Islamisation, a racist conspiracy theory
The hatred of Hanau and its enablers
Sectarian strife in Pakistan
Syria's proxy war widens gulf between Sunnis and Shias
UAE and Sheikh Maktoum under pressure
Dubai's double standards – where is Princess Latifa?
Yassin al-Haj Saleh on the Arab Spring
"The Syrian revolution is resumable today and tomorrow"
The Hazara Shia minority has been terrorised by Sunni extremists for years.

Sectarian strife in Pakistan

Syria's proxy war widens gulf between Sunnis and Shias

After a period of relative calm, the conflict in Syria is reigniting the tensions between Sunni and Shia Muslims in Pakistan: groups from both sects are involved in the clashes in Syria. The authorities fear a new wave of sectarian violence. Background by Mohammad LuqmanRead more

Islam in Pakistan: The myth of the Muslim monolithThe Baloch community in Pakistan and Iran: A forgotten conflict that is very much aliveIranian scholars in exile: The Shia shakedownRadicalisation among Barelvis in Pakistan: The spread of violent fanaticism
"All the windows have bars."

UAE and Sheikh Maktoum under pressure

Dubai's double standards – where is Princess Latifa?

The United Arab Emirates' carefully administered public image is taking a different turn. Growing calls for evidence that Princess Latifa is alive reflect the Emirate's double standards on human rights. Jennifer Holleis reportsRead more

Women's liberation in the Gulf: Arab women – fighting for their rights for 60 yearsPanama Paper revelations: The Emirs of PanamaConfronting social taboos in the Gulf: Emirates talk show host Anas Bukhash lays it on the lineHamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum: Dubai′s fairytale prince
Syrian writer and political dissident Yassin al-Haj Saleh was imprisoned in Syria from 1980 to 1996 for membership of the left-wing Syrian communist party, which he calls a "communist pro-democracy” group. Having fled the country in 2015, Saleh is now a fellow at Berlin Institute for Advanced Study (Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin).

Yassin al-Haj Saleh on the Arab Spring's revolutionary legacy

"The Syrian revolution is resumable today and tomorrow"

On the 10th anniversary of the Arab Spring we can’t quite escape that substance called remembrance. Yet, eschewing facile modes of nostalgic remembrance and/or tragic lamentation, we opt for asking questions. Yassin Al-Hajj Saleh reflectsRead more

The Syrian revolution: Girding the forces of changeInterview with Syrian dissident Yassin al-Haj Saleh: The West's lamentable myopiaYassin al-Haj Saleh's "The Impossible Revolution": The "Syrianisation" of the world

Politics

Syrian dissident and political analyst Yassin al-Haj Saleh (photo: Maizar Matar)

Yassin al-Haj Saleh on the Arab Spring's revolutionary legacy

"The Syrian revolution is resumable today and tomorrow"

On the 10th anniversary of the Arab Spring we can’t quite escape that substance called remembrance. Yet, eschewing facile modes of nostalgic remembrance and/or tragic lamentation, we opt for asking questions. Yassin Al-Hajj Saleh reflectsMore

The Syrian revolution: Girding the forces of changeInterview with Syrian dissident Yassin al-Haj Saleh: The West's lamentable myopiaYassin al-Haj Saleh's "The Impossible Revolution": The "Syrianisation" of the world
Protests in Kabul against attacks on the Hazara minority in Pakistan (photo: Reuters)

Sectarian strife in Pakistan

Syria's proxy war widens gulf between Sunnis and Shias

After a period of relative calm, the conflict in Syria is reigniting the tensions between Sunni and Shia Muslims in Pakistan: groups from both sects are involved in the clashes in Syria. The authorities fear a new wave of sectarian violence. Background by Mohammad LuqmanMore

Islam in Pakistan: The myth of the Muslim monolithThe Baloch community in Pakistan and Iran: A forgotten conflict that is very much aliveIranian scholars in exile: The Shia shakedownRadicalisation among Barelvis in Pakistan: The spread of violent fanaticism
One year after the attack in Hanau: under the Friedensbruecke bridge in Frankfurt, a 27-metre-long memorial graffiti commemorates the victims of the Hanau attack on 19 February 2020 (photo: picture alliance / greatif / Florian Gaul)

Podcast on the Hanau terrorist attack one year on

"From 1990 to 2020 Germany's far right killed about 200 people"

On 19 February 2020, a right-wing terrorist murdered nine people in the German city of Hanau: Gokhan Gultekin, Sedat Gurbuz, Said Nesar Hashemi, Mercedes Kierpacz, Hamza Kurtovic, Vili Viorel Paun, Fatih Saracoglu, Ferhat Unvar und Kaloyan Velkov. Journalists Sham Jaff and Aline Jabarine talk to Schayan Riaz about the ongoing search for answersMore

