Interview with Robert Fisk on the War in Syria
President Bashar al-Assad's troops in Syria are gaining ground. British Middle East reporter Robert Fisk met some of them when he visited the front lines earlier this month. Interview by Michael Hartlep More »
Interview with Saleh Diab
Egyptian entrepreneur and publisher Saleh Diab is concerned over the future of his country. Foreign investors are being discouraged by political conditions, and the nation lacks a vision for the future, he says. Interview by Kersten Knipp More »
The Aftermath of the Arab Spring
The eruption of the Arab revolts put power relations among Middle Eastern countries in a state of flux, and both winners and losers have emerged. But, given that the strengths and weaknesses of most of the actors are highly contingent, the regional balance of power remains highly fluid. By Volker Perthes More »
German Wehrmacht Document on Islam
If it were not for the fact that the author of a code of conduct for Wehrmacht officers in Muslim countries – the army doctor Ernst Rodenwaldt – was a proven Nazi sympathiser, those in today's anti-Islamic milieu would most certainly hold him for a Muslim sympathizer. Stefan Weidner on an unusual historical manuscript More »
Dilwar Hussain on Reform Islam
In order to retain the values of the Koran, one must go beyond the literal meaning of the text, says British Islam scholar Dilwar Hussain. Instead, Muslims should try to interpret the dynamic of change of early Islam and apply that to modern times and conditions. An interview by Jan Kuhlmann More »
Forced Marriage in Afghanistan
Up to 80 per cent of marriages in Afghanistan take place without the consent of the bride, who is often a minor. Many of these brides – particularly those who live in cities – see killing themselves as the only way out. Waslat Hasrat-Nazimi reports on this tragic state of affairs More »
Mohammed Rasoulof's ''Manuscripts Don't Burn''
The Islamic Republic's intelligence service is unmasked for the first time in a film based on a series of murders of Iranian writers and intellectuals in the late 1990s. Stefan Buchen introduces the new movie by director Mohammed Rasoulof More »
Islam in European Classical Music
We cannot say precisely when the musical penetration of East and West began, but one thing is certain: composers like Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and others could not resist the fascination of the Orient. Thus elements of Turkish music, Persian poetry and Arabic storytelling found their way straight to the heart of European culture. By Nadja Kayali More »
