Islamic Revival

This is a conversation with Norman Finkelstein hosted by Jadaliyya co-editor Mouin Rabbani about Israeli apartheid. This episode of Connections Podcast features a discussion of the recent Human Rights Watch Report A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution, its political context, and potential implications. This interview is the third episode of Connections Podcast. Guest: Norman Finkelstein is a world-renowned forensic scholar. He first came to public attention in the 1980s, while still a doctoral student at Princeton University, for exposing a major study purporting to demonstrate that the Palestinians are an invented people as a work of fraud. He has since published ten books that have been translated into numerous languages. Among his most notable works are Image and Reality of the Palestine Conflict (1995); The Holocaust Industry: Reflections on the Exploitation of Jewish Suffering (2000); and Gaza: An Inquest Into Its Martyrdom (2018). ...

I was asked to put together a political briefing on Macron’s so-called bill to outlaw separatism. Here is an edited copy (with thanks to Zakaria K). The ‘separatism’ Bill announced by Emmanuel Macron on the 2nd October is currently working its way through the institutions of the French executive. The proposed law is called the “Bill to Reinforce Secularism and Republican Principles”, the term ‘separatism’, once considered, has been removed. The Bill looks to update the 1905 law that officially separated church from state. The French Minis t er of interior, Gérald Darmanin announced on BFMTV 3 weeks ago that the completed draft will be presented to the Conseil d’État or Council of State. This is a quasi- legal branch of the French state that looks at bills to make sure it conforms to the French constitution. Based on the fragments that announced beforehand, it seems there are some constitutional difficulties with the bill. For example, the odd statement by Mr Darmanin th...

From The Thinking Muslim Ep.37 - The Arab Spring 10 years on: What went wrong in Egypt and Syria? - Dr Osman Bakash Listen using the links below and remember to subscribe so you never miss a show Apple • Spotify • Google • Breaker • PocketCasts • RadioPublic • Stitcher • TuneIn or on Alexa We are coming to the tenth anniversary of the Arab Spring, the momentous series of events that started in hope with the desperate act of a Tunisian vegetable seller. With the return of another pharaoh in Egypt, the impunity with which he has meted out retribution upon those that were opposed to the regime and the killing field of Syria, whose soil today stands soaked with the blood of martyrs, makes even the most optimistic person surmise that the Arab Spring has turned into what can be called a cold winter. Over the coming weeks and months, The Thinking Muslim takes a look at the tumultuous decade from multiple perspectives. What went wrong? How did an event that reverberated across Muslim c...

From The Thinking Muslim Podcast: https://anchor.fm/thethinkingmuslim/episodes/Understanding-Indias-Citizenship-Law-with-Dr-Asher-Siddiqui-Delhi-e9ubks   "This week I speak to Dr Asher Siddiqui , an engineer from Delhi who has been at the epicentre of the  protests at Delhi’s Jamia Millia University. During the past two weeks, India has been rocked by countrywide demonstrations spontaneously driven by largely young Muslim’s energised by their mutual dislike for a new citizenship law designed to relegate Muslim’s as second class citizens. The law, the Citizenship Amendment Act, enables the state to fast track the citizenship of migrants but significantly omits Muslim’s. The fear is this is another step in dismantling the rights of Muslims of India." Follow the programme on Twitter @thinking_muslim https://twitter.com/thinking_muslim Join the Thinking Muslim Course - visit thinkingmuslim.eventbrite.co.uk

Source:  https://medium.com/@thinkingmuslim Modi’s surprise actions in Kashmir after repealing Article 370 was influenced by a worldview that has seized India, Hindutva, a rabid form of nationalism that is built upon a grand conceit. For Hindu nationalists, Islam is the problem and its place in any future India is for it to be subdued, depoliticised and chastened by the power of the state and the braying of the mob. It is a necessary doctrine Modi has encouraged to create a direction for his country to provide purpose and meaning for what many Indian’s today call its historical moment . Modi has attempted to patch together a ‘grand narrative’ about the country, as he aspires to develop India into a regional power. Like most ultra-nationalists, focussing upon a perceived enemy within and an enemy next door enables a national sentiment for national progression. In this regard, Hindutva shares a lot with 1930’s European fascism. The mob lynching of Pehl...

