Society

Year 12 girls' class in Afghanistan (photo: Kinderhilfe Afghanistan)

Afghanistan under the Taliban

"Girls continue to attend our schools"

Education for girls and women is still possible in Afghanistan, says Reinhard Eroes of the Kinderhilfe Afghanistan initiative. In interview with Elisa Rheinheimer, he talks about skewed media portrayals, the great hunger gripping the country and why aid organisations should returnMore

"The Lionesses of Afghanistan": No more 'white saviours', pleaseTaliban Afghanistan: Afghan girls attend "secret school"Negotiating with the Taliban for girls′ education: Treading carefully
Cover of Gudrun Kramer's "Der Architekt des Islamismus. Hasan al-Banna und die Muslimbrüder" (published by C.H. Beck)

Hasan al-Banna and the Muslim Brotherhood

Who was the architect of Islamism?

Renowned scholar of Islamic Studies Gudrun Kramer has just published the first well-founded biography of Hasan al-Banna, founder of the Muslim Brotherhood. Joseph Croitoru read the bookMore

Egyptian army and the Muslim Brotherhood: Competitors in commonMuslim Brotherhood texts: Once valued, now proscribedEgypt′s Muslim Brotherhood: The seed of violence
Symbolic image demonstrating frustration with Iran's religious leaders (photo: Getty Images/AFP)

Protests in Iran

Islamic Republic facing a religious watershed

Iranians do not want an Islam that interferes. They are fed up with a system that manipulates people with simple promises of salvation and anti-Western propaganda. Islamic theologian Hamideh Mohagheghi sees Iran at a religious crossroadsMore

Iran protests: "Change that goes beyond the moment"Asef Bayat on the Iran protests: "A movement to reclaim life"Protests in Iran: On the eve of a new world era?Qantara dossier: Iran protests
Migrant builders take a break while working at a construction site by the Corniche in Doha during the World Cup (photo: CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP/File)

Qatar 2022

Migrant workers enjoy FIFA World Cup on the cheap

Shafeeq Saqafi paid $3 for the Argentina shirt he proudly wore when he sat with 15,000 other migrant workers in a hidden corner of Doha to watch Lionel Messi's side salvage their World CupMore

Politics, Qatar and FIFA: Is criticism of Qatar's World Cup racist?Qatar 2022 and the Arab world: "It’s our World Cup"Qatar and FIFA World Cup 2022: The limits of liberalisationQantara dossier: FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022
Canan Topcu in 1972 in Turkey, shortly before her migration to Germany. She stands beside her class teacher on the school grounds in Gemlik, south of Istanbul (photo: private)

Integration versus racism

I don't see myself as a victim

Canan Topcu came from Turkey to Germany as a child. In her essay, she describes how bothered she was by the racism she encountered in her country of origin when she travelled there recently. She describes her very personal take on identity, racism and exclusionMore

Integration in Germany: Finally growing upDaughters and Sons of Gastarbeiters writers′ collective: "When I go to Germany, I will buy a red tractor" 55 years of German-Turkish labour recruitment: Integration is a crossroadsWhat it means to be German: Recognise the potentialIslamisation, a racist conspiracy theory: The hatred of Hanau and its enablers
Tourists in front of an oversized World Cup 2022 sign in front of the skyline of Doha, Qatar (photo: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images)

FIFA World Cup 2022

Major events at any price?

All organisers use major sporting events like this year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar primarily to advertise their country and promote a slick public image. This is not something we need to be involved in, writes Samuli Schielke in his commentaryMore

Qatar and FIFA World Cup 2022: The limits of liberalisationGermany and the Gulf: Balancing ethics and economicsFootball in the Middle East: Freedom vs. oppression
Redacted newspaper with only the words "Tayyip Erdogan" visible (photo: picture-alliance/dpa)

Turkey’s new media law

Censorship by any other name

According to Turkey’s revised media legislation, spreading "fake news" now carries a prison sentence. The definition of what this entails has been kept intentionally vague. Opposition leaders, journalists and human rights observers call foul. Leyla Egeli reportsMore