Racist attack on Hanau: Not the only Nazi ideologue...Racist terror in Germany: ʺNever againʺ? Let’s hope so!Right-wing extremism: Halle, Christchurch… a network of "lone wolves"Protecting children from anti-Muslim racism: Stand up to the hate
France: Café A La Bonne Biere – grief following the Paris attacks (photo: Getty Images/AFP/K. Tribouillard)

Germany and the discussion surrounding "Political Islam"

Berlin 2021 is not Tehran 1979

Several media reports in recent weeks have focused on the potential threat presented by Islamist groups in Germany. The discourse is fraught with generalisations, both sides accusing the other of their inability to differentiate, writes Tayfun GuttstadtMore

France, terrorism and identity politics: Emmanuel Macron's determination to pick the wrong battleEssay by Islam expert Gilles Kepel: The new jihad and its mentorsInterview with French extremism researcher Olivier Roy: ″Radicalisation is not the result of failed integration″Radicalisation debate: The exclusion of European Muslims nurtures IslamistsThe scourge of sectarianism: Obstinate mass suicide
more Politics »

Society

The "Initiative 19. Februar" displays photos of the nine victims of the Hanau attack on its walls (photo: Lisa Hänsel/DW)

Islamisation, a racist conspiracy theory

The hatred of Hanau and its enablers

The Hanau terror attack showed just how dangerous racist conspiracy theories can be. And yet it is a threat that continues to be underestimated. Commentary by Daniel BaxMore

Non-fiction: ″Angst ums Abendland″ by Daniel Bax: The apocalyptics of the WestIslam and the West: What Islamisation?Radical critics of Islam and Islamophobia: Denying the individuality of minority membersFresh dispute over Islam: Why the German media are courting the anti-Islam movement
Attendees sit in the pews at the Chaldean Catholic Church of the Assumption of Mary in Iraq's capital Baghdad on 8 December 2020 (photo: AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images)

Preparing for Pope Francis' visit

The scant remains of Iraq's ancient Christian community

Some fled after the U.S.-led invasion, others during sectarian bloodshed and more following jihadist attacks. Iraq's last two violent decades have hollowed out its Christian community which dates back two millennia.More

Christians in Iraq: Between the frontsChristians in Iraq: Coping with wrack and ruinCOVID-19 in Iraq: Working under the coronavirus curfew in Baghdad
Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed al Maktoum (photo: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Detained in Dubai)

UAE and Sheikh Maktoum under pressure

Dubai's double standards – where is Princess Latifa?

The United Arab Emirates' carefully administered public image is taking a different turn. Growing calls for evidence that Princess Latifa is alive reflect the Emirate's double standards on human rights. Jennifer Holleis reportsMore

Women's liberation in the Gulf: Arab women – fighting for their rights for 60 yearsPanama Paper revelations: The Emirs of PanamaConfronting social taboos in the Gulf: Emirates talk show host Anas Bukhash lays it on the lineHamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum: Dubai′s fairytale prince
Yemen air strike on Sanaa (photo: Getty Images/AFP/M. Huwais)

Interview with Yemen expert Marie-Christine Heinze

"Now is the time to start preparing for reconstruction"

Islam scholar and social anthropologist Marie-Christine Heinze is head of an academic exchange project with the University of Sanaa on "Post-conflict Reconstruction in Yemen". In conversation with Elisa Rheinheimer-Chabbi, she talks about weapons from Germany, crucial reforms and why Yemeni women are the ones healing social riftsMore

Omitted from the United Nations' list of shame: Yemen's dead and injured children haunt Saudi-led warBearing the brunt of the war: Yemeni families in dire straitsWomen's rights in Yemen: Making the most of the space availableNobel Peace Prize Laureate Tawakkul Karman: "We need to bring back the Arab Spring!"
more Society »

Culture

Qawwali performance at a Sufi festival in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad (photo: Marian Brehmer)

Sufi musik: Qawwali ensemble "Fanna-fi-Allah"

Searching for God's love

Fanna-fi-Allah is the West's most renowned Qawwali ensemble. It stands out not only for its strong stage presence, but also for its commitment to preserving the centuries-old tradition. By Marian BrehmerMore

Sufi music under attack in Pakistan: As the sea of love recedes"At the Shrine of the Red Sufi": A fascination with divine ecstasy"Music of the Mystics": Qawwali documentary seriesNew music from Pakistan: A captivating mix of sounds
Art historian Wendy Shaw (photo: Bernd Wannenmacher)

"What is Islamic art?" with art historian Wendy Shaw

What is art, when the primary sensory organ is the heart?

