Sunni Muslims | Sunni Islam
All topics-
Imams from Germany
"The idea of a German Islam isn't all that strange"
Ender Çetin is one of the first imams to have been trained in Germany. Are these imams the bridge-builders Germany needs right now?
-
Iran-Pakistan tensions
What was behind the Balochistan strikes?
Tit-for-tat attacks between neighbours Iran and Pakistan are linked to separatists fighting for independence of the mineral-rich Balochistan region that spans their borders
-
Sunnis and Shias in Islam
How the Sunni-Shia split shaped the Islamic world throughout history
Toby Matthiesen's new book, "The Caliph and the Imam", explores both the origins of the Sunni-Shia divide, what the two branches of Islam have in common and how the split has shaped the Islamic world
-
Palestinians in Iraq
Between sympathy and rejection
Palestinians living in Saddam Hussein's Iraq were courted until his overthrow in 2003, after which they suffered widespread harassment. Ever since the onset of the Israeli offensive in Gaza, however, Iraqis have been keen to show their solidarity
-
Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan
Who are the Pakistani Islamists vowing 'death to blasphemers'?
An outlawed Islamist political party with the main objective of protecting Pakistan's draconian blasphemy laws and punishing blasphemers has been linked to violence against Christians and the burning of several churches
-
Koran-burning in Sweden
The Iraqi Christian turned radical
It was an Iraqi with Christian roots – Salwan Momeka – who staged the burning of the Koran in Stockholm last week. In doing so, he wanted to get even with his countrymen. Birgit Svensson reports from Baghdad
-
Turkey election fallout
Erdogan no winner, despite opposition defeat
The Turkish opposition was defeated in the run-off, with candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu failing to unseat long-time ruler Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who will rule the country for another five years. But the president is hardly the winner. Ayse Karabat reports from Istanbul
-
Yazidis in Sinjar, Iraq
The deep scars left by IS terror
For centuries, the Yazidis lived in the northern Iraqi region of Sinjar. In 2014, the region was overrun by the so-called "Islamic State", which committed genocide against the Yazidi population. This brutal chapter in Yazidi history has left deep and lasting scars. To this day, the community in Sinjar is still picking up the pieces. By Birgit Svensson
-
20 years after the U.S. invasion
Iraq's wounds are slow to heal
20 years after the U.S. invasion, the country between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers is only just beginning to recover from the aftermath. But the road is paved with obstacles. Birgit Svensson reports from Iraq
-
Islam in Pakistan
The land of the Sufis
No country in the Islamic world is influenced as strongly by the traditions of Sufi culture as Pakistan. Yet the Sufis there have been under attack from Islamic hardliners for years. By Marian Brehmer
-
Lebanon's economic collapse
Staring into the abyss
Lebanon was long viewed as the Switzerland of the Middle East. Until relatively recently, billions were deposited in its banks. Gulf states were among the foremost investors in Beirut. But this all came to an end in 2019. Now the troubled nation is gripped by the worst economic crisis in its history. Birgit Svensson reports from Beirut and Tripoli
-
India and Pakistan
The legacy of colonial rule
India's ruling political party Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is inspired by the ideology of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Its core philosophy revolves around the idea of a predominantly Hindu India that seeks a global leadership role. By Suparna Banerjee