Author: Arnold Hottinger

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Voting in Iraq – voters at a Baghdad polling station (photo: ABAH ARAR/AFP/Getty Images)

Parliamentary elections in Iraq

Shifting towards Iran?

At the forthcoming parliamentary poll in Iraq, the question is who will gain the upper hand – pro-Iranian Shias or pro-western forces? A pre-election analysis by Arnold HottingerMore

The Iraq War fifteen years on: "America destroyed my country"Murder and kidnapping in Iraq: An inexorable tideFighting over Kurdish independence: A political fiasco
The Orient in flux: in 1798 Napoleon′s troops landed in Egypt and dealt a stunning blow to the Muslim Mamluks (source: Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images)

Enlightenment in the Islamic world

Refuting the 'westernisation' narrative

In his latest work, essayist and seasoned correspondent Christopher de Bellaigue presents the Islamic world in the 19th century in a new light. His main thrust? The Islamic Middle East did indeed experience its own genuine Enlightenment. By Arnold HottingerMore

Islam and enlightenment: Beware of the myth Interview with Angelika Neuwirth: "The claim that Islam lacks an Enlightenment is an age-old cliche"Volker Perthes: "The end of the Middle East, as we know it": The end of Sykes-Picot?

In brief

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Most Recent Photo Essay

The last "German Khar": Ghulam Mohiuddin is in his late 70s, but he still works every day in his small workshop in Srinagar's Rainawari district, producing and repairing small hospital tools made of iron. Through years of practice, he can make replicas of many small tools used in hospitals

Meet the last of Kashmir's 'German Khar' craftsmen

The ''German Khars'' are a family of craftsmen known in Srinagar for their skills repairing old German-made medical equipment. Their craft has been preserved for decades, but today only one blacksmith continues the work. By Rifat Fareed