Two decades after the attacks of 11 September 2001, the West faces the shattered debris of its failure – not only in Afghanistan, but also in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen. What went wrong in the war on terror? And what lessons can Europe learn from it? Essay by Kristin HelbergMore

Finding a lasting political solution to the Syrian conflict is the challenge facing the constitutional committee that has been meeting in Geneva since the end of October, under UN mediation. But achieving this goal is an illusion, since the Syrian regime has for years shown no willingness to surrender any of its power. By Kristin HelbergMore

Amid the increasing complexity of the Syrian conflict, a growing number of "critical citizens" are assigning greater credibility to conspiracy theories on the Internet than to UN investigations that are required to meet scientific standards. Essay by Kristin HelbergMore

Assad is still in power. But he has nevertheless lost it – to Iran, Russia, Syrian militia leaders and war profiteers. What Germany should now do for the Syrians. By Kristin HelbergMore

German public prosecutors in Karlsruhe are acting surprisingly fast to interview Syrian victims who have filed criminal charges against members of the Syrian intelligence agency in Damascus. Specific investigations and international arrest warrants could follow. By Kristin HelbergMore

Society is constantly changing and each of its members has the right to help shape it. Only once everyone can be anything they want to be – when a woman wearing a headscarf can become a government minister and someone named Ahmad a constitutional judge – will we have evolved from being screwed-up countries of immigration to successfully integrated societies. By Kristin HelbergMore

In Daraya, a town southwest of Damascus, Assad has triumphed. After four years of continuous bombing and starvation, the last 8,000 residents have capitulated and agreed to be resettled by the regime. By Kristin HelbergMore