Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Henriette Johansen
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Out of their league: Dagenham & Redbridge FC’s Arab outreach collapses after director sacked, co-owner quits over pro-Palestine post
It was supposed to be a bold new chapter for Dagenham & Redbridge FC—a fifth-tier English side better known for mid-table mediocrity than international intrigue. With the announcement on Monday of a partnership with Egyptian YouTuber Marwan Serry and the appointment of fellow Egyptian football influencer Salma Mashhour as...
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Inter-religious Practices and Saint Veneration in the Muslim World: Khidr/Khizr from the Middle East to South Asia
Saint veneration and inter-religious practices in the Muslim world are often viewed through rigid sectarian or doctrinal lenses, often overlooking the lived religious experiences that blur these lines. Inter-religious Practices and Saint Veneration in the Muslim World: Khidr/Khizr from the Middle East to South Asia, edited by Michel Boivin...
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King Faisal: The Saudi monarch who championed pan-Islamism and stood with Palestine
King Faisal Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, one of the most influential leaders in the modern Arab world, was assassinated on 25 March 1975. A champion of the Palestinian cause and an ardent advocate of pan-Islamism as a counter to the pan-Arabism espoused by nationalist leaders like Egypt’s Gamal Abdel Nasser,...
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Palestinians cannot be uprooted: Palestine is theirs, and no power on earth can sever that bond
US President Donald Trump’s recent assertion that Gaza’s population should be resettled in Egypt, Jordan or elsewhere is more than just unconscionable; it is an explicit endorsement of forced population “transfer”, a war crime and a crime against humanity under international law. His remarks were not made in a...
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Does Sharaa’s Syria reflect Huntington’s ‘clash of civilisations’ or Fukuyama’s ‘end of history’?
Since the end of the Cold War, two grand theories have shaped discussions on global political evolution: the late Samuel Huntington’s The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order and his former student, Francis Fukuyama’s The End of History and The Last Man. Such has been their...
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Remembering the formation of the United Arab Republic between Egypt and Syria
The United Arab Republic (UAR) was a short-lived political union between Egypt and Syria, embodying the aspirations of Pan-Arabism at its peak during the mid-20th century. This ambitious union symbolised a bold experiment in regional integration, challenging both colonial legacies and Cold War rivalries with a lasting impact on...
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Blocked, delayed, shut down: How UK banks are failing Muslim charities
Muslim-led charities in the UK are facing widespread financial discrimination, with banks restricting their access to essential services disproportionately, according to a new report released on Wednesday by the Muslim Charities’ Forum (MCF). The study found that 42 per cent of surveyed charities had their bank accounts closed without...
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How an Arabic RedNote could transform cultural exchange and global perceptions
Among the first executive orders signed by US President Donald Trump at the start of his second term in the White House was a decision that signalled a new chapter for the US, with a mix of continuity and disruption defining his return to power. Notably, Trump reversed the...
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Remembering the 1919 Faisal-Weizmann Agreement
The Faisal-Weizmann Agreement was an early attempt to bring Arab and Zionist ambitions together in Palestine. Signed during the Paris Peace Conference in 1919, it ended up having a lasting impact on the region, paving the way for Palestinian displacement and decades of conflict and occupation, which continues to...
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Sectarian demographics are reshuffled in the new Damascus
The first Friday prayers held in the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus after the collapse of the Bashar Al-Assad regime were attended by thousands, marking a symbolic transformation with immense religious and political significance. While the call to prayer and the majority Sunni worshippers were not barred under Assad, the...
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With Assad gone, Israel looks to expand while rival NATO-backed groups will turn on each other
While others spoke of the revival of the Syrian revolution as an inevitability, especially with the weakening of Syria and the erosion of its allies capabilities, Hezbollah in particular, others have for years warned of the dire consequences of the alternative, given the domination of the armed opposition by...
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‘Triggering the Zionists’: Fursan Al-Aqsa’s 7 October mission update
On 11 November, Palestinian-Brazilian games developer Nidal Nijm announced on platform Steam that his ground-breaking third person shooter, Fursan Al-Aqsa: Knights of Al-Aqsa Mosque, received an update. Called “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” after the historic Hamas-led resistance operation in 2023, the update “allows you to relive the iconic day on...
