Religion / Islamist militancy

Bin Laden's body buried at sea 
The Guardian, 2 May 2011

US officials say Osama bin Laden's swift burial complies with Islamic custom, although burial at sea is uncommon for Muslims

The battle against cyber-jihad
Comment Is Free, 28 Sep 2010

New research suggests closing down extremist Islamic websites is no substitute for directly challenging their religious ideology

Conflicting fatwas are good for Muslims 
Comment Is Free, 16 Aug 2010

In a blow to Islamic freedom of thought, the Saudi king has ordered that all public fatwas must be approved by himself

Keep anti-terrorism and theology apart
Comment Is Free, 5 Aug 2010

A leaked memo, arguing that the state's anti-terrorism strategy should involve tackling nonviolent Islamism, is wide of the mark

The trouble with Twitter
Comment Is Free, 8 Jul 2010

As the sacking of a CNN journalist for a tweet on an ayatollah's death has shown, it's hard to convey nuance in 140 characters

Divorcing fundamentalism
Comment Is Free, 6 Jul 2010

Nasr Abu Zaid was a brave and honest scholar disgracefully persecuted for his attempts to read the Quran historically

Salman Ahmad, Sufi rocker
Comment Is Free, 20 May 2010

Can extremism be defeated by rock music? Maybe not, but Salman Ahmad's message of tolerance deserves to be heard

Not much blog for your buck 
Comment Is Free, 25 March 2010

Home Office research has thrown up some blindingly obvious insights into the Muslim blogosphere. Why did they bother?

Fatwa wars aren't the solution 
Comment Is Free, 2 March 2010

Minhaj al-Qur'an's grand fatwa against terrorism, though well-meaning, does nothing to help progressive Islam

Beware the militant engineers 
Comment Is Free, 2 Jan 2010

Is there a connection between the mindset of those who study engineering as a subject, and violent extremism?

Self-righteous agonising over Muslims 
Comment Is Free, 7 Dec 2009

In criticising the Islamic world's false 'narrative', an American writer falls victim to another: that US foreign policy is altruistic

Islam's 'enemy within'
Comment Is Free, 24 Aug 2009

Across the Sunni world, growing fear of Shia influence exposes the cultural schism that exists between the two traditions

Abu Hamza and The Italian Job  
Comment Is Free, 29 May 2009

Abu Hamza's sons' botched luxury car scam was the kind of thrill-seeking that led other no-hopers to the cleric's twisted vision

Afghan-wards Christian soldiers?  
Comment Is Free, 6 May 2009

The US military stands accused of breaking its own rules by attempting to convert Afghans to Christianity

Mutual friends: secularism and Islam 
Comment Is Free, 14 April 2009

The Middle East will only be convinced by Islamic arguments for a secular state

The killing of Islamic secularism 
Comment Is Free, 8 Apr 2009 

Debate about the relationship between religion and state has been stifled by history – and the influence of a colonising west

God's own countries? 
Comment Is Free, 7 Apr 2009

In the debate about Islamism it's often forgotten that most Middle Eastern regimes claim a special relationship with God

Should faith override the will of the people? 
Comment Is Free, 3 Apr 2009

Islamism links the state with religion – this brings it into direct conflict with the principles of democracy

Alienating British Muslims 
Comment Is Free, 24 Mar 2009 

Labour's actions against the Muslim Council of Britain destroy any credibility its engagement policy might have had

Egypt's step towards freedom of belief 
Comment Is Free, 17 Mar 2009

A court ruling that Egyptians will no longer be forced to pick from three approved religions is a crucial victory for equal rights

Scratching secularism's surface
Comment Is Free, May 1 2008

Today's launch of British Muslims for Secular Democracy showed the need for a more rigorous debate on religion in politics

Islamic Newspeak
Comment Is Free, Feb 26 2008

A new version of the Prophet's sayings is due to appear - as approved by Turkey's Department of Religious Affairs

A question of receipts  
December 13, 2007 

How far has the Policy Exchange report on extremist literature in British mosques been undermined by the discrepancies found by Newsnight?

Rubbish from Riyadh 
Comment Is Free, October 30, 2007 

A new report says inflammatory texts from Saudi Arabia can be found in British mosques. If so, they need to be challenged, not banned.

Another militant bites the dust 
Comment Is Free, August 29, 2007 

The burgeoning literary genre of political/religious recantations has a new, internet-based addition: welcome to the world of The Islamicist.

The evolution of daft ideas 
Comment Is Free, May 29, 2007

Islamic creationism is growing and the movement is now repackaging ideas from reactionary American Christian groups.

Would you Adam and Eve it? 
Comment Is Free, May 25, 2007 

As a new creationism 'museum' opens in Kentucky I'm still puzzled as to why Darwin is such a problem for Christians but not Muslims.

Is there a doctor in the mosque?  
Comment Is Free, May 11, 2007 

The dubious medical advice of Dr Majid Katme, a respected figure in the British Muslim community, is placing lives at risk.

Bank of fundamentalism 
Comment Is Free, May 10, 2007 

Ed Husain's book on his life as an Islamic fundamentalist has elicited some debate. But the does it answer the real questions?

Punk Muslims 
Comment Is Free, March 19, 2007

A tale of sex and drugs among young Muslims is coming to Britain. It may shock, but their elders shouldn't rush to take offence.

Land of the 72 Virgins?  
Comment Is Free, March 8, 2007 

A certain chain of music stores is planning to expand across the Middle East. Is this a sign that restrictions are gradually breaking down in the region?

The Nashville Qur'an  
Comment Is Free, February 8, 2007 

A new version of the holy book of Islam has surfaced, apparently aimed at American readers with a short attention span.

