Current Analysis
The Lasting Significance of Egypt’s Rabaa Massacre
The Egyptian military's massacre of nearly 1,000 supporters of deposed president and Muslim Brotherhood leader Muhammad Mursi at Rabaa al-Adawiyya square in August 2013 continues to reverberate. Abdullah Al-Arian explains the massacre's long-term impact on the Muslim Brotherhood movement and Egyptia
Rethinking Informal Labor Through the Lens of Film Production in Cairo
Many movies, television shows and advertisements film on location in the busy and crowded streets of Cairo. Mariz Kelada explains with ethnographic detail the complex and multilayered work of production assistants, fixers and sub-fixers to create the right conditions and relationships for filming in
Bitcoin Cannot Free Palestine
Could the use of Bitcoin allow Palestinians to escape Israeli control over the economy and money in the West Bank and Gaza Strip? Hadas Thier examines the arguments of the crypto enthusiasts and finds serious problems with their vision of liberation via Bitcoin. Thier talks to political economist Sa
The Shifting Politics of Debt in Turkey
State-sponsored credit campaigns are not a new strategy for Turkish governments but the low-interest consumer loans that were extended to almost 7 million people in the first months of the Covid-19 pandemic surpassed all earlier financial inclusion programs. Inviting masses into the financial sector
Competing Visions for Rebuilding Lebanon’s Collapsing Energy Sector
With Lebanon's crumbling power sector in crisis and unable to meet even a fraction of demand, the government and reformers offer competing visions for how to fix it. Zachary Davis Cuyler delves into the country's currently dire financial and energy situation, the proposed solutions and their implica
Multiculturalism, Democracy and Turkification in Netflix’s The Club
The Club (Kulüp), produced by Netflix, is set in the mid-1950s among the cast, crew and management of a trendy nightclub in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul. In addition to the use of Ladino, the language of Turkey’s Jewish population, the show uniquely represents Istanbul's minority populations, th
Genocide, Historical Amnesia and Italian Settler Colonialism in Libya—An Interview with Ali Abdullatif Ahmida
In the late 1920s, the Italian fascist regime implemented a campaign of ethnic cleansing in eastern Libya to create more land for Italian settlers and quell armed resistance to colonization. Ali Abdullatif Ahmida’s new book, Genocide in Libya: Shar, a Hidden Colonial History, examines this forgotten
Settler Entanglements from Citrus Production to Historical Memory
Although settler colonies are often depicted as unique and distinctive, Muriam Haleh Davis argues that analyzing settler colonialism in a global framework reveals their multiple commonalities. Here she examines the large-scale production of citrus in Algeria, Israel and California as one fascinating
France, a Settler Postcolony?
With the French presidential election currently underway, Olivia C. Harrison's timely intervention explains the central role that the history and memory of French Algeria continue to play in the country's politics, culture and society. She shows how the perverse calls by nativist and right-wing grou
Not Lost in Translation—An Interview with Jordanian Author and Activist Hisham Bustani
Curtis Ryan interviews the award-winning Jordanian writer Hisham Bustani about his innovative literary works in multiple genres, the art of translation, government censorship and his political activism. This wide-ranging discussion provides an illuminating view into Bustani's creative processes as w