Spotlight
Circassian Voices
For decades, the Syrian Circassians’ story of exile was suppressed by the Assad regime. Now, as the country remakes itself, that silence has begun to lift, with generations of Circassians embracing their Syrian identity — while continuing to preserve their culture and traditions.
No Country for Black Stars
The outrage over a display of frustration by England soccer star Jude Bellingham on the pitch continues a long-standing British discomfort with Black brilliance, exposing how soccer remains a battleground for national anxieties about race and belonging.
Renewal Is Not the Whole Story of Medellin’s Comuna 13
In Colombia’s second-largest city, the Comuna 13 neighborhood has become one of the country’s most visited tourist destinations. Once synonymous with poverty and street violence, it is now marketed as a symbol of resilience and urban transformation. But many locals claim that the feel-good narrative masks ongoing problems.
The Iranian Journalist Who Dialed Nobel Laureates
For years, an Iranian science journalist interviewed Nobel Prize winners across the world, hoping that dialogue through science could mend the divide between Iran and the United States, before politics made the project impossible.
Europe Rolls Up the Welcome Mat for Russian Nationals
Middle-class Russians are angry that the EU’s new visa restrictions punish them for a war they have no power to stop. But the inconveniences they face pale in comparison to Ukrainian suffering, which the new entry policy makes it more difficult for them to ignore.
The Shrinking Freedom of Indian Cinema
Honey Trehan’s “Panjab ’95,” a film on Sikh activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, has been stuck in censorship limbo for three years as India’s film board demands cuts. The case reveals the unprecedented pressure felt by Indian filmmakers as the Modi government cracks down on cinema.
The Afterlives of Assad’s Prisoners
When the Assad regime collapsed, the doors of its prisons were flung open to release tens of thousands of political prisoners. A year later, three former detainees — one rebuilding his family, one turning his trauma into film, one determined to forget everything — trace the uneven road of life after captivity.