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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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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Alliance between the PKK and the Assad RegimeA Political Sect on the Wrong Track
Just as the Assad regime is foundering, the Kurdistan Workers' Party, PKK, is proving to be its loyal henchman. In this essay, Stefan Buchen writes that PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan made a deal with the Syrian regime back in the days of Hafez al-Assad
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Joris Luyendijk on the Prospects for Societal Change in EgyptA Riveting Wave of Political and Religious Soul Searching
On the road to democratic and economic development, Egypt faces two major hurdles: endemic corruption, and a deadbeat educational system. But, says Joris Luyendijk, there may be hope from an unexpected corner: Islam
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9/11 and the Arab SpringThe End of the ''Antithesis''
Ten years after 9/11, the idea that Islam is fundamentally opposed to Western democratic values has had its day. In fact, the Arab Spring reveals both Muslims and the image of the West from a different perspective.