How can we truly appreciate the richness of cultures not our own? In her recent book "What is Islamic art? Between religion and perception", art historian Wendy Shaw explains the need to abandon our vision-centred perception of art and the aesthetic, embarking instead on a multi-sensory voyage of discovery. Interview by Lucy JamesMore

Islamic art: Iconoclasm – the counter-narrativeProfessor Nasser Kanani on the Persian poet Hafez: "The joyful audacity of his spirit, the melody of his poetry"Album review: Kudsi Erguner's “La Melancolie Royale”: Ney music with a mission
Cover section of Amjad Nasser's poetry anthology "Shepherd of Solitude" (published by Banipal)

Book review: Amjad Nasser's "Land of No Rain"

A milestone of modern Arabic literature

Jordanian author Amjad Nasser, who died in 2019, presents an impressive tale of homelands, life in exile and the hardships of returning home. His profound eloquence and use of experimental literary forms make “Land of No Rain” a landmark publication in modern Arabic literature, writes Martina Sabra in her review for QantaraMore

Novelist and critic Elias Khoury: The nightmare of realityQantara dossier: Arabic literature Amjad Nasser on the role of Arab writers in Arab society: Speaking out in societies without wordsBook review: Stefan Weidner's ʺ1001 Books. The Literatures of the Orientʺ: The Middle East – a rich vein of world literature
Algeria: Young people protest against an ossified system (photo: picture-alliance/abaca/L. Ammi)

Book review: Kaouther Adimi’s "December Kids"

Algeria's younger generation rebels

In her third and most recent novel, Paris-based Algerian author Kaouther Adimi writes almost prophetically about a rebellion by a handful of children against the rigid and outdated system in her home country. Claudia Kramatschek read the book for QantaraMore

Interview with human rights activist Rabah Arkam: Algeria's protesters continue their "Revolution of Smiles"Kamel Daoud’s novel "Zabor": Algeria and a patriarch's dying throesLiterature and collective trauma in Algeria: Moving beyond the examination of historyDemocracy in the Maghreb: Tebboune's 'New Algeria' looks a lot like the old Algeria
more Culture »

In brief

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Most Recent Photo Essay

Dhaka: Rickshaw capital of the world

Urban transport concepts in the global South, often promoted by organisations such as the World Bank, aim to encourage motorised private transport – at the expense of non-motorised forms, which have proven cheap and environmentally friendly there over the past century. In Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, bans are being imposed on bicycle rickshaws on more and more roads. By Dominik Müller

ARTE documentary: Ataturk and Erdogan – fathers of Turkey

Turkey’s history has been shaped by two major figures: Mustafa Kemal, known as ‘Atatürk’ (Father of the Turks), Westerniser and founder of the modern state, and current president Recip Tayyip Erdogan wanting to restore Turkey’s Ottoman era dominance.More

Repatriating the children of Islamic State

Some 200 children​ of French jihadists​ are spending their fourth winter in muddy tents at al-Roj camp in northeastern Syria. Since the defeat of IS, France​ has repatriated 35 children, yet mothers are barred from returning. As a result, some prefer to keep their children with them, while others have made the difficult choice to let them go.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

Israelis emerge from COVID-19 lockdown

With nearly 50 percent of the population already vaccinated against COVID-19, Israelis began emerging from lockdown on Sunday, Schools and shopping centres reopened, as did gyms, for those who have been vaccinated.More

ARTE documentary: Yemen – a complex history

The country on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula was once known as Happy Arabia, a wealthy, fertile land which was the home of the Queen of Sheba in ancient times. Today Yemen is in blighted by a long-running civil war due to a complex past and present.More

Is 'European Islam' the future of Western Muslim identity?

Extract of the cover of Mohammed Hashas "The Idea of European Islam" (published by Routledge)

In his new study, Mohammed Hashas makes a major contribution to the debate about Muslim identities in Europe by surveying the thoughts of some leading thinkers.More

Will the Islamic Republic ever get a female president?

Faezeh Hashemi, daughter of former Iranian president Rafsanjani (photo: Atta Kenare/AFP/Getty Images

Iran's social media was buzzing in January when, Faezeh Hashemi, daughter of Iran’s former President Rafsanjani gave a controversial interview, striking a chord with many Iranians.More

Mourid Barghouti: Leading Palestinian poet dies aged 77

Palestinian poet Mourid Barghouti (photo: Abutamim, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

Leading Palestinian poet Mourid Barghouti has died at the age of 77. Born four years before the state of Israel was created in a village near Ramallah, Barghouti spent much of his life in one form or other of exile – which he recounted in the memoir "I Saw Ramallah", described by fellow Palestinian writer Edward Said as one of the finest accounts of Palestinian displacement.More