‘Face of Moderate Islam’ quits job

Yasin Elforkani, spokesperson for Contactbody Muslims and Government ( and known as the ‘face of moderate Islam in the Netherlands’ is quitting his job as a spokesperson. Elforkani, who is also imam, tried (and tries) to start a debate on extremist Islam and youth leaving to fight the jihad in Syria and Iraq, received several…

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ISNA President’s Letter to the American Muslim Community

August 12, 2014 Bismillah Ar Rahman Ar Raheem “O you who believe! Fear Allah, and say a word directed to the Right: That He many make your conduct whole and sound and forgive you your sins: He that obeys Allah and His Messenger, has already attained the highest Achievement.” 33:70-71 Brothers and Sister of the…

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Book review: Youth Tsunami in Arab World: ‘The New Arabs,’ by Juan Cole

July 8, 2014 These days, alarming news continues to spill out of the Middle East. Syria’s continuing civil war has claimed tens of thousands of civilian lives. Iraq — where the prime minister, Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, a Shiite, has stoked sectarian conflict by refusing to form an inclusive government — is hurtling toward civil war,…

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An Interfaith Trojan Horse: Faithwashing Apartheid and Occupation

By Sana Saeed July 1, 2014   Interfaith work has the potential to create and sustain profound relationships across religions.  But what happens when interfaith work becomes a trojan horse? In this piece I explore the Muslim Leadership Initiative, a program which sends American Muslims leaders to Israel to study Judaism and Zionism and is funded…

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The FN vote is “no longer one of protest but of adhesion”

May 26, 2014 Marine Cécile Naves, political scientist and director of Think Tank Different, discussed the Front national’s recent victories and how the media’s fascination with Islam may have bolstered the FN’s credibility. While the percentage of voter abstention was relatively consistent with that of the previous European Parliament elections in 2009, the FN’s success…

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