Politics

Death of Yemeni ex-dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh

Caught in no-man's land

For a week, Ali Abdullah Saleh, the former long-time ruler of Yemen fought against his erstwhile Houthi alliance partners for control of the capital Sanaa – then suddenly he was dead. By Karim El-Gawhary
By Karim El-Gawhary
Islamist extremism in Morocco

Time for a rethink

Despite the hardline approach taken by the Moroccan state over the years in its dealings with Islamist extremists, the Maghreb nation is still viewed as the world's biggest "terrorist exporter". What's going wrong? Answers from Ali Anouzla
By Ali Anouzla
Africa's Muslims

Pawns of the Saudis

Rich Saudis are investing millions in building mosques in Africa. And they are being accused of using radical preachers to destabilise the region. But there has long been much more at stake on the African continent than proselytising. By Gwendolin Hilse
By Gwendolin Hilse
Resolving the crisis in Libya

Another fine mess

How to resolve the conflict in Libya remains one of the most difficult and important questions facing policy-makers today. Given the complex attitudes towards foreign interventions on the ground, we need a clear strategy that will stand up to local, regional and international scrutiny. By Alison Pargeter
By Alison Pargeter
Mosque attack in northern Sinai

Targeting the peacemakers

Openly critical of the culture of violence, the Sufis in northern Sinai have long been a thorn in the side of IS jihadists in the region. This begs the question as to why the Egyptian security forces did not take seriously the threats that were made against the Sufis and the mosque targeted in the recent attack. By Karim El-Gawhary
By Karim El-Gawhary
Saudi-Iranian conflict

Sleepwalking into war

War between Iran and Saudi Arabia would be of no use to anyone, not even to the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Ben Salman in Riyadh or Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran. On the contrary: both men could conceivably find themselves ousted. Yet powerful political factions exist that are intent on warmongering. By Ali Sadrzadeh
By Ali Sadrzadeh
Israel 100 years after Balfour

A case of moral degradation

2 November 2017 marked the centenary of the Balfour Declaration. This document promised to deliver a homeland for the Jews, yet also that "nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine". Has this promise been kept? Political analyst Peter Oborne reports
By Peter Oborne
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
By Tayfun Guttstadt
Yassin al-Haj Saleh's "The Impossible Revolution"

The "Syrianisation" of the world

In his book "The Impossible Revolution – Making Sense of the Syrian Tragedy", Syrian dissident Yassin al-Haj Saleh chronicles the Syrian revolution and explains how it was destroyed. His analysis shows all too clearly how little the West knows about Syria to this day. By Emran Feroz
By Emran Feroz
Power play in Saudi Arabia

Charting a seismic shift

With an unprecedented wave of arrests, the young Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is trying to consolidate his power in the country. But he is making some dangerous enemies. An analysis by Karim El-Gawhary
By Karim El-Gawhary
Voter apathy in Jordan

An open invitation

Low voter turnout in local elections intended to de-centralise governance in Jordan disproportionately boosted Islamists′ fortunes – something which may ultimately have more impact than the intended decentralisation. Commentary by Kirk H. Sowell
By Kirk H. Sowell
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
By Stefan Buchen, Karaman Yavuz