Society

Women in the Arab world

More violence, less income: Arab women bear the brunt of COVID-19

A new survey by Arab Barometer adds numbers to the narrative that COVID has led to a harsher reality for women in the Middle East and North Africa. By Jennifer Holleis and Razan Salman
By Jennifer Holleis & Razan Salman
The fate of the Armenians

Vakıflı: The last Armenian village in Turkey

The village of Vakıflı (population 150) in the southern Turkish province of Hatay near the Syrian border is the last remaining Armenian village in Turkey. Lately, interest in the town and the history of Armenians has been growing. By Jochen Menzel
By Jochen Menzel
One year after the Beirut port blast

Young activists fight for a new Lebanon

The young activists from the Minteshreen movement want to provide an alternative to the political corruption of the elites. For them, the state is more important than religion. By Sina Schweikle in Beirut
By Sina Schweikle
Yemen's civil war

Underage "martyrs": child soldiers in Yemen

In Yemen, families send their children to so-called summer camps. There, adolescents are given combat training and taught why they should fight for God. Both government forces and Houthi rebels use child soldiers. By Ahmed Imran and Emad Hassan
By Ahmed Amran & Emad Hassan
On the death of Indian photojournalist Danish Siddiqui

The man who captured humanity

In India and beyond, there has been great sadness at the loss of the renowned Reuters photographer Danish Siddiqui, whose images captured the human face of South Asian news. He died while on assignment in Afghanistan. By Natalie Mayroth
By Natalie Mayroth
Moosa Raza's "In Search of Oneness"

What do the Bhagavad Gita and the Koran have in common?

Despite over a thousand years of co-existence, India's Hindus and Muslims often know little about each other's religious traditions. In an effort to promote understanding and reconciliation among the two communities, Moosa Raza, an Indian scholar of Islam, compares the sub-continent’s two most important sacred scriptures. By Marian Brehmer
By Marian Brehmer
Amina Wadud's "Qur'an and Woman" revisited

"Inequality between men and women is contrary to Islam"

Penned by pioneering American female imam and champion of gender equality within Islam, Amina Wadud, "Qur'an and Woman: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman's Perspective" (1999) had a huge impact on academic thought across the Muslim and non-Muslim world. Now it has finally been translated into French – reason enough to re-examine her groundbreaking premise. By Malika Hamidi
By Malika Hamidi
Pakistan, India, Bangladesh

The ordeal of "abandoned wives" left behind by UK families

Many marriages to British Asian men are accompanied by false promises of improved finances. Later when the men abandon their wives to return to the UK, some brides' families find themselves saddled with debt. By S. Khan
By S. Khan
Richard W. Bulliet's "Methodists and Muslims: My life as an Orientalist"

The agency of historians. Or what Edward Said missed out on

Is it legitimate for a historian to compare 11th century Nishapur with 20th century Rockford, Illinois? What possible motive can there be for studying Middle Eastern societies if you have no biographical ties with the region? Eminent Middle East historian Richard Bulliet answers these and other questions in his witty memoir "Methodists and Muslims: My life as an Orientalist". Sonja Hegasy read the book
By Sonja Hegasy
Islamophobia in Germany and Europe

European Muslims face increased online and physical attacks

Muslims in Europe regularly experience threats, witness attacks and are the target of hate across national borders. Now the Council of Europe, the continent's leading human rights organisation, is to examine the problem and make recommendations to policymakers on how they can better tackle Islamophobia. By Christoph Strack
By Christoph Strack
EURO 2020: Racism in football

Racists, not missed penalties, are the problem

The final defeat against Italy hurt England – but the racist insults against Saka, Sancho and Rashford were far more painful, revealing the deep rift running through English society. Commentary by Joscha Weber
By Joscha Weber
Egypt and social media

Qawem group saves Egyptian women from sextortion

Social media make many things possible – including the unwanted circulation of intimate private photos. This has given rise to new forms of crime and sexual blackmail. An initiative in Egypt is assisting victims. Ihad Zidan reports from Cairo
By Ihad Zidan