Muslims can confront victimisation and vilification by politicians only by empowering themselves, writes Aijaz Zaka Syed

Why such a great fear of democracy? Galal Nassar examines the pathology of apathy

Reconciliation between Arab leaders should not be an aim in itself, but only a means to attain greater ends, writes Hassan Nafaa

Bishop Yohanna Qalta sketches a vision for religious education in the Egyptian school curricula

Counter-intuitively, it could be that peace is better attained by the Israeli right wing facing a Palestinian unity front including Hamas, writes James Zogby

Is Obama's friendly overture to Iran but PR ahead of military action, asks John Whitbeck

The pursuit of a comprehensive Middle East security regime is the best way to address Iranian and Israeli nuclear programmes while reassuring key regional players, writes Ezzedine Choukri Fishere

The Iraqi who threw his shoes at Bush continues to be sidelined by a media reluctant to accept that the latter is the real criminal, writes Ramzy Baroud

Arab hawks may have got what they want: a right-wing government in Israel with which no negotiation will be possible. But on the ground, Israel is still entrenching its position, writes Abdel-Moneim Said

The Muslim Brotherhood is tied to a worldview that cannot come to grips with the protests that mark today's political scene, writes Hossam Tammam