Qantara Startseite Englisch - Dialogue with the Islamic world
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Literature in YemenThe last bastion of beauty
Yemen's cultural scene has been hard hit by years of war, but not completely silenced. While many writers and intellectuals have left the country, the small literary club Alamaqah remains active, a testament to the resilience of Yemeni culture.
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Education in SyriaReturning pupils face language barrier
Eleven-year-old Ali spent six years in Germany. Now back in Syria, he is struggling with Arabic, his native language, as the new government appears overwhelmed by the task of reintegrating returning schoolchildren.
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Syria's economyAusterity and liberalisation won't rebuild the country
Syria's government is pursuing economic growth through liberalisation, foreign investment and cuts to state spending. These moves benefit the new elite but won't lift the majority out of crisis.
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Religion in the armed forcesMilitary imams to be introduced in Germany
From 2026, Germany's Bundeswehr will recruit chaplains for Muslim soldiers, responding to calls from Islamic associations that go back over two decades.
Christmas between Christianity and Islam
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Politics
More about Politics-
One year after AssadThe road to a new Syria
A year ago, rebel forces ousted Syria’s Assad regime. How has the country changed since? Leading experts weigh in.
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Assad's Syria"Our documents reveal how state terror was organised"
Human rights activist Hassan al-Hariri risked his life to gather evidence of the atrocities committed by the Assad regime. One year after Assad's fall, he still sees major shortcomings in Syria's process of coming to terms with its past.
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Syria conflictFeigning helplessness
Claims by Western diplomats that the Syria conflict can only be solved politically and not militarily are misleading. While the West foots the bill for the humanitarian catastrophe caused by the Assad regime, Russian President Putin creates a situation on the ground to further its interests. A commentary by Markus Bickel
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President Bouteflika and Algeria′s futureThe sick man of the Mediterranean
The ongoing struggle for power between Algeria′s president and the country′s secret service may for the time being have been won by Abdelaziz Bouteflika. But the question as to who holds the reins of power in Algeria remains. The president or the omnipresent armed forces? An analysis by Gianni del Panta
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Turkey: interview with Bilgin AyataNo haven for refugees
Turkey′s military has been leading operations in the east of the country for months. The clashes have cost hundreds of lives so far. Ceyda Nurtsch spoke to Bilgin Ayata, assistant professor of political sociology at Basel University, about the political motivation behind the conflict and its impact on Turkey′s citizens
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Turkey′s campaign against the PKKSiege tactics
Hundreds dead, whole districts reduced to rubble. That’s the outcome of Turkey′s military campaign in its south-east. For two months now, the predominantly Kurdish region has been under a curfew imposed by the Turkish army. Tom Stevenson reports from Diyarbakir
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Syria and Geneva IIIThe great pretenders
As the Geneva III peace talks get underway, there is no sign that the conference will secure an end to the violence in Syria. The Assad regime can participate safe in the knowledge that it has nothing to fear. A commentary by Bente Scheller
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The Egyptian Revolution five years onGhosts of the uprising
25 January 2011 saw the start of the revolution in Egypt that led to the collapse of the Mubarak dictatorship. Today, the Egyptian writer Mansoura Ez-Eldin sees another regime in power staging an absurd drama of fear and oppression
Society
More about Society-
Egyptian feminist Nawal El Saadawi"Intersectional long before the term was coined"
A seminal feminist text by Nawal El Saadawi has been translated into English and German for the first time, over five decades after it first appeared in Arabic. Publisher and translator Sophie Haesen explains why it should be essential reading worldwide.
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War crimes in SyriaThe starvation of Yarmouk on trial
A new trial of Syrian war crimes suspects has opened in Koblenz, Germany. It's the first since the fall of Bashar al-Assad, and the first ever to charge starvation as a war crime.
