Al Jazeera Documentary

Sugar is sweet, seductive, addictive - but built on human suffering. This feature-length reveals how an enticing luxury became the engine of a global system powered by slavery, exploitation and environmental destruction, a legacy still shaping the world today. From the 19th-century slave plantations to modern refineries in the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Reunion, India, South Africa and Europe, the series traces how sugar fuelled colonial empires, drove some of the worst aspects of international trade and commerce, and left deep social and ecological scars that are still present in labour abuses and exhausted landscapes today. Combining powerful testimony, rare archival material, expert interviews, and on-the-ground reporting, the series exposes the true cost of our centuries-long obsession with sugar, while at the same time spotlighting communities fighting to reclaim land, dignity and fair means of production. The series asks a crucial question: have we ever really escaped the bitter curse behind the world’s sweetest commodity?

Dr. John Esposito explores Islam's influence on the US with Soraya Salam. They discuss a variety of topics ranging from the reasons behind Dr. Esposito's passionate interest in Islam, his time advising US President Joe Biden when he was a senator, the Muslim origins of some of the most common traditions in Europe and the US, and the globalisation of islamophobia.

Dr. John Esposito is a distinguished university professor at Georgetown University. He's a founding director of the Al-Waleed Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. He's also authored over 50 books on religion, Islam, and Islamophobia.

Dr. Dalia Fahmy discusses what is it like to be a Muslim in the US, with Sami Zeidan. What form of discrimination are Muslims facing? How is islamophobia being used for political gain? And is there a role for Muslims to play to combat islamophobia?.

Dr. Dalia Fahmy is an associate professor of political science at Long Island university. She is well published on the effects of Islamophobia on US foreign policy and American identity in politics. She is also a prominent personality speaking out against prejudice and islamophobia in the US and beyond.

Former Catholic nun and author Karen Armstrong shares her perspective on Islam from her years of research with Al Jazeera's Samantha Johnson. Karen Armstrong is a renown religious historian and best-selling author whose work has been translated into 45 languages. Armstrong has been described as one of the most intelligent contemporary defenders of religion.

Women have been targets of abuse just as much as men.


Islamophobia raised its ugly head in race riots in Britain in August 2024 and attacks on Muslims and mosques in the United Kingdom have increased since October 7, 2023.


In this film, 'My Hijab, My Choice', based completely on their own testimonies, five British Muslim women share their experiences in frank and often emotional, intimate interviews. They challenge Western perceptions of the hijab as a symbol of female oppression and describe it as a powerful expression of commitment to their faith, which defines them as strong, independent women. The women describe the struggle they say they face for dignity and respect in British society where they’re often insulted, attacked and discriminated against, particularly in the jobs market. This film is an exploration of why many Muslim women choose to wear the hijab and also a snapshot of British attitudes to Islam and discrimination in the UK today.

By the early 19th century, a vast majority of the world's nations had been colonised by European powers. The empire-building and resource-driven exploitation of states and their populations continues to influence the world today - from language, religion, and cultural beliefs to legal and economic systems. In certain countries, colonial practices included slavery, genocide and the creation of political and ethnic divisions that remain to this day. Others have argued that Western colonisation, in some instances, benefited colonised populations with rule of law and infrastructure building.

On March 8, 2014, 239 passengers and crew members disappeared from radar on board a Malaysia Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Nine years on, why is the disappearance of MH370 still a mystery?

In recent years, thousands of African-Americans have made the decision to “return home” to the African continent. But why? Many say they want to escape the racial pressure pot of the United States, while some want to connect to the land of their ancestors. For others, countries like Ghana wooed them with an easy immigration process and the promise of a better life. "I want people to understand that they have options and alternatives. Most black people in America don't know that these options exist; they think they have to suffer because there's nowhere else to go. But no, there are other places," says Muhammida el-Muhajir, a digital marketer who moved to Ghana from New York City.

