Muftah

Muftah is putting together a Special Collection that looks at the intersection between popular culture and politics in the Middle East and North Africa in the...

Muftah is looking for interns in social media and graphic design/multimedia. If you join our team, you’ll be part of growing the publication by contributing...

Title Social Media Editor Organization Muftah.org, digital magazine on global events Location Washington, DC or New York City preferable. Remote...

A number of Muftah's staff members and friends attended Women's Marches around the world this Saturday, January 21. From D.C. to Dublin, what we saw was...

Muftah is currently seeking editors to join the following editorial teams: 1. EGYPT AND NORTH AFRICA 2. CENTRAL ASIA & EASTERN...

Shab-e Yalda, the annual celebration of the winter solstice which took place on December 21, is celebrated widely in Iran, as well as in nearby countries, like...

Arab and Iranian women are a favorite obsession of the West. That obsession usually turns on two questions: how do they dress and are they oppressed? Of...

In a bold and much needed step, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as Doctors Without Borders, has decided to pull out of the World Humanitarian...

Dear Muftah Readers, We are turning a new chapter. After almost six years of being entirely self-funded, we are bringing advertisement to Muftah in the hope...

Muftah is currently seeking editors to join the following editorial teams: 1. EGYPT AND NORTH AFRICA 2. YEMEN & GULF STATES Responsibilities...

Muftah's podcast page is a vital part of our work, allowing us to feature important voices, like journalist Sanaa Ahmad, and profile critical stories, like the...

Al Mutanabbi Street Starts Here, an exciting celebration of Iraqi art and culture, is coming to the Washington D.C. area starting January 14 and running...

On January 6, 2016, Bethany Koval, an Israeli Jewish teenager, was called to the principal's office at Fair Lawn High School in New Jersey, and questioned...

2015 was an amazing year here at Muftah. We doubled our reach compared to 2014 and nearly quadrupled it compared to 2013. We also had several articles that...

It's been a rough end to 2015. But, as we've shared with you, in these difficult times, there have been incredible examples of fraternity, love, and solidarity...

Dear Readers, Like many of you, many of us are feeling sad, hurt, and confused after recent events. It seems like everywhere we look some major political...

Since the Paris attacks, on November 13, 2015, and the San Bernadino shootings, on December 2, the scourge of Islamophobia has become even more prevalent and...

In light of the increasingly Islamophobic atmosphere in America, and the particularly prominent contribution made by members of the Republican party, we...

Since the November 13 Paris attacks, Western politicians and public figures have subjected the world to an overwhelming deluge of bigoted comments about...

Muftah and Eurasian Dialogue will be publishing a collection of articles that will examine the relationship between the Middle East and Central Asia (defined...

Violence and aggression toward Palestinians by Israeli police, soldiers, and settlers is unforgivably common, but so rarely covered by the mainstream Western...

Muftah, a fast growing digital media publishing site, is looking for an experienced technologist to design and implement the foundations for the next...

We are in the midst of the worst refugee crisis since World War II. According to Amnesty International, more than 50 million people have been forcibly...

Muftah is launching a new Creative Writing section, which features works from emerging writers that challenge dominant narratives about the regions we cover....

Muftah is creating a new special section devoted to the less examined ways religion and politics intersect in the Middle East and North Africa. The section...

Subscribe to Muftah on iTunes to receive our latest podcast episodes. We're on Stitcher too! In this podcast we speak to Ronnie Barkan, an Israeli activist...

Washington D.C. is a city of museums. Not your run-of-the-mill buildings with glass cases and velvet rope, these venues symbolize and reflect something much...

That's right folks! It's been five whole years since Muftah came into this world. It has been quite a rollercoaster ride for us and even more so for the...

Like many other countries that border the Persian Gulf, Iran has communities of African origin living inside its border. While most Afro-Iranians are...

In late January 2015, the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), the largest Arab American civil rights organization in the United States, sent a...

It's only been a few days since Deah Barakt, 23, Yusor Abu-Salha, 21, and Razan Abu-Salha, 19, were killed, execution-style, in their home in Chapel Hill,...

On February 13, 2015, various U.S. civil and advocacy groups joined together and called on U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to investigate the Chapel Hill...

