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After the Christchurch mosque attacks
Time for non-Muslims everywhere to take a stand
Following last Friday's attacks, German Muslims are worried that their places of worship may be targeted too. Christoph Strack writes that there is a simple way for non-Muslims to show solidarity
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The West versus the Islamic Republic?
Iran's 40 years of strife
The 40th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution might have offered the West an opportunity to reflect on the failure of four decades of disengagement to bring the Islamic Republic any closer to collapse – or the region any closer to peace. Instead, the Trump administration has doubled down on hostility, with nothing to show for it. By Javier Solana
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The end of the "Islamic State"
Entering a new chapter in Syria
The appeal and the peculiarity of Islamic State always lay in its claim that it already existed as such, not that it was a work in progress. But the capture of the last IS bastion on the Euphrates must now represent the final nail in the coffin for the jihadistsʹ state-building project. By Ulrich von Schwerin
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Western news coverage
The white perspective
Cultural arrogance has long been a feature of Western journalism and it continues to flourish. But can journalists really describe the world from the perspective of a Yemeni housewife, a shepherdess in Bhutan or an elderly Senegalese fisherman? By Charlotte Wiedemann
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Returning IS fighters
Expatriation hardly an option
How should Germany deal with IS returnees from Syria? Can Berlin deny them the right to return? And would expatriation even be possible? By Nermin Ismail
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Peace talks with the Taliban
Where are Afghanistan's women?
To ensure the interests of women are also taken into account in the peace talks with the Taliban, they must participate on an equal footing in the negotiations, their organisation and the implementation of the peace process. By Anne-Marie Slaughter and Ashley Jackson
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Negotiating peace with the Taliban
Any deal will do
The tension among Kabul's political elite is palpable. Washington has been conducting negotiations for a peace deal with the insurgent Taliban in the Gulf emirate of Qatar for quite some time now, and the government in Kabul feels side-lined. Yet regardless of who is sitting around the negotiating table, almost all players in Afghanistan agree: the need for peace is urgent. By Emran Feroz
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The geopolitics of the Syrian conflict
Getting Erdogan on board
Recently, while considering the future of war-torn Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin invoked the Adana agreement signed over two decades ago between Turkey and Syria. How this should be interpreted depends on which side you are on, as Ayse Karabat explains
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UAE Ambassador Ali Abdulla Al Ahmed on Pope Francis' visit
"Both are religions of God and both are religions of peace"
Pope Francis will travel to the United Arab Emirates on Sunday on his first visit to the Arabian peninsula. The UAE's ambassador to Germany, Ali Abdulla Al Ahmed, tells Christoph Strack why it's so important for the region
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Weathering the Saudi blockade
Qatar thrives under pressure
The blockade of Qatar led by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states in the summer of 2017 was a shock for the small emirate. Meanwhile, however, it seems to have more than recovered: the economy is growing and the leadership is bursting with determination and self-confidence. By Anchal Vohra
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Interview with the UKʹs Lead Commissioner for Countering Extremism Sara Khan
"Weʹre living through an era of extremism"
In a bid for more dialogue, Sara Khan, UKʹs Lead Commissioner for Countering Extremism, calls on individuals to challenge extremism and on countries to ensure they defend and promote equality, human rights, pluralism and diversity. Interview by Ismail Nermin
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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