Darrell Davis was just 18 when he was sent to prison, serving a total of 25 years behind bars. Davis converted to Islam while in jail, taking on the name “Sadiq”, or truthful, as part of an attempt to leave his previous lifestyle behind. Davis was released after 25 years, but living his truth and rebuilding a life outside prison walls presented its own difficulties. In an intimate documentary, "The Honest Struggle", Davis shares his story of returning to the Chicago streets that once led him to prison. And his story - one of faith and overcoming hardship - is not unique. Hundreds of thousands of inmates in the United States have found a sense of community and solace in Islam, with Muslims now making up about 10 to 15 percent of all American prisoners. So, what is it about Islam that appeals to these inmates?

We are talking about the Republican debate, Obama's mosque visit and Washington's role in Syria with Al Jazeera's senior political analyst Marwan Bishara in 2016

In mid-2020, a mobile phone belonging to an Al Jazeera Arabic investigative team was hacked. Over the next few months, reporter Tamer Almisshal and the Canadian research group Citizen Lab investigated Pegasus, the sophisticated spyware used. Pegasus is manufactured by an Israeli technology company called the NSO Group and is among the most advanced spyware in the world. It can access and infiltrate a smartphone without the owner clicking a link, opening an email or even answering their phone - meaning it can go undetected. This investigation exposes how Pegasus works, how governments like Saudi Arabia and the UAE have bought the hugely expensive spyware and how it has been used beyond the stated intentions of the NSO Group of “developing technology to prevent and investigate terror and crime” - including to target journalists.

The documentary "The Miraculous Life of Prophet Muhammad" tells the life of the Prophet Muhammad with a focus on the miracles he performed. There are various interpretations and definitions of these miracles. What all scholars and Islamic scholars agree on is that the Holy Quran is the greatest miracle given to Prophet Muhammad.

In South America, the Caribbean nation of Guyana is home to a small but thriving Muslim population, and Ramadan is as important to the faithful there as anywhere in the Islamic world. African slaves first introduced Islam to Guyana in the 17th century, but the majority of today's Muslims descend from indentured Indian labourers. Muslims contribute to all sections of Guyanese society. The country's first Muslim president, Mohamed Irfaan Ali, credits his election to Guyanese respect and tolerance. Shalimar Ali-Hack, the country's longest serving director of public prosecutions, believes Guyana may have a Muslim woman as president one day.

The Arab Muslim world has a long tradition of songs and chants for the holy month of Ramadan. This film tells the fascinating behind-the-scenes stories of four popular pieces. The song Ramadan Gana, or Here Comes Ramadan, is often played on TV to coincide with the start of Ramadan. Its simplicity, familiar lyrics and the singer’s warm voice make it hugely popular in the Arab world. Wahawi Ya Wahawi, or Welcome Ramadan Moon, was first performed by an Egyptian singer in the 1930s and later in a 1953 Egyptian movie by a five-year-old Lebanese girl, Hayam Younis, who still clearly remembers singing it. Decades on, she describes filming the song which became a timeless classic. Mawlay, or My Lord God, is a religious chant derived from a prayer. Former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat encouraged the Sufi figure Sayed Naqshband to work with the famous Egyptian composer, Baligh Hamdi, whose speciality was love songs. Despite early misgivings they found common ground, and the result was a deeply spiritual chant. Allou El Bayarek, or Hang Out Ramadan Flags, dates back to the Lebanese Civil War and was written for a children's choir at a Beirut orphanage. Composer Ahmed Kaboor had a vision of colourful flags, lights and lanterns hanging from every building.

An intimate look at the month of Ramadan through the eyes of Muslims in opposite ends of the world. Muslims worldwide observe the holy month of Ramadan, which involves fasting, prayer and spiritual reflection. However, observing Ramadan can be challenging in countries where daylight hours are very long. In Iceland, the nearly 24-hour daylight in summer can mean that fasting timings need adjusting. Some Icelandic Muslims fast in line with daylight, but others do so according to the time in the holy city of Mecca. Meanwhile, in the New Zealand winter, daylight hours can be relatively short, and some Muslims spend much of this time preparing for iftar, the after-sunset meal that breaks the fast.

