Essays
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France's burka banExcluding the wrong people
We shouldn't be arguing about burkas: we should be abolishing the headscarf bans. They ostracise women who could be building bridges, comments Ursula Rüssmann
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Syria and the Middle EastThe End of the Sykes Picot System?
Aside from the human suffering caused by Syria's ongoing war, we should be aware of the potentially dire regional consequences of Syria's disintegration: It would call the entire post-World War I Middle Eastern state system into question. By Volker Perthes
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Commentary by Daoud KuttabAn Arab "Third Way"
Throughout the post-colonial period, Arab countries have consistently failed to produce an efficient – let alone democratic – system of government. Now, after a half-century of competition between military or royal dictatorships and militant Islamist regimes, many Arabs are again seeking a "third way"
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Essay by the Syrian Writer Fawwaz HaddadChildren of a Divided Nation
In his essay, the renowned Syrian writer and novelist Fawwaz Haddad criticises the cynical attitude of the international community toward the Syrian conflict and the dramatic decline of his homeland
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Al-Azhar and Pan-Islamic RationalismThe Demise of Islamic Centres of Moderation
The spread of extremism in Muslim societies in the past century can be attributed to a largely overlooked trend: the demise of religious institutions that once had global reach. Focusing on Egypt's Al-Azhar university, Hassan Hassan takes a look into the matter
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Saudi Arabia's Foreign and Security PolicyCategorical Imperative
Saudi Arabia's political maxim is stability for the petrodollar monarchy. Everything else is of secondary importance for the powers that be in Riyadh. But as long as Wahhabism remains the absolute ideology of state, there can be no real unity or real stability in the Saudi Arabian nation. By Loay Mudhoon
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Inter-Islamic Cultural WarThe Despondency of the Political Middle Ground
Despite their poor results in elections, the Salafi movements have succeeded in putting their stamp on the policies of the Islamic mainstream - and moderate Islamists continue to react towards the Salafis with a certain degree of despondency. Samir Farangiya reports on the phenomenon of the new inter-Islamic cultural war
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The Media and ''The Innocence of Muslims''Against the Islamisation of Muslims
Reports by Western media on the violent protests in the Muslim world against the film "The Innocence of Muslims" have delivered a one-sided and over-simplified picture of the Muslims and the complex reality in which they live. By Hoda Salah
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US Strikes People's Mujahedin of Iran off Terror ListThe Schizophrenia of US Foreign Policy
The People's Mujahedin of Iran was one of the leading participants of the 1979 Revolution in Iran. For years the militant revolutionary organization was on the US list of terrorist organizations. Now the ban is suddenly lifted. Stephan Buchen on a bizarre episode of US Foreign Policy
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Muslim and Arab Women at the OlympicsGold Medal or Headscarf?
With the world celebrating the arrival of two headscarf-wearing athletes at the Olympics, does their participation mark another step along the road towards emancipation? In actual fact, Muslim athletes have been successful at the Olympics for decades. The Games are degrading Arab female athletes by portraying them as something exotic, writes Manfred Sing in his essay