The Gateway to the East

The meeting is scheduled from 13 to 18 February near the shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon. The Maronite Patriarch presided over the commemoration for the earthquake victims and displaced people. The assembly of 120 personalities from the entire region, one third of whom are lay people, is divided into 11 inter-ecclesial working groups.

Faced with the emergency, Caritas responded quickly providing aid to everyone, Catholics and Orthodox, Christians and Muslims, Turks and migrants. “Everything is needed, from food to spiritual comfort and human support even among the refugees,” said the vicar of Anatolia. For the bishop of Aleppo, the tragedy could be an opportunity for Ankara and Damascus to “reflect about peace and working together”.

Presidential and parliamentary elections will be held on 14 May, with a run-off two weeks later if no one gets 50 per cent in the first round. The Economist slams the Turkish leader for bringing the country “to the brink". The Kurdish vote, the migrant issue, and Islamic nationalism are expected to play a major role. A silent international community is ready for business as usual, source tells AsiaNews.

Despite proclamations from Qatar and FIFA, little has changed in the lives of the workers who built World Cup venues and infrastructure. While the Kafala system may have been abolished, the reimbursement scheme is not working. For many, this is a time of uncertainty and unresolved issues. For Human Rights Watch, what remains is “a legacy of exploitation and shame”.

The parish priest recounts the festive atmosphere for the celebrations and fears for an uncertain future. Escape attempts, especially by young people, are "an open wound" for "broken" Palestinian families. Protests against Hamas at the funerals of eight Gazans who drowned while attempting to cross the Mediterranean in barges. Fr. Romanelli: If Israel's policy does not change, the community "is doomed to die."

For Riccardo Redaelli, director of the Master in Middle Eastern Studies (MIMES) at the Graduate School of Economics and International Relations of the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart (Milan), protests by young Iranians are the result of the country’s gradual economic, social, and political decline. Within the regime, some are aware that concessions need to be made to avoid a bloodbath, while protesters have no alternative model should the regime fall.

Religious Zionists want to legalise even those small settlements that Israeli law itself deems illegal. Administrative authority in the West Bank’s Area C, which is under Israeli control but largely inhabited by Palestinians, is now in settlers’ hand. The first goal is to rebuild Homesh, one of the settlements Sharon evicted in 2005.

The flag affair dominates the pre-match phase after the US Soccer Federation posts an Iranian flag without the emblem of the Islamic Republic. Iran’s revolutionary guards tell the Iranian team to “behave”. The protests that followed the death of Mahsa Amini are overshadowing the sporting event. The two teams met once before, in France 1998, ending in an Iranian victory. Qatar is using the event to boost its regional role as a mediator.

The pontiff's trip to Bahrain and two inter-religious forums have re-energised discussion between different faiths and within Islam. Peace and reconciliation between the two souls of the Muslim world are necessary for stability. Even the Imam of al-Azhar makes a rare appeal for internal dialogue. Analysis and future prospects in an interview with professor and expert Saad Salloum.

A business worth 10 billion euro a year that feeds government and opposition coffers, creating 'unthinkable' alliances. A universal substance consumed by students and professionals, considered less 'forbidden' than alcohol or other drugs. Saudi Arabia the main market destination.

The shah's prison is at the heart of the Islamic Republic's worst atrocities. Common criminals, activists, and dissidents have been executed inside the infamous facility. Scores of reports have highlighted serious human rights abuses and violations. In mid-October, a mysterious fire engulfed the prison for hours. Thousands of people arrested for protesting against the death of Mahsa Amini are set to go on trial together.

The Mahsa Amini affair raises the issue of the role and freedoms of women in the region and in the Muslim - Shiite and Sunni - world.Tehran's recent entry into the UN body for the protection of women, thanks to favorable vote of Western governments, has been passed over in silence. In the Saudi kingdom "success" stories conceal daily tales of violations and humiliation.