
21 - full seasons in charge.
49 - games unbeaten in the Premier League from May 2003 to October 2004.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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LIVING IN...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