The Middle East's "only democracy" has a problem when it comes to anyone who does not toe the mainstream line. In this video, from AJ+, we get a glimpse into...

On Wednesday, January 29, only a few weeks after the Charlie Hebdo attack, the French government launched a campaign called "Stop Jihadism." Aimed at...

On Thursday, January 22, 2015, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia died at the age of 90. The King had been ailing for a long time, and  rumors about his passing...

Muftah is currently seeking editors to join the following editorial teams: 1. EGYPT AND NORTH AFRICA 2. ISRAEL/PALESTINE, SYRIA, LEBANON, &...

At the age of twenty-five, Maryam Sabbaghpour is singularly dedicated to her work as an artist. A graduate of the prestigious University of Art in Tehran,...

Over the last several years, Egypt has defied all expectations, but, right now, those expectations are at an all time low. Since the ouster of President...

The following statement was issued on November 11, 2014, by the Rasmea Defense Committee. To read more about the Rasmea Odeh case, click here. In a travesty...

On October 24, students at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom voted to support the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, which seeks to...

From developing to developed countries, youth are dissatisfied, disaffected, and largely shut out from the institutions, organizations, and bodies that control...

Street graffiti - yes, we know, you've been hearing about this a lot for the last few years. Well, bear with us, as we try to connect the dots a bit on this...

There's nothing like kicking back on a weekend morning with your trusted source for news and analysis on the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe....

On October 1, 2014, European United Left/Nordic Green Left European Parliamentary Group (GUE/NGL) rescinded its nomination of Egyptian activist, Alaa Abd El...

The Russell Tribunal on Palestine is a people’s tribunal established in 2009 after Operation Cast Lead, the Israeli offensive that devastated the Gaza Strip...

It has been thirteen years now, since 3 planes ripped through the symbols of American prowess and forever changed the world. In the days following the event,...

Our latest Special Collection on the Art and Culture of Afghanistan and Pakistan features articles on topics ranging from the history of Pakistan's rap scene,...

In Gaza, as in most wars, women are bearing a huge burden. Many families have had to abandon their homes with only the clothes on their backs. Lacking food,...

WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES When Gaza's children play, the Israeli military responds with bombs. On July 28, Israeli missiles struck more civilian structures...

The following statement about the Israeli assault against the Gaza Strip was issued on July 17 by several Palestinian performing arts organizations and...

On July 17, 2014, three Palestinian children from the Shabir family were killed in an Israeli air strike on Sabra, Gaza. Their deaths are neither rare nor the...

Four years ago, on May 27, 2010, we launched this site so quietly even WE almost didn't notice. We had grown sick and tired of the terrible media coverage on...

Muftah is putting together a Special Collection of articles celebrating the popular cultures of Afghanistan and Pakistan. We are seeking well-written,...

Muftah is currently seeking editors to expand its coverage to the Mediterranean region (Greece, Spain, Italy, Croatia, Albania, Cyprus, Bosnia etc) and...

In honor of Muftah's newly relaunched website, we're thrilled to share with you a special collection of 20 commissioned articles, we're calling the "The...

Dear Readers, Today we are re-launching Muftah with a completely new design that is more streamlined, mobile-friendly, and focused on enhancing the reading...

(Israeli children in the settlement of Itamar in the West Bank. / Reuters) The following is a call for papers from the Journal on Internal...

It has been three years since the revolutions alternatively known as the “Arab Spring,” “Arab Awakening,” and “Arab Uprisings” began. Since then,...

To Our Readers and Supporters, Whatever your belief system or cultural practice, a Christmas dance party is always in order and this SoundCloud mix will do...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak to Heidi Saman, the writer and soon-to-be director of Namour, a film about a young Arab-American man who struggles in a...

Project name: "America 1979" Country: USA Project description: "America 1979" is a short narrative film about a girl who experiences racism at school,...

Since protesters first took to the streets of Tunisia in December 2010, the Middle East and North Africa region has never been the same. More than two and...

In Muftah's on-going podcast series, we speak with Deena Mohamed, the creator of Qahera, a hijabi super-heroine who combats Islamophobia and misogyny. Since...

