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Installation "The Black Arch" by Saudi sisters Raja and Shadia Alem is seen at the pavilion of Saudi Arabia taking part in the Venice Biennale for the first time on 2 June 2011, in Venice, Italy. Marco Secchi / Getty

Shadia Alem and the art of sacred continuity

From Mecca to the global stage, Saudi artist Shadia Alem's work unfolds as a continuous practice shaped by memory, spirituality, and place

Mimoza Al-Arrawi 18 March 2026
Lady Evelyn Cobbold, a Scottish aristocrat who converted to Islam and performed the Hajj in 1933, becoming the first British Muslim woman to do so. Getty Images

The Orientalists who entered Mecca in disguise

For centuries, Mecca was the pinnacle of exploration for Western travellers. Shrouded in mystery, it captured the imagination of a small but daring group of European Orientalists

Abdullah Al-Rashid 06 June 2025
Lina Jaradat

The world's first coffeehouse was in Mecca

In 1511, there were places in Mecca specifically designated for selling and drinking coffee, known as coffee houses. Decades later, the first café opened in Istanbul.

Abdullah Al-Rashid 15 November 2024
  • Popular
  • Editor's Pick
Eduardo Ramon
Politics

Trump has lost the Iran war, but how badly?

20 April 2026

While all the effects of this conflict may take time to fully realise, short and medium-term signs expose the limits of US power and see America's rivals benefiting

Christopher Phillips
Jason Lyon
Business & Economy

The Iran war is reshaping the China-Gulf economic model

21 April 2026

Closing the Strait of Hormuz has shown how the Gulf should shift from an oil-export model to a digital and distribution hub. Will this trigger the long-delayed free trade agreement with China?

Charbel Barakat
Pete Reynolds
Politics

Lebanon and Israel: negotiations and the end of Hezbollah

23 April 2026

Building on the ten-day ceasefire announced by US President Donald Trump, time will tell if these talks are a one-off or the beginning of a different path for Lebanon.

Al Majalla - London
Grace Russell
Science & Technology

Saving the soldiers: robots as Ukraine’s new weapon

22 April 2026

The war in Ukraine is becoming an open laboratory for testing advanced military technologies that may yet redefine the very meaning of combat

Marco Mossad
Nesma Moharam
Culture & Social Affairs

New book tackles the fading art of Koranic recitation

20 April 2026

Egyptian heritage researcher Haytham Abu Zayd sheds light on how the art form grew, excelled, and then declined over the years and ends by offering a path to revival

Fadi El-Abdallah

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OPINIONS

US-Iran Hormuz stand off: who will blink first?

Con Coughlin
Con Coughlin

Saving the soldiers: robots as Ukraine’s new weapon

Marco Mossad
Marco Mossad

The US has ditched professional diplomacy

Nicholas Grossman
Nicholas Grossman

Lebanon and Israel: negotiations and the end of Hezbollah

Al Majalla - London
Al Majalla - London
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