Europe
All countries-
"Salib Sufi" project
Peace in their hearts, love in their minds
"Salib Sufi" (literally: "Sufi Cross") combines Christian chants and prayers with Sufi chants and recitations. Accompanied by instruments from East and West, the band performs a mixture of classical recitation and modern singing, featuring elements of Old Coptic. Eslam Anwar interviews project initiator Salib Fawzy
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Turkeyʹs economic crisis
The sick man of Europe returns
A destabilised Turkey is the last thing Europe needs. Regardless of what one thinks about Erdogan, more important things are at stake: peace and stability in south-eastern Europe and the future of Turkish democracy. Essay by Germanyʹs former foreign minister Joschka Fischer
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Military parade attack in Ahwaz, Iran
The Islamic Republic reels
Following this weekendʹs attack on a military parade in the southern Iranian city of Ahwaz, fears that the United States, Saudi Arabia and others may seek to destabilise the country by instigating ethnic unrest are rife, writes James M. Dorsey, raising the likelihood of a clampdown against opposition groups at home and abroad
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Interview with extremism researcher Dalia Ghanem-Yazbeck
"Being part of a ʹcommunityʹ transcends everything"
Attending this yearʹs Vienna International Christian University, Algerian extremism researcher Dr. Dalia Ghanem-Yazbeck, resident scholar at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, talked to Zahra Nedjabat about the role of women in jihadism, the roots of violent radicalisation and possible antidotes
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Islamophobia and xenophobia
The West’s racism problem
The mob in Chemnitz had a lot in common with the neo-Nazis, Ku Klux Klan followers and other extremists who caused mayhem a year ago in Charlottesville, Virginia, writes Ian Buruma
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U.S. sanctions against the Islamic Republic
Playing poker with Iran
Iran and the U.S. seem to have reversed roles with the Trump administrationʹs decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal. Iranʹs isolation before the agreement now contrasts with Americaʹs determination to swim against the global tide. By Hassan Hakimian
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More humanity post-Chemnitz
#WirSindMehr: "Hostility is the failure of identity"
Insults, violence, attacks on refugee centres. Is this the answer of an enlightened, democratic society, shaped by human and humane values? Fereshta Ludin, high school teacher and former refugee, calls us all to account
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Interview with Thomas Ruttig
Afghanistan's democracy in reverse gear
Afghanistan expert Thomas Ruttig says that in the West's battle with the Taliban, too much focus has been placed for too long on political allies with problematic credentials: many warlords are still armed and have never faced prosecution for past offences. Despite being non-democrats, they control democratic institutions to this day. Interview by Hans Spross
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Interview with French extremism researcher Olivier Roy
They love death as we love life: jihad and the roots of terror
French extremism researcher Olivier Roy talks to Eren Guvercin about the Catch 22 situation of European Muslims expected to speak for Islam, the irrelevance of 'liberal' reforms, the false premise of current de-radicalisation programmes and the nature of modern terrorism
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The annual pilgrimage to Mecca
High summer hajj
Millions of believers, heat and loud prayers: the hajj in Mecca. Once a year, the Saudi city becomes a pilgrimage hot spot and the site of the largest gathering of people in the world. Nermin Ismail was in Mecca
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The Maghrebʹs Moorish-Spanish legacy
Andalusia begins in northern Morocco
Any journey to southern Spain, to Al-Andalus, is akin to the start of a dream that finds its beguiling continuation beyond the Pillars of Hercules, in the Andalusian cities of northern Morocco – Tangiers, Chefchaouen, Tetouan, Fes, Meknes, Larache and Asilah. The relationship between Morocco and Spain is closer than we think. By Mourad Kusserow
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Mesut Ozil and #MeTwo
When are you German enough?
Michel Abdollahi, Idil Baydar and Y'Akoto have all experienced racism and xenophobia – despite calling Germany their home. The artists hope that the #MeTwo debate will change hearts and minds when it comes to identity. By Yalda Zarbakhch