Saddam Hussein
All topics-
Offensive against IS in Iraq
Sowing the seeds of the next disaster
With their keen fighting spirit, the Shia militias may well be an effective weapon in the fight against Islamic State in Iraq. However, this is quite literally a case of casting out the devil that is IS with the Beelzebub that is the Shia militias, says Karim El-Gawhary
-
Interview with filmmaker Samir
An Iraqi odyssey
In his impressive 3D documentary "Iraqi Odyssey", the Iraqi-born Swiss filmmaker Samir combines the personal stories of some of his relatives with archive footage of events in Iraq from the Ottoman Empire to the era of Saddam Hussein. Igal Avidan spoke to him in Berlin
-
Interview with the Iraqi author Abbas Khider
"German is my new language"
The Iraqi writer Abbas Khider was already living in Germany when war broke out in his home country. In this interview with Abderrahmane Ammar, he talks about why he speaks about those events in the language of his new home country and why he now also writes his books in German
-
Interview with Navid Kermani
"One should take the religious façade seriously"
The writer Navid Kermani spent a week in mid September travelling through Iraq, visiting a number of different parts of the country. In this interview with Kersten Knipp, he speaks of his impressions of the country and some factors that have led to the rise of IS in Iraq
-
New government in Iraq
Shouldering a huge political burden
Iraq's new prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, along with some members of his cabinet were recently confirmed in their posts with the help of votes from Kurdish members of parliament. But the haggling in Iraq's post-Saddam political bazaar is far from over. By Birgit Svensson in Baghdad
-
Interview with war photographer Christoph Bangert
The naked brutality of war
The photographer and journalist Christoph Bangert has published a book of photographs that his editors refused to use. All of them highlight the horror of war. His book, "War Porn", is an appeal not to look away from the brutality of armed conflict. Monika Griebeler spoke to him about his work and his book
-
International Prize for Arabic Fiction 2014: "Frankenstein in Baghdad"
Beyond good and evil
Ahmed Saadawi's novel "Frankenstein in Baghdad" has won the 2014 International Prize for Arabic Fiction. Khaled Hroub presents the book
-
Interview with American photojournalist Michael Kamber
Dispelling the myths of war and war photography
Michael Kamber is an American photojournalist and winner of the World Press Photo Award. Between 2003 and 2012 he covered the Iraq War extensively for the "New York Times". In 2013, he published the book "Photojournalists on war – The untold stories from Iraq", a mixture of photography and interviews with 39 photojournalists from different countries who worked in Iraq. Felix Koltermann spoke to him about his motivation for making this book
-
Commentary by Daoud Kuttab
An Arab "Third Way"
Throughout the post-colonial period, Arab countries have consistently failed to produce an efficient – let alone democratic – system of government. Now, after a half-century of competition between military or royal dictatorships and militant Islamist regimes, many Arabs are again seeking a "third way"
-
US Strikes People's Mujahedin of Iran off Terror List
The Schizophrenia of US Foreign Policy
The People's Mujahedin of Iran was one of the leading participants of the 1979 Revolution in Iran. For years the militant revolutionary organization was on the US list of terrorist organizations. Now the ban is suddenly lifted. Stephan Buchen on a bizarre episode of US Foreign Policy
-
Iraq after the Withdrawal of US Troops
A ''Stable'' Country Teetering on the Brink
After the withdrawal of the Americans from Iraq, the governing coalition in Baghdad is imploding, the dispute between Shia and Sunni is escalating and several provinces are striving for autonomy. Birgit Svensson reports from Baghdad
-
America's War on Terror
What Went Wrong?
The failure of the United States's global policy since 9/11 can be measured in the chasm between the dreams of 2001 and the reality of 2007. A stock of six years of "war on terror"