Interview with Bassel Salloukh
Will a new Lebanon arise from the ashes of Beirut?
Amman and The Teachers' Syndicate
Free speech for everybody? Not so in Jordan, apparently
Elias Khoury in interview
Beirut's ruling class – "The stupidest mafia there is"
Aziz Binebine's "Tazmamart"
We were robbed of our health, our youth and our innocence

Interview with Lebanese political scientist Bassel Salloukh

Will a new Lebanon arise from the ashes of Beirut?

The explosions in Beirut killed more than 150 people, injured 6,000 and left 250,000 homeless. In interview with Julia Neumann, political scientist Bassel Salloukh talks about the consequences of this tragedy, the worsening political crisis – and the nature of political reality in Lebanon as the government slowly unravelsRead more

Lebanese author Elias Khoury in interview: Beirut's ruling class – "The stupidest mafia there is"A toxic combination of sectarianism and rentierism: Lebanon's perfect stormBeirut in crisis: Can things get any worse for the people of Lebanon?

Amman and The Teachers' Syndicate

Free speech for everybody? Not so in Jordan, apparently

In recent weeks, Jordan's social media has been awash with photos and videos of demonstrators gathering in cities all over the country, chanting "Long live the teacher" and "we will not be silenced". Mainstream media coverage, however, has been noticeably lacking. By Marta VidalRead more

Protests in Jordan: "The status quo has to go"Protests in Jordan: A small kingdom with big problemsPolitics, inequality and a lack of transparency: Coronavirus and the Middle East's ongoing state of emergency

Lebanese author Elias Khoury in interview

Beirut's ruling class – "The stupidest mafia there is"

Fifty percent of Lebanese already live below the poverty line – and there is no end in sight. In interview with Lena Bopp, writer Elias Khoury talks about the crisis and about the state of culture in his home countryRead more

Beirut residents awake to scenes of devastation after deadly port explosionBeirut on the brink: Regardless of corona, Lebanon is at economic breaking pointNovelist and critic Elias Khoury: The nightmare of reality

Aziz Binebine's "Tazmamart: Eighteen years in Morocco’s secret prison"

We were robbed of our health, our youth and our innocence

Spring 2020 finally saw the publication of Aziz Binebine's Tazmamart memoir in English, translated by Lulu Norman. While it has now been nearly 30 years since the prisoners left their underground cells, Tazmamart remains synonymous both with hidden military prisons and with the terrors of Morocco’s Years of Lead. Marcia Lynx Qualey read the bookRead more

Film review: "Kilikis, the town of owls": The power of reflected sufferingTahar Ben Jelloun: ''The Arab Spring'' – The comfortable way to take part in a revolutionInterview with the Moroccan writer Mahi Binebine: Forging a future

Politics

Protesting in Beirut, Lebanon (photo: Reuters)

Interview with Lebanese political scientist Bassel Salloukh

Will a new Lebanon arise from the ashes of Beirut?

The explosions in Beirut killed more than 150 people, injured 6,000 and left 250,000 homeless. In interview with Julia Neumann, political scientist Bassel Salloukh talks about the consequences of this tragedy, the worsening political crisis – and the nature of political reality in Lebanon as the government slowly unravelsMore

Lebanese author Elias Khoury in interview: Beirut's ruling class – "The stupidest mafia there is"A toxic combination of sectarianism and rentierism: Lebanon's perfect stormBeirut in crisis: Can things get any worse for the people of Lebanon?
Die Detonationen verursachten in der nahen Umgebung eine Trümmerwüste

Aftermath of the Beirut explosion

Lebanon, a state in freefall thanks to corrupt governance

The Beirut catastrophe has exposed the true extent of government failure in Lebanon. People are blaming the country’s corrupt and incompetent system for the explosion, says Karim El-GawharyMore

Beirut in crisis: Can things get any worse for the people of Lebanon?Lebanese author Elias Khoury in interview: Beirut's ruling class – "The stupidest mafia there is"
Lebanese writer and critic Elias Khoury (photo: picture-alliance/AP Photo/B. Hussein)

Lebanese author Elias Khoury in interview

Beirut's ruling class – "The stupidest mafia there is"

Fifty percent of Lebanese already live below the poverty line – and there is no end in sight. In interview with Lena Bopp, writer Elias Khoury talks about the crisis and about the state of culture in his home countryMore

