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
At the Goethe-Institutʹs Tashweesh Festival, artists and intellectuals from North Africa, Europe and the Middle East meet to discuss stereotypical gender images. By Caren MiesenbergerMore
Belgium has been fighting religious radicalisation since it became painfully obvious that Islamists were operating in the country. Art and humour have become tools in the battle of prevention. But how is this being received by the general public? Doris Pundy reports from BrusselsMore
In contrast to other cities in Belgium, violent Islamists have found next to no adherents in Mechelen. This is primarily due to the efforts of Mayor Bart Somers: he demands that everyone integrate – into a multicultural reality. By Markus MayrMore
Iranian women′s rights activist Darya Safai fights the stadium ban for Iranian women from her exile in Brussels. An interview on her protest during the Olympic Games in Rio, the hypocrisy of international sports organisations and Ali Khamenei′s unreformable regime. By Kai SchnierMore
Bader has achieved significant acclaim both in Arabic and in translation as an author of philosophical fiction. The Iraqi writer′s twelfth novel, ″Al-Kafira″ (The Infidel Woman), published last year, however, signals a major break with his previous body of work. By Marcia Lynx QualeyMore
The majority of IS terrorists to have been arrested recently are EU citizens, jihadist returnees from Syria and Iraq. Ever since the assault on the French satirical newspaper "Charlie Hebdo" in January 2014, international jihadists have increasingly been setting their sights on EuropeMore
The Austrian "Mothers Schools" programme aims to prevent the recruitment of potential jihadists. Edit Schlaffer, founder of the organisation "Women without Borders", has spent the last ten years researching the root causes of Islamist radicalisation. Her core finding: mothers play a key role. Interview by Iris MostegelMore
After the attacks in Brussels, Olivier Roy cautions against rashly linking Islam with terrorism. In interview with Michaela Wiegel, the Islam researcher explains the real problem with jihadismMore
In the wake of the Brussels attacks, Republican frontrunner Donald Trump yet again repeated his call for a ban on all Muslims entering the United States of America. With ABC News primary exit polls on 15 March revealing that two-thirds of Republican voters feel Muslims would be better off elsewhere, the current tide of anti-Muslim sentiment has yet to turn. By Joseph MaytonMore
Following last week′s brutal events in Brussels, there has once again been much talk in the media of an attack on Western lifestyle and freedoms. Meanwhile the strategy and the tactics of Islamic State are much more sophisticated than some of this post-attack coverage. By Karim El-GawharyMore
Culture, religion – or merely politics? Recent terrorist attacks against another European capital city in less than a year have once again shaken world politics to the core. Are we playing into the hands of Daesh? By Hakim KhatibMore
Pascal Mannaerts travelled to Oman at the end of 2019 in search of portrait subjects for a photo essay on women in the Gulf sultanate. Ruled by the enlightened Qaboos from 1970 to 2020, Oman enjoys a unique reputation among the Arab states – especially regarding the status and opportunities afforded to women.
