Qantara.de - Dialog mit der islamischen Welt

New work by Huda Lufti and Sherin Guirguis explores the poetics of revolution and repression at a pair of exhibitions marking the inauguration of the Tahrir Cultural Center at the downtown campus of the American University in Cairo. By Mahmoud Saber and Jacob WirtschafterMore

Israel is censoring an increasing number of online posts from Palestinians and isn't shying away from arrests. Palestinians are desperate to preserve their freedom of expression and are fighting for their digital rights. By Tessa FoxMore

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is cracking down on artists, strongly rejecting any criticism, even from those with conservative backing. But what does he hope to gain from the increasingly aggressive tirades? By Aram Ekin DuranMore

Mustafa Ozturk, a professor specialising in "tafsir" – Koranic exegesis – at Istanbulʹs Marmara University was recently accused of blasphemy. Convinced that various Islamic groups seeking to influence Turkish politics are responsible, Ozturk is actively considering self-imposed exile. Interview by Ayse KarabatMore

Following the massacre of protesting students in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1989, U.S. President George H.W. Bush’s administration limited its sanctions and kept lines of communication open, owing to China's strategic importance. Richard N. Haass asks whether a similar policy toward Saudi Arabia would prove viable?More

Principled leaders on the world stage need to reinforce the rules on which we all depend, sending a clear signal that what happened in Istanbul is not acceptable. Otherwise, we will effectively be giving up the discourse of values and rules – a decision that could well leave us with no coherent and stabilising discourse at all, argues Ana PalacioMore

A Shia Hazara from Pakistanʹs Baluchistan, human rights activist Jalila Haider has made the persecution of minorities her focus. In interview with Saima Hyder Zaidi, she also takes a stand against patriarchal mind-sets and the objectification of womenMore