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3 days ago | 
qantara.de | Tugrul Mende |Marcia Lynx Qualey |Andrea Backhaus |Jannis Hagmann
Egyptian author Youssef Rakha · 12.05.2025 Youssef Rakha revisits Egypt's 2011 uprising and its aftermath in "The Dissenters", the author's first novel written in English. The Arab Spring failed, he argues in this interview, because it was a neoliberal movement with no compelling vision for the future.
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6 days ago | 
qantara.de | Hannah El-Hitami |Amro Ali |Stefan Weidner |Claudia Mende
Weapons exports to Israel · 09.05.2025 Germany remains one of Israel's top arms suppliers, a situation likely to persist under Friedrich Merz. According to Lilian Löwenbrück from the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, politicians and manufacturers could face charges for complicity in crimes against international law. https://qantara.de/en/node/44376 Print Qantara: How significant is Germany's role in arming Israel?
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1 week ago | 
qantara.de | Daniel Bax |Elias Feroz |Elisa Rheinheimer
Germany's new government · 06.05.2025 Under Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Germany is expected to double down on its support for Israel, even if it means sidelining international law. Domestically, repression of Israel's critics is set to intensify. https://qantara.de/en/node/44374 Print Friedrich Merz, Germany's new chancellor, made his stance clear very soon after his election victory in February.
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2 weeks ago | 
qantara.de | Mohamed Gamal |Hans Dembowski |Andreas Gorzewski
Cairo's Jewish Quarter · 29.04.2025 In his new book, Egyptian author Ahmed Zakaria Zaki explores the 19th-century history of Cairo's Jewish Quarter, tracing the social transformations within the city's Jewish community and its reaction to the emergent Zionist movement.
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4 weeks ago | 
qantara.de | Florian Neuhof |Haid Haid |Bente Scheller |Diana Hodali
Christians in Syria · 17.04.2025 In the predominantly Christian town of Maaloula, residents hold differing views on al-Sharaa and the safety of their community in the new Syria. For many, memories of the 2013 Nusra Front attack remain—and mistrust runs deep. https://qantara.de/en/node/44348 Print It is Sunday morning and cold inside the old church as Father Fadi al-Barkil turns away from the congregation, goes to the altar and raises his arms.
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1 month ago | 
qantara.de | Marcia Lynx Qualey
New anthology "Imprisoning a Revolution" · 14.04.2025 A new anthology gathers the words, drawings and memories of Egyptian prisoners—some well-known, many anonymous—who document life inside the carceral state. https://qantara.de/en/node/44357 Print One effect of mass incarceration is the widespread silencing of the detained. This silence is often followed by a general amnesia, as society forgets those who are imprisoned.
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1 month ago | 
qantara.de | Hannah El-Hitami |Andrea Backhaus |Julia Hahn |Anchal Vohra
Syria's missing detainees · 03.04.2025 The search for the missing is seen by many Syrians as crucial to rebuilding the nation. Mazin al-Balkhi of the International Commission on Missing Persons warns that the scale and arbitrary nature of the killings under Assad pose major challenges. https://qantara.de/en/node/44342 Print Between 130,000 and 200,000 Syrians are estimated to be missing. What happened to these people?
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1 month ago | 
qantara.de | Marcia Lynx Qualey |Volker Kaminski
Jan Dost on writing in Arabic and Kurdish · 01.04.2025 "Safe Corridor" is Jan Dost's first novel translated into English. The prolific Syrian writer explores the hardening impact of war on children and discusses the key differences between writing in Kurdish and Arabic. https://qantara.de/en/node/44337 Print Kamiran, the thirteen-year-old boy who narrates Jan Dost's novel "Safe Corridor"swings between acting like a grown man and a helpless child.
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1 month ago | 
qantara.de | Teseo La Marca |Ceyda Nurtsch |Joseph Croitoru |Christoph Strack
Muslims in Germany · 20.03.2025 Trust in politics has plummeted among German Muslims, as seen in recent voter turnout. While some online preachers argue voting is haram, imams in Berlin are actively campaigning for political participation. https://qantara.de/en/node/44322 Print Cold fluorescent light and DIY store chairs fill the carpeted room.
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2 months ago | 
qantara.de | Joseph Daher |Karim El-Gawhary |Karim el-Gawhary |Mohammed Magdy |Leila Al-Shami
Syria's economic recovery · 13.03.2025 Syrians are facing immense economic challenges—an unstable currency, shortages and a soaring cost of living—while the transitional government doubles down on Assad's neoliberal policies. True recovery demands a new approach. https://qantara.de/en/node/44323 Print The fall of Assad in December 2024 raised hopes for a brighter future in Syria. But as the country looks to rebuild its economy, enormous challenges remain.