Voter turnout for parliamentary elections in Tunisia at the end of January 2023 was so low it broke world records. Tunisians are dispirited and a wannabe authoritarian leads the country. What now for the endangered democracy? By Cathrin Schaer and Tarak GuizaniMore

How is one to convey the history of Islamic images of Muhammad freed from today’s polarised politics? What are the challenges and pinch points of this particular academic endeavour?More

The book "The Invention of the Maghreb: between Africa and the Middle East" prompts us to review basic terminology. This includes terms that we use almost every day as if they are definitive by virtue of geography, history and culture, such as "the Arab Maghreb", "North Africa", "the Middle East" and "sub-Saharan Africa". Shady Lewis Botros read the bookMore

Where are the measures to deal with the looming challenges facing the Arab world? In this commentary, Marwan Muasher warns that the region is in grave danger of falling behind when it comes to human developmentMore

According to a recent survey, half of all Iranians say that they have left Islam as a religion, while two-thirds believe Islamic law should be excluded from their legal system. In the following essay, Ahmet T. Kuru explores the implicationsMore

Erige Sehiri, director of "Under The Fig Trees", shortlisted to represent Tunisia at the Oscars next year, says she hopes the award-winning drama film will smash the cliche that rural women are "miserable and closed"More

Past attempts to reconcile logic and belief within Islam tend to be dismissed today – not because they lack merit, but because they were politically defeated, argues Mustafa AkyolMore