Trump's plan for the Middle East
Those looking to annex can expect resistance from Jordan
COVID-19 in Egypt
Safely through corona crisis? Go on, take my used mask
Shia "axis of resistance"
Khamenei's Final Solution provocation to mark Quds Day
The Istanbul Convention and women's protection
Bombing the heart of the family in Turkey?

Trump's plan for the Middle East

Those looking to annex can expect resistance from Jordan

Jordan is not only waging a vigorous battle against coronavirus, but also against the Middle East peace plan proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump. By Birgit SvenssonRead more

USA, Israel and the Palestinians: Trump's sham attempt at peaceIsrael’s parliament swears in new unity government with PM Netanyahu at helmThe Levant: Jordan's fragile stability

Shia "axis of resistance"

Khamenei's Final Solution provocation to mark Quds Day

The anti-Israeli Quds Day did not take place this year – a first both for Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah. While Hezbollah leader Nasrallah sees his organisation in a state of siege, revolutionary leader Khamenei resorted to blatant provocation. By Ali SadrzadehRead more

Hezbollah chief rejects U.S. pressure to beef up role of UN peacekeepersHezbollah, Lebanon's Iran-backed paramilitary organisationU.S.A and Iran: Trump – agent provocateurIsraeli attacks on bases in Iraq: Is war with Iran on the horizon?

The Istanbul Convention and women's protection

Bombing the heart of the family in Turkey?

Turkey signed up to the Council of Europe's Istanbul Convention, which aims to protect women from violence. Conservative forces in the country, however, are calling for Turkey's immediate withdrawal, claiming the traditional family is in danger. By Pelin Unker and Daniel Derya BellutRead more

COVID-19 pandemic: Coronavirus breeds domestic violence in TurkeyWomen in Turkey: Ankara turns a blind eye to femicideErdogan′s Turkey: Eroding Ataturk's legacy

Politics

Protests against Trump's plan for the Middle East in Amman, Jordan (photo: AP/Raad Adayleh)

Trump's plan for the Middle East

Those looking to annex can expect resistance from Jordan

Jordan is not only waging a vigorous battle against coronavirus, but also against the Middle East peace plan proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump. By Birgit SvenssonMore

USA, Israel and the Palestinians: Trump's sham attempt at peaceIsrael’s parliament swears in new unity government with PM Netanyahu at helmThe Levant: Jordan's fragile stability
Iran's revolutionary leader Ali Khamenei (photo: Reuters/Official Khamenei website)

Shia "axis of resistance"

Khamenei's Final Solution provocation to mark Quds Day

The anti-Israeli Quds Day did not take place this year – a first both for Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah. While Hezbollah leader Nasrallah sees his organisation in a state of siege, revolutionary leader Khamenei resorted to blatant provocation. By Ali SadrzadehMore

Hezbollah chief rejects U.S. pressure to beef up role of UN peacekeepersHezbollah, Lebanon's Iran-backed paramilitary organisationU.S.A and Iran: Trump – agent provocateurIsraeli attacks on bases in Iraq: Is war with Iran on the horizon?
Egypt's pyramids and the Sphinx spectacularly floodlit (photo: DW)

COVID-19 on the Nile

One Egyptian's dream of a brave, new, post-coronavirus world

For decades, Egypt's successive governments have neglected to provide adequate support for science and culture. Wouldn't it be wonderful if the coronavirus crisis were to lead to a change of heart and policy, asks Khaled al-KhamissiMore

COVID-19 on the Nile: The curse of coronavirus – Egypt, a nation gripped by fearCOVID-19 in North Africa: Corona proactivity in Tunisia, trivialisation in EgyptIn Dialogue: Khaled Al-Khamissi – Stefan Weidner: The Arab Spring
King Salman (left) and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (photo: picture-alliance/abaca/B. Algaloud)

Impact of COVID-19 on Saudi Arabia

Shaking the House of Saud to the core

The economic backlash of the corona pandemic already means dramatic consequences for the Saudi royal family. But what happens when it becomes too expensive for them to fulfil their part of the social contract and the Saudi people rebel? An analysis by Karim El-GawharyMore

Rentier economies and the clean-energy transition: Cashing out – Saudi Arabia’s radical new oil strategyCOVID-19 and Arab economies: Facing the Middle East's perfect – corona-induced – stormPolitical transformation under Mohammed bin Salman: Saudi Arabiaʹs perilous pivot
more Politics »

