religion

London (Informed Comment) – As Iraqi, Kurdish and Syrian forces squeeze its territory in the Arab world and Turkey hunts down the group’s support networks and sympathisers inside its territory, it can seem like the days of Islamic State (IS) are finally numbered after a two year reign of terror in the region. However it […]

Alawites

Is Religion really Driving Middle East Violence?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Pew Research has released a report saying that “As a whole, the region continued to have the highest levels of religious hostilities in the world. In 2014, the median level of religious hostilities in the Middle East and North Africa reached a level four times that […]

Arab Americans

On Eid al-Fitr 2016: Muslim-Americans becoming Thread in the US Tapestry

contributors

By Abbas Barzegar | (The Conversation) | – – Ramadan, a month of intense prayer and fasting, has been especially trying for American Muslims this summer: Other than the heat, the small community has been grappling with the aftermath of the massacre in Orlando and the presumptive Republican Party candidate Donald Trump’s call to ban […]

Iraq

Ordinary Iraqis defy sectarianism after Islamic State’s attacks on Baghdad

contributors

By Balsam Mustafa | (The Conversation) | – – “I’m happy that I graduated. I’m so grateful to my parents and I dedicate my success to both of them.” These were the final words written by Adnan, a victim of a deadly attack on Sunday’s early hours in the crowded, buzzing street of Karrada in […]

Bill of Rights

On the Fourth of July: None of us has Inalienable Rights if American Muslims don’t

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – On this day when the United States was first conceived in rebellion against people being deprived of their God-given rights to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, it is worth remarking on our political season. One of our two major presidential candidates has targeted America’s some […]

Buddhism

Buddhist Mob Burns Down a Muslim Mosque in Myanmar Village

contributors

TeleSur | – – A mob has burned down a mosque in the second attack of its kind in just over a week. Scores of Buddhists ransacked a mosque in northern Myanmar forcing Muslims to seek refuge overnight in a police station after another violent dispute caused religious intolerance, officials and residents said Friday. “The […]

al-Qaeda

Top 5 things that Make Bangladesh a natural Target for Extremists

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Bangladesh has been plagued by extremist violence for years, but the violence and hostage-taking in Dhaka on Friday and on Saturday morning was a whole new level of disruption. Why Bangladesh? Here are some reasons: 1. Bangladesh is a multicultural state, where some 9 percent of […]

Christianity

Syrian War Overflows: Radical Salafis attack Christian Village in Lebanon

Juan Cole

Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – A wave of suicide bombings was launched by four radical attackers struck al-Qaa, a largely Christian Lebanese village on the border with Syria on Monday, killing five locals and wounding 15. The first attacks came in the morning but that evening a second wave was launched, attacking […]

Featured

$206 Mn. to Hate Groups to Promote anti-Muslim Sentiment

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The UC Berkeley Center for Race and Gender and the Council on American Islamic Relations have jointly produced a new study on hatred of Muslims in the United States. As The Guardian notes, it finds 74 organizations promoting hatred of Muslims in the US, with 33 […]