Society

Ruud Koopman's "Das verfallene Haus des Islam"

Cherry-picking for a distorted image of Islam

Why are predominantly Muslim countries lagging behind when it comes to democracy and human rights? Dutch sociologist Ruud Koopmans uses a lot of figures to underpin his theory that it is all down to religion. According to Daniel Bax, however, his approach is rather too simplistic
By Daniel Bax
Urban renewal under Erdogan

Istanbul shantytown residents in limbo

Amid recent fears of earthquakes, Turkey has rolled out a new urban renewal plan. But past plans have failed to helped quake-prone neighbourhoods, due to a market dominated by construction firm interests. Ayse Karabat reports from Istanbul
By Ayşe Karabat
Uighur repression in China

Beards and hijabs behind bars

A newly leaked document confirms how China is imprisoning Muslim minority Uighurs based solely on their religion. Naomi Conrad met with a whistle-blower and visited relatives of those held captive
By Naomi Conrad
Human rights in the Islamic world

Battle cry "blasphemy"

Many predominantly Muslim countries have penal laws against "blasphemy", "defamation of religion" and "apostasy". In practice they serve as highly effective weapons to settle personal animosities, family vendettas and land disputes. By Thomas Krapf
By Thomas Krapf
Muzoon Almellehan awarded German peace prize

"If you have an education, no-one can take it away from you"

Education is the key to the future. Muzoon Almellehan has known this since she was 14 years old. But she lives in a Jordanian refugee camp. And since then she has been fighting for better education for children in crisis zones. By Bettina Baumann
By Bettina Baumann
Dismissed by decree in Turkey

Social lynching, Erdogan's potent weapon

After the attempted coup in Turkey in 2016, 134,000 people lost their jobs. Most of them are still unemployed and have to fight for health services and pensions. Many suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. By Tunca Ogreten
By Tunca Öğreten
Interview with Indian Muslim writer Sadia Dehlvi

"The soul of India is inclusive, pluralistic, and democratic"

Modi’s Citizenship Amendment Act grants the Indian citizenship to members of persecuted minorities from neighbouring countries, yet excludes Muslims. This has sparked waves of protest all across India. For prominent Delhi-based Muslim writer Sadia Dehlvi the new law is a long overdue wake-up call. Interview by Marian Brehmer
By Marian Brehmer
Interview with sinologist Kristin Shi-Kupfer

"The aim is to rob the Uighurs of their identity"

Hundreds of thousands of Muslim Uighurs are being held in "re-education" camps in Western China. The more pressure the ethnic group faces from Beijing, the more important their Islamic beliefs become, says sinologist Kristin Shi-Kupfer in conversation with Luise Sammann
By Luise Sammann
Contemporary political discourse

What can Europe learn from Arab philosophy?

Michael Frey has written a fascinating book about the contemporary political thinker Nassif Nassar. Since 1967, Nassar has devoted his life’s work to the question of a fair social order both within and beyond Lebanon. Now Frey offers us the first introduction to his work in a European language. By Sonja Hegasy
By Sonja Hegasy
Counter-terrorist, terrorist – what's the difference?

YPG returnees under suspicion

The Kurdish YPG militia did the heavy lifting in the fight against the "Islamic State", yet many foreign YPG adherents, including Germans, have come home to find themselves under suspicion of terrorism. By Esther Felden & Matthias von Hein
By Esther Felden, Matthias von Hein
Interfaith dialogue

Muslim-Jewish pilgrimage to Auschwitz

Few Muslims have to date visited the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp memorial site. Now high-ranking representatives of Muslims and Jews are travelling together to the place of horror. It is a story of personal encounter. By Christoph Strack
By Christoph Strack
Islamism in Germany

Preventing radicalisation in prisons

The terror attacks in Paris, Brussels and Berlin were all carried out by men radicalised in jail. In Germany, politics and the judiciary are trying out new approaches to prevent inmates from becoming extremists. By Esther Felden and Matthias von Hein
By Esther Felden, Matthias von Hein