Syria
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Artists in SyriaReclaiming space, testing limits
Since Assad's fall, Syrian artists and intellectuals have been seeking ways to respond to a transformed reality. Four cultural workers reflect on the shape of the cultural sphere in the new Syria.
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New print issueWhat will become of Syria?
The question of Syria's future is the focus of the latest issue of Kulturaustausch, who we've partnered with for the first time. The answers come from our Syrian contributors. Articles are now available online in English.
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ناشط كويري سوري في برلينالسياسة، الخوف، والرقص الشرقي
يواجه المجتمع الكويري، من المثليين والمثليات والعابرين والعابرات جنسيا، ضغوطًا متزايدة مع صعود اليمين المتطرف في ألمانيا. يتحدث الدرويش، الناشط السوري المقيم ببرلين، في مقابلة، عن واقع الكويريين بين سوريا وألمانيا، عن الانقسام والتهديد، وعن شغفه بالرقص الشرقي كمساحة للحرية.
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The new SyriaA history of violence
For the first time in eleven years, Yassin al-Haj Saleh returned to his homeland. The Syrian writer and dissident found a country torn apart by internal conflicts and beset by worries about the return of tyranny. A historical analysis.
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Stateless in SyriaWill al-Sharaa naturalise foreign fighters and their children?
Thousands of children born to foreign militia members and Syrian mothers remain stateless. As the government considers granting citizenship to fighters, their families—including the widows of deceased fighters—wait for clarity.
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Political scientist Rahaf Aldoughli"Al-Sharaa must be put under pressure"
Ahmed al-Sharaa promised a peaceful Syria, but violence continues to shape the country's transition. A genuine national dialogue, political participation and a strategy to integrate former fighters into the army are essential, says political scientist Rahaf Aldoughli.
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Kafr Nabl, SyriaTraces of the revolution
When the Syrian revolution began in 2011, Kafr Nabl went from a sleepy, provincial town to a hub of resistance. Today, it resembles a ghost town. Its story may help ensure the revolution's original ideals are not forgotten.
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Public space in SyriaWhere Damascus goes to breathe
Before the war, Mount Qasioun was a refuge for the people of Damascus, a rare space for freedom and intimacy. After Assad's fall, it was briefly reclaimed as a public space, but now large-scale private developments threaten to take it over.
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New biography of Ali KhameneiThe man pulling Iran's strings
Ali Khamenei is one of the most powerful figures in world politics, with influence extending far beyond Iran. Who is the man who, since 1989, has steered the Islamic Republic with an iron grip? A new biography by Ali Sadrzadeh sheds some light on the mystery.
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Sectarian violence in SyriaAssad's long shadow
In Syria, "minority protection" has long been used as a pretext for pitting religious and ethnic groups against each other. We Syrians must refuse the weaponisation of our identities, because the new government is counting on division.
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History and reconstruction in SyriaDictatorship, dispossession and a missing mosaic
A school, a military base, an archaeological site: from French colonial rule to Assad, this family home was seized and repurposed by successive regimes. Now, its owners are fighting to reclaim it.
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Suwayda, SyriaNot a local conflict, but geopolitics in disguise
Sectarianism in Syria is a longstanding political project. Institutionalised under colonial rule and exploited by Assad, it's now being weaponised by the new regime and Israel, as the massacres in Suwayda make brutally clear.