Society

Syria's shadow economy

Sex work, captagon and currency

Having grown significantly during the war, Syria's informal market for sex, drugs and money continues to thrive. Meanwhile, weak regulation is discouraging investment in the formal economy.
By Ahmed Mohamed
Egypt's TikTok crackdown

Suzy el-Ordoneya and the politics of social media fame

A police crackdown in Egypt is targeting TikTok influencers. Among them is Suzy el-Ordoneya (Suzy the Jordanian), whose rapid rise has brought her into conflict with official state morality.
By Ahmed El-Gammal
Kafr Nabl, Syria

Traces of the revolution

When the Syrian revolution began in 2011, Kafr Nabl went from a sleepy, provincial town to a hub of resistance. Today, it resembles a ghost town. Its story may help ensure the revolution's original ideals are not forgotten.
By Kristin Helberg
Economic hardship in Sudan

War demands unconvential strategies

As the war continues in Sudan, survival has become a daily test of resilience for millions in the country. Business has to adapt and focuses on necessities: food, electricity, fuel and internet.
By Jawhratelkmal Kanu
Palestinian podcast hosts

"No peace without justice and collective liberation"

Amira Mohammed and Ibrahim Abu Ahmad launched "Unapologetic: The Third Narrative" after 7 October to platform both Palestinian and Israeli voices. Now, ahead of season two, they explain why nonviolent activism remains at the heart of their work.
By Anna-Theresa Bachmann
Public space in Egypt

Cairo is becoming unwalkable

Cairo's footpaths are disappearing, its public spaces are shrinking and its trees are being uprooted to make way for car-focused infrastructure and urban sprawl. For pedestrians, the city has become a hostile place.
By Rehab Eliawa
Public space in Syria

Where Damascus goes to breathe

Before the war, Mount Qasioun was a refuge for the people of Damascus, a rare space for freedom and intimacy. After Assad's fall, it was briefly reclaimed as a public space, but now large-scale private developments threaten to take it over.
By Ahmad Katlesh
Sectarian violence in Syria

Assad's long shadow

In Syria, "minority protection" has long been used as a pretext for pitting religious and ethnic groups against each other. We Syrians must refuse the weaponisation of our identities, because the new government is counting on division.
By Sarah Hunaidi
History and reconstruction in Syria

Dictatorship, dispossession and a missing mosaic

A school, a military base, an archaeological site: from French colonial rule to Assad, this family home was seized and repurposed by successive regimes. Now, its owners are fighting to reclaim it.
By Qusay Awad
Iran's monarchists

Producing nostalgia, courting war

Through satellite TV, viral content, and alliances with Netanyahu and Trump, Iran's monarchist elites are staging a comeback. From exile they are attempting to co-opt Iran's opposition by recasting the Pahlavi dynasty as a golden age of freedom.
By Armin Messager
Sudanese music in Cairo

Finding joy in the face of war

While war rages at home, for Sudanese wedding singers in exile in Cairo, celebration has become a form of resistance.
By Mohamed Gamal
"Christ in the Rubble" by Munther Isaac

The Christian case against the war on Gaza

Munther Isaac, a West Bank pastor, rejects Bible-based justifications for war and calls Gaza a "moral compass". In "Christ in the Rubble", he presents a view of the war that is polarising without being destructive.
By Behnam Heidenreuter-Said