After being afflicted by illness, Talal Salman, the founder and publisher of "Al-Safir" newspaper, embarked on an irrevocable journey, culminating a long and rich life in cultural, intellectual, and humanitarian realms. While his pen may have vanished, his words will remain a guiding light for generations that learned from him, and generations that will miss a professional and warm pen. Thus, his comrades mourned him:
**Ziad Al-Makari**
Lebanon's caretaker Minister of Information, Ziad Al-Makari, wrote on X platform: "In our last meeting, the conversation was heartfelt and centered on journalistic memories. The great Talal Salman, whose pen transcended regions, will always be remembered; his rich history is a page that will never be turned in the history of Lebanese journalism. Goodbye, voice of those who have no voice."
**Joseph Al-Qusayfi**
Joseph Al-Qusayfi, the head of the Lebanese Press Syndicate, mourned Talal Salman on behalf of the Syndicate Council and personally stated: "The voice of those who have no voice has vanished, a past and towering presence in the world of journalism and media—he made his way to brilliance through ink, mixed with blood, and through self-reliance, which transcended the adventures he embarked upon with modest means, yet with great faith and stubborn determination to carve out a prominent place not only in Lebanese journalism but in Arab journalism as well. 'Al-Safir' became a passport for the elite to public opinion, piercing palaces and residences and disturbing the sleep of rulers."
He added, "Talal Salman succeeded in establishing a journalistic school that excelled in pioneering work, gathering creative pens, specialists, and a multitude of experienced and professional correspondents capable of breaking through closed walls and providing accurate information. His newspaper became a reference point for those seeking precise news."
"From his school, dozens of colleagues graduated, with whom he shared close relationships that transcended the simple employer-employee dynamic. He cared for them and ensured that they had all the means for a decent life. When circumstances forced him to close 'Al-Safir', he did so only after compensating his employees to the last penny. The decision was painful, tragic even, but he remained true to himself and refused to step into anything that contradicted his commitments."
**Lebanese Press Syndicate**
The Lebanese Press Syndicate mourned Salman, stating in their eulogy: "A tear of black ink weep for the words. The pen trembles as it writes a eulogy for a knight who dismounts from the steed of writing, mourning 'the voice of those who have no voice', leaving us unannounced before completing the journey 'on the road' to the issues of the homeland, the nation, the land, and humanity. Life betrayed him, but the pen remained truthful in the pursuit of truth. For sixty years and more, he was a free defender of freedom and liberation. In short, until the last pulse of ink and heart, we say farewell to Talal Salman. We mourn him to the Lebanese people and the Arab world, and extend our condolences to his family, the Salman family, and his large family of Lebanese and Arab journalism, and to all those who worked with him and learned in his media school 'Al-Safir'. We mourn him as a longtime member of the Syndicate Council, asking the Almighty to shower him with His vast mercy and inspire us and his loved ones with great patience and solace, wishing our colleagues in all newspapers to honor the great departed by displaying a sign of mourning for him on the front page, for indeed, to Allah we belong and to Him we shall return.”
**Walid Jumblatt**
Former Deputy Walid Jumblatt also mourned the deceased, saying: "Farewell to the Arabism that will return. Farewell to the voice of those who have no voice, and it will remain: farewell to the Palestine that will not be defeated, farewell to a dream that will not die."
**Sheikh Ahmad Kabbalan**
In a statement, the distinguished Jaafari Mufti Sheikh Ahmad Kabbalan mourned the publisher of "Al-Safir": "Talal Salman is a name as big as a nation, whose people are slaughtered and whose Arabs are dispersed. The echo of his pen remains a history for a nation divided by fire and a pain for a people torn by civil war, a call to rescue Lebanon from the media of discord and the mines of barricades, playing around the world. Today, Talal Salman emerges on the eternal field of truth to give his weighty testimony about a nation still crucified on the cross of division."
**General Abbas Ibrahim**
General Abbas Ibrahim also mourned Salman in a statement, saying: "With the deepest sorrow, we received the news of the death of the great, capable journalist, the publisher of 'Al-Safir', Professor Talal Salman, just a few years after we received the news of the paper's suspension. The deceased was indeed a 'Safi' of Lebanon to the world. He left no effort during his journey through culture and politics for the welfare of society and the nation. He tirelessly carried the issues of the nation from its environment to its Gulf. He was made of ink that was closer to deep red than to the surrounding darkness."
He continued: "Talal Salman was a pen and a compass for the liberation of land and human. Farewell, Professor Talal, to the gardens of paradise, and to where the free and honest go, those of land, ink, thought, speech, and homeland."
**Suleiman Frangieh**
Suleiman Frangieh, head of the Marada Movement, wrote: "Half a century of contributions to journalism and media, a man of significant thought and impactful opinion in Lebanon and the Arab world; the voice of those with no voice... Farewell Talal Salman."
