Qantara Startseite Englisch - Dialogue with the Islamic world
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Rebuilding KhartoumThe same old tale of power and exclusion
While Sudan's de facto government focuses on reviving the capital, its reconstruction policies follow a familiar pattern: channelling resources to the centre while neglecting the marginalised, war-torn periphery.
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Islah HassniyyehGaza's feminist legal pioneer
Islah Hassniyyeh was the first woman to open a law firm in Gaza. In September, she died under Israeli blockade in Gaza City. A portrait of a trailblazing lawyer and lifelong advocate for women's rights in Palestine.
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50 years of occupation in Western SaharaThe "pearl of the south" is still not free
Morocco celebrates Sahrawi heritage through state TV, tourism campaigns and festivals. But self-determination for Western Sahara remains a distant prospect, while the central government deepens its hold on the territory through major development projects.
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Morocco protests"Gen Z has surprised the political elites"
For two weeks, a group called Generation Z 212 led mass youth protests across Morocco, demanding reforms in healthcare and education. Researcher Mohamed Sammouni says the movement lays bare a crisis of political legitimacy.
Politics
More about Politics-
Israeli-Palestinian conflict"Jerusalem is the key to a political solution"
Peace through interdependence? According to Yudith Oppenheimer and Amy Cohen of Israeli NGO Ir Amim, a shared capital city could pave the way for an end to the violence.
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Two years after October 7Making a case for a wide-ranging viewpoint
Two years after October 7, the need for honest analysis has never been more urgent. Real understanding can only emerge when we begin at the right place—by looking beyond recent events and the history of occupation of the Palestinian territories.
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Protests in EgyptArmy Opponents Break Their Silence
Egypt's Islamists demonstrated for months against the army. Now, secular activists are out in the streets to protest the co-opting of their revolution. But, the military government has a propaganda machine on its side. By Markus Symank from Cairo
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Hezbollah after the Beirut AttacksA Battle on Many Fronts
In Syria, Hezbollah is backing the Assad regime in the fight against the rebels, as a way of defending the Iran-Syria-Hezbollah alliance. This has been met with great hostility at home in Lebanon, and is provoking reactions on the Salafist front. Background from Juliane Metzker
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Turkey's Foreign PolicyReturn to Pragmatism
In the past month Ankara opened a membership chapter with the European Union after a 30-month hiatus, while intense diplomatic traffic is underway to end tensions with its Iranian and Iraqi neighbours. All of which is fuelling rising speculation that a major reset in Turkish foreign policy is underway. Dorian Jones looks at what lies behind the latest events
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LibyaMilitias Take Aim at Tripoli Protesters
Dozens of protesters were killed and hundreds wounded in militia violence in Tripoli. Public anger is aimed at a weak government. Now, more militia fighters are marching toward the capital to fill a power vacuum. Valerie Stocker reports from Tripoli
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Al-Qaeda's New StrategyTurning away from the Distant Enemy
In contrast to their earlier tactics, militant jihadists are increasingly turning away from attacking the West to concentrate on more local and regional targets. Albrecht Metzger reports on the current change of strategy in the activities of Al-Qaeda and its allies
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Muslim Brotherhood in EgyptLimited Options
The world's oldest Islamist organization has apparently failed in its strategy of confrontation with the ruling military. It is now proving difficult for the movement to make a fresh political start. Karim El-Gawhary reports from Cairo
Society
More about Society-
Syrian reconstruction"Debris isn't waste"
Concrete, brick, steel: Aref al-Swaidani wants to rebuild Syria from its ruins. In Weimar he’s conducting research on recycling building materials.
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"Nostra Aetate" at 60A landmark for Muslim-Christian understanding
Six decades on, the message of mutual respect between faiths, enshrined in the Catholic Church's "Nostra Aetate", feels as urgent as ever. It's a reminder that dialogue is not naïve, but necessary.
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Islamic Religion Classes in German schoolsWho Decides?