The annual general debate of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) will open on September 24, 2013. During the general debate, heads of state and...

A performance of Khayaal Theater Company In Muftah's continuing podcast series on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, we speak with Luqman Ali, CEO of Khayaal...

The following statement was issued by Egypt's Revolutionary Socialists group: Down with military rule! Down with Al-Sisi, the leader of...

The following statement was issued by Egypt's Revolutionary Socialists organization on Thursday, July 25, on the eve of demonstrations called by Defense...

The following press release is from Operation Anti-Sexual Harassment, a group involved in documenting and physically intervening to prevent sexual harassment...

The following article was submitted to Muftah today, June 2, 2013, under the name “Istanbul Protests.” While we have been unable to verify author identity,...

On May 28, 2013, a few hundred demonstrators in Istanbul gathered to protest a government decision to allow Gezi Park, one of the city's few remaining green...

Late last month, The University of Maryland’s Center for International and Security Studies (CISSM) released an extensive new report examining the...

Shurooq Amin is not one to shy away from controversial topics. Throughout her artistic career, Shurooq has produced creative works that push the bounds of...

The following is a message from the staff of Egypt Independent After working hard for four years on developing Egypt Independent as a leading local...

In Muftah’s continuing podcast series on Innovation & Entrepreneurship, we speak with Menem Ragab, founder and CEO of AskNative, an Egyptian startup and...

Project name: Volunteer Connection Project Country: Egypt Project description: The Volunteer Connection Project (VCP), which began as a Commitment to...

Today, we at Muftah have had the humbling privilege to bring you a number of pieces from Operation Anti-Sexual Harassment (OpAntiSH), an organization founded...

The following report was published jointly by the Brookings Doha Center and the Arab Reform and Democracy Program at Stanford University: After decades of...

In Muftah's ongoing podcast series on Innovation & Entrepreneurship, we speak with Ehab Shanti, co-founder of Alhoush.com, a cultural networking and...

The Arab Revolutions and Beyond Conference will be taking place from March 1-3, 2013 at York University in Toronto, Canada The objective of this conference...

In Muftah's ongoing podcast on Innovation & Entrepreneurship, we speak with Rasha Khouri, the CEO of DIA-style a fashion shopping site focused on the...

The U.S. Department of Defense submitted a report to Congress this December on the status of Afghanistan’s transition.  Covering progress made in the...

Project name: Syria Deeply   Country: United States   Project description: Syria Deeply is an independent digital media project led by...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak to Lara Setrakian, an internationally acclaimed journalist for ABC and Bloomberg and the founder of Syria Deeply, a new...

Cyberactivism refers to the use of digital media technologies and social media platforms for sociopolitical contestation. Yet cyberactivism, with its...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Arash Davari, the co-founder and managing editor of Btaarof magazine, a new publication about the Iranian cultural...

Project name: B|ta’arof Magazine Country: U.S.A. Project description: B|ta'arof is an independent, biannual cultural arts magazine about Iranian lives...

Saudi Arabia’s male guardianship system is once again in the spotlight. The latest controversy surrounds a vacationing Saudi couple. After the couple left...

The following stories from inside Gaza were compiled by the Institute for Middle East Understanding Sabah Al Barakoni "I am writing this in the middle of...

The Nile Project is a new initiative with a mission to inspire, educate, and empower Nile citizens to work together to foster the sustainability of their...

Death and destruction in Gaza are once again center stage. The images created by political cartoonists, famous and obscure, capture the absurdity and tragedy...

The below is a fact sheet from the Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU) about the Israeli use of Palestinian human shields: In recent days,...

The following report from the Gaza-based Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) provides detailed information and images of the civilian deaths and...

In Muftah's ongoing podcast series on Innovation + Entrepreneurship, we speak with Perihan Abou-Zeid, the co-founder and communications director for Qabila...

Winners of the 2012 Sakharov Prize, Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi and human rights lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh (Source: iranhr.net) The recent debacle over a...

In Muftah’s continuing podcast series on Innovation & Entrepreneurship, we speak with Usama Mohammed, CEO of Yadaweya, a startup housed at the Egyptian...

