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النسخة العربية
  • Politics
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  • Tag
  • Japan

Japanese director Takashi Miike at an event for the film 'Shumei: The Living Legacy of Kabuki' IMDb

Takeshi Miike's new Kabuki documentary surprises critics

For a filmmaker who has spent decades challenging norms, a film about traditional Japanese theatre seems like an odd choice. At the Venice Film Festival, he explains to Al Majalla why it is not.

Leila Amar 07 September 2026
Donald Trump walks alongside Xi Jinping at the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, on 14 May 2026.
 AP

Japan's read on the Trump–Xi summit

From Tokyo's perspective, there were three key issues: Taiwan, Iran, and the broader bilateral framework

Futoshi Matsumoto 20 May 2026
A man walks past an anti-USA and anti-Israel mural in Tehran on 8 April 2026. ATTA KENARE / AFP

'Unconditional surrender' was never an option for Iran

The IRGC doesn't just defend the state, it runs it. To wave the white flag wouldn't just mean giving up its arms; it would mean dismantling the organisation and its patronage networks.

Futoshi Matsumoto 12 April 2026

Sanae Takaichi: Japan's iron woman?

Fares Garabet 16 February 2026
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), places a red paper rose on the name of an elected candidate at the LDP headquarters on general election day in Tokyo on 8 February 2026. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

How Japan’s prime minister will use her massive new mandate

A remarkable election victory that will reshape Japanese politics for years to come

The Economist 09 February 2026
Haiku poet Banya Natsuishi Hiroyuki Izutsu

Banya Natsuishi: a haiku poet detached from all things

This Japanese art form reveals 'a bitter awareness of the frailty of human existence and the impermanence of nature,' one of its most perceptive proponents tells Al Majalla.

Osama Esber 10 December 2025
Go Nagai with a 'Grendizer' poster
 AL MAJALLA/ AFP

50 years on, 'Grendizer' still stirs Arab hearts

The Arab world's connection to the cartoon series remains uniquely intimate. No other animated comic hero has achieved the same level of fame, resonance, and longevity.

Shadi Alaa Aldin 25 November 2025
Al Majalla

Japan quietly prepares itself amid China's rise

While the world discusses Beijing's ascendancy and the rivalry among great powers, Tokyo forges its own path—one dotted with patience, discipline, and strength

Ibrahim Hamidi 27 October 2025
LDP President Sanae Takaichi receives applause after she was selected as Japan's new prime minister during an extraordinary session of the lower house of parliament in Tokyo on October 21, 2025. Philip FONG / AFP

Sanae Takaichi: Japan's first female prime minister

Her task will be to balance the country's security imperatives with American expectations regarding burden-sharing, defence spending, and economic cooperation

Futoshi Matsumoto 21 October 2025
Mark Smith

80 years on, the world still has much to learn from Hiroshima

The two atomic bombs dropped on Japan by the US remain a subject of intense debate, and the world is still learning the lessons of those fateful events

Futoshi Matsumoto 06 August 2025
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Pete Reynolds
Politics

Israel’s election may not end its political crisis

26, Oct 2026

With a complex election setup and the deep polarisation that has plagued Israel in recent years, expect prolonged political deadlock

Michael Horowitz
Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Rwanda's Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva during a welcoming ceremony for participants of the Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow, Russia, on 28 October 2026. Igor Ivanko/REUTERS
Business & Economy

Russia-Africa summit: ambitions and challenges

29, Oct 2026

Amid competition for influence and resources, Russia knows that Africa is a market with potential. For African states, Russian companies are still of interest, but the value equation needs to change

Rana Freifer
Al Majalla
Politics

Lula defies Latin America’s pro-Trump wave

28, Oct 2026

Brazil's left-wing president won a historic fourth term in office

Catherine Osborn
Anne-Claire Legendre, the newly appointed president of the Institut du monde arabe, poses for a portrait at the institute’s headquarters in Paris, on 18 February, 2026 AFP
Culture & Social Affairs

Anne-Claire Legendre’s vision for the Institut du monde arabe

29, Oct 2026

As the institute approaches its 40th anniversary, its president outlines a new vision for cultural collaboration between the Arab world and Europe

Elie Kossaifi
President Masoud Pezeshkian (R) greeting Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi (R), in Tehran on 18 May 2025. Iranian Presidency / AFP
Politics

Afghanistan: Iran's strategic depth card in Central Asia

28, Oct 2026

Once nurtured by Pakistan, the Taliban now works closely with Iran, much to the delight of Russia and China

Kamal Alam

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OPINIONS

Russia-Africa summit: ambitions and challenges

Rana Freifer
Rana Freifer

The struggle for power

Al Majalla - London
Al Majalla - London

Anne-Claire Legendre’s vision for the Institut du monde arabe

Elie Kossaifi
Elie Kossaifi

Rankous raid puts Syria intel practices under scrutiny

Haid Haid
Haid Haid
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