Politics

Uri Avnery (photo: Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images) Interview with the Israeli Peace Activist Uri Avnery

''Israel Needs Peace, Not Settlements''

Despite growing international criticism, Israel is pressing ahead with the construction of new settlements in and around Jerusalem. In this interview with Diana Hodali, peace activist Uri Avnery says that the current Israeli government does not actually want a two-state solution, regardless of what it says More »


In this image released by the Egyptian Presidency, President Mohammed Morsi prepares to make a televised address to the nation in Cairo, Egypt, Wednesday,  26 December 2012 (photo: Egyptian Presidency/AP/dapd) Egypt and Its New Constitution

A National Unity Government for Egypt!

President Morsi has failed. The divided nation now needs real dialogue. The majority of Egyptians is against a theological state, says diplomat and political analyst Ashraf Swelam More »


Bahman Nirumand (photo: dpa) ''Human Rights as an Alibi'' by Bahman Nirumand

The Colonial Era Is Long Gone

In his new book, the German-Iranian journalist Bahman Nirumand appeals to the West to adopt a new foreign policy approach. Western politics should not align itself with the principles of realpolitik, but place much more emphasis on individual values. He says this is the only way to contribute to a stabilisation of the Middle East region. By Laura Overmeyer More »


Abdelilah Benkirane (photo: dpa) The Rise of Populists in Moroccan Politics

Jokes, Clamour, Jesters and Trouble-making

The election of Hamid Chabat as secretary-general of Istiqlal, Morocco's oldest political party, at the end of September has brought attention to the resurgence in populism that is becoming a distinctive feature of Moroccan politics, writes Mohamed Jalid More »


An Egyptian woman points to a poster that read 'No to the constitution' (photo: dpa/picture-alliance) Referendum on the Constitution in Egypt

Resistance from the ''Cradle of the Revolution''

It was not only in Cairo that the majority voted against the draft constitution; in the industrial city of Mahalla El-Kubra, which used to be the stronghold of resistance to the Mubarak regime, most people voted "no". Markus Symank spoke to people in the city More »


Daniel Barenboim (photo: dpa) Commentary by Daniel Barenboim

Perhaps the Last Chance

In this commentary, pianist and star conductor Daniel Barenboim writes that the fact that Palestine was recently awarded non-member observer state status by the United Nations could be the last chance to breathe life into the two-state project in the Middle East More »


Young men and youths demonstrating against the Assad regime in the area of al Qaterji, north-east of Aleppo, waving the flag of the Free Syrian Army (photo: dpa) The War in Syria

China, the West, and the Russians share responsibility for the suffering

Whether through active or passive participation, the international community shares responsibility for the civil war taking place in Syria, writes Salam Kawakibi of the Arab Reform Initiative from Aleppo More »


Hamdeen Sabahi (photo: dpa) Egypt's Opposition Leader Hamdeen Sabahi

''The Spirit of the Revolution Will Be Trampled Underfoot''

In an interview with Markus Bickel, leftist opposition leader Hamdeen Sabahi criticised in unusually sharp words the referendum on a new Egyptian constitution: Egypt's President Mohammed Morsi should put a stop to the referendum, he said, because it would only do the nation harm More »


Ballot paper, first round of the referendum on the constitution in Egypt, November 15 (photo: dapd) Constitutional Referendum in Egypt

The Islamists' Pyrrhic Victory

Although a slim majority of votes cast in Saturday's first round support the new constitution, the Islamists have little reason to celebrate: only 18 percent of the electorate voted for the blueprint, as the Muslim Brotherhood's popularity continues on its downward trajectory. Commentary by Karim El-Gawhary More »


Screenshot of the Turkish daily 'Taraf' with a photograph of Mehmet Nihat Ömeroğlu (source: Taraf) Turkey's New Ombudsman

Anti-Qualified

The first chief ombudsman of Turkey, appointed to ensure the administration acts in line with a sense of justice based on human rights, has sparked public outcry due to his role in the conviction of the late journalist Hrant Dink. The new ombudsman also faces accusations of being too close to the government. Fatma Kayabal reports from İstanbul More »