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Saudi Arabia: Janadriyah Festival of Culture

A population ruled by fear

As was revealed at the culture festival in Riyadh, the Kingdom finds itself in a precarious position – not least because women are still excluded from podium discussions. Open debate about politics and religion did, however, take place at the fringes. Stefan Weidner reports from Riyadh
Berlinale 2016: Interview with Saudi director Mahmoud Sabbagh

″Testing the water... to make a change"

Newcomer Mahmoud Sabbagh′s offering is pacy, anarchic and – unexpectedly for Saudi Arabia – a romantic comedy. A love story set against the vibrant youth culture of Jeddah, ″Barakah meets Barakah″ presents a new generation of social media-savvy Saudis and their very real expectations. Rene Wildangel met and interviewed Mahmoud Sabbagh at the Berlinale
Egyptʹs 2018 presidential elections

Blatant autocracy

No-one is under any illusion about the forthcoming presidential elections in Egypt at the end of March. With the current regime shamelessly and unambiguously issuing instructions to one political party after another to put up candidates, the outcome will be a sham, argues Shady Lewis Botros
The future of the Middle East

How about a Marshall Plan?

If we are ever to break the modern Middle East′s cycle of crises, we must not lose sight of the future. Across the Arab world four trends are already brewing a new set of problems for the coming decade. By Tarek Osman
The role of Egypt′s armed forces

A military empire

After the Arab spring, the Egyptian military gained unprecedented influence. Able to count on the financial support of several Gulf monarchies, it maintains tight control of the political arena and the Egyptian economy. By Ingy Salama
Authoritarian rule in the Arab world

Nurturing the Arabellion phoenix

The restoration of authoritarianism after the turmoil of 2010/11 lured some analysts into drawing the over-hasty conclusion that the Arab Spring had been doomed to failure from the start, because the citizens of these countries lacked political maturity and a real desire for change. A miscalculation, argues Emad Alali in his essay
Political crisis

Sudanʹs deadly counter-revolutionary militia

In the struggle between demonstrators and the military for a civilian-led state, the successors to Darfur’s notorious Janjaweed militia could end up as the cats that got the cream. That the group is financed by autocratic Gulf states makes it even more suspect. Karim El-Gawhary reports from Khartoum
Sudan: From protests to power struggle

Following the violent crackdown on the protest camp in Khartoum, the tension between the civilians and military became even more strained. Yet the stalemate appears over – for now. Here's a chronology of events. By Kersten Knipp
Interview with Algerian opposition leader Soufiane Djilali

Political crisis in Algeria – is compromise in sight?

Presidential elections or constitutional assembly? Algeria's opposition continues to argue over ways to overcome the crisis. A proposal by the Jil Jadid party could finally break down the entrenched fronts. Sofian Naceur spoke to its leader, Soufiane Djilali
The nature of Islam

Neither violence nor peace

The holy scriptures contain passages that can be used to justify both violence and peace. It depends entirely on us religious people what we do with this heritage, writes Armin Langer