IHRC

Author Evening with Narjis Khan, Zainab Ali and Arzu Merali
2026-07-14 19:00 - 21:00 (Europe/London)
Demir Mahmutćehajić hosts an author evening with Narjis Khan, Zainab Ali and Arzu Merali to disucss their latest book ‘Every Day and Every Land: Poems on the Tragedy of Karbala’. Join us in-person on Tuesday, 14th July 2026 for an evening of discussions connecting to history through poetry. To join us in-person, please book your place below.
You can purchase a copy of the book here.

When: Tuesday, 14th July 2026, door open at 7pm
Where: IHRC Bookshop and Gallery, 202 Preston Road, HA9 8PA, Wembley, United Kingdom (Nearest station Preston Road on the Metropolitan Line)
Parking: Please make sure to check restrictions when parking

About the Authors:
Narjis Khan graduated from Cambridge in 2011 with a degree in Social and Political Sciences. After qualifying as a alwyer, she completed her LLM specialising in Public International Law at the LSE. During this time, she started writing poetry. The themes of her writing include social justice, decolonisation, human rights and Islamic history. Narjis has worked in the public sector and volunteered at various NGOs.
Zainab Ali has been a university lecturer in Mathematics and Statistics for over 25 years since completing her PhD in Mathematics in 1999. She is a published poet. Volumes of her work include, World’s Echo (as Zainab Kazim, 1989) and A Fistful of Water (2014). In addition to writing and producing recordings of her poetry, she creates Maths videos for students with a wide range of subject competence.
Arzu Merali is a writer, editor and researcher based in London, UK. She is one of the founders of Islamic Human Rights Commission. Currently she is one of the editors of the quarterly The Long View. She graduated with a BA and MA Hons in English Literature from Cambridge University, and also holds an MA Hons in International Relations and a Pg Dip Law. The late Amiral Pyarali Merali was her father, and the inspiration for this publishing house and this volume.
About the Host:
Demir Mahmutćehajić is from Stolac in Bosnia. After some years in the UK where he helped found the Islamic Human Rights Commission in 1997, and later became the president of the London Islamic Community of Bosnians, he returned to Bosnia. Since 2005 he has been constantly engaged in the civil rights movement in the Bosnia and Herzegovina, at one time leading the DOSTA! (Enough!) movement. He has written and spoken about genocide in Bosnia, its causes and consequences over the last 25 years. Many of these speeches, reports and articles can be found on the IHRC website. Find him on Twitter @stolac92.
About the Book:
Every Day and Every Land: Poems on the Tragedy of Karbala brings together three very different poets, united in their retelling of this seismic event in the history of Islam and Muslims.These events have spawned vast literatures including and especially poetry across many languages. Writing directly in English, the poets also connect the events of 7th century Arabia with the events of the world today.
This volume is a contribution to the developing English canon.
All three write in English and bring traditional and modern styles to the topic. There is a style here, for everyone.
Zainab Kazim, uses traditional rhyme schemes to bring epic vistas vividly to life.
Narjis Khan, brings a modern take on traditional forms, connecting current world injustices with the epic of Karbala.
Arzu Merali’s free verse links current oppressions with the universal message of struggle found in the story of Ashura
You can purchase a copy of the book here.
For any enquiries, please contact events@ihrc.org
