Syria
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Interview with Rafik Schami
Defending the Assad kingdom
According to renowned Syrian-born writer Rafik Schami, Assad's survival concept is quite straightforward: to keep his clan in power at any price. He is being aided in this endeavour by the West's indecisiveness towards his regime. Interview conducted by Eren Güvercin
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Syria and the Ba'ath regime
Assad and the post-eternity era
Assad and no other. Assad is no one. He is a nebulous being soaked in blood and trampling on corpses, a man who claims to be president of a republic that no longer exists, writes Elias Khoury in his essay
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Interview with the Syrian artist Diala Brisly
Art is a luxury in Syria
Civil war has ravaged Syria and many of its ancient cultural treasures. Syrian artist Diala Brisly, who left Syria about a year ago and now lives and works in Istanbul, says that although very few artists are still working in Syria, the country's art scene is flourishing abroad. Interview by Susanne Dickl
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Presidential election in Syria
No Holds Barred
Syria's President Bashar al-Assad intends to have himself confirmed in office for a further seven years in early June. The regime's propaganda machinery is running flat out in advance of the election. Since the beginning of the revolution, the Syrian powers-that-be have been working hard to turn both domestic and international public opinion in their favour. By Martina Sabra
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Book review: Rosa Yassin Hassan's "Guardians of the Air"
Nine months of suffering, hope and fear
While Assad's regime seems more firmly ensconced than ever, and Syria seems to have descended into an apparently endless and brutal civil war, the novel "Guardians of the Air" by Rosa Yassin Hassan, a Damascus-based writer, provides an insight into the difficult lives of those directly affected by violence and displacement. By Volker Kaminski
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Syrian opposition groups
Time to join forces
The well-known Syrian opposition figure and journalist Michel Kilo believes that only a national alliance of all rebel groups can break the terrorism perpetrated by the organisation Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) and the Assad regime
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Abduction in Syria of Paolo Dall'Oglio
A voice of peace in a wilderness of violence
The Italian Jesuit Paolo Dall'Oglio was abducted eight months ago in the northern Syrian city of Raqqa. There has been no trace of him since. A popular figure in Syria, the priest has been a consistent champion of dialogue between Christians and Muslims. He was one of the few members of the Church to align himself with the opposition right at the start of the uprising against Assad in March 2011. By Claudia Mende
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The Syrian conflict
A red-brown alliance for Syria
Neo-Nazis, Stalinists, Catholic fundamentalists and pacifists may seem like strange political bedfellows, but they have found common ground in a diffuse brand of anti-imperialism. This left-wing/right-wing alliance's online campaigning and its active support for the Assad regime have led to a lack of solidarity with the Syrian people not only in Italy but elsewhere in Europe too. By Germano Monti
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Syrian painter and digital artist Tammam Azzam
"I, the Syrian"
"I, the Syrian" is the title of an exhibition by Tammam Azzam that was held in Beirut and London in early 2014. Selected works from his project now feature in various international art exhibits. Martina Sabra met and spoke with the Syrian painter and digital artist in Beirut
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Non-violent resistance in Syria
Sowing the seeds of democracy
There is no nation-wide democracy movement in Syria, but there are local initiatives that are defying the war, strengthening civil society and preparing the ground for a free and pluralistic political system, writes Kristin Helberg
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Syrian refugee children
A lost generation in the making
In the Jordanian village of Manshia, a German NGO has set up a kindergarten for traumatised Syrian refugee children. Here, they can leave their horrible past behind and learn how to be children again. Laura Overmeyer visited the kindergarten
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Book review: "The Wisdom of Syria's Waiting Game"
How to stay in power against the odds
In her book "The Wisdom of Syria's Waiting Game", Bente Scheller analyses Syrian foreign policy since the Assad dynasty came to power in 1970. She believes that the special relationship between domestic and foreign policy is key to understanding Syria's power apparatus. By Martina Sabra