What happened in Cologne is being instrumentalised on all sides. Islamist preachers such as Pierre Vogel and Muslim representatives in Germany are using the events to clalm that salvation lies, as ever, in the strict observance of religious rules. This is simply serving to widen the rift, writes Stefan BuchenMore

In conversation with Habib El Mallouki, the renowned US Islam scholar John Louis Esposito talks about burgeoning Islamophobic and right-wing populist tendencies in Europe and the US as a consequence of the terrorist activities of radical Islamist groupsMore

Reports on the sexual attacks on New Year's Eve in Cologne have intentionally emphasised the ethnic origins of the offenders. With what reason? A commentary by Daniel BaxMore

Talking about foreigners is always easier than pinpointing what makes us unique. Yet, on the whole, it's actually quite easy to say what's German. The only problem is that we then need to draw the right conclusions. An essay by Armin NassehiMore

No one who has written in support of a "culture of rejection" should be surprised by the Pirincci scandal, or that someone might lash out in response. Robert Misik considers the debateMore

The world is familiar with reports about the exploitation of migrant labourers in the Gulf region. In 2013, Saud Alsanousi's book "The Bamboo Stalk", which focuses on the experiences of a young man in Kuwait who is half Kuwaiti, half Filipino, won the International Prize for Arabic Fiction. This novel shines a light on the discrimination and rejection experienced by so many migrants in this region. Nahrain Al-Mousawi read the bookMore

In the wake of a protest against Israel's war in Gaza last year, Israel's ambassador to Germany claimed that Jews are being hunted again in Germany "like it's 1938". In this article, William Noah Glucroft, a Jew living in Berlin, considers this statement and what people mean when they talk about anti-SemitismMore