Ahmed Matar (, born 1954) is a revolutionary Iraqi poet who has been living in exile for decades, most recently in London. His poetry is very critical of dictatorial Arab rulers, especially the Iraqi rulers, the lack of freedoms, the use of torture and extrajudicial punishments, clinging to power at all costs, and the conditions of Arab societies. Early life Matar was born in Tanoma, a small city in southern Iraq in Basra governance. He is the fourth of ten children. He is married and has three sons and a daughter. Poetry Matar started composing poetry early in his life when he was fourteen. His first poems were mostly romantic before he turns to choose politics as his main subject. He recited long poems on stage where he actually openly criticized the status quo. This, however, forced him to flee early in his life to Kuwait. Career He moved to Kuwait in his mid-twenties where he worked as a cultural editor for the newspaper Al-Qabas. He continued composing poems in his own journal before they were finally published in Al-Qabas. He then befriended the caricaturist Naji al-Ali, with whom he shared an ideological and artistic vision. Exile Due to his harsh criticism of the Arab status quo and its ideology, Mattar has again had to flee Kuwait, as has his close friend Naji Al Ali, who had to leave the country because of his caricatures. In 1986, Mattar finally settled in London, his last destination in exile. On his poetry, Matar said I didn't intend to make myself a school when I first started writing poetry; I just wanted to say the truth... and I did. I now can assure you that readers can tell my poetry without my name been attached to it. Poetry in the time of action In a commentary he made after the Arab Uprisings in 2011, Ahmed Matar speaks eloquently about poetry in the context of action: "Poetry is not an Arab regime that falls with the death of the ruler. And it's also not an alternative to action. It's an art form whose job is agitating, exposing, and witnessing reality, and aspiring beyond the present. Poetry comes before action. Then poetry catches up. Poetry lights the road, and guides our deeds. Back in the day, Nassr Bin Seyar said, “Indeed, war begins with speech.” In reality, speech surrounds war from its beginning to its