Politics

Iranian-Saudi relations

For better, for worse

The West often reduces the strained relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia to the sectarian Sunni-Shia conflict, but the reality is far more complex. By Joseph Croitoru
By Joseph Croitoru
Resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict

Expect nothing from Trump

While the US continues to turn a blind eye to settlement expansion, the international community and the EU in particular are left with the responsibility of ensuring that everyday life in the Palestinian enclaves does not collapse. Time for a rethink, argue policy analysts Sam Bahour and Mousa Jiryis
By Sam Bahour and Mousa Jiryis
The achievements of Erdogan

With me or against me

The Turkish president is adept at cultivating his own public image. Speaking of national unity, he mobilises supporters and denounces opponents. National unity, however, vanished long ago. Erdogan’s divisiveness is exacerbating the country′s problems. Commentary by Timur Tinc
By Timur Tinç
Young people and protests in the Arab world

So shall you reap

In many Arab countries young people continue to feel neglected. The latest Arab Human Development Report claims that shifting demographics are incubating the next political crisis. By Kareem Chehayeb
By Kareem Chehayeb
Abdul Fattah al-Sisi′s ascendancy

Sweetness and light?

Egypt is in crisis. To tighten his grip on power, President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi claims to be its saviour. He tries to discredit any dissent as anti-national. His idea of the nation, however, does not include every Egyptian. By Ingy Salama
By Ingy Salama
Interview with Syrian dissident Yassin al-Haj Saleh

The West's lamentable myopia

Syrian intellectual Yassin al-Haj Saleh was a revolutionary from the very first. He remains harshly critical of all those political observers and experts in the West who claim that there is no alternative to Assad and that shoring up the regime would be the lesser of two evils. Interview by Emran Feroz
By Emran Feroz
Iran following the death of Rafsanjani

On a knife edge

Now that Rafsanjani is gone, Iran's President Rouhani has lost his main advocate. In the impending conflict with US President Trump, Rouhani will have to manage without his mentor to keep the conservative hardliners in check, some of whom already see Trump's policies as confirming their distrust of the arch-enemy. By Ulrich von Schwerin
By Ulrich von Schwerin
Egypt′s hotbeds of radicalisation

From inmate to jihadist

Torture, abuse and overcrowding in Egyptian prisons is fostering the radicalisation of Islamist inmates, with many turning to Islamic State as the highest role model to aspire to. In a Qantara.de exclusive, Mustafa Abduh met with some former prisoners
By Mustafa Abdu
US Middle East foreign policy

West versus the rest

Trump′s policy attempts to apply a tourniquet to the perceived ′Muslim problem′ that has been manufactured and now exacerbated by the West′s wayward dealings in the Middle East. An analysis by Mishana Hosseinioun
By Mishana Hosseinioun
Egypt′s repression of academics and journalists

The Regeni murder fallout

The murder of an Italian academic one year ago was yet another tragic reminder that it is barely possible to conduct independent research in Egypt these days. But German and European policies on Egypt rely on scholarly analyses, say Stephan Roll and Lars Brozus
By Stephan Roll und Lars Brozus
US Middle East policy under Donald Trump

A recipe for further catastrophes?

Trump's election is also being seen as a caesura in the Middle East. Many fear a return to a simplistic way of thinking, which would make his presidency a nightmare for the region, says Loay Mudhoon
By Loay Mudhoon
The rise of right-wing populism in Europe

A continent divided

The rise of right-wing populism is throwing Europe off-balance. The impacts on policies concerning migration, inclusion and asylum are already evident. In many European countries, right-wing propaganda is calling into question achievements such as the freedom of religion, free movement for EU citizens and the right of asylum. By Daniel Bax
By Daniel Bax