Beirut residents awake to scenes of devastation after deadly port explosionBeirut on the brink: Regardless of corona, Lebanon is at economic breaking pointNovelist and critic Elias Khoury: The nightmare of reality
"Bonaparte before the Sphinx" by Jean-Leon Gerome, 1824 -1904 (source: Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain)

The West and the Middle East

Casting a long shadow – Napoleon's intervention in Egypt

Napoleon Bonaparte’s 1798 invasion of Egypt represented the first modern attempt to incorporate an Islamic society into the European fold. Although the expedition was a military fiasco, it left a lasting legacy in the region. By Alexander MikaberidzeMore

Essay by Adania Shibli: Recalling Edward Said's thought today100 years of Sykes-Picot: "A tapestry of plans and promises"The longest duel: Iran and the USA square off
more Politics »

Society

Teachers taking photos of the demonstration held in Amman on 29 July 2020 to protest the government decision to dissolve the teacher's syndicate and arrest its leaders (photo: Sherbel Dissi)

Amman and The Teachers' Syndicate

Free speech for everybody? Not so in Jordan, apparently

In recent weeks, Jordan's social media has been awash with photos and videos of demonstrators gathering in cities all over the country, chanting "Long live the teacher" and "we will not be silenced". Mainstream media coverage, however, has been noticeably lacking. By Marta VidalMore

Protests in Jordan: "The status quo has to go"Protests in Jordan: A small kingdom with big problemsPolitics, inequality and a lack of transparency: Coronavirus and the Middle East's ongoing state of emergency
A woman stands in an empty tunnel in Amsterdam wearing a black burka (photo: Sanne Derks)

Islam in the Netherlands

Burka ban and face mask laws frustrate Dutch Muslims

One year after the burka ban in the Netherlands, Muslim women are reporting increased discrimination and violence. Adding to the frustration, face masks against coronavirus have become mandatory on Dutch public transport. By Ingrid Gercama and Sanne DerksMore

France's burka ban: Excluding the wrong peopleSalafism in Germany: Iʹll wear a niqab if I wantQantara photo essay: Burka, hijab or niqab? What is she wearing?
Destroyed silo following explosion in Beirut port, 04.08.2020 (photo: Getty Images/AFP/STR)

Beirut in crisis

Can things get any worse for the people of Lebanon?

In Lebanon the economy is going downhill at an ever faster rate. The Lebanese are fighting the dramatic effects of the crisis with barter exchanges and joint projects. Apart from that, all they have left is black humour to endure the situation. Tom Allinson reports from BeirutMore

Lebanese author Elias Khoury in interview: Beirut's ruling class – "The stupidest mafia there is"Social inequality in the Arab world: There is no state in LebanonA toxic combination of sectarianism and rentierism: Lebanon's perfect storm
Christian Mihr, director of Reporters Without Borders Germany (photo: Reporter Ohne Grenzen/Schler)

Press freedom in Turkey

President Erdogan tightens the noose around social media

By massively regulating social media platforms, President Erdogan is trying to silence the remaining critical voices in Turkey, says Christian Mihr of the organisation Reporters Without Borders in his commentaryMore

Coronavirus and press freedom in Turkey: Erdogan's crusade against "all media and political viruses"Violence against journalists increasing: Press freedom under fire in TurkeyTop press rights defender in Turkey court for 'terror propaganda'
more Society »

Culture

Moroccan writer Aziz Binebine, former Tazmamart inmate and brother of Mahi Binebine (source: Twitter)

Aziz Binebine's "Tazmamart: Eighteen years in Morocco’s secret prison"

We were robbed of our health, our youth and our innocence

Spring 2020 finally saw the publication of Aziz Binebine's Tazmamart memoir in English, translated by Lulu Norman. While it has now been nearly 30 years since the prisoners left their underground cells, Tazmamart remains synonymous both with hidden military prisons and with the terrors of Morocco’s Years of Lead. Marcia Lynx Qualey read the bookMore

Film review: "Kilikis, the town of owls": The power of reflected sufferingTahar Ben Jelloun: ''The Arab Spring'' – The comfortable way to take part in a revolutionInterview with the Moroccan writer Mahi Binebine: Forging a future
Kamancheh virtuoso Misagh Joolaee (source: YouTube)

Album review: Misagh Joolaee's "Ferne"

Expanding the horizons of the kamancheh

German-Iranian Misagh Joolaee was recently recognised for widening the scope of playing the Persian spiked fiddle with the German Record Critics’ Award. Mariam Brehmer listened to his new albumMore

