Kurds
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War in Syria
Ending America′s disastrous role
Much of the carnage that has ravaged Syria during the past seven years is due to the actions of the United States and its allies in the Middle East. By Jeffrey D. Sachs
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Interview with Kurdish author Bachtyar Ali
"I only exist where my words take flight"
Among Kurds, Bachtyar Ali has long been a celebrated author. In Germany, he shot to fame when ″Der letzte Granatapfel″ (The Last Pomegranate) was published. Recently, "Die Stadt der weißen Musiker" (The City of White Musicians), the second of his novels to be translated into German, was released. Interview by Sonja Galler
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Mosque attacks in Germany
The wrong target
Since the beginning of the Turkish military offensive in the northern Syrian enclave of Afrin, there have been repeated violent attacks on Turkish mosques in Germany. Foreign conflicts should not be imported to Germany, nor should the military conflicts of other nations be fuelled by weapons exports, says Armin Langer
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Turkey′s Syrian offensive
A war of America′s making
Bereft of a coherent Syria policy, successive U.S. administrations have obsessed over targeting Islamic State (IS) without considering the full ramifications of their actions. Turkey′s incursion into northwestern Syria is just one consequence. Analysis by Barak Barfi
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Turkey’s Afrin offensive
Wrong, but not unjustified
Although the presence of an armed group on Turkey′s border – especially one allied to the PKK – was inevitably going to be perceived as a threat, Ankara′s Afrin offensive has been given short shrift in Germany. Commentary by Ulrich von Schwerin
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Turkey′s incursion into Syria
The Kurdish quagmire
The last thing the conflict in Syria needed was more external intrusion and the opening of another front. Turkey′s Afrin offensive has provided both. Once again, the Western powers and Russia have managed to foster a dangerous escalation. Commentary by Tom Stevenson
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Turkish offensive in Syria
The poisoned olive branch
Turkey has launched its second military campaign in northern Syria. But this time it is not directed against Islamic State. Once again the Kurds are in the firing line. This move also has implications for relations with Russia. An analysis by Michael Martens
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Bachtyar Ali's novel "Die Stadt der weißen Musiker"
Poetry and truth
Bachtyar Ali, probably the best known contemporary novelist and poet from the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, has produced a major novel about art and reconciliation. It has recently been translated into German and is proving a major success. By Stefan Weidner
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Criticising Erdogan
Don't romanticise the Kemalist legacy!
The narrative of an "enlightened" and generally democratic Turkey, a country that is currently in the process of being destroyed by Erdogan, should not go unchallenged, says Tayfun Guttstadt
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Syria and the war against IS
Strange bedfellows
Two groups from opposite ends of the political spectrum – U.S. Special Operations Command and the Syrian Democratic Forces (another name for Abdullah Ocalan′s PKK) – are making common cause in northern Syria. By Stefan Buchen and Karaman Yavuz
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Fighting over Kurdish independence
A political fiasco
By going ahead with the referendum on independence, Massoud Barzani has forfeited the support of his international allies, while bringing tensions with Iraqi central government to a dangerous head. If Barzani hoped the referendum would consolidate his own power base, he couldn′t have been more wrong. An analysis by Cigdem Akyol
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In praise of fusion food
Hummus with a twist
When a Kurd and a Turk open up a burger joint and an Israeli and a Palestinian start preparing German dishes with Middle Eastern spices, you know the food scene is in flux. In Berlin intercultural dialogue is increasingly a matter of what you eat. By Rachel Stern