U.S.-Turkey relations in 2021
Biden and Erdogan – how much carrot, how much stick?
Arrest of EIPR human rights activists in Egypt
My friend Gasser Abdel Razek, the "terrorist"
Exclusive – Germany's universal jurisdiction
The chances of indicting Syria's Assad for war crimes
Omid Nouripour
Taking a stand against the "overemphasis of difference"

U.S.-Turkey relations in 2021

Biden and Erdogan – how much carrot, how much stick?

Initial statements by the Biden administration indicate it will follow a carrot and stick policy towards Turkey. Ankara believes its role in negotiations on various issues could strengthen its hand when it comes to ties with the new man in the White House. Ayse Karabat reports from IstanbulRead more

U.S. policy on the Middle East: The imperial reflexTurkey′s Syrian offensive: A war of America′s makingMask diplomacy and power politics: Erdogan's foreign policy in the shadow of coronavirus

Arrest of EIPR human rights activists in Egypt

My friend Gasser Abdel Razek, the "terrorist"

In Egypt, several human rights activists working for the EIPR – Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights – were arrested recently following a meeting with EU ambassadors. One of them is Gasser Abdel Razek, a long-time friend of Middle East correspondent Karim El-Gawhary. In this highly personal report, El-Gawhary writes about his friend’s detentionRead more

Unrest in the Arab world: The genie is out of the bottleArab response to Trump's Jerusalem decision: Walking a fine linePortrait of the Egyptian Lawyer Gamal Eid: ''Revolutions aren't led by polite people''

Exclusive – Germany's universal jurisdiction

The chances of indicting Syria's Assad for war crimes

Investigations by German federal prosecutors into the evidence of chemical warfare in Syria are ongoing. Deutsche Welle and Der Spiegel gained exclusive access to witnesses and documents that form part of the landmark inquiry. By Lewis Sanders IV, Birgitta Schulke-Gill & Julia BayerRead more

Charges against Bashar al-Assad: His turn will comeRiad Seif’s testimony at the Syrian torture trial in Germany: A Syrian opposition legend speaks outAssad's crimes against his own people: Syrian ex-secret police stand trial in Germany

Spotlight on bridge-builders: Omid Nouripour

Taking a stand against the "overemphasis of difference"

Omid Nouripour fled Iran for Germany with his family at the age of 13. Today, he is foreign policy spokesman for Germany’s Green Party. He argues that societal differences should be seen as potential and vehicles for peace in foreign policymaking. Profile by Ceyda Nurtsch for Qantara.deRead more

The death of George Floyd and endemic discrimination: It's time to replace "race" in the German constitutionAfter the Islamist attacks in France and Austria: "Placing Muslims under general suspicion is not the solution"Germany′s Islam debate: For all our freedoms!Discrimination in schools: Better marks without a headscarf

Politics

Gasser Abdel Razek is a prominent human rights activist and director of EIPR human rights organisation in Egypt (photo: private)

Arrest of EIPR human rights activists in Egypt

My friend Gasser Abdel Razek, the "terrorist"

In Egypt, several human rights activists working for the EIPR – Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights – were arrested recently following a meeting with EU ambassadors. One of them is Gasser Abdel Razek, a long-time friend of Middle East correspondent Karim El-Gawhary. In this highly personal report, El-Gawhary writes about his friend’s detentionMore

Unrest in the Arab world: The genie is out of the bottleArab response to Trump's Jerusalem decision: Walking a fine linePortrait of the Egyptian Lawyer Gamal Eid: ''Revolutions aren't led by polite people''
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, left, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speak to the media after a meeting in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday, 24 August 2016 (photo: picture alliance/AP Images/K. Ozer)

U.S.-Turkey relations in 2021

Biden and Erdogan – how much carrot, how much stick?

Initial statements by the Biden administration indicate it will follow a carrot and stick policy towards Turkey. Ankara believes its role in negotiations on various issues could strengthen its hand when it comes to ties with the new man in the White House. Ayse Karabat reports from IstanbulMore

U.S. policy on the Middle East: The imperial reflexTurkey′s Syrian offensive: A war of America′s makingMask diplomacy and power politics: Erdogan's foreign policy in the shadow of coronavirus
Shadows of Syrians are reflected on a giant poster showing President Bashar Assad, during a supporting rally in Damascus, Syria, Friday, 16 December 2011 (photo: AP Photo/Muzaffar Salman)

Exclusive – Germany's universal jurisdiction

The chances of indicting Syria's Assad for war crimes

Investigations by German federal prosecutors into the evidence of chemical warfare in Syria are ongoing. Deutsche Welle and Der Spiegel gained exclusive access to witnesses and documents that form part of the landmark inquiry. By Lewis Sanders IV, Birgitta Schulke-Gill & Julia BayerMore

Charges against Bashar al-Assad: His turn will comeRiad Seif’s testimony at the Syrian torture trial in Germany: A Syrian opposition legend speaks outAssad's crimes against his own people: Syrian ex-secret police stand trial in Germany
Hatice Cengiz, fiancee of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, arrives before a screening of the documentary movie "The Dissident" by director Bryan Fogel at the 16th Zurich Film Festival (ZFF) in Zurich, Switzerland, 2 October 2020 (photo: REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann)