Portrait of Iranian musician Kayhan Kalhor: Cultural emissary and grand master of the kamanchehThe Silk Road Ensemble: "The Music of Strangers": A quest for perfect harmonyAlbum review: "Dawar" by Trio Chemirani: A brilliant kaleidoscope of textures
Mohammed Dib (photo: Wikipedia)

Remembering Mohammed Dib

The grand seigneur of French-language Algerian literature

21 July marks the centenary of the birth of Mohammed Dib, one of the founding fathers of French-language Algerian literature. Born in 1920 in Tlemcen, Algeria's national writer spent the greater part of his life in exile. He passed away on 2 May 2003 in the Parisian suburb of La Celle-Saint-Cloud. By Regina Keil-SagaweMore

Book review: Alice Zeniter's "L'Art de perdre": Rediscovering a lost chapter of (family) historyThe Algerian writer Kamel Daoud: Who is the Arab man?Obituary: the Algerian writer Malek Alloula – A prophet unaccepted in his own countryObituary: the Algerian author Assia Djebar – Trailblazer for her country, her gender and her continentLiterature and collective trauma in Algeria: Moving beyond the examination of history
Iranian writer Amir Hassan Cheheltan (photo: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Kumm)

Book review: Amir Hassan Cheheltan's "Der Zirkel der Literaturliebhaber"

A literary cocoon

For decades, lovers of literature would gather at the house of writer Amir Hassan Cheheltan's family to debate classical Persian works – until politics forced its way into the readers' cocoon. By Gerrit WustmannMore

Interview with Iranian author Amir Hassan Cheheltan: "Literature is based on politics and eroticism"Amir Hassan Cheheltan's ''Tehran, Skyless City''; Reflecting the dark side of Iran's capitalIran and its authors: The perils of writing
more Culture »

In brief

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Most Recent Photo Essay

"You won't believe me when I tell you that my main customers for the cross and Faravahar are Muslims," says Mehdi Hazratifard, the shop owner. According to Hazratifard, many Muslims are interested in other religions and like to buy the sacred symbols relating to them

Tehran's Hasan Abad, where four religions co-exist side by side

For about a century, a Mizrahi synagogue, an Armenian church, a Zoroastrian temple and a Shia mosque have been serving their followers in a small neighbourhood in downtown Tehran. By Changiz M. Varzi

Hezbollah: A force to be reckoned with

A terrorist organisation? A militant group? A political party? In this episode of Unpacked we explain everything you need to know about Lebanon's Hezbollah – Iran's ally, Israel's enemy and one of the most powerful actors in the Middle East.More

Who does the Holy Land belong to?

Palestinian children playing football in the Huson Camp in Jordan, 1977 (photo: UNRWA Archive/M. Nasr)

Two German Jews dreaming of living in the Holy Land chose to settle near Bethlehem. Under international law, Israeli settlement activities on Palestinian soil are, however, illegal. What attracted these two Germans, and how do they imagine themselves living with the Palestinians?More

Governor of Beirut Marwan Abboud: "This is like a genocide against the Lebanese people"

In interview with FRANCE 24, the governor of Beirut, Marwan Abboud, talked about the destruction, air pollution, President Macron’s visit and how to protect Lebanese cultural heritage. Asked how the guilty should be punished, the former judge said "harshly", because it is a “Lebanese genocide”.More

The Quint: Kashmir – one year on

5 August 2019 – the day of the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A of the Indian constitution that granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir. One year on, we take a look at the lives of Kashmiris who have lived through almost a year-long lockdown.More

Afghanistan: Women's eloquence

Afghanistan: Women's Eloquence I Screenshot ARTE Documentary

In the most dangerous city in Afghanistan Abdul Wadood Pedram, president of the Human Rights and Eradication of Violence Organization (HREVO), has set up a rhetoric competition for women, a radical move in a highly traditional society.More

Dispute about the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam

For several years, the governments of Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt have been engaged in ongoing negotiations about the building of a massive hydroelectric dam on the Blue Nile in Ethiopia. Egypt, which relies heavily on the Nile as a source of freshwater, fears that the dam could reduce the amount of water flowing downstream. Sudan could benefit from cheap electricity generated by the dam and reduced flooding, but is concerned about the impact on its own dams. Now Ethiopia has started filling the reservoir behind the dam.More

Saving Egypt's Jewish heritage

Two Egyptian women have come together to save the country's lost Jewish heritage. Magda, who is Jewish and Marwa, who is Palestinian and Muslim, meet weekly to clean, rescue and repair books, synagogues and cemeteries.More