Author: Daniel Bax

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South African Muslim theologian Farid Esack (photo: dpa)

Muslim theologian Farid Esack

More than just an "Israel critic"

Some German commentators have labelled the South African theologian Farid Esack an "anti-Semite". But this over-simplification of his views on Israel does little justice to the intellectual and activist, who champions human rights and a liberal reading of Islam, says Daniel BaxMore

Interview with Farid Esack: "Pluralist societies are about give and take"Western involvement in the Middle East: A rotten legacyQantara dossier: "Reform Islam"
Meeting of right-wing political parties in Koblenz, Germany, on 21 January 2017: Geert Wilders (left), Marine Le Pen (centre) and Frauke Petry (right) (photo: AP)

The rise of right-wing populism in Europe

A continent divided

The rise of right-wing populism is throwing Europe off-balance. The impacts on policies concerning migration, inclusion and asylum are already evident. In many European countries, right-wing propaganda is calling into question achievements such as the freedom of religion, free movement for EU citizens and the right of asylum. By Daniel BaxMore

Franco-German relations: Brothers in arms?Right-wing populism in the USA: Trump′s deplorablesNine Muslims on right-wing populism: Should I stay or should I go?
Police line faces those exiting Cologne main railway station on New Year′s Eve 2016 (photo: Getty Images)

′Nafri′ debate after New Year's Eve in Cologne

In the white bubble

Criticising racist police checks should be a civic duty in Germany. Instead, the critics are now being vilified. A commentary by Daniel Bax.More

Cologne: sexual assaults and the press code: Outrage reaches new heightsA Muslim woman speaks out on exclusion: "Returning to the Dark Ages"Non-fiction: ″Angst ums Abendland″ by Daniel Bax: The apocalyptics of the West
Hatice Durmaz, president of the Council of Muslim Students and Academics in Germany, RAMSA (photo: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Charisius)Hatice Durmaz, president of the Council of Muslim Students and Academics in Germany, RAMSA (photo: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Charisius)

A Muslim woman speaks out on exclusion

"Returning to the Dark Ages"

She is devoted to the struggle against anti-Muslim racism. Hatice Durmaz speaks out on hatred that has become socially acceptable, right-wing populists and hostility in German universitiesMore

"An expression of institutional Islamophobia"Interview with the political scientist Farid Hafez "An expression of institutional Islamophobia"Racism in Germany: The taint of PEGIDA journalismQantara dossier: Islam in Germany
Refugee in Idomeni (photo: Reuters/S. Nenov)

EU-Turkey deal

The alternative is Idomeni

Instead of mocking Merkel as a "pushover", those concerned with the welfare of refugees would do better to throw their weight behind realising her plan. Otherwise, we could see Europe adopting the Victor Orban model, the consequences of which can already been seen. Commentary by Daniel BaxMore

Juergen Habermas awarded Kluge Prize for Philosophy: ″Asylum is a human right″The refugee debate: What makes us German?Migration and human rights: Refugee versus migrant: what's in a name?
Police presence in front of the main station in Cologne (photo: Reuters/W. Rattay)

Cologne: sexual assaults and the press code

Outrage reaches new heights

Reports on the sexual attacks on New Year's Eve in Cologne have intentionally emphasised the ethnic origins of the offenders. With what reason? A commentary by Daniel BaxMore

Non-fiction: ″Angst ums Abendland″ by Daniel Bax: The apocalyptics of the WestRacism in Germany: The taint of PEGIDA journalismA year on, Germany's PEGIDA radicalised by refugee influx
Women in Berlin protesting against the Paris attacks, January 2015 (photo: dpa)

Terrorism debate

The distortion of Islam

Why do terrorists such as those involved in the Paris attacks cite Islam as their motivation? Their actions have nothing in common with what most Muslims believe. By Daniel BaxMore