After years of discussion and debate, the first German states are now introducing Islamic religion classes in public schools. However, because there are many different branches of Islam and no central authority to offer guidance, the question as to who should be allowed to decide on teachers and lesson content is leading to serious conflict. By Claudia Mende
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Interview with Hossein Mousavian''Iran Will Not Negotiate under Threat''
Seyed Hossein Mousavian, spokesman for the former nuclear negotiator Hassan Rowhani and once the Iranian ambassador to Germany, sees a realistic chance for a resolution of the nuclear crisis despite the escalation of the conflict. Direct talks with the USA are both possible and necessary, says the former diplomat. An interview by Silke Mertins
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A Backlash of Patriarchy in EgyptHope for a Proper Revolution
The targeting of women in the Egyptian revolution – to make them know "their place" – was among the first shots fired by the counter-revolution. Yet they fight on. A viewpoint by Margot Badran
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Syriac Orthodox Christians in Turkey''This Is Simply Our Home''
In recent years, around 60-100 Syriac Orthodox families have returned from central Europe to Turkey. Encouraged by changes in the political atmosphere, the minority nonetheless faces a host of problems, from the expropriation of land belonging to a monastery, to a ban on special schools and kindergartens, and also a lack of places of worship in Istanbul. By Ekrem Eddy Güzeldere
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Islamic Archaeology in IsraelA Sea-change in Attitudes
A group of Israeli historians and archaeologists is calling for a radical rethink in the way the region's past is viewed. They want a stronger focus on Palestine's Islamic eras, which have in the past been neglected in favour of its Jewish history. By Joseph Croitoru
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Interview with Amina Wadud''Islam Belongs to All Its Believers''
Amina Wadud is an American scholar of Islam with a progressive focus on Koran exegesis. In 2005, she led Friday prayers in the US, which not only broke with tradition, it also triggered debate and Muslim juristic discourse on the issue of female imams. Interview by Abderrahmane Ammar
Culture
More about Culture-
"In the Land of the Forgotten" by Aliyeh AtaeiStories of war and the fight for freedom
With a keen sense for nuance, Aliyeh Ataei describes a life between Iran and Afghanistan, one marked by resistance, a search for identity and constant confrontation with social norms.
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AlgeriaA DIY cultural renaissance
A new independent, youth-led movement is reshaping Algerian culture. Four young artists reflect on their experiences and efforts to carve out space outside of official frameworks.
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Documentary: "One Man Village"Living in a Lebanese Ghost Town
The German-Lebanese co-production One Man Village tells the story of a man who returns to live as the sole inhabitant of his native Christian village, which was destroyed in the civil war. Nicola Abbas spoke to director Simon el Habre and producer Irit Neidhardt
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Ilija Trojanow on F.M. Esfandiary
Searching for Identity in Iran's Labyrinthine Bureaucracy
F.M. Esfandiary's novel "Identity Card" was published in the mid-1960s. A dissection of the inhuman absurdities of the Iranian bureaucratic system, it is a book that has lost nothing of its relevance under the mullahs, as Ilija Trojanow, translator of the newly published German translation, tells Nimet Seker
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Interview with Claudia Ott
"Love is the Language of the Orient"
Following publication of her much praised German translation of 'The Thousand and One Nights', Claudia Ott has now turned her attention to the love poetry of the Orient. Mohamed Massad talked to the Arabist about the beauty and diversity of oriental poetry
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Documentary: "The Heart of Jenin"
The Heart of Jenin
German director Marcus Vetter's film Das Herz von Jenin (The Heart of Jenin) takes a unique look at the challenging and complex issue of rapprochement in the Middle East. Rasha Khayat saw the film
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Assaf Gavron's Novel "Hydromania"
Provocative Plot
Assaf Gavron has written a science fiction novel that his fellow Israelis will not find very palatable. The year is 2067, Palestine has become the major power in the region, and Israel reduced to a small enclave. The real theme of the book, however, writes Volker Kaminski, is water scarcity
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Intercultural Theatre: "Radio Muezzin"
Otherness as a fetish
Stefan Kaegi's latest production, "Radio Muezzin", takes four Cairene Muezzins and puts them on stage so that they may demonstrate moments from their life and work. A deeply flawed form of populist anthropology.
750th anniversary of Rumi's death
750th anniversary of Rumi's death - Qantara.de
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