Middle East
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Muslims celebrate Eid ul-Fitr
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Sensational find in Turkey
Turkish archaeologists discover subterranean city of Matiate
Welcome to the underground! In Midyat, Turkey, the gateway to a huge underground city has been discovered. It was used for over 1900 years and could accommodate up to 70,000 people. Hannah Fuchs has the details
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Muslims celebrate Eid ul-Fitr
The end of Ramadan 2023 has seen Muslims worldwide gearing up for the festival of Eid ul-Fitr, which takes place this year on 21 and 22 April. By Sonia Phalnikar
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Middle East
Water resources – another conflict trigger?
From the Euphrates to the Mekong, dams that ensure one country's water supply risk leaving others parched. But shared water resources can be a source of peace as well as conflict. By Ruby Russell
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Europe, Ukraine and refugees
Compassion, a sliding scale?
Ideally, those Europeans currently welcoming Ukrainian refugees would show the same sympathy to Syrians, Afghans and others fleeing war beyond the continent. But, argues Ian Buruma, human compassion is a rare enough commodity that we should be grateful whenever it appears
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Lebanon between the wars
The revolutionary art of Beirut's golden 60s
A Berlin exhibition explores the buzzing heyday of Beirut's art scene in the 1960s – and how it was cut short by the darkness of the Lebanese civil war. By Ruairi Casey
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Taha Hussein, a biography
Modern Egypt's great pioneer
Taha Hussein (1889-1973) is considered one of Egypt's most influential intellectuals and cultural politicians. With his biography "The Last Nahdawi", historian Hussam Ahmed provides a profound insight into the contradictions in the life of the great pioneer of Egyptian modernity. By Shady Lewis Botros
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Ukraine and Iraq
Compassion yes, sympathy no
Iraq is in a quandary over Russia and Ukraine. Its attitude toward Kiev is ambivalent, yet it still hopes to emerge as one of the winners in this war. If Russia fails as an oil supplier, Iraq could step in. Birgit Svensson reports from Baghdad
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Middle East
Ukraine overshadows Ramadan 2022
Ahead of Ramadan, most Middle Eastern countries have eased restrictions to near pre-pandemic times. However, increases in prices and food shortages due to the war in Ukraine are casting new shadows on the Holy Month. Jennifer Holleis reports
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Turkey – past, present and future
After Erdogan, what then?
Casting his eye over one hundred years of Turkish politics in "Geschichte der Türkei. Von Atatürk bis zur Gegenwart", Maurus Reinkowski argues that, without its nationalist straitjacket, Turkey could be in a position to properly realise its potential. Stefan Plaggenborg read the book
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Filming Lebanon’s all-women metal band "Slave to Sirens"
Heavy metal combats the Beirut blues
U.S. filmmaker Rita Baghdadi’s film following an all-female Lebanese metal band is well worth a watch. It’s the story of five fascinating young women embarking on their careers as their country falls apart. By Rene Wildangel
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Jewish Diplomatic Corps visits UAE
"Our preconceptions are at odds with reality"
Hamburg lawyer Eugen Balin is a member of the World Jewish Congress' Jewish Diplomatic Corps. At the end of 2021, a delegation of the Corps visited the United Arab Emirates, which established full diplomatic relations with Israel in the summer of 2020. Interview by Christoph Strack