DW documentary on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi

Seeking answers to a heinous crime

Did the Saudi state plan the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi? Was Khashoggi so much of a threat to the Saudi regime that it was prepared to commit a terrible crime to get rid of him?More

The Khashoggi aftermath: The inconvenient truth about Saudi ArabiaThe killing of Khashoggi: Letting Mohammed bin Salman off the hookA year to the day: The infamous murder of Jamal KhashoggiRepression against journalists: A world of Khashoggis
more Politics »

Society

Palestinian children in Burj Barajneh, Lebanon (photo: Stephen McCloskey)

Coronavirus in the Middle East

"Pandemic of poverty" for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon

Social and economic upheaval in Lebanon in 2020 has deepened and magnified the poverty of Palestinian refugees. The country's "forgotten" Palestinians are bereft of international support and almost totally dependent on UNRWA. Lifting the restrictions on their economic status would help. By Stephen McCloskeyMore

Lebanon after the explosion: Beirut's aftermath – shattering as 15 years of civil warBeirut on the brink: Regardless of corona, Lebanon is at economic breaking pointSocial inequality in the Arab world: There is no state in Lebanon
Afghan police guard an entrance to the university in Kabul (photo: Rahmat Gul/picture-alliance/AP Photo)

Afghanistan’s academics under fire

Must young Afghans be willing to die for an education?

The latest attack on Kabul University left staff and students feeling desperate and vulnerable. An international letter of solidarity aims to express support for the academic community, who continue to instruct and study under conditions of war, violence and insecurity. By Marian BrehmerMore

Afghanistan's decline and long search for peace: A slide into war and chaosAfghanistanʹs political future: Is peace with the Taliban possible?Women in Afghanistan: In prison for being raped
Omid Nouripour, foreign policy spokesman for Germany's Green Party (photo: Getty Images/S. Gallup)

Spotlight on bridge-builders: Omid Nouripour

Taking a stand against the "overemphasis of difference"

Omid Nouripour fled Iran for Germany with his family at the age of 13. Today, he is foreign policy spokesman for Germany’s Green Party. He argues that societal differences should be seen as potential and vehicles for peace in foreign policymaking. Profile by Ceyda Nurtsch for Qantara.deMore

The death of George Floyd and endemic discrimination: It's time to replace "race" in the German constitutionAfter the Islamist attacks in France and Austria: "Placing Muslims under general suspicion is not the solution"Germany′s Islam debate: For all our freedoms!Discrimination in schools: Better marks without a headscarf
Palestinian refugees collect aid parcels at a United Nations food distribution centre in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, January 2018 (photo: picture-alliance/Zuma/A. Amra)

Humanitarian aid in the Middle East

UN agency for Palestinian refugees faces imminent collapse

Financial woes had been part and parcel of UNRWA's work for years. In 2018, however, President Donald Trump dealt the organisation a deadly blow, deferring payment of U.S. yearly contributions of more than $300 million. Now the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees is facing insolvency. Financial aid for millions of refugees is at risk. By Kersten KnippMore

USA cancels aid to Palestinian aid agency: UNRWA Washington's penchant for moving the goalpostsCOVID-19 pandemic: Coronavirus and the face masks made in GazaInterview with Palestinian human rights activist Mahmoud Abu Rahma: "We are alive, but we donʹt have a life"UNRWA photo exhibition: "The Long Journey": The long journey into uncertainty
more Society »

Culture

Kurdish singer Aynur Dogan performing live on stage in Cologne, Germany, June 2014 (photo: Raimond Spekking/ CC BY-Sa 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons))

Album review: Aynur Dogan’s "Hedur"

Finding solace in the sounds of home

For years, singer Aynur Dogan has preserved and expanded the possibilities of traditional Kurdish music, lending a voice to her people. She has just released her seventh studio album. By Marian BrehmerMore

Interview with Kurdish singer Aynur Dogan: Resisting the windThe Kurdish people: Nishtiman music project: Transcending what dividesKurdish art rock band Adir Jan: Rainbow's hope in hell
Lebanese singer Fairuz (photo: Jospeh Eid /AFP/Getty Images)

Lebanese singer Fairuz

The "grande dame" of Arab music turns 85

Revered as "Mother of the Lebanese Nation" and "Harp of the Orient", Fairuz is a legend all over the Arab World. Now she is celebrating her 85th birthday. By Suzanne CordsMore

New drive against dissidents: The Greek tragedy that is SyriaQantara dossier: Arab musicLegendary oud player and singer Sheikh Imam: Egypt's musical rebel
Sudanese author Leila Aboulela (photo: Judy Laing)

Interview with Sudanese-Egyptian writer Leila Aboulela

The challenge of identity in a non-monochrome world

Recently translated into German, "Minaret" tells the story of a young Sudanese woman exiled in London who finds refuge in Islam. Award-winning author Leila Aboulela talks to Anna-Theresa Bachmann about her work, Muslim immigrants in the UK and the recent Sudanese revolutionMore