Project Name: THE LITTLE BOOK OF KABUL by Francesca Recchia and Lorenzo Tugnoli.   Country: Afghanistan   Project Description: 1. THE...

In Muftah's continuing series of Conversations with Innovators from the Middle East and North Africa, we speak to Amr Saleh, the CEO of Integreight....

F16Apps is a software company that builds high quality mobile apps for the lifestyle market. The company’s debut app is called Neatly, a social client that...

Sara Zia Ebrahimi is on a mission to support the young, creative members of the Iranian diaspora. Through her new project, "From the Mouth of the Lion," Sara...

Tahrir Square on February 8, 2011 (Photo credit: Jonathan Rashad, Wikipedia) Welcome to Muftah's new section on Innovation + Entrepreneurship. As you'll...

Kamal Hassan has been helping entrepreneurs realize and grow their ventures for a number of years. In 2008, he decided to focus his efforts on the Middle East,...

Ecommerce is a growing industry in the Middle East and North Africa and Eshtery.me is taking advantage of this gap to disrupt how people shop for goods in...

Lebanese engineer, Hind Hobeika, an experienced swimmer, was always frustrated by the unsophisticated and rudimentary techniques available to swimmers for...

Television remains one of the most influential mediums for information transmission in the Middle East. GyroLabs aims to make the TV viewing experience even...

 We love TABO Palestine's efforts to democratize land ownership in the West Bank for Palestinians   Project name: TABO Palestine Country of...

 We love "From the Mouth of the Lion" because it places a spotlight on the great artistic productions coming out of the Iranian diaspora   Project...

 We love Fekra²'s desire to push crowd-driven collaboration and innovation across business, governments, and NGOs in the region   Project name:...

 We love the Nawaya Network's mission of empowering underprivileged youth in Lebanon through athletics and the arts via in-person and online...

Iranian-American filmmaker, Justin Mashouf, is drawn to stories that highlight the unique interactions and blurred distinctions existing within the Muslim...

In 2011, an unprecedented wave of popular demonstrations shook the Middle East and the North Africa region. One by one, dictators in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya...

In our continuing Podcast series on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the Middle Eat and North Africa, we speak to Saudi entrepreneur Aiyah Saihati, the...

Q: Shayfeencom, which means "We Are Watching You" in Arabic, was founded in 2005 to support free speech and democracy in Egypt. Tells us a bit about the...

*The following report is from #SudanRevolts, a media team providing updates on the situation in Sudan to the international media. The group has a membership...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Sabrine Assem, co-founder of Fekra², an Egyptian tech start-up that is creating a forum for businesses, NGOs, and...

Join the Muftah team at the hashtag #MuftahChat on the first and third Wednesday of every month at 12:30 pm Eastern Standard Time for a Twitter discussion of...

Q: Tell us a little bit about the Nawaya Network and why you were inspired to start the organization. Zeina Saab (ZS): The idea came to me three years ago...

*With a membership spanning the front-lines of Sudan to the Sudanese diaspora, #SudanRevolts is a media team providing updates on the situation in Sudan to...

In the wake of Mohammed Morsi's victory in Egypt's presidential elections, Egypt's Revolutionary Socialists movement has released the following message: Do...

*The following piece was submitted by an Iranian-American writer who wishes to remain anonymous. For the last several months, articles about the...

The following statement from Egypt's Revolutionary Socialist Movement responds to recent events in Egypt and the growing impression that the Supreme Council...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak to Ghanem Nuseibeh, founder and director of Cornerstone Global Associates, a London-based consulting company, that, among...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak to award-wining Egyptian filmmaker Karim El-Shenawy about his latest film "Salafi," a documentary about two Egyptian Salafists...

The following is a statement issued by Egypt's Revolutionary Socialist Movement regarding pro-regime candidate Ahmed Shafiq's strong showing in the first round...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Marwan Maalouf, a Lebanese attorney and activist, about recent developments in Lebanese politics and the Arab Spring's...

  The following is a call for action from the Youth of the Jan25 Revolution in Egypt: On May 13, 2012, the Egyptian Court of Appeals will review the...

  In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Yara Kassem, the Egyptian political cartoonist, about her body of work and thoughts on the Arab Spring....