Society

Men wearing face masks against coronavirus in Cairo (photo: picture-alliance/Nur Photo/I. Safwat)

COVID-19 in Egypt

Safely through corona crisis? Go on, take my used mask

Even now, during the coronavirus pandemic, risk awareness in Egypt is disturbingly low. What lies behind this phenomenon? By Khaled el-KhamissiMore

COVID-19 on the Nile: One Egyptian's dream of a brave, new, post-coronavirus worldCOVID-19 on the Nile: The curse of coronavirus – Egypt, a nation gripped by fearCOVID-19 in North Africa: Corona proactivity in Tunisia, trivialisation in Egypt
Demonstrating for women's rights in Istanbul (photo: dpa/picture-alliance)

The Istanbul Convention and women's protection

Bombing the heart of the family in Turkey?

Turkey signed up to the Council of Europe's Istanbul Convention, which aims to protect women from violence. Conservative forces in the country, however, are calling for Turkey's immediate withdrawal, claiming the traditional family is in danger. By Pelin Unker and Daniel Derya BellutMore

COVID-19 pandemic: Coronavirus breeds domestic violence in TurkeyWomen in Turkey: Ankara turns a blind eye to femicideErdogan′s Turkey: Eroding Ataturk's legacy
Author and activist Kubra Gumusay (photo: Imago)

Non-fiction: Kubra Gumusay's "Sprache und Sein"

Beyond the linguistic pigeonhole

In "Sprache und Sein" (Language and Being) the activist Kubra Gumusay critically examines the function of language – the narratives that reflect and determine the realities of human coexistence, which classify and empower individuals while also curtailing their rights. It is all about privilege, stereotypes and exclusion. By Melanie Christina MohrMore

Muslim bloggers in Germany: Creating a counter-public to traditional mediaGermany and Islam: "Muslims are already German"Debate on Muslim identity in the West: Constructing the self, constructing the other
A displaced woman from Tawergha protests in downtown Tripoli, Libya (photo: DW/K. Zurutuza)

COVID-19 pandemic in Libya

Conflict and coronavirus – Libyan women pay the higher price

War was ever a man's game. In Libya, where political rivals have been fighting it out for years, the needs of women have all too often been overlooked. Yet the country is going to need everyone’s contribution, argues Asma Khalifa, if it is to survive the upcoming changesMore

COVID-19 and Arab economies: Facing the Middle East's perfect – corona-induced – stormWomen in Libya: High hopes brutally dashedFemale activists in Libya: Fighting against regression
more Society »

Culture

Iranian Kurdish author and activist Ava Homa (photo: Sam Attar)

Book review: Ava Homa's "Daughters of Smoke and Fire"

Living with the sting of hatred

While "Daughters of Smoke and Fire" – Kurdish author Ava Homa's heart-rending debut novel – is about Leila, a young Kurdish woman, coming of age in contemporary Iran, the portrayal of a minority's struggle against oppression and assimilation transcends the personal. Richard Marcus read the bookMore

Ava Homa speaks at the United NationsKurdistan: The future of a people: Good Kurd, bad KurdNon-fiction: Joey Lawrenceʹs "We came from fire": A tribute to the Kurds
Palestinian author Sahar Khalifeh (photo: private; source: Facebook)

Book review: Sahar Khalifeh's "Passage to the Plaza"

It's all a question of timing

When Sahar Khalifeh’s "Passage to the Plaza" appeared in English this year, thirty years after its initial publication, it seemed out of sync – too late and too overshadowed by the coronavirus. Yet perhaps this is just the right time: its locked-in world of curfews and domestic violence speak to 2020 as much as it did to 1990. By Marcia Lynx QualeyMore

Who is hidden beneath the burka? An appeal to the WestLecture by Sahar Khalifeh: "Caught between Western oppression and Islamic fundamentalist suppression" at the Centre for Palestine Studies, SOAS University of LondonInterview with Palestinian American writer Susan Abulhawa: ″Literature is a facet of society″
Iranian author Shahriar Mandanipour (source: author’s Facebook profile)

Book review: "Moon Brow" by Shahriar Mandanipour

The angels of war

Over ten years after the publication of "Censoring an Iranian Love Story", Shahriar Mandanipour's latest novel, "Moon Brow", is now available in German translation. This is a story about the loss of youth, the horrors of war and a land in the iron grip of dictatorship. By Gerrit WustmannMore

