Reports of the Death of ISIS Have Been Greatly Exaggerated
When the Iraqi government announced the end of ISIS control over its territory on December…
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No, Sunni and Shia Muslims Have Not Been Fighting Forever
Several days ago, before the Saudi government’s execution of prominent Shia religious leader Nimr al-Nimr…
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It’s Theology, Not Baseball: Misunderstanding Iraq’s Sectarian Conflicts
Nothing is as conducive to global radical mobilization as an exclusive theological summons.
Read MoreSyria Receives Sudanese Weapons on Ukrainian Aircraft via Qatar and Turkey
Just when you thought Syria couldn’t get more confusing…
Read MoreReligion and Violence? Short Answer: “Religion” Does Not Exist in a Vacuum
It is patronizing to reduce religion to “ethics” or “values.”
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Was Islam Responsible for the Boston Bombings, or Was “Internet Islam”?
RD bloggers have rightly asked the question of the depth of the “piety” of the Tsarnaevs. That too misses a vital point. I do not for a moment discount the sincerity of the feelings for Islam by the Tsarnaev brothers. But, what Islam was the object of those feelings? I would offer that it was for an “Internet Islam”—for an abstract, compact, easily rendered Islam, fed by the representations flowing from out of the ether!
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Which Islamists?: Religion and the Syrian Civil War
A scholar returning from a visit with Syrian opposition figures discusses the role of religion in the Syrian civil war, including whether it’s a sectarian war, what Americans need to know, and whether a post-war Syria will be an Islamic state.
Read MoreNew Egyptian Appointee Vows to Prevent Sunnis from Falling into ‘Shi‘i Trap’
Sunni leaders, despite having a supermajority within Islam still fear conversions to Shi’ism.
Read MoreBarack’s “My Plan for Iraq” a Missed Opportunity
The current mess in Iraq provides Obama with an opportunity to demonstrate his knowledge about the conflict and difference between Sunni and Shi’ite…
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