On Raif Badawi, Charlie Hebdo and non-violent Islamism: "We are all in this together, like it or not"Interview with the French imam Djelloul Seddiki: "Extremist groups want to impose on us a clash of civilisations"Muslims and the Paris attacks: "I distance myself from these murderers – not as a Muslim, but as a human being"Reactions to the Paris attacks: Religiousness is not the problemGerman jihadists: Turning their backs on the WestSalafists in Germany: A simple world view and the promise of paradise
Yahya Hassan during a reading of his poetry (photo: dpa)

The Young Danish poet Yahya Hassan

Whiz kid from the ghetto

Barely 18 years old, Yahya Hassan has thrilled readers and enriched Denmark's literary scene with his first volume of poetry. He also polarises opinion. Daniel Bax on Denmark's new poetry sensationMore

International Prize for Arabic Fiction 2014: "Frankenstein in Baghdad": Beyond good and evilSyria's opposition writers: Fighting oppression and censorshipTranslations of Classical Islamic Literature: From the Emotional Orient to the Distortion of Islam
Hamed Abdel-Samad (photo: DW)

Hamed Abdel-Samad's controversial theories on Islam

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Caution! Explicit Content!

Hamed Abdel-Samad's book "Der islamische Faschismus" (Islamic Fascism) is not a serious analysis, but a platitude-laden polemic against political Islam. Ironically, the book shows that its author has more in common with the people he is criticising than he realises. By Daniel BaxMore

Boualem Sansal's essay on Islamisation: Fighting Islamists with conspiracy theoriesPolitical Islam: The Loss of Democratic LegitimacyWahhabism and Salafism: Shared foundation – different methods
Amy Chua (photo: Prakash Singh/AFP/Getty Images)

Book review: Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld on immigrant culture

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Attack of the power migrants

Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld pledge to lift the lid on the cultural secrets of success of certain immigrant groups in the US. According to Daniel Bax, their book is nothing more than an exercise in cod folk psychology More

Book review: Klaus J. Bade on Thilo Sarrazin: Forget Sarrazin!Germany's New Minister for Migration: Aydan Özoguz, a Turkish-German at the TopInterview with Doug Saunders: ''Muslim Infiltration Is a Myth''
Federal Minister of the Interior Friedrich (Photo: dapd)

Row over Report on Young Muslims in Germany

Easy Pickings for Headline Grabbers

Comments issued by German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich on a controversial new study have triggered a debate on the refusal of young Muslims to integrate. But his critics accuse him of cherry-picking the report's findings to generate sensational headlines. By Daniel BaxMore

Immigration and Germany: From Foreign Worker to CitizenInterview with Seyla Benhabib: The Guest is Always a Fellow CitizenQantara Dossier: Migration in Germany
Delegates at the fifth Integration Summit at the German Chancellery (photo: dpa)

Fifth Integration Summit

Paternalism Instead of Equality

Chancellor Merkel has hosted five integration summits over the past six years. Daniel Bax feels that the time has now come for the German state to stop behaving towards migrants as a father does towards a child and to work instead on breaking down structures and prejudices that hamper the genuine equality and participation of immigrantsMore

Germany's Fifth Integration Summit: Step-By-Step PolicyIntegration in Germany: Better Than Its ReputationIntegration and Immigration Policy in Germany: Immigration Law as "Integration Prevention Law"Germany's Second Integration Summit: In the Shadow of the Boycott

In brief

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Most Recent Photo Essay

Free meals are distributed to the needy in many Muslim countries during Ramadan. The giving of alms forms one of the "five pillars of Islam" – alongside the declaration of faith, daily prayers, the pilgrimage to Mecca and fasting. Followers of the faith refrain from eating and drinking from dawn to dusk. When evening comes, many meet in mosques, on public squares or in marquees such as in this picture from Cairo, to celebrate the breaking of the fast, known as "Iftar"

From Jakarta to Cairo – Ramadan around the world

For Muslims all around the world, Ramadan begins on 27 May. The period of fasting that always takes place during the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar is one of the five pillars of Islam, intended to be a time for contemplation, mediation and moderation.