Freedom of the press in Turkey: Recep Tayyip Erdogan tightens the media thumbscrewsPress freedom in Turkey: President Erdogan tightens the noose around social mediaArtists in Turkey: Artists against Erdogan's censorship
Syrian children take part in the opening ceremony of their own 'camps World Cup' tournament at the municipal stadium in Idlib (photo: Omar HAJ KADOUR/AFP)

FIFA Qatar 2022

Children in Syria's Idlib hold their own World Cup

More than 300 children in rebel-held northwest Syria kicked off their own football World Cup on Saturday, with organisers hoping to shine a light on communities battered by 11 years of warMore

Idlib: Collapsing Turkish lira makes life harder than everThe war in Syria: Overshadowed, yet still a major issueFootball in the Middle East: Freedom vs. oppression
Visit by a group of German parliamentarians to Qatar (photo: Lamya Kaddor)

Lamya Kaddor on the Qatar World Cup

"Address problems, but acknowledge progress"

Lamya Kaddor, MP for Germany’s Green Party, visited Qatar with a group of parliamentarians. In interview with Claudia Mende, she advocates a differentiated picture and urges that progress in human rights also be recognisedMore

FIFA World Cup 2022: Major events at any price?Germany and the Gulf: Balancing ethics and economicsFootball in the Middle East: Freedom vs. oppressionQantara dossier: FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022
A football in front of the Doha skyline (photo: David Ramos/Getty Images)

Football in the Middle East

Freedom vs. oppression

"Rebel Game: The Power of Football in the Middle East and the Qatar World Cup", an anthology published by Middle East researchers Jan Busse and Rene Wildangel, takes the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar as its basis for grappling with the socio-political and historical relevance of football in the Middle East. By Mirjam SchmidtMore

FIFA, France and Qatar: Qatar Airways' own goal2022 FIFA World Cup and human rights: Pointing the finger at Qatar's rulers is not enoughSoft power and football: Qatar vs. UAE – the not-so-beautiful game
Wedding in Lebanon (photo: private)

Let's talk about sex, habibi!

Love and desire from Cairo to Casablanca

Berlin journalist Mohamed Amjahid writes humorously and very intimately about how people experience love and desire across North Africa. Melanie Christina Mohr read the bookMore

Sex education in the Arab world: Let's talk about sex, habibi!Interview with Joumana Haddad: "Eroticism is the pulse of life"Mona Eltahawy – "Why do you hate us so?": The Middle East needs a sexual revolution
Berlin's trademark bear now speaks Arabic (photo: Christian Toensmann)

Arab intellectuals in Germany

"Creating the Berlin of the future"

Arabs in the German capital? For many, this means criminal clans. Yet the city is home to a vibrant intellectual scene. Exiles from Syria, Palestine and Egypt are gathering to exchange ideas, eat and smoke. Is a new "we" emerging? By Dunja RamadanMore

"Be/coming/home – Berlin, capital of exiles?": Monument to diversity in the "Capital of Exiles"Birthing a literature of refuge: A question of mutual interestQantara dossier: German-Arab literature exchange
Holding back the tide: Egypt's second city Alexandria is building barriers to save it from rising sea-levels (photo: Khaled DESOUKI/AFP)

COP27 and the Middle East

Sinking Alexandria faces up to coming catastrophe

Alexandria, Egypt's fabled second city and its biggest port, is in danger of disappearing below the waves within decades.More

COP27 and the Middle East: Millions at risk of climate displacementIslamic environmentalism: The call to eco-jihadClimate change consequences for the Islamic world: Of infernal proportionsEnvironmental protection in Egypt: Did you enjoy your plastic meal today?
Mumbai, one of India's biggest cities, grew by about eight million people in the past 30 years -- equivalent to the entirety of New York City's population (photo: Punit PARANJPE/AFP)

Climate change and megacities

India's predicted urban boom

India is projected to see an explosion in its urban population in the coming decades, but its cities already cannot cope and climate change will make living conditions harsher stillMore

Tarik M. Quadir: "If we don’t pull together to save the earth, we will ‘sink’ together"Climate change in Bangladesh: The end of the line for climate migrants in DhakaQantara photo essay: In Pakistan, a 'disaster of epic proportions'
Cracking due to high temperatures is causing the colour of Egypt’s pyramids at Giza to change (photo: Egyptian tourist board/picture-alliance)