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Anti-construction protests in Turkey″Reclaim Istanbul!″ – policy vs. architecture
Turkey′s construction industry is booming. As a key pillar of the nation's economy, President Erdogan's ambitious goal is to ensure it catapults Turkey into the world's top ten economies by 2023. But the AKP's ″urban transformation project″ has many downsides. By Ceyda Nurtsch
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Non-fiction: ″Angst ums Abendland″ by Daniel BaxThe apocalyptics of the West
In his book "Angst ums Abendland" (Fears For the West), taz journalist Daniel Bax presents a detailed examination of why contemporary Europe should not be afraid of Muslims, but of Islamophobes. A review by Emran Feroz
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Islamic bankingSeattle's initiative has Muslims hopeful
Seattle’s city council is launching a programme of Sharia-compliant loans with the aim of improving the long-term prospects of the local Muslim community. Those forced to live in high-cost rental property are now in a position to consider the alternatives. By Joseph Mayton
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Refugees in IsraelWaiting for Holot
Holot, Israel′s desert detention centre, recently released 1,200 asylum seekers. With the state dragging its feet over the processing of asylum applications, however, thousands more are likely to receive a summons. By Ylenia Gostoli
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Corruption in EgyptModel student becomes anti-corruption icon
One student’s fate is fuelling the public outcry against corruption within Egyptian society. Following the government's resignation on Saturday, hope is now pinned on the new premier-designate Sharif Ismail. By Elisabeth Lehmann in Cairo
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Interview with Sedat Korkmaz"German society [...] still does not know much about Alevism"
Some 4,000 children and young people now attend classes in Alevi religious education in public schools in Germany. But there is still a shortage of teachers who are able to convey the Alevi faith with competence. Martina Sabra discussed the situation with Sedat Korkmaz, head of the Alevi Academy in Mannheim
Culture
More about Culture-
Historical photographs of SyriaAn obsessive archivist
Ahmed Hasan sold his house to pursue a passion for historical photographs. His collection traces Syria's history through everyday life.
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Architecture in LibyaReclaiming a vanishing colonial heritage
As Benghazi’s Italian-era architecture slowly disappears, an exhibition brings together architects and artists rethinking the city’s history — reassessing the colonial past without celebrating it.
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Saladin Ahmed's ''Throne of the Crescent Moon''An Arab-American Fantasy Epic
Saladin Ahmed's fantasy novel "Throne of the Crescent Moon" is inspired by One Thousand and One Nights. In his review, Richard Marcus says the epic adds much needed diversity to the fantasy genre
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Portrait of the Egyptian TV Satirist Bassem YoussefFighting over the ''Pantie Revolution''
The Egyptian TV satirist Bassem Youssef has cult status in his country thanks to his wit and biting criticism. Nothing is sacred for him, and so his enemies are always trying to drag him before the courts. By Joseph Croitoru
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The Franco-Algerian artist Dalila Dalléas BouzarPulling away the Veil from Memory
In her project "Algeria, Year Zero – the pieced together past of the future", Berlin-based Franco-Algerian artist Dalila Dalléas Bouzar focused on the collective traumas experienced by Algerian society. Martina Sabra spoke with the artist in Berlin
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Turkish Television Series: Muhteşem YüzyilToo Much Sex, Too Little Heroism
Millions of viewers in Turkey are hooked on a television series about the Ottoman ruler Suleiman the Magnificent. Prime Minister Erdogan, on the other hand, wants the series taken off air. Jürgen Gottschlich reports from Istanbul
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Qalandiya International – the first Palestinian BiennaleAgainst the Flow
In today's Palestine, art does not reflect politics – art is politics. That, at least, is the conviction of Qalandiya International – the first Palestinian Biennale. Alia Rayyan shares her impressions from this unusual art event
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Interview with Iraqi author Hadiya Hussein''I feel closer to my country when I'm away''
Iraqi author Hadiya Hussein has been away from Iraq for more than a dozen years, yet her fiction is still filled with its concerns. Her 2004 novel "Beyond Love", recently published in English translation, is full of exile, separation, and love. Hussein talked with Marcia Lynx Qualey about home, memory, and how living outside the country affects her writing
750th anniversary of Rumi's death
750th anniversary of Rumi's death - Qantara.de
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