Tunisia
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Book review: Cecile Oumhaniʹs "Tunisian Yankee"
Life is elsewhere
In her award-winning historical novel, French author Cecile Oumhani depicts the life story of a young Tunisian, who dreams of airship travel and a free and autonomous life, until his odyssey takes him via New York to the battlefields of the First World War. By Volker Kaminski
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Domestic power struggle in Tunisia
A faltering democracy
The most promising democratic experiment in the Arab world can still avert political disaster, but Tunisia urgently needs outside help in view of the ongoing trench warfare within the government, writes Youssef Cherif in his essay
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Souad Abderrahim: Mayor of Tunis
The "Sheikha", the city and its problems
Souad Abderrahim is the first freely elected female mayor of an Arab capital. Her opponents regard her as being in the pocket of the moderate Islamists. She herself prefers to stay out of politics. By Nader Alsarras
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Eight years after the Jasmine Revolution
Young Tunisians see red
Inspired by Franceʹs "gilets jaunes", the Tunisian "red vest" movement reflects the widespread discontent in the North African country, where protests against spiralling living costs, unemployment, mismanagement and corruption are once again on the increase. By Alessandra Bajec
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Interview with Egyptian activist Nawal El Saadawi
"We are a hundred years behind"
The Tunisian parliament is to consider a bill recently agreed by the cabinet that would grant equal inheritance rights to men and women – a proposal that has created a furore not only in Tunisia, but throughout the Middle East. Egyptian writer and activist Nawal El Saadawi describes the move as "positive" and believes that Egypt may finally be following in Tunisia's footsteps. Interview by Imane Mellouk
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Mohamed Ben Attiaʹs "Dear Son"
O Sami, my son, my son
Of the many books, plays and films inspired by the story of the Islamic State movement, "Dear Son" by Tunisian director Mohamed Ben Attia offers something different. Far from the drama of the battlefield, he focuses on the anguish of the family that the fighter leaves behind. By Schayan Riaz
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The Arab Spring and the "Spring of Nations"
Failed revolutionaries?
What do Europeʹs "Spring of Nations" of 1848 and the Arab Spring have in common? Both revolutions it seems were doomed to failure, with those involved forced to endure a long and icy winter of restoration. And yet there is a glimmer of hope. An essay by the Egyptian historian Khaled Fahmy
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Festival of feminist artists
Loud, louder, tashweesh!
At the Goethe-Institutʹs Tashweesh Festival, artists and intellectuals from North Africa, Europe and the Middle East meet to discuss stereotypical gender images. By Caren Miesenberger
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Authoritarian reinstatement in the Arab world
Whatʹs left of the Arab Spring
Not much remains of the euphoric mood and the hopes that drove the Arab Spring. A return to pre-2011 conditions is however out of the question. Commentary by Loay Mudhoon
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A new start for jihadists?
Tunisiaʹs bid to rehabilitate its returnees
Building more community networks to combat violent extremism may help Tunisian authorities develop a holistic, long-term strategy to rehabilitate returning fighters. By Andrew McDonnell
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Essebsi breaks with Ennahda
Farewell to Tunisia's "national consensus"
The decision by Caid Essebsi to end five years of consensus politics is likely to heighten sociopolitical tensions in the North African state and deepen a burgeoning economic crisis. Tunisian journalist Ismail Dbara analyses the reasons for the break-up and the consequences for democratisation within the country
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What triggered the Middle Eastern revolts in 2011?
The economics of Arabellion
Syrian historian Nasser Rabbat argues that the Arab Spring resulted mainly from social imbalance and the misery of large sections of the population within the Arab world. Moreover, as long as economic inequality persists, these states will continue to be plagued by instability