Colonialism
All topics-
Violence in the Arab world
Born of a barbaric state
In this essay, the Syrian writer Morris Ayek describes how repressive Arab states have succeeded in creating societies modelled on themselves
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Egyptian historian Khaled Fahmy on the Six-Day War
The Arabs′ Groundhog Day
In interview with Sonja Zekri, Harvard-based Egyptian historian Khaled Fahmy describes the Arab defeat at the hands of Israel in the year 1967 as triggering the rise of Islamism
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The Maghreb
A regional time bomb
With the lack of sustainable development and social progress, political stability is at risk in the Maghreb. Instability may have fatal consequences for Europe. Commentary by Nassir Djafari
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Film review: "Aligarh"
Sensitive portrait of a tragic story
A film about the fate of a gay professor at India's renowned Aligarh University highlights the country's difficult relationship with homosexuality. Marian Brehmer watched the drama
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Slavoj Zizek’s exploration of Islam and modernity
A Eurocentric perspective
Unlike most of his published work, Slavoj Zizek′s latest essay on Islam and modernity is not left-wing at all. Rather surprisingly, he is favour of restricting the mobility of refugees within Europe and defends a whole range of Eurocentric attitudes. By Tarkan Tek
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India and Pakistan
Unable to bury the axe
Following the latest attack on an Indian military base in Kashmir, India and Pakistan have yet again locked horns over the disputed region. Now the Indian government says it wants to isolate its Islamic neighbour as a terrorist state. Report by Ronald Meinardus in New Delhi
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Western involvement in the Middle East
A rotten legacy
Whatever else they were guilty of, the two authors of the invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003, George Bush and Tony Blair, displayed an astonishing ignorance of history. By Roger Hardy
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Lebanon′s architectural heritage
A race against time
Old Beirut is slowly dying. Remnants of the Lebanese capital′s architectural heritage have survived two world wars, fifteen years of civil war, the 2006 Summer War, as well as hundreds of car bombings, suicide attacks and assassinations. Yet now, writes Changiz Varzi, there′s a new, inexorable threat: real estate development
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Rafik Schami on integration
″To the haters, they′re all faceless Muslims″
In this article, the Syrian-German writer Rafik Schami outlines his idea of integration and hospitality.
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Sykes-Picot and the role of Gertrude Bell
Midwife of the Middle East
The order of nation states in the Middle East has been disintegrating since Islamic State fighters overran the Syrian border in 2014 – a border that dates back to 1916 and a secret agreement between the diplomats Sir Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot. Yet one woman also played a key role: the British national Gertrude Bell. Birgit Svensson visited her grave in Baghdad
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The Oriental adventures of Hermann von Puckler-Muskau
Prussia's favourite dandy
Prince Puckler was one of the principal landowners in 19th century Prussia. Yet, his passion for landscape gardening brought him to the brink of financial ruin. His literary career provided some monetary relief, especially his travelogues, which also led him on a journey to the Egypt of Muhammad Ali Pasha. By Christine Pfeilschifter
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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