50 Muslims killed at Friday prayers in #NewZealandShooting by far right fanatics.  When they can livestream murder of worshippers at prayer you know depravity has sunk to lowest pits. This hatred has been stoked by politicians and media. They must be accounted alongside killers. They said they never expected such a thing to happen in a place like New Zealand. I almost agreed but then I remembered they said exactly the same thing when a gunman killed worshippers in a mosque in Quebec last year. They said the same thing when Anders Breivik carried out his murderous rampage in idyllic Norway.  The truth is this hatred has been stoked at every level and is deeply institutional and transcontinental.  Armed far right groups have turned up outside mosques in the USA, intimidating and threatening unarmed worshippers - as a matter of routine.  Donald Trump’s brazen anti-Muslim rhetoric, Boris Johnson’s vilification of Muslim women, Tommy Robinso...

On Wednesday the 6th of December 2017 Donald Trump made an  announcement of al-Quds (‘Jerusalem’) being officially recognised as the capital of Israel which drew reactions from world leaders across the globe. Here we present a few points regarding this development. 1. The US administration is intentionally provoking Muslims globally. That does not come as a surprise, particularly from Trump. But gratuitous provocation against the sanctities of people usually attracts uncontrollable reaction. If the new US embassy in Jerusalem, whenever it is built, or other US interests around the world, get attacked, the US administration has no one to blame but itself. 2. The reaction of world leaders is laughable. European leaders (France, Britain) and leaders of regimes in the Muslim leaders (Turkey, Gulf States, Saudi, Pakistan, Jordan) are feigning concern about the peace process and the now-allegedly-compromised neutrality of the US, as if the US were a neutral adjudicator in th...

There is no doubt that the Turkish regime had a prominent role in the events of Ash-Sham’s revolution at all levels; it was an effective tool of the Kaffir West to anesthetize the revolution from its inception as an introduction to eliminate it later; its role emerged in many areas to stifle Ash-Sham’s revolution and weaken the revolutionaries’ resolve and control their decision to serve the political solution that America wants. Since the beginning of your blessed revolution the Turkish regime worked to contain dissident officers and put them in camps similar to prisons in order to remove them from the arena of conflict so as not to benefit from their expertise. In addition it linked the factions’ leadership to it through a range of actions, of which most the important is the dirty political money, which greatly and effectively contributed to keeping them divided and fueling the fire of fighting between them, in addition to control them and their decision. The result of these actions...

Question : Trump said at a press conference with his Romanian counterpart in the White House on 9/6/2017: (…key players in the region agreed to stop supporting terrorism, whether it be financial, military or even moral support. The nation of Qatar, unfortunately, has historically been a funder of terrorism at a very high level. And in the wake of that conference, nations came together and spoke to me about confronting Qatar over its behavior. So we had a decision to make: Do we take the easy road or do we finally take a hard but necessary action? We have to stop the funding of terrorism. I decided, along with Secretary of state Rex Tillerson, our great generals and military people, the time had come to call on Qatar to end its funding…) (Al-Youm As-Sabi’,9/6/2017) Does this mean that the crisis between Saudi Arabia and Qatar was driven by Trump? If this is true, why is Trump taking this step, knowing that America’s largest base in the region is in Qatar? The media also attributed the ...

Question : Russia Today website cited on 26/5/2017 from Reuters that the US Senate wants to vote on the rejection of Trump’s $460 billion deal with Saudi Arabia: “Members of the US Senate have presented a proposal to reject the arms deal that President Donald Trump signed with Saudi Arabia, in order to force the Council to vote on it.” (Russia Today, 26/5/2017, quoting Reuters). How is this so? Since a deal like this is a dream for America, especially since the US economy is in crisis. So what is the reason for the Congress’ refusal? By the way, Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia had a wide resonance, he met with the Gulf States and a host of presidents, and then he went to occupied Palestine. Does this mean that he carries a political project on the question of Palestine? May Allah (swt) bless you. Answer : The Congressional proposal is in the framework of political rivalry, and most likely it will not affect the issue of the deal, but it may improve it! The deal revives the US econom...