Climate change and Middle East monuments

The most endangered on Earth

Thanks to climate change, the Middle East is heating up faster than any other part of the world, putting the region's ancient pyramids, castles, holy and other heritage sites at even greater risk. Cathrin Schaer reportsMore

Tarik M. Quadir: "If we don’t pull together to save the earth, we will ‘sink’ together"Tobias Zumbraegel: How are Middle East countries coping with climate change?Climate change consequences for the Islamic world: Of infernal proportions
Barriers against rising sea levels: a boy fishing in Alexandria (photo: Karim El-Gawhary)

Climate change in Egypt

Alexandria or the sea?

The next UN climate change conference will begin in Egypt this weekend. In Alexandria, the effects of climate change can already be seen. Karim El-Gawhary reports from the stricken coastal cityMore

Climate change in the MENA: Will North Africa's beaches disappear?Climate crisis and over-population: The Arab world has no answersTobias Zumbraegel on how Middle East countries are coping with climate change
Mevlude Genc a pioneer for peace and tolerance (photo: Bernd Thissen/dpa/picture-alliance)

Mourning Mevlude Genc

A universal mother figure

A survivor of a neo-Nazi hate crime, Mevlude Genc's boundless compassion served as an inspiration to an entire generation. Sertan Sanderson explores how her death is a loss for Germany and TurkeyMore

Islamisation, a racist conspiracy theory: The hatred of Hanau and its enablersDogan Akhanli: "The tradition of looking the other way"60 years German-Turkish Recruitment Agreement: German-Turks take the arts by storm
Little rainfall, aggressive heatwaves and worsening drought make the Middle East the most water-stressed region in the world (photo: Asaad NIAZI/AFP/File)

COP27 and the Middle East

Millions at risk of climate displacement

In the run-up to the COP27 global climate summit, hosted by Egypt in November, it is worth noting that little rainfall, aggressive heatwaves and worsening drought make the Middle East the most water-stressed region in the world, with climate change threatening to displace millions of peopleMore

Tobias Zumbraegel: How are Middle East countries coping with climate change?Climate change consequences for the Islamic world: Of infernal proportionsClimate crisis and over-population: The Arab world has no answers
Sufi shrine to Mustafa Devati in Istanbul (photo: Marian Brehmer)

God's love for all

Sufism is not just Muslim

Sufism has fluid boundaries. Just like Islam, Sufism is inconceivable without its late antique roots. Then again, it has also exerted an influence on Hinduism. Moreover, the Sufic doctrine of divine love exists independently of Islam. By Stefan WeidnerMore

Islamic mysticism: Understanding the SufisIslam in Pakistan: The land of the SufisWomen and Islamic studies: Annemarie Schimmel’s pioneering take on Islam Qantara dossier: Islamic mysticism | Sufism
Afghan schoolgirl looks out of the window (photo: Bulent Kiic/AFP)

"The Lionesses of Afghanistan"

No more 'white saviours', please

Journalist Waslat Hasrat-Nazimi was forced to flee Afghanistan with her family as a child and grew up in Germany. To mark the publication of her book "The Lionesses of Afghanistan", she spoke to Qantara.de about growing up between two cultures, her focus on Afghan women and the media's distorted view of the country. Interview by Schayan RiazMore

Afghanistan under the Taliban: Back to the pastTaliban Afghanistan: Afghan girls attend "secret school"The West's failure in Afghanistan: In denial to the bitter end

Pages

Egypt’s female social media influencers face arrest

A screenshot from Salma Elshimy's Instagram account featuring photos of the Egyptian model and influencer (© almaelshimy, Instagram)

Charged with "inciting debauchery" and "violating family values": Last week, Egyptian TikTok celebrity Salma Elshimy became the latest in a growing list of women to fall foul of the Egyptian authorities over social media postsMore

The big history of Albania's tiny Koran

The Prushi family have been guardians of the Koran for generations The Prushi family have been guardians of the Koran for generations (image: Adnan Beci/AFP)

