Human Rights

Topic: Human Rights

President Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi meeting in Cairo with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu on 29.05.2017 (photo: Vitaly Belousov/Sputnik/dpa)

Abdul Fattah al-Sisi′s totalitarian state

Nearing completion

In recent months, the Egyptian regime has moved decisively to close what remains of public space, heralding a new era of repression that is likely to dominate all aspects of political life for decades to come. By Maged Mandour More

Egypt's 'anti-terror' campaign: Not all it seems Abdul Fattah al-Sisi′s ascendancy: Sweetness and light?′Pharaoh′ Mubarak′s acquittal: Some are more equal

Symbolic image of Islamic feminism (source: raseef22)

Women′s rights in Islam

Can feminism be Islamic?

Islamic feminism is a relatively new concept and not without controversy. Indeed many wonder whether it is possible to reconcile feminism with Islam – a religion critics regard as inherently patriarchal. By Salma KhattabMore

Book review: Zahra Ali's "Islamic Feminisms": Female emancipation based on the spirit of Sharia Interview with Amina Wadud: ''Islam belongs to all its believers''Qantara dossier:"Feminism in Islam"

Anti-corruption protests in the Moroccan city of Al-Hoceima on 3 June 2017 (photo: Reuters/Youssef Boudlal)

Social unrest in the Arab world

Guilty of gross negligence

The ongoing protests in North Africa reveal the extent of the failure of government there. Never before have corrupt elites been so alienated from the social realities of the ordinary people, says Loay MudhoonMore

Morocco and the return of autocracy: Playing with fire Arab identity crisis: What is left of the Arabs?Al-Sisi's Egyptian crisis: ″Where are the youth?″Post-Arabellion reform deadlock: The logic of power

Theresa May campaigning in the run-up to the UK general election on 8 June 2017 (photo: Reuters/B. Stansall)

Theresa May, UK Muslims and the fight against terrorism

Hoist with her own petard

A few days before the UK general election, Prime Minister Theresa May announced a plan to curtail human rights in an attempt to catch Islamist terrorists. It was all too clear that she was targeting the Muslim minority per se as a tactic to win. She failed. Yet her outrageous claims are not likely to go away soon. Commentary by Alexander GoerlachMore

Islam and violence: There is a difference The Islam debate: The dual consciousness of Muslims Muslims in Germany following the Berlin attack: "It's not our fault!"

Woman places white roses at the platform 17 memorial to Holocaust victims, Grunewald station, Berlin (photo: imago/IPON)

Politics of remembrance

Cracks in the edifice?

Are those who remember past atrocities protected from committing the same mistakes? Germany has spent over 40 years addressing its past, yet even there recent events on the global stage have seen populist prejudices enter mainstream debate. By Sonja Hegasy

The refugee debate: What makes us German?Europe, Germany and ″Abendland″ angst: In the name of Christendom The rise of right-wing populism in Europe: A continent divided

Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi giving a statement to the press on 26.05.2017 in the wake of the Minya terrorist attack (photo: Reuters)

Egypt's 'anti-terror' campaign

Not all it seems

Sisi's administration is using the attacks on Coptic Christians as a pretext for furthering its own foreign and domestic ends, making Egypt an unsuitable partner for the fight against terrorism. Commentary by Stephan RollMore

Terror attack on Egypt′s Christian minority: Why the Coptic focus?Angela Merkel′s visit to Egypt: Blinkered realpolitik Egyptian Copts flee the Sinai: "They're slaughtering us like chickens"

Protesters in Al-Hoceima in Morocco's Rif region demonstrating in May 2017 for social and economic development

Morocco and the return of autocracy

Playing with fire

According to Moroccan researcher Mohamed Taifouri, the Kingdom of Morocco is gradually returning to its pre-2011 state, openly declaring a break from the accretions of the Arab Spring. The legacy of the 20 February Movement and all that has followed by way of a political renaissance is simply unwelcome ballast, argues Mohamed TaifouriMore

Morocco's Islamist Justice and Development Party: A delicate balancing act Democratic change in Morocco: Winners and losers in a new political climate Parliamentary elections in Morocco: Divide and rule

A Egyptian Copt vents his grief and anger following the terrorist attack in Tanta (photo: Reuters/M. Abd el Ghany)

Terror attack on Egypt′s Christian minority

Why the Coptic focus?