The Palestine National Orchestra was first set up in 1936 but was disbanded when Israel was founded in 1948. In 1993, a group of musicians started a Palestinian national music school in Ramallah which has developed into the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music. It now also has branches in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nablus and Gaza. In 2010, the Conservatory decided to revive the national orchestra by bringing musicians together from all around the world. "It took us a year to collect all the names, make calls and get the names and numbers...we created a network and they came from all over the world," explains Mohammed Fadel, musician and co-founder of PNO. "People from abroad helped us. So did others from the Arab world. They trained our members on how an orchestra works. It was the birth of the first Palestinian orchestra and gathering of musicians." The musicians are all from different backgrounds but equally proud of their Palestinian origins. They’re thrilled to be invited to join the orchestra and moved by the shared experience of bringing quality western classical and traditional Arab music to their target audience in Israel and the Occupied West Bank. Charlie Bisharat is a professional violinist in California whose Palestinian father and uncles emigrated to the US in 1950. Being part of the orchestra "is a dream for me," he says. "I had never had the opportunity to come to Palestine. Until Tim Pottier and Mohammad Fadel contacted me, I really didn’t know when I would ever have that opportunity. So it was really a great chance to come out and meet people of my heritage and play music with them and it is a very not political situation so it’s really nice because we’re here to spread the word of Palestinian culture and the good side of the culture. " For car mechanic turned musician, Ramadan Khattab, performing in Palestine with other musicians is visceral. "When I perform in Palestine, I have a special feeling that I never have when I perform anywhere else...I believe all the other orchestra members feel the same. If you look at the performers’ faces, you see something that you don’t see somewhere else," says Khattab. "When we perform together, our hearts don’t beat out of fear, but out of love. And this is different from the others." Similarly, Mariam Tamari, a Palestinian-Japanese classical singer who studied in US and is now based in Paris, shares Ramadan’s feelings. "Singing with the Palestine National Orchestra is quite different because it brings together two of my passions; my identity as a Palestinian and also my identity as a musician,". Her father was forced into exile as a young man but through his connection to Palestine, Tamari was able to retain her link with her father's homeland. "All of us feel this sense of very strong identity as a Palestinian and we have something very specific and very passionate and important to communicate to the world and this makes the experience unlike any other because already from the first rehearsal, despite the fact that we’ve come from all over the world, we bond immediately like that. We’ve become like family from the first day of rehearsal and there is an incredible sense of unity and just togetherness that I feel with the Palestine National Orchestra that I think it’s something quite rare," says Tamari. Meanwhile, Mohammed Fadel's efforts have borne fruit. The Palestine National Orchestra has continued to bring Palestinian musicians together to express their love of music and show its power as a unifying force, especially for the Palestinian community.

They have survived rape and the slaughter of their families. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya girls and women fled Myanmar to escape a military crackdown. In Bangladesh's refugee camps they thought they would be safe. But inside the tents that house almost a million Rohingya refugees, women and girls are being bought, sold and given away. Girls are being forced into marriage because relatives can't afford to feed them, or are being lured to brothels with the promise of good jobs. We investigate the dangers still facing Rohingya women, and meet the people seeking to exploit them.

Investigative Unit goes undercover to reveal the true scale of modern slavery in suburban Britain. We expose the slave masters and the people smugglers and talk to victims about their ordeals.

In this episode of Centre Stage, our guest is British plastic surgeon, Dr Victoria Rose. She travelled to Gaza twice this year to provide life-saving medical care to children wounded by the genocide in Gaza. Rose talks about her difficult experiences of working in the Gaza Strip despite the continued attacks on healthcare facilities and medics by the Israeli military, and what the medical community is doing to try to affect change.

In this episode of Centre Stage, our guest is John Mearsheimer, a political scientist and influential scholar in international relations who’s best known for his theory of offensive realism. Mearsheimer talks to Al Jazeera’s Rawaa Auge about the wars in Gaza, Ukraine and Lebanon and how global and regional powers support and arm the belligerent parties. Mearsheimer also weighs in on the 2024 US presidential election, and the minefield that is US foreign policy.