Pakistan
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Pakistan: Trees to beat the heat
Cooling forest islands instead of sizzling concrete jungles: dozens of planting projects are intended to make the heat in Karachi more bearable – a relief for people and animals. By Claudia Dehn (with Reuters)
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51°C in Pakistan: Mothers bear brunt of climate change
Few places are more punishing than Jacobabad in southern Pakistan. In May 2022, temperatures hit 51 Celsius. Women and children bear the main brunt of such "extreme humid heat events". By Charlotte Greenfield and Gloria Dickie
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Behind the veil
The double life of Pakistan rapper Eva B
Pakistan's breakthrough rapper Eva B has racked up millions of views online, but walking through the labyrinthine streets of her Karachi neighbourhood, she is anonymous. Her hair covered with a hijab and a veil falling below her eyes, she evades the attention of fans and detractors
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The hidden treasures of Sufism
In the footsteps of Rumi
Rumi's poems, though generally stripped of their Islamic symbolism, are hugely popular around the world. Yet Islamic mysticism is still very much at the heart of these verses. Marian Brehmer has spent more than ten years exploring the form Sufism assumes today. By Lisa Neal
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Menstruation in Pakistan
What every girl should know
Pakistan needs to start removing the stigma society attaches to menstruation, argues Mahwish Gul. She has been instrumental in developing #HelpSaira, a new digital app aimed at teenage girls that offers constructive and value-free information and advice
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Rooh Afza, the 'drink of love'
Pink refresher unites wilting Indians and Pakistanis
Pakistan and India have fought three wars and countless skirmishes, but as summers get hotter with climate change, their peoples are united by love for a cooling 115-year-old pink libation with a secret recipe
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Arooj Aftab's "Vulture Prince"
Coping with pain in Urdu
The first musician with Pakistani roots to win a Grammy, Arooj Aftab has been recognised for her third album Vulture Prince – a meditative, moving song cycle in which she captures loss and pain using poetry in Urdu and guest collaborators from all over the world. By Stefan Franzen
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Climate change in Southeast Asia
India's severe heat wave a risk to millions
As the scorching sun beat down on his fruit cart, Mohammad Ikrar dreaded another day of tossing out dozens of rotting mangoes and melons – a regular practice now, as India grapples with an unprecedented heatwave.
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Cannabis and Islam?
There is no one single answer
The German government is planning to legalise cannabis before the end of this legislative period. So what does Islam have to say about its consumption? Will changing the law alter the way Muslims in Germany feel about the issue? Said Rezek talked to Muslim theologian Ali Ghandour from the University of Munster
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Anti-racism, anti-discrimination
Rafia Zakaria – feminism is not only white
Pakistani-American author and lawyer Rafia Zakaria advocates for a broad-based feminism that doesn't just address the concerns of white women. By Christine Lehnen
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Pakistan
How will Imran Khan’s removal affect Pakistan's fragile democracy?
Now, out of power, Imran Khan actually has a better chance of striking a blow for democracy and civilian supremacy – if he chooses to do so, writes Ahsan I Butt
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Kashmir conflict
"An entire people is traumatised"
Twenty-eight-year-old photojournalist Masrat Zahra documents the situation in India-administered Kashmir with her camera. In this interview with Elisa Rheinheimer, she talks about life in a state of emergency, conservative Kashmiri society and her own family's reservations about what she does