Book review: Nava Ebrahimi’s "Das Paradies meines Nachbarn": The scars of warInterview with the Iranian writer Abbas Maroufi: ″Self-censorship is the worst″Contemporary Iranian literature: Reading outside the box
"Holy Quarter" installation and presentation by Monira al-Qadiri, 2019 in Munich's Haus der Kunst (photo: Maximilian Geuter/HdK)

Kuwaiti artist Monira al-Qadiri

In awe of the cosmos

With "Holy Quarter" by Monira al-Qadiri, Munich’s Haus der Kunst gallery is showing a work by one of the Gulf region’s most significant contemporary artists, in an exhibition that runs until the beginning of June. By Claudia MendeMore

Arts and culture in the Gulf region: The end of toleranceAn Arab reading of the Palestinian artist Mona Hatoum: Tea with the bogeymanInterview with Malaysian artist Nadiah Bamadhaj: Freeing the body from conservatism
more Culture »

In brief

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Most Recent Photo Essay

Strangers in their own country: Ivory Coast is home to 62 different ethnic groups, including the Peuls. But many don't have Ivorian citizenship because the government demands that at least one of their parents were born here – difficult to prove without proper documents. Without Ivorian citizenship, they can't open a bank account or get a driver's licence, leaving many Peuls feeling like foreigners in their own country

Ivory Coast: a slow rebirth

After its independence from France, the Ivory Coast was called the "Miracle of Africa" for its religious and ethnic harmony. But the dynamic country still faces many challenges. By Eric Lafforgue

A world re-drawn: Egypt historian Khaled Fahmy sees rising surveillance state

Egyptian historian Khaled Fahmy (source: khaledfahmy.org)

State surveillance is on the rise globally as governments such as Egypt's take advantage of the coronavirus pandemic, warns exiled historian and intellectual Khaled Fahmy.More

Remembering the author and sociologist Albert Memmi

Tunisian-French publicist and writer Albert Memmi

The Tunisian-French author and sociologist Albert Memmi died last week at the age of 99. His life's work on de-colonisation, emigration and displacement remains highly relevant.More

Thousands facing hunger and homelessness in Lebanon

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered businesses across the country, Lebanon’s economy was in dire straits. At the end of 2019, 45 percent of Lebanese were living in poverty, according to the World Bank. Soon that’s estimated to become more than 75 percent.More

Online magazine Mada Masr

"Yesterday's cartoon" by Andeel (source: Mada Masr)

The Egyptian online magazine "Mada Masr" is a progressive independent medium that was founded after the Arabellion in 2011. It publishes news, commentaries, essays and photo galleries in English and Arabic.More

Indian author Arundhati Roy: "Coronavirus exposes infirmities, weaknesses, prejudices"

Acclaimed author and political activist Arundhati Roy addresses the coronavirus pandemic and the Indian response. On the post-pandemic world, she tells us that if we were "sleepwalking" into a surveillance state before, we're now "panic running".More

"Anwar R was part of Assad’s oppression system"

Defendant Anwar Raslan arriving in court in Koblenz, Germany (photo: AFP/T. Lohnes)

Statement given by Wolfgang Kaleck, general secretary of the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights on the ongoing Syria torture trial in Germany.More

HRW details IS group’s "abyss of horror" in northern Syria

Human Rights Watch released details of a mass grave in Al-Hota gorge in northern Syria, in a report published on 4 May. The NGO said that the so-called Islamic State (IS) group was responsible, and has called for further investigations into this pit of death.More

The COVID-19 pandemic: neither turning point nor overall determinant in Syria

Devastation in Idlib (photo: Getty Images/O. H. Kadour)

In war-torn Syria, the coronavirus pandemic is most likely to turn out to be one of a number of intervening factors affecting co-operation formats, military strength, power balance, and prospects for stabili­sation.More

Reporters Without Borders: 2020 World Press Freedom Index

Reporters Without Borders: 2020 World Press Freedom Index (source: rsf.org)

This year's World Press Freedom Index demonstrates the great personal risk journalists are exposed to in many countries around the world. Added to the expected dangers of reporting from dictatorships and increasingly brazen authoritarian regimes, countries with democratically elected presidents are also presenting increasing problems.More