Last week′s heinous bus attack was just the latest in a wave of brutal terrorist strikes by the Islamic State group on Egypt′s minority community of Coptic Christians. In his essay, the Egyptian writer Shady Lewis Botros looks at why the Copts in particular are bearing the brunt of these vicious assaults More

Egyptian Copts flee the Sinai: "They're slaughtering us like chickens"Egypt′s Coptic Church: The cost of a cornerstone Christians in Egypt: Persecuted and forgotten

Mohamedou Ould Slahi with his family (photo: Emran Feroz)

Interview with Mohamedou Ould Slahi

"The rule of law means nothing to a corrupt regime"

Mauritanian Mohamedou Ould Slahi spent more than fourteen years in Guantanamo. His "Guantanamo diary", which has been translated into numerous languages, won him global acclaim. After a protracted legal battle, Slahi finally released in October 2016. In an exclusive interview with Emran Feroz, he talks about his experiences during his imprisonmentMore

Book review: Mohamedou Ould Slahi's "Guantanamo diary": Diary entries from the darkness Obama's Guantanamo policy: A maze of contradictions Poems from Guantanamo: "Will ya ever go jihad again?"

Rouhani supporters celebrate their president′s victory in Tehran (photo: Tasnim)

Presidential election aftermath in Iran

Rouhani, take note!

With the latest presidential election result, Iranians have sent a clear message across the nation and to the world at large. Their voices should be heeded, writes Ali Sadrzadeh in his commentaryMore

Reformists sweep Tehran municipal vote as Rouhani wins Iran Economic policy in Iran: Rouhani′s inevitable failure Iran following the death of Rafsanjani: On a knife edge

"Legalising multiple rape": Jordan's Article 308, 'If a valid contract of marriage is made between the perpetrator of any of the offences mentioned in this section, and the victim, the prosecution is suspended. If judgement was already passed, the implementation of the punishment upon the sentenced person is suspended' (source: wojoud.org)

Women′s rights in the Arab world

No house room for criminals

Many Arab countries have laws that grant offenders immunity from prosecution if they marry the woman they have raped. While Jordan has taken the first steps to change this controversial legal situation, Lebanon looks likely to follow suit. By Dunja RamadanMore

The uprising of women in the Arab world: Fighting patriarchal tyranny Women's rights in Morocco: Gender equality on paper only Book review: Zahra Ali's "Islamic Feminisms": Female emancipation based on the spirit of Sharia

The Public Prosecutor General′s coat of arms in Karlsruhe (photo: dpa/picture-alliance)

Assad's crimes tried in German courts?

Hoping for justice

German public prosecutors in Karlsruhe are acting surprisingly fast to interview Syrian victims who have filed criminal charges against members of the Syrian intelligence agency in Damascus. Specific investigations and international arrest warrants could follow. By Kristin HelbergMore

Charges against Bashar al-Assad: His turn will come Interview with the journalist and author Garance le Caisne: Caesar and the butcher of Damascus Syria: human rights violations and torture: The toll of the missing

Demonstration poster caught on a barbed wire fence showing Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim and murdered teenager Mustafa Hamdan (photo: picture-alliance/NurPhotos/A. B. Al Kamel)

Bahrain′s slide towards military rule

Tightening the noose

The outright militarisation of the security apparatus has infected more and more sectors of Bahraini society. In fact, it's now even been written into the country′s constitution. Report by Husain AbdullaMore

Re-assessing Western involvement in the Middle East: Far from Utopian The Bahraini activist Ala'a Shehabi: David versus Goliath Interview with Maryam al-Khawaja: ''The regime oppresses all Bahrainis''

Demonstration of solidarity with the arrested leader of Fatah, Marwan Barghouti (photo: AFP/Getty Images)

Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike

Raising the stakes

Palestinian prisoners in Israel have launched a collective hunger strike. The imprisoned Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti is thus returning to the political stage. Inge Gunther in Jerusalem has the detailsMore

Israel vows not to negotiate with Palestinian hunger strikers Palestine's Mohammed Dahlan: A finger in every pie Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Third intifada looming

Protesters in Istanbul demonstrate following announcement of referendum result on 16 April 2017 (photo: AFP Photo/Yasin Akgul)

Erdogan’s post-referendum Turkey

Divided, now rule

By expanding his powers through a slim, contested victory in Sunday's referendum, Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan has consolidated his rule – over a nation bound for social turmoil. Diego Cupolo reports from AnkaraMore

The achievements of Erdogan: With me or against me Germany′s ′Nazi′ methods: Erdogan – the expert on democracy Erdogan and Turkish foreign policy: Neo-Ottoman rumblings

Syrian opposition delegation headed by Mohammad Alloush (centre) attending the first round of negotiations in Astana, January 2017 (photo: Reuters/Mukhtar Kholdorbekov)

The Syrian conflict

Mendacious diplomacy

As the war in Syria rolls on and civilians continue to die, caught in the deadly crossfire of a multi-front conflict, the Syrian military and political opposition – bowing to intense international diplomatic pressure – has been dragged into political negotiations that lack the minimum conditions for success. Essay by Burhan Ghalioun, former chairman of the Syrian opposition Transitional National CouncilMore

U.S. missile strike in Syria: Trump turns the table Assad and the rise of IS: My enemy's enemy Another year of civil war in Syria: Nothing short of scandalous

Topic: Human Rights

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