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Temple Mount in Jerusalem (Photo: Christian Sterzing)
Conference and Dossier
The Transformation of Palestine
The geographic and social fragmentation of the Palestinian people is essentially a result of the conflict in the Middle East. This topic represents the main focus of our two-day conference with international experts in March 2010. Our dossier provides further information about the conference and the invited experts. more»
Executive Summary
Towards a New Transatlantic Strategy on Iran and its Nuclear Program – February 10, 2010 - In June 2009 the Heinrich Böll Foundation, the American Jewish Committee and the Aspen Institute Germany jointly organized and hosted a one-day, closed door conference for senior policy makers, practitioners, experts and select members of the media at Aspen. It marked the final event of a series of discussions on the Iranian nuclear challenge carried out by the Heinrich Böll Foundation over the last two years. more»
Reactions in the Arab World to Iran's Post-election Troubles – July 6, 2009 - Those who think that the events in the wake of Iran's 2009 presidential election will lead to radical change will be disappointed. The movement that led to the overthrow of the Shah in 1979 was powerful and had a clear focus; today's protests are heterogenous and lack leadership. By Sami Moubayed more»
A Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone in the Middle East: Shaping the Contours of Discussion toward 2012 – July 6, 2010 - The final document of the 2010 NPT Review Conference includes reference to the convening of a conference in 2012 to discuss the idea of a Weapons of Mass Destruction-Free-Zone (WMDFZ) for the Middle East. By Emily B. Landau more»
Issam Nassar is co-founder of the "Institute for Jerusalem Studies" from Jerusalem (photo: private).
Interview
The New Israeli Residence Order for the West Bank – April 20, 2010 - On the occasion of the new Israeli residence order for the West Bank, Bernd Asbach interviewed Issam Nassar, co-founder of the "Institute for Jerusalem Studies" from Jerusalem. By Bernd Asbach more»
US - Israeli Relations: No More Have One’s Cake and Eat it – May 22, 2009 - Last week's meeting between Barack Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu showed a fundamental disagreement between the U.S. and Israel. Obama made it clear that he is committed to a two-state solution, yet Netanyahu vacillated. Israel and its most important ally may face a deep ideological and strategic rift. By Akiva Eldar more»
more about the Middle East»
Crisis Prevention
US and Europe Need to Stay Cool on Iran and Think of the Region
June 29, 2009 - Western leaders across the political spectrum need to understand how complicated and intertwined Iran and the region have become. When dealing with the crisis in Iran they will need to rally around a policy of moderation and caution. By Ahmed Rashid more»
A Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone in the Middle East: Shaping the Contours of Discussion toward 2012 – July 6, 2010 - The final document of the 2010 NPT Review Conference includes reference to the convening of a conference in 2012 to discuss the idea of a Weapons of Mass Destruction-Free-Zone (WMDFZ) for the Middle East. By Emily B. Landau more»
Dossier
How to Deal With the Iranian Nuclear Programme – This dossier contains summaries of regional roundtable discussions and background information on international approaches to the crisis over the Iranian nuclear programme. more»
The Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria
Mixed Messages and Open Friction: The Arab League Summit in Damascus, 2008 – April 24, 2008 - The latest Arab Summit, held in the Syrian capital Damascus on March 29 and 30, 2008, was preceded and accompanied by intense diplomatic wrangling and threats of a boycott, all geared to pressure the Syrian hosts to change their position towards the political crisis in Lebanon. The Syrian analyst Sami Moubayed provides a political appraisal of this summit. By Sami Moubayed more»
Iraqi Refugees between Precarious Safety and Precipitous Return – April 7, 2008 - Large numbers of Iraqi live in neighbouring countries, especially Syria and Jordan. This report attempts to give an overview of the origin and magnitude of the crisis, probes the likelihood of substantial numbers of refugees returning in the near future, and assesses the responsibility of international actors towards the refugees. By Layla Al-Zubaidi and Heiko Wimmen more»
Democracy
The 2009 Iraqi Provincial Elections
March 3, 2009 - The two most significant result of the 2009 provincial elections in Iraq are: Iraqis are not prepared to grant carte blanche to politicians whose main pitch is ethno-sectarian. And: The elections were held with minimum support from US forces and proved that Iraqis are able to organise nation-wide elections by themselves. By Doreen Khoury more»
Ilan Halevi
A New Islamophobia – December 16, 2008 - The particular danger of islamophobia is its potential to forge a broad alliance of otherwise opposed political forces: Muslims serve as the embodiment of the ultimate enemy for conservatives striving for Western hegemony – and for progressives standing up for freedom of expression, rationality, human rights, and the rights of women. By Ilan Halevi more»
Speech
Israel 1948 – 2008, Accomplishments, Challenges, Implications – November 4, 2008 - No doubt, there are reasons to celebrate Israel's 60th anniversary. The very fact that Israel has made it up to now is all but self-evident, considering its widely hostile neighbours and its extremely contradictory internal condition. By Ralf Fücks more»
Democracy in the Arab World – July 4, 2008 - George Giacaman from Birzeit University in Palestine explains how partial democratisation in the Middle East serves to stabilise the rule of oligarchies - and at the same time is in the interest of Western powers who are afraid that complete democratisation will undermine their influence in the region. more»
Gender
Introduction Gender
Promoting women's equality and gender democracy is a central theme of the Heinrich Böll Foundation's work in the Middle East. Through its feminist programmes, the Foundation supports women's organisations with organisational and content-related development and strategy, and also fosters the networking of social and political initiatives. more»
Publications
Publication Series Democracy
What Can Europe Do in Iraq? Recommendations for a New U.S.-European Collaboration
February 12, 2009 - This publication describes a new start of cooperation between Europe, the United States, and regional partners in the Middle East to tackle the challenges in Iraq and to help bring peace, stability, and sustainable development to the wider region. more»
Documentation
Environment Between Conflict and Co-operation in the Middle East and North Africa – October 22, 2008 - A report on a conference in Beirut with the goal to highlight regional environmental problems and search for and discuss sustainable solutions. more»
Global Issue Paper
Water as a human right – 25. Juni 2008 - The paper summarizes the main challenges facing strategic and coordinated action towards the UN concept of water as a human right, identifies what types of processes and institutions needs to be developed to meet the challenges of the concept and provides best practise examples from countries that have shown innovation. By Karen Assaf, Bayoumi Attia, Ali Darwish, Batir Wardam and Simone Klawitter mehr»
Contact
Contact Middle East Department
January 2, 2009 - more»
Office Addresses
Offices of the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Middle East – January 2, 2009 - The Heinrich Böll Foundation has offices in Tel Aviv (Israel), Ramallah (Palestine) and in Beirut (Lebanon). more»