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100 years of Sykes-Picot
"A tapestry of plans and promises"
One hundred years ago, the Middle East was divvied up between the French and the British. The historian Maurus Reinkowski talks about the long-term effects of the colonialist powers' splitting up of the spoils. Interview by Andreas Noll
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Evelyn Waugh′s ″Labels: A Mediterranean Journal″
Egypt revisited
Evelyn Waugh, the English writer most would associate with his best-selling novel ″Brideshead Revisited″, died fifty years ago this month. Yet Waugh was also a passionate traveller and observer of foreign cultures. In this early work, he transports the reader back to early twentieth century Egypt. Sherif Abdel Samad read the book
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Libya
Miss Tully′s ″Narrative of a Ten-Year Residence at Tripoli in Africa″
In 1816, a collection of letters written by the sister-in-law of the British Consul in Tripoli was published as Narrative of a Ten Year Residence at Tripoli in Africa. Between 1783 and 1793 Miss Tully wrote over 100 epistles, painting an incredibly vivid picture of life on the Barbary Coast. A review by Sherif Dhaimish
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Book review: ″Vanished″ by Ahmed Masoud
The youngest detective
Ahmed Masoud′s debut novel is a nuanced chronicle of one of the world′s most troubled regions. Reflecting the way children are forced to grow up before their time in the beleaguered Gaza Strip, this whodunnit centres on a child detective. Nahrain Al-Mousawi read the book
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Interview with radical Islam expert Peter Neumann
Islamic State′s looting economy
The political scientist and Islamism researcher Peter Neumann sees the so-called "Islamic State" as a "hybrid of insurgency group and state", the success of which is based on constant expansion and a looting-based economy. Interview by Michael Erhardt
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Saudi Arabia and Iran
Defeat Islamic State - or become it
The dawn of 2016 has brought a new round of doomsday predictions that Saudi Arabia’s ruling Al Saud family cannot sustain its autocratic grip on power. The kingdom, pessimists argue, is caught in a perfect storm with economic problems, social challenges and foreign policy crises all converging at the same time. By James M. Dorsey
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Tony Blair and the Iraq war
A case of smoke and mirrors
We don't need to wait for Chilcot, Blair lied to us about Iraq, asserts Peter Oborne, former political editor-in-chief with the British "Daily Telegraph"
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Influential British Muslims agree that Islamic State is ″illegitimate″
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Agatha Christie and the Orient
When murder came to Mesopotamia
Hydrangea hedges, village gossip and high tea form the backdrop for Agatha Christie′s detective stories, which, sold in their millions worldwide, shape our image of England. But many of these typically English stereotypes and settings were actually created in the Middle East. By Christine Pfeilschifter
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Islamic State
Know your enemy
There is much the West does not understand about its latest enemy, in which it faces more than ″just″ extremists. IS ideology thrives on hatred, anger and resentment – the most effective response would therefore be to introduce and nurture values of tolerance, unity, mutual co-operation and peace. By Abdel Bari Atwan
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Cameron's counter-extremism strategy
Cause for concern or necessary evil?
Counter-terrorism and security legislation already in place, the British government recently published details of its controversial counter-extremism strategy. Vague enough to allow a wide range of interpretations, it was met with alarm by a number of interest groups. With the Paris attacks fresh in everyone’s minds, however, Cameron’s drive against Islamist ideology could well find increasing support among public and politicians alike. By Susannah Tarbush
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Migration and human rights
Refugee versus migrant: what's in a name?
″All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights″: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights couldn′t be much clearer. Still the political response to the current flood of refugees is inevitably proving insufficient. Pia Oberoi, advisor on migration and human rights with the UNHCR, examines the issue