Book review: Leila Aboulela's "Bird Summons": The arc of self-discoveryBook review: "The Kindness of Enemies" by Leila Aboulela: Crises of identity and loyalty from Scotland to the CaucasusHorn of Africa: Give Sudan's fledgling democracy the support it deserves!
47Soul live on stage: the Shamstep party can begin (photo: picture-alliance/dpa/Esteban Martinena Guerrero)

Shamstep, dabke and the Palestinian cause

47Soul – a band without borders

While Palestinian political concerns are largely ignored these days, Palestinian band of the moment 47Soul is taking the Middle East's music scene by storm. By Daniel BaxMore

Album review: Reem Kelani′s ″Live at the Tabernacle″: Cultivating fusionInterview with Hamed Sinno, frontman of Mashrou’ Leila: Flouting Arab pop conventionDAM – Palestinian Hip Hop: "We Are the Sugar Hill Gang of Palestine!"Qantara dossier: Musical worlds
more Culture »

In brief

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Most Recent Photo Essay

Street food from North Africa: Koshary, also called Kushari, is available on every street corner in Egypt. Oriental spices and white wine vinegar give it its unmistakable flavour. And another essential ingredient are caramelised onions. Michael Landeck experimented for six months – only then was he satisfied with his Koshary

Oriental street food: the Koshary Lux in Berlin

Koshary is probably the most popular street food in Cairo. The Egyptian national dish, which consists of chickpeas, noodles, lentils, rice and tomato sauce, also lends its name to Michael Landeck's Berlin restaurant. By Lena Ganssmann

Palestinian rights and the IHRA definition of antisemitism

"The portrayal of the BDS campaign as anti-Semitic is a gross distortion of what is fundamentally a legitimate non-violent means of struggle for Palestinian rights" (photo: GALI TIBBON/AFP/Getty Images)

A group of 122 Palestinian and Arab academics, journalists and intellectuals express their concerns about the definition of anti-Semitism as propagated by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), and the way this definition has been applied, interpreted and deployed in several countries of Europe and North America.More

Found on YouTube: the "Ask an Israeli/Ask a Palestininan" project

Canadian-Israeli Corey Gil-Shuster has been studying and working on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for over 20 years. His YouTube project "Ask an Israeli/Ask a Palestinian" asks random Palestinians and Israelis to answer viewers' questions. The goal is to promote a better understanding of the conflict from the peoples' perspective.More

France24: Middle East readies for end of Trump era

It's hard to think of a more symbolically provocative final act. Mike Pompeo's farewell tour of Israel included the Golan Heights and a settlement in the West Bank. Such trips have never previously been made by a U.S. Secretary of State. We ask about Trump's legacy in the Middle East and what might come next. Will anything change under a Biden administration?More

ARTE documentary on the Kurds

The Kurds are the most populous state group without a state. For centuries larger powers have stopped the Kurds from realising their dream. What future for this mountain people?More

"Europe's Muslims are European. Stop outsourcing their plight to foreign leaders"

European Muslim women (photo: picture-alliance/dpa)

For EU leaders to seek solutions abroad to end prejudice against millions of their own citizens is insulting and meaningless, argues Shada Islam for The Guardian.More

Deadline extension for Germany's IPS Programme for Arabs: 1 December 2020

International Parliamentary Scholarship - Programme for Arab Countries

The International Parliamentary Scholarship Programme for Arab (IPS) countries offered by the German Bundestag affords young and talented Arab graduates the opportunity to get to know the German parliamentary system.More

Women for Women International: Afghanistan

With regard to gender justice, men – particularly in patriarchal societies – are central to long-term and sustainable change. Specific training courses broach taboo topics and question deep-seated ideas in a socio-cultural context. In Afghanistan, 99% of male graduates included in the 2016 sample were positive about the role of women in family decision-making, compared to only 24% at enrolment.More

Nagorno-Karabakh: who benefits from the Russian-brokered peace?

Armenia and Azerbaijan settled for a Russian-brokered peace deal over the contested Nagorno-Karabakh region. Who does the peace settlement favour, and what does the future hold for Nagorno-Karabakh?More

25-26 Nov. & 4 Dec.: Virtual conference – Europe engulfed in the Gulf?

Map of Middle East with national flags (source: Evangelische Akademie Loccum)

Hosted by the Protestant Academy in Loccum, Germany, the conference will elaborate on Europe’s future role in the Gulf region and the policy fields the EU and its member states could address in future to contribute to a more stable, peaceful, and prosperous region.More

Why no-one could save James Le Mesurier, co-founder of the White Helmets

BBC advertising for Intrigue's podcast series on James Le Mesurier, co-founder of the White Helmets (source: BBC Sounds)

James Le Mesurier's body was found in the early hours of 11 November 2019, on the cobblestones of Ali Pasha Street on the West side of Istanbul, Turkey. In death, the co-founder of the White Helmets left behind a tangled knot of truth and lies. Untangling that knot would mean finding out who he really was and how he came to die. It’s a story which goes to the heart of a very modern war.More