The 8th June 2022 saw the release of a new U.S. TV show “Ms Marvel”, created by British-Pakistani stand-up comedian and screenwriter, Bisha K. Ali. The show follows Kamala Khan, a Pakistani-American teenager who transforms into a superhero whilst grappling with familial and religious obligations1. This makes Khan the first Muslim superheroine of the Marvel…
The assumption that ‘Islam’ – usually conceived as a monolithic force – is on an expansionary path is widely shared. Islamists herald the onset of an age of Islamic renewal and dominance; anxious Westerners take to the streets against the ‘Islamisation’ of the occident; and colourful videos highlighting that Islam is set to overtake Christianity…
As the so-called Islamic State’s last bastions in Mosul fell, Iraqi soldiers and militias captured a host of IS-fighters. Amongst them were a larger number of foreigners who had joined the terrorist group over the preceding years. Trip to the Levant in 2016 Yet few arrests have called forth more international attention than the…
The French president, François Hollande, has said his country has “a problem with Islam” and that there are too many illegal migrants arriving in France. He also suggested that today’s “veiled woman” could become a Marianne, the female symbol of the French republic, and attacked his rival Nicolas Sarkozy as “the little De Gaulle”. The…
A few weeks ago, just prior to the beginning of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Pakistan’s Council of Islamic Ideology met in Islamabad. The agenda for the meeting was packed, and 19 of the Council’s 20 members were present. The main issue for debate was the question of whether the Protection of Women Against…