**General Jamil Sayyed**
General Jamil Sayyed wrote on X: "Talal Salman was the self-made son of Shmistar in Baalbek who carried his pen as a weapon and blazed a journalistic path where the word almost killed him multiple times. He was the owner of a word that wounds but does not draw blood, and it is not coincidental that he chose the slogan for his newspaper 'Al-Safir' to be, ‘the voice of those who have no voice,’ and that 'Al-Safir' became the voice of united and one Lebanese Arab and the voice of reason in the midst of the madness of civil war and the voice of Palestine."
He added, "Perhaps one of life's harshest sorrows is for a parent to lose their child, and thus was Talal Salman's heartache when circumstances dictated that he witness the death of his offspring, 'Al-Safir', before him. He can take pride that a generation of Lebanese will remember having lived in the time of 'Al-Safir'. May Allah have mercy on Abu Ahmad, and all condolences to his family, town, and loved ones."
**Ahmad Hariri**
The Secretary-General of the Future Movement, Ahmad Hariri, mourned the late Talal Salman, stating on X: "The departure of Talal Salman is a departure of a hard symbol in journalism during the hardest times. 'Al-Safir' contributed to forming our national Arab consciousness, and the great departed was a pioneer in journalism, possessing an elegant pen and a steadfast stance rich in wisdom and vision—a memorable memory for me personally as a young man raised on reading 'Al-Safir' as a voice for the homeland and Arabism and a beacon in the journalism world. Professor Talal closed a bright and noble chapter in Lebanese and Arab journalism. The voice of those who have no voice remains..."
**Jean Aziz**
Journalist Jean Aziz wrote: "How can Talal Salman live on now? In a time of non-communicative literature, in a homeland of silence over sound, and in a country of a few struggling journalists and a tyrannical authority. Why does 'Al-Safir' still exist, and for whom? The greats who deserve to be written about are gone, and the intellectuals who deserve to have their stories told have been abandoned. There is no pen left here, nor pain or hope. He filled his language with a word of farewell. Goodbye, our teacher.”
**George Kallas**
Dr. George Kallas, Minister of Youth and Sports in the caretaker government, mourned journalist Talal Salman, writing on X: "Talal Salman... the extinguished light defying the light, and the pen that broke, and the mind that fell silent, and the hope that shrank, and the mouth that silenced—enter your chamber, raise your prayer, and say, Lord, have mercy." He added, "With much sorrow, I mourn Professor Talal Salman, the great mind, deep thinker, compassionate about Lebanon, a fierce humanist, and a guardian of freedom, keen on preserving the dignity of words."
**Fouad Makhzoumi**
Deputy Fouad Makhzoumi wrote on X: "With the passing of the great journalist Professor Talal Salman, Lebanese and Arab journalism loses one of its greats, a prominent face with extensive experience in the world of printed journalism. Mercy for his soul, and patience and solace for his family, loved ones, and friends."
**Sayyed Ali Fadlallah**
Sayyed Ali Fadlallah, in a statement, expressed: "With the passing of Professor Talal Salman, a rich page in the history of responsible national media, both Lebanese and Arab, is turned; a shining page through which he could extend 'Al-Safir' to all our pains and wounds, extracting lessons and insights from them to depict our achievements in the most beautiful strokes to build a bright future for our nation and people and for the generations to come."
**Sami Kleib**
Journalist Sami Kleib commented: "A part of the spirit of journalism, the nectar of Arabism, and a sincere commitment, along with Lebanon's radiance, departs with the esteemed great friend Talal Salman... a tear on the cheek of the homeland and a wound in the hearts of all who knew him or worked under his banner... an irreplaceable loss—may Allah have mercy on him, following the loss of 'Al-Arab' in Beirut."
**Ricardo Karam**
Journalist Ricardo Karam wrote: "Talal Salman was not just a brilliant journalist and publisher; he was a cornerstone. He made "Al-Safir" a school for pens that shaped the media landscape and became a reliable voice in Lebanon and throughout the Arab world. He was known for his big heart and open office door for everyone without discrimination. We are lucky to have earned his friendship. Today, the nation mourns 'Al-Safir', and the heart grieves..."
**Funeral**
Salman will be buried at 4 PM tomorrow, Saturday, in his hometown of Shmistar, where his body will be prayed upon and laid to rest in the town cemetery. Condolences will be received before and after the burial at his home in Shmistar, and on Sunday and Monday, the 27th and 28th of this month. Additionally, condolences will be accepted at the "Specialization and Scientific Guidance Association" in Beirut on Wednesday, the 30th of this month, from 11 AM to 7 PM.