For generations, this postage stamp-sized book has been passed down through one family -- surviving wars and one of the world's most fanatical "godless regimes".More

Iran's revolutionary feminist backlash

Demonstrators protest in solidarity in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin (photo: DW)

Controlling women's bodies has been a pillar of the Islamic Republic from its inception, writes Nader Hashemi.More

Ramadan: Enlightenment and commerce

According to the Koran, the Prophet Muhammad received the Book's holy words in the month of Ramadan. During this month, Muslims are supposed to practice abstinence. Daily prayer is compulsory – even for travellers. Islamic prayer rooms have been set up in many international airports, like the one here in Amman. In Germany, you can find these rooms in the airports at Frankfurt, Munich and Dusseldorf

Ramadan: Enlightenment and commerce

Muslims all over the world are currently observing Ramadan. The month of fasting is supposed to be all about reflection, meditation and abstention - but Ramadan is becoming increasingly commercialised.

Islamic Republic facing a religious watershed

Symbolic image demonstrating frustration with Iran's religious leaders (photo: Getty Images/AFP)

Iranians do not want an Islam that interferes. They are fed up with a system that manipulates people with simple promises of salvation and anti-Western propaganda. Islamic theologian Hamideh Mohagheghi sees Iran at a religious crossroadsMore

The rise and rise of Muslim influencers

Female influencer wearing headphones using digital tablet while vlogging at cafe (photo: Jose Carlos Ichiro/Westend61/imago images)

In recent decades, Muslim piety has gone through a number of qualitative transformations, the most prominent of which is the emerging phenomenon of "Islamic influencers", which represents a new type of Islamic religiousness that combines globalisation and the values of Western modernity and is easy and effortless. By Ahmad Saif al-NasrMore

UN urged to reject anti-Semitism definition over ‘misuse’ to shield Israel

Blue United Nations flag fluttering in the wind (image: DW/F. Goerner)

More than 100 Israeli and international civil society organisations have asked the United Nations to reject the controversial IHRA anti-Semitism definition, warning it is being "misused" to protect Israel from legitimate criticism.More

India's predicted urban boom

Mumbai, one of India's biggest cities, grew by about eight million people in the past 30 years -- equivalent to the entirety of New York City's population (photo: Punit PARANJPE/AFP)

India is projected to see an explosion in its urban population in the coming decades, but its cities already cannot cope and climate change will make living conditions harsher stillMore

Pakistan feels economic shockwaves

Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif addresses a National Assembly session in Islamabad, Pakistan, on 11 April 2022 (photo: National Assembly of Pakistan/AP/picture-alliance)

While many countries are dependent on Ukrainian or Russian wheat or foreign energy imports, Pakistan requires both. For this reason, the country has been hit particularly badly by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Serious reform is needed, but is it too late for Pakistan's new PM, Shehbaz Sharif (pictured above), to deliver? According to Michael Rubin, Pakistan faces collapse, and the world should be worried.More

APPLY NOW: Germany's IPS Programme for Arabs 2023

The International Parliamentary Scholarship Programme for Arab (IPS) countries offered by the German Bundestag (closing date 15 December 2022) affords young and talented Arab graduates the opportunity to get to know the German parliamentary system.More

Promoting human rights in the Middle East and North Africa

A woman bashes pan lids together during an anti-government demonstration in Algeria (photo: Getty Images/AFP/R. Kramdi)

With authoritarianism once more gaining ground in the Middle East and North Africa, the European Council on Foreign Relations explores how European diplomats can be more effective in promoting human rights and democratic values in the regionMore

World Refugee Day: UNHCR's "The Colour of Flight"

1974: Greek Cypriot children in a refugee camp in Strovolos, a municipality of Nicosia, which at the time had a population of around 1,600 (photo: Jean Mohr; colourised by Marina Amaral)

For "The Colour of Flight", UNHCR collaborated with Brazilian artist Marina Amaral, 30, who specialises in colouring archival images. Building a bridge between past and present, she breathes life into images of the displaced.More

Weathering sandstorms, Iraqis grit their teeth

People ride during a sandstorm in the town of Khalis in Iraq's Diyala province on 3 July (photo: AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP)

