by Emile Nakhleh Rhetoric matters. The words our politicians and media ascribe to mass killers must change. Terms such as “radicalizers,” “radicalized,” “jihadists,” and “martyrs” must be erased from the global public space because they tend to give the killers an… Continue Reading
by Graham E. Fuller The West remains transfixed with ISIS (Islamic State, Da’ish) and the debate about its character goes on. In one sense this discussion is totally understandable, given the movement’s seeming sudden appearance on the public screen not… Continue Reading
by Emile Nakhleh The Druze, a centuries-old Arab community and an offshoot of Shia Islam, is the latest religious minority in the Levant to suffer the wrath of Islamic extremists. Jabhat al-Nusra or the Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliated group fighting… Continue Reading
by Sebastien Peyrouse When it comes to religious affairs in Central Asia, authorities are relying on Soviet methods even as they aspire to move away from the Soviet legacy. Religion, especially Islam, is a cultural marker that has reinforced national… Continue Reading
by Musa al-Gharbi It is problematic to assert that the Islamic State (ISIS or IS) is not “Islamic” in large part because the assertion presupposes there is a “true” and a “false” Islam—one by which Barack Obama or liberal Muslim… Continue Reading