Middle East
The Struggle for Israel’s Soul
As Israel sharply splits over Netanyahu's move to curb Supreme Court powers, the Religious Zionist bloc in his coalition is front and center. Professor Yehudah Mirsky profiles two of the bloc's principals.
Turkey's Colonial Legacy
A new high-profile soap opera that has begun airing in Ramadan and is unsubtly titled “Safar Barlik” (the Arabic transliteration of the Turkish word) is set to bring this rivalry further into the realm of public consciousness and pop culture, and lay bare Turkey’s colonial legacy in the region and its cruelty toward its subjects.
Netanyahu Holds the Key to De-escalating Israel’s Crisis
Protest leaders are clear-eyed that there is nothing politically or institutionally that can force the government to back down, save more public pressure and the disruption of daily life inside the country. The government has so far refused to negotiate or even pause its legislative blitz.
Disinformation Proves an Effective Weapon in Misogynistic Spaces
Hundreds of women in the MENA region have faced gender-based disinformation attacks during the last decade. This is not only a widespread phenomenon, but a growing trend of coordinated and systematized campaigns, pushing many women out of the public sphere.
A New Arabic TV Series About an Early Caliph May Prove Controversial
A historical, rather than mythological, approach to Islamic history is crucial because it shows that even the people who lived with the prophet disagreed about his vision. Thus the central tenet of fundamentalism — of returning to a “purer” faith — is based on a complete fiction.
Cracking Down on the Right To Love in Palestine
While falling in love with a Jewish citizen of Israel would be straightforward — marrying an Israeli citizen entitles one to a residency permit and eventual citizenship — falling in love with a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank is a different story.
Netflix’s “Farha” Depicts Palestinian Struggle To Preserve History
The film's reception demonstrates that Palestinians do not yet have the privilege of critiquing how our history is portrayed; we are still processing the emotions of just seeing ourselves on screen in a way that is subject to our own agency.