United Kingdom
The day Lord Ahmed reproached me for anti-Semitism
This opinion piece by Usama Hasan is reaction and commentary on Nazir Ahmed’s alleged ‘Jewish conspiracy’ comments in a Pakistani television interview in april. This in turn is the consequence of a toxic underlying legacy of misunderstanding between the Jewish and Muslim faiths the author argues. The piece reports of cases of anti-Semitism and its…
White British Muslim convert plotted terror attack
The big story on most front pages this day was the fact that a white British Muslim convert pleaded guilty to charges of terrorism. He was the subject of a 2011 documentary made by his stepbrother and was said to have developed extremist views after he joined the Muslims Against Crusades group. He was arrested…
A study of Arab attitudes to sexuality reminds us of a liberal Islamic tradition
The book Sex and the Citadel: Intimate Life in a Changing Arab World, by Shereen El Feki was reviewed by Roula Khalaf in the Financial Times. The article reviews the book which aims to offer insight into this highly sensitive subject whilst also establishing that there are a multitude of views held by Muslims around…
Prince Charles and The Duchess of Cornwall on royal visit to Saudi Arabia
The Prince and Duchess were in Saudi Arabia as part of their Middle East Tour. Camilla met 30 women recently made MP’s by King Abdullah, stating “they were ‘blazing such a trail’ for women’s rights”. With one reportedly responding “You coming here is an endorsement of what is happening”. The visit will also bring up…
Iraq: 10 years later
16 March Iraq: 10 years later In this piece the Financial Times’ Middle East editor Roula Khalaf gives an account of the last ten years of Iraq. Together with the analysis of the inevitable political and economic consequences of Iraq’s most recent history, the article also looks into how the religious populous of the country…