Qantara.de - Dialog mit der islamischen Welt

Since the 2011 uprisings, authoritarian rulers in the Arab world have worked out how to manipulate and instrumentalise the media to their own ends, nipping any new democratic quake in the bud. By Lydia KhalilMore

Focussing on the Algerian protest movement, "Nardjes A." by Karim Ainouz, is about the universal power of hope to change the social and political status quo in the Maghreb country. By Rene WildangelMore

Few would have thought that Algeria's Hirak protest movement would still be mobilising the masses 12 months on from its first peaceful demonstration. According to Isabelle Werenfels and Luca Miehe, the systemic change people hoped for post-Bouteflika has yet to materialise. External players need to brace themselves for ongoing political turbulenceMore

Insults directed against Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi have been particularly prominent among the hundreds of chants by Arab protestors in Algeria, Sudan, Iraq and Lebanon during the recent months of demonstrations. The question is, why? By Sherif Mohyeldeen and Noha KhaledMore

Political analyst Taqadum al-Khatib argues that Egypt can, in co-ordination with its European partners, develop a common vision to solve the complex conflict in Libya. For this to happen, however, Egypt must disengage its foreign policy from that of the UAE and Saudi ArabiaMore

With "Assad or We Burn the Country", Sam Dagher has furnished the world with some genuine ammunition against the Syrian regime's on-going campaign of disinformation. The only Western journalist to have lived in Damascus from 2012, Dagher conducted meticulous research to safeguard his recounting of almost 50 years of Syrian history. Moritz Baumstiger read the bookMore

Beirut usually sparkles and dazzles at Christmas time. This year, marked by major protests, however, everything has been turned on its head: there is a distinct lack of Christmas in Beirut, while in Tripoli, a Christmas tree has been erected for the first time ever on the main square, Sahat an-Nour. Hanna Resch reports from LebanonMore