Category: News In English

By Wolfgang Sannwald On the evening of November 9, many parliaments, cities, communities and people in Germany commemorate the night of November 9-10, 1938, when the leaders of National Socialism in Germany directly and deliberately attacked Jewish people and the facilities of Jewish communities. Some historians refer to this so-called Reichspogromnacht as the beginning of the systematic persecution and extermination of European Jewry. Between 1939 and 1945, the Nazi-controlled German Reich had more than six million people murdered across Europe, mainly through mass shootings and in concentration camps. The terms “Holocaust” or “Shoah” usually refer to the approximately six million… Read More

By Youssef Kanjou Communication between the East and the West began a very long time ago for various reasons, mainly because of trade. This has been evidenced by various phenomena, especially historical buildings that have been preserved until today despite the wars. Among the most important of these buildings are the khans (caravanserais). The word khans comes from Persian or Turkish and means: hostels for travelers, which today have mostly been replaced by hotels. Khans were widespread in the great cities of the East, characterized by their flourishing trade and international relations, such as Aleppo, Damascus, Cairo and Istanbul. There… Read More

By Oula Mahfouz and Michael Seifert Tourists who visit Andalusia in southern Spain to see the architectural and artistic remains of an empire that was ruled by Islam for 800 years are amazed. They realise how much of Europe’s medieval culture is due to the inhabitants of this Muslim empire in the south of Europe. The purpose of this article is to trace important historical foundations for this and to name examples. The Arabic name “al-Andalus” (Andalusia) refers to a historical region that existed on the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) from the 8th to the 15th century. The exact… Read More

By Youssef Kanjou There are many archaeological sites in Syria that are well-known among archaeologists and in tourism. This is true, for example, of Palmyra on the Western Desert, the city of Mari on the Euphrates and the city of Ugarit on the Syrian coast. But Dura Europos, “Pompeii of the East“ or “Pompeii of the Desert“ as it is also called, is not as famous as other archaeological cities—despite its cultural and historical importance as well as being a very important stop for trade caravans. The comparison with Pompeii is made because in Dura Europos, as in Pompeii, many… Read More

By Oula Mahfouz Recently, many young people have enrolled at the German language institutes in the Syrian capital of Damascus—especially medical and nursing students. They hope to get a job abroad so they can leave the country. There are various reasons for the increasing migration from the areas of the Syrian regime, such as bypassing compulsory military service, searching for a safe place and looking for job opportunities. The economic situation in Syria continues to deteriorate. There are hardly any jobs. Migration from Syria is fraught with great difficulties. However, doctors are an exception. They have the possibility to obtain… Read More