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Carlos Latuff, the controversial political cartoonist from Brazil, about his development as an artist and political...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Shahinaz Ahmed, CEO of Education for Employment, Egypt, about the challenges facing educated young Egyptians seeking...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak to Ahmed El Alfi, the founder of Egyptian firm Sawari Ventures and chairman of Flat6Labs, a startup incubator based in Cairo,...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Wael Fakharany, director of Google's North Africa office, about the internet and social change in Egypt. We caught up...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Marwa El-Daly, the founder of Waqfeyat al Maadi, a community organization that aims to revive and modernize the concept...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak to energy expert Dr. Sara Vakhshouri about the recent European oil embargo against Iran, the impact of this oil embargo on the...

Tomorrow, March 2, 2012, Iranians will go to the poles in the country's first national elections since the disputed 2009 Presidential contest. Our friend...

Azadeh Moaveni is the author of Lipstick Jihad and co-author, with Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi, of Iran Awakening. She has lived and reported...

Muftah.org and Democracy & Society Present A Special Issue - After the Revolution: Looking Forward Volume 9, Issue 2 We are seeking well-written,...

Q: Tensions between Iran and the United States have spiked over the last several weeks. Many in the U.S. blame this on Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear weapon. Do...

Q: You spent the last year living in Iran, right when economic sanctions against the country reached new heights. How did you see the Iranian economy changing...

This press release was issued on January 22, 2012 by "Free Parastoon and Marzieh," a blog created by a group of Parastoo Dokouhaki and Marzieh Rasouli's...

Muftah's Book Club features interviews about books we love with the authors who have written them. In this installment, we interview Ben White* on his latest...

Professor Paul Pillar is Director of Graduate Studies at Georgetown University's Center for Peace and Security Studies. Professor Pillar retired in 2005 from a...

2012 is shaping up to be a potentially pivotal year for Iran. With inflation at nearly 50%, economic sanctions have crippled the Iranian economy over the...

On December 31, 2011, President Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a bill that contains sweeping provisions authorizing the indefinite...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Amel Boubekeur, research fellow at the Ecole Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales and Ecole Normale Superieure in Paris,...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak to Marwan Muasher, the former Jordanian Foreign Minister and current Vice-President of Studies for the Carnegie Endowment,...

In this Muftah podcast, we speak with Naif Al-Mutawa, creator of the 99, a comic book series inspired by Islamic principles. Since it was first founded in the...

In this Muftah podcast, we talk with Ahmed Maher an Egyptian activist, co-founder of the April 6 Youth Movement, and a leader of Egypt's January 25 Revolution....

In this Muftah podcast, we sit down with Esraa Abdelfattah, Egyptian activist, founder of the April 6th Youth Movement, and a leader of the country's January...

For Muftah's inaugural podcast, we are pleased to speak with Isaac Solotaroff, the director of Wham! Bam! Islam!, a documentary film that follows Dr....

For the last decade, the religion of Islam has been subject to distortion and attack by Muslims and non-Muslims who have misunderstood or are unaware of its...

In honor of United Nations Day, on October 24, 2011, Muftah contributor and Quinnipiac University Assistant Professor Lara Dotson-Renta convened a panel of...

The following photo essay was submitted by an author who wishes to remain anonymous In the hot summers of 2008 and 2010, I traveled to Iran with my camera,...

This article was submitted by an author who wishes to remain anonmyous It was in a salon in the heart of a bustling north Iranian town where I learned about...

This series was written by an author who wishes to remain anonmyous Part 4 - The Protests of 2011 As Parts 1, 2, and 3 of this series have demonstrated, the...

This series was written by an author who wishes to remain anonymous Part 3 - The Decade of Bashar Al-Asad In order to understand the on-going uprising in...

This series was written by an author who wishes to remain anonmyous Part 2: Ba'athism & Hafez Al-Asad The current uprisings in Syria cannot be understood...

This series is written by an author who wishes to remain anonymous Part 1 - A Look at Historical Forces The Syrian Arab Republic is amongst the most...

As Egypt remains wracked by violence and mayhem, under the cloak of chaos a pointed roundup of Egyptian activists, involved in organizing the current protests...