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The race is on for ‘Anti-Semite of the Year 2024’: A badge of honour, thanks to Israel
The so-called “Antisemite of the Year” award, presented annually by StopAntisemitism—a self-proclaimed US watchdog—has once again become a spectacle of ridicule with online voting currently underway, revealing the absurd extremes to which the term “anti-Semitism” has been stretched and weaponised. What was once a label meant to genuinely combat...
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Lessons unlearned, as Israel’s war against Hezbollah is starting to mirror its 2006 defeat
“Convinced they could force Hezbollah to disarm and withdraw from southern Lebanon by initiating an effects-based air campaign, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) began pounding targets across Lebanon. Although initially taken aback by the destructive air strikes, Hezbollah unleashed its own attack within 24 hours, launching an extensive rocket...
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The EU cannot stand idle as Israel dismantles Gaza’s lifeline: UNRWA
As the EU Foreign Affairs Council convenes today, European leaders face a pressing choice: will they stand by as Israel dismantles UNRWA, a lifeline for over 2.5 million Palestinian refugees, or will they act before time runs out? With only 63 days left before Israel’s new legislation halts UNRWA...
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The Palestinian headscarf: so many people have one but where are they made?
You see the black and white scarf everywhere, worn by hundreds of thousands of people standing up for Palestine and protesting against the ethnic cleansing and genocide committed by Israel. But ever wondered where these keffiyehs (also spelt kufiya) are made? The short answer is that most are made in China. Originally,...
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Cyber-kinetic warfare: Exploding pagers and strategic lessons for Pakistan
The pager explosions in Lebanon on 17-18 September were the real-life manifestation of Bruce Williams’s movie Live Free or Die Hard, wherein the key antagonist employs cyber-attacks to wreak severe physical harm and deaths. Cyber-kinetic warfare, which was once a fictional construct, has now emerged as one of the...
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Jews for a Just Peace: The Danish-Jewish anti-Zionist group making waves for Palestine
In the heart of Copenhagen, a group of Danish Jews calling for peace and justice stands united at pro-Palestine protests. They wear black shirts with Danish text reading “Jøder for retfærdig fred”, translated as Jews for a Just Peace. For many Danish protestors, their presence brings a sense of inclusivity...
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Two factions at war to decide America’s future: Is Trump’s America First already struggling?
Donald Trump, who has outperformed and beaten all his opponents’ attempts, has not entirely won his goal to “Make America Great Again” just yet. He has won the election in both the electoral votes and the popular vote, defying criticism from the mainstream media and establishment politicians in both...
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Media gaslighting after the double thrashing of Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam
Thursday’s Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam ended in not only the Israeli football team getting thrashed 5-0, but also saw their racist and violent fan base get a double thrashing on the streets of the Dutch capital notably by Moroccan and other Muslim...
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Footage of late Muhammad Ali praying behind new Hezbollah leader resurfaces
Following Hezbollah’s announcement of the appointment of its new Secretary-General, Sheikh Naim Qassem, footage of the late legendary US boxer Muhammad Ali praying behind the Shia Muslim cleric back when he was the Lebanese resistance movement’s Deputy Secretary-General, has been making the rounds on social media, sparking memories of...
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The Revolution of 1936–1939 in Palestine: Background, Details, and Analysis
Published three months before the launch of last year’s Palestinian resistance operation Al-Aqsa Flood, The Revolution of 1936–1939 in Palestine: Background, Details, and Analysis by the late writer and political activist Ghassan Kanafani, and translated by Hazem Jamjoum is an engaging account of one of the most pivotal and...
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Lana Makes Purple Pizza: A Palestinian Food Tale
Since I reviewed Baba, What Does My Name Mean? A Journey to Palestine, which was published in 2020 and was on the recommend list for that year’s Palestine Book Awards (PBA), there has been a steady and growing surge in children’s literature centred around Palestinian themes. One recent addition...
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Are Israel’s tactical gains becoming a strategic victory over the resistance?
The initial assessments of Israel’s response to the unprecedented resistance operation last October by Hamas echoed a familiar theme: observers predicted an equally unprecedented Israeli reaction, but like past conflicts, expected it to ultimately yield tactical gains without long-term strategic success. Israel’s early response mirrored these expectations, with heavy...