Another sandstorm has darkened Iraqi skies and it's hard to breathe, but Baghdad motorcycle delivery rider Milad Mitti doesn't have the luxury of missing a day's work. Like most people in the now blistering hot desert country, the 30-year-old battles on in frustration, wearing goggles and a grey neck warmer over his mouth and nose "so I can breatheMore

Amnesty International Report 2021/22

Amnesty International 2021/2022 annual report (source: amnesty.org)

The Amnesty International Report 2021/22 highlights the human rights situation in 154 countries in 2021. From a human rights perspective, 2021 was largely a story of betrayal and hypocrisy in the corridors of power.More

R.I.P. Abraham B. Yehoshua: "Championing peace and justice"

Israeli author and peace activist A. B. Yehoshua, 1936-2022 (photo: picture-alliance/dpa)

A.B. Yehoshua, a prominent Israeli author celebrated for his mastery of the Hebrew language and a leading peace activist, died last week. He was 85.More

Saudi women move from behind wheel to under the hood

Ghada Ahmed (r) works on a car in Saudi Arabia, where garages are tapping women as a source for mechanics (photo: Fayez Nureldine/AFP)

An auto repair garage in Saudi Arabia is turning to an untapped source for new car mechanics: Saudi women, who just four years ago weren't even allowed to driveMore

Ancient 'zar' ritual puts exorcism on stage

Umm Sameh peforms the music and dance ritual known as "zar", traditionally performed to ward off or exorcise jinn or evil spirits (photo: Khaled DESOUKI/AFP)

A stage, lights, a mesmerised audience: it looks like an Egyptian folkloric concert, but Umm Sameh is singing to heal the sick by driving out the demons that possess themMore

Ukraine: Seven of the country's most important mosques

Crimean Tatar men pray at a mosque in Bakhchysarai (photo: AFP/Dimitar Dilkoff)

While Muslims make up a small proportion of the country's population, Islam has a history in Ukraine stretching back to at least the 14th centuryMore

Is Islam fundamentally incompatible with Britishness?

Tipu Sultan's last stand painting as depicted in Leicester Square. The canvas, which glorified Britishness, was followed by additional works focused on Britain vanquishing the figure of the Muslim (British Military Museum website)

Challenging Islamophobia involves rejecting the country's racist, post-colonial, politically constructed hierarchy, argues Ismail Patel.More

Summer on PBS: "The Great Muslim American Road Trip"

Mona Haydar and husband Sebastian Robins star in the PBS show “The Great Muslim American Road Trip,” which premieres in summer 2022 (photo: Adam McCall/PBS)

Their 'Ask a Muslim' project went viral. Now rapper-activist Mona Haydar and husband Sebastian Robins have a travel show about Islam in the United States.More

"Voices that matter": Intersectional analysis of Canadian Muslim women

Woman preparing lunches for the homeless in San Francisco (photo: Abdel Rahman Bassa)

The Canadian Council of Muslim Women (CCMW) has released a report that found Muslim women experience poorer social and economic conditions compared to their non-Muslim counterparts, while others such as queer, disabled and Black Muslim women – along with newcomers and single mothers – experienced poorer outcomes still.More

Muslims and interfaith marriage

Bridal couple make hearts with hands (photo: Tú Anh/Pixabay/Creative Commons)

One out of five Muslims is in an interfaith relationship, surveys suggest. But few imams are willing to adapt the traditional Muslim wedding ceremony to their needs, couples say.More

"The invisible Muslim": On White privilege and Islam

Banner advertising Medina Tenour Whiteman's "The Invisible Muslim" (source: hurstpublishers.com)

"The Invisible Muslim" offers a topical read to better understand the anti-racism conversation raging across the world right now, as well as a case study of what it means to be a Muslim in the West in the 21st century.More

Bulgarian Pomaks keep traditional wedding rite alive

Bulgarian Pomak bride Nefie Eminkova in her wedding finery and special make-up (photo: Nikolay Doychinov/AFP)

