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Lyrical flights

Mahvash Sabet, a leading representative of the Baha'i religion, spent almost ten years in Iranian prisons because of her faith. She was released in September. Sabet turned her experiences during her confinement into poems, which she managed to smuggle out of prison. Interview by Keyvandokht Ghahari

The surprising survival of Mosulʹs Jewish quarter

Mosul's Jewish quarter miraculously survived three years of occupation by the Islamic State terror group and the battle to evict it. Judit Neurink and Eddy van Wessel went there to find out how

When Fatima became Sophie

Bader has achieved significant acclaim both in Arabic and in translation as an author of philosophical fiction. The Iraqi writer′s twelfth novel, ″Al-Kafira″ (The Infidel Woman), published last year, however, signals a major break with his previous body of work. By Marcia Lynx Qualey

Breaking down cyber barriers

By teaching girls programming and computer literacy, two sisters in Afghanistan have triggered something of a digital revolution. Report by Jennifer Collins and Storay Karimi

"My life in Afghanistan is more normal than people assume"

Ronja von Wurmb-Seibel is a German journalist and author of "Ausgerechnet Kabul" (Kabul, of all places). Her book is an account of her time in Afghanistan and provides an insider's perspective on the country, going beyond the subjects of burqa, Taliban and the role of the German Army in the country. Roma Rajpal Weiss spoke to her about the war-torn country and the situation for women in Afghanistan

Trying to break a major societal taboo

Birth control is a taboo topic in Afghanistan, the country with the highest birth rate in Asia. Many women resort to having illegal abortions in order to avoid social exclusion and to prevent undesired additions to their family. By Waslat Hasrat-Nazimi

Where the warlords still hold sway

The militias of Afghan warlords have always occupied a dubious position in the life of the country. But Kabul relies on them as allies in the battle against the Taliban – a strategy, however, that is having the opposite effect. By Emran Feroz

Underprivileged and unwanted

Pakistan has the second-largest refugee population in the world and the number of internally displaced people (IDPs) is growing too. The country is fighting internal militants and facing huge challenges. Islamabad is struggling to live up to its domestic and international obligations. By Waqqas Mir

Secularism – ″the other option″?

In his essay, Syrian publicist and writer Hammud Hammud debunks conventional Islamist prejudices regarding the concept of secularism and examines the ambivalence of political Islam and Arab nationalism

No traction

In the international statistics documenting terror attacks inspired or orchestrated by the IS terror militia, India is nowhere to be found. And this despite the fact that owing to its demography and socio-economic conditions, the country with its 180 million Muslims should be fertile ground for foreign-controlled Islamist terrorism. By Ronald Meinardus in New Delhi