Saudi Arabia
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Sex tourism in Egypt
A bride for the summer
Hundreds of under-age Egyptian girls enter temporary marriages with rich tourists from the Persian Gulf during the summer in return for money for their families. These unions – dubbed summer marriages – are not legally binding and end when the foreigners return to their own countries. By Elizabeth Lehmann, Eva Plesner and Flemming Weiss-Andersen
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Saudi Arabia′s entertainment offensive
Not to be taken lightly
Saudi Arabia seems to be having a change of heart with regard to modern culture and entertainment. Pop concerts, shows and festivals are a new departure for the conservative kingdom on the Gulf, something that is also having an inevitable impact on the country′s strict policy of gender segregation. By Joseph Croitoru
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U.S. missile strike in Syria
Trump turns the table
Last week U.S. President Donald Trump turned the table on the Syrians. All those who were seated at it, comfortably or even dozing, have now stood up with a start and are wondering what all the broken crockery means for them. By Karim El-Gawhary
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Tattoo trends from Beirut to Baghdad
In the spirit of rebellion
For some it's about following a trend; for others, tattoos are a symbol of their faith, but whatever the reason, the fashion for stylish tattoos is fuelling a growing subculture across the Arab world. By Mey Dudin
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Merzak Allouache′s ″Tahqiq fel djenna″
Seventy two grapes
In his film ″Tahqiq fel Djenna″ (Investigating Paradise), which was awarded the Panorama 2017 prize at this year′s Berlinale, Merzak Allouache investigates the sexualised idea of Paradise as spread by Salafist preachers. By Rene Wildangel
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Iranian-Saudi relations
For better, for worse
The West often reduces the strained relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia to the sectarian Sunni-Shia conflict, but the reality is far more complex. By Joseph Croitoru
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Saudi health reforms and women′s rights
Still a sore point
A Saudi decision to license the kingdom′s first women-only gyms over the coming weeks constitutes progress in a country in which women′s rights are severely curtailed. Yet it also reveals the limitations of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman′s plan to rationalise and diversify the kingdom′s economy. By James M. Dorsey
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Interview with Syrian dissident Yassin al-Haj Saleh
The West's lamentable myopia
Syrian intellectual Yassin al-Haj Saleh was a revolutionary from the very first. He remains harshly critical of all those political observers and experts in the West who claim that there is no alternative to Assad and that shoring up the regime would be the lesser of two evils. Interview by Emran Feroz
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US Middle East policy under Donald Trump
A recipe for further catastrophes?
Trump's election is also being seen as a caesura in the Middle East. Many fear a return to a simplistic way of thinking, which would make his presidency a nightmare for the region, says Loay Mudhoon
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Non-fiction: Sebastian Sons′ ″Auf Sand gebaut″
Saudi Arabia – a difficult ally
Saudi Arabia is an important, but controversial partner of western countries. Sebastian Sons, an expert on the country with the DGAP (Germany's Council on Foreign Relations), assesses the country’s mindset, its political problems and how western governments should engage its leaders. By Sabine Balk
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Re-assessing Western involvement in the Middle East
Far from Utopian
A reconfiguration of relations between the West and the Arab world is in the offing. Utopia it will not be, but it may result in a more harmonious and balanced political situation, writes BBC radio journalist and Middle East expert Neville Teller
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Myanmar and the Rohingya
Is Saudi Wahhabism fuelling an insurgency?
In interview with Shamil Shams, ICG's Tim Johnston claims that the Rohingya insurgency is linked to Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, but that the motivating force is not so much jihadist ideology as anger at the treatment of Rohingya in Myanmar