A wedding extravaganza of bright colours, flowers, feasting and dancing, yet the bride, Nefie Eminkova, who comes from Bulgaria's Pomak – Muslim – minority, can see none of it. Her eyes must remain tightly closed until the imam gives his blessing.More

Berlin Mideast Podcast

Focus on the Middle East. Logo of the Berlin Mideast Podcast (photo:Konrad Adenauer Foundation)

Monthly German-language podcast series Berlin Mideast Podcast looks at the current situation and trends in the Middle East.More

Scotland's National Galleries to showcase portraits of its Muslim, Sikh, Hindu and Polish communities

Veiled woman (photo: Arpita Shah)

The National Galleries of Scotland has unveiled plans for a major show exploring the diverse communities and individuals who make up modern-day Scotland. Featuring the work of Arpita Shah, portraits of people from Scotland’s Muslim, Sikh, Hindu and Polish communities are to go on display alongside images of Scottish celebritiesMore

Qantara dossier: Islamophobia

Demonstration against the building of a mosque in Cologne (photo: picture-alliance/Ralph Goldmann)

Renowned journalists, Islamic scholars and authors shed light on the various facets of racist and Islamophobic violence in Western countries.More

Sands of time: a century of Egyptian photography – in pictures

Princess Fawzia of Egypt and Princess Nasl Shah of Turkey, at the Women’s Conference at the Dome Palace (photo: Mohamed El Ghazouly)

These images of everyone from presidents to paupers show the tourist’s view of Egypt that we know – and the backstreets we don’tMore

Europe rights body pulls pro-hijab campaign after French outcry

Colourful hijabs worn by Muslim women (photo: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Gentsch)

The pan European rights body the Council of Europe has pulled a campaign promoting diversity among women and their freedom to wear the Muslim headscarf after it sparked an outcry in fiercely secular France.More

Azerbaijan activists sound alarm over femicide wave

Dilara Bagiyeva, 41, a victim of domestic violence in Azerbaijan (photo by Tofik BABAYEV/AFP)

Activists in Azerbaijan have been urging the country's government to ratify the 2011 Istanbul Convention – a landmark international agreement aimed at preventing domestic violence – for years. Baku has yet to act, however. Meanwhile the number of women dying at the hands of their partners continues to riseMore

SWP dossier: Forced displacement and migration

Pin and thread sculpture of a map of the world (© pogonici/Shuttterstock)

Migration is on the increase worldwide. The causes are manifold. Ever more people are forcibly displaced by persecution, violent conflicts and human-rights violations. Read up on international cooperation in the areas of forced displacement and migration, on developments in Europe’s migrant and refugee policies, and on the migrant and refugee policies of individual states.More

Online education is the only hope for Afghan schoolgirl

Afghan primary school girls in a classroom in Kabul, 18 September 2021. Secondary schools for girls remain closed (photo: © via Reuters/WANA News Agency)

Denied access to school due to the Taliban's failure to reopen secondary schools for girls, one Afghan teenager has taken to the Internet to try to exercise her basic right to an education. But her self-driven online learning mission has not been easy.More

Washington Post: Mustafa Akyol argues for Islamic reform from within

Cover of Mustafa Akyol latest book; YouTube screenshot of Mustafa Akyol

A re-examination of authoritative sources based on reason is at the heart of Mustafa Akyol’s new book: “Reopening Muslim Minds: A Return to Reason, Freedom, and Tolerance”. Akyol’s work offers the reader a journey into largely forgotten but important theological debates that took place among Muslim scholars in the Middle Ages.More

FINO: Forum Islam and Middle East

Forum Islam and Middle East (FINO); Universty of Bern logo (source: https://www.fino.unibe.ch/)

The Forum Islam and Middle East (FINO) was established at the University of Berne in 2018 and sees itself as a transdisciplinary competence centre for documentation, knowledge transfer and academic services in the field of Islam and the Middle East (IME).More

Global Village Space: Pakistan, and why nations radicalise

Anti-French protest in Pakistan following the arrest of Saad Rizvi (photo: AFP)

Discussing Dr. Shoaib Pervez’s latest book "Radicalization in Pakistan: A Critical Perspective", Farah Adeed probes the origins of collective societal radicalisation in Pakistan.More