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Living in a State of Hopelessness: On the Ground in Israel — With Lisa Goldman
“What I saw in Israel, and also in Palestine, was a sense of fatalism. Everybody I spoke to seemed to be in a terrible state of nervous agitation.” New Lines’ Contributing Editor Lisa Goldman breaks down her recent reporting trip to Israel with Kwangu Liwewe on Global Insights.
The Scholar and the Sultan
The career of the 11th-century Muslim polymath Abu Rayhan al-Biruni was shaped by the turbulent politics of medieval Central Asia. Yet his life at the mercy of his court patrons and their conflicts gave him the chance to pursue a remarkable career of empirical, open-minded scholarship.
Rwanda’s Younger Generation Still Deals With the Legacy of Genocide
At age 7, Kanyoni saved a woman’s life, only to discover that his father had been imprisoned for his part in her rape during the Rwandan genocide. Now 25, he represents a generation that didn’t directly experience the violence but must still grapple with its legacy, 30 years on.
In Portugal’s Rural North, Communities Are Resisting Lithium Mining
Under the banner of a “green transition,” the EU is rushing to revive mining to secure critical raw materials. Plans to build large, open-pit mines in northeastern Portugal have been met with strong opposition from local communities, who are contesting the state’s authority to grant mining licenses without their consent.
The Return to Circassia
No matter which paths different Circassians choose or are forced to take, what remains certain is that they prove yet again, like many peoples before and after them, that when a people are forcibly displaced, the notion of return endures the passage of time and the widening of distances.
Remembering Sergei Parajanov, the Bard of the Caucasus
The revered Armenian cinema auteur Sergei Parajanov both embodied and sought to capture on celluloid the ethnic and cultural diversity of the Caucasus, inspired by the myths and folklore that bind the region together. Yet the world he cherished is now marked by closed borders, nationalist rancor and polarization.
The Meaning of Erdogan’s Defeat in Istanbul
Imamoglu prides himself on having won every election he has contested against Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party. With four mayoral victories under his belt, he stands out as a potential challenger for the presidency in 2028.