In God's name  
Comment Is Free, January 22, 2007 

The mainstream media should take a closer look at whose agenda they are following when they use the word 'Allah' to mean 'God'.

Losing their religion 
Comment Is Free, December 18, 2006 

In Egypt, computerised ID cards are providing the latest source of discrimination against members of the Baha'i faith.

The view from Egypt 
Comment Is Free, October 12, 2006 

It's not just Britain where the Great Niqab Debate is taking place.

Muslims angry at new Danish cartoons scandal 
Guardian, October 10 2006

The world's largest international Muslim body complained of shrinking tolerance in the west yesterday as a new row erupted over Danish cartoons mocking the prophet Muhammad.

Conjecture over Bin Laden death 
Guardian, September 25 2006

An informal chat between two diplomats at a social gathering in Pakistan appears to have been the trigger for a worldwide flurry of speculation over the weekend about the possible death of Osama bin Laden.

Death has no consequence  
Comment Is Free, September 25, 2006

Stories about the demise of Osama bin Laden are being viewed with scepticism, but does it really matter if he is dead or alive?

Bungs for fatwas  
Comment Is Free, September 21, 2006

An investigative TV programme has claimed that tailor-made Islamic legal rulings are being offered for sale in India.

Interrupting the dialogue  
Comment Is Free, September 19, 2006

Pope John Paul II encouraged inter-faith activity - but his successor is now accused of ruining that legacy.

A bad joke  
Comment Is Free, September 14, 2006

An alleged quip about the Prophet's penis led to torture and 13-years in jail in Saudi Arabia.

Mecca is for men 
Comment Is Free, September 11, 2006

After 1,400 years of mingling with men in the Grand Mosque, an (all-male) committee is trying to push women out.

Ruin and defeat await you, al-Qaida tells west 
Guardian, September 11 2006

Western forces in Iraq and Afghanistan are "fighting their last battles", al-Qaida's deputy leader says in a new video apparently timed to coincide with the fifth anniversary of the September 11 attacks in New York and Washington.

A wing and a prayer 
Comment Is Free, September 6, 2006

Planes are kept aloft by aerodynamics, not divine intervention.

Militants merge with mainstream
Guardian, August 5, 2006

Nour, a 19-year-old university student, came with two friends to one of Cairo's biggest squares on Thursday night carrying Lebanese and Hizbullah flags. "This is the first time I ever take part in a protest," she said ...

Bin Laden's deputy calls for global war on 'crusaders' 
Guardian, July 28 2006

Al-Qaida's deputy leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, made a dramatic intervention in the Lebanese crisis yesterday with a videotape calling on Muslims everywhere to rise up against Zionists and "crusaders". 

Muslims unite in anger over Lebanon 
Guardian, July 28 2006

From Egypt to Indonesia there were outpourings of popular anger today against the continued Israeli bombardment of Lebanon - though there is also growing frustration in the Middle East at the apparent impotence of Arab leaders. 

We are stuck in Afghanistan  
Comment Is Free, July 3, 2006 

MPs have finally spotted that Tony Blair's other great foreign policy adventure is proving no less disastrous than Iraq.

A very British balancing act 
Comment Is Free, June 1, 2006 

The new head of the Muslim Council of Britain will have to reconcile the competing claims of unity and reform.

What's wrong with being gay and Muslim? 
Comment Is Free, May 5, 2006

The Qur'anic verses usually cited as condemning homosexuality are by no means as clear or unequivocal as people imagine.

New Bin Laden tape issues threat to civilians 
Guardian, Monday April 24 2006

Osama bin Laden issued an ominous warning yesterday, apparently seeking to justify attacks on civilians in the west and calling on his supporters to open up a new front in al-Qaida's struggle.

Sex and shopping in Israel and Saudi Arabia  
Comment Is Free, April 19, 2006 

Some interesting light has been cast on the similarities between Wahhabi Muslims and Haredi Jews.

Prince Charles, the Islamic dissident  
Comment Is Free, March 27, 2006 

Regarded as an anachronism at home, Prince Charles made a revolutionary speech in Saudi Arabia.

Beyond belief  
Comment Is Free, March 22 2006

A 41-year-old man is facing possible execution in Afghanistan for converting to Christianity. 

Bin Laden vows never to be captured alive 
The Guardian, February 21 2006

Osama bin Laden vowed never to be captured alive, in an audio message posted on a militant Islamist website yesterday.

Bin Laden talks of truce but threatens US with new attacks 
The Guardian, January 20 2006

Osama bin Laden broke a year-long silence yesterday to warn Americans that al-Qaida is preparing new attacks against the US, according to a new audiotape attributed to him.

Seminal questions 
The Guardian, January 17 2006

A curious religious debate is raging in Egypt. The question is: should you keep your clothes on when having sex?

An extraordinary meeting 
The Guardian, December 12 2005

Leaders of more than 50 Muslim countries met in Saudi Arabia last week for an event billed as "The Third Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference". The title was quite a mouthful and it failed to set the western media alight with excitement

Islamic leaders unveil action plan to rescue a 'nation in crisis' 
The Guardian, December 09 2005

Leaders of more than 50 Islamic countries at a summit in Mecca called by Saudi Arabia's ruler, King Abdullah, adopted an ambitious plan to combat extremism and poverty throughout the Muslim world yesterday.

The cardinal rule ... you don't target civilians 
Guardian Unlimited, October 03 2005

Aisha Gadafy, the daughter of the Libyan leader, declared her support for insurgents in Iraq last week.

Fundamental union 
The Guardian, January 25 2005

Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi is a controversial Islamic scholar who approves of wife-beating and believes in traditional family values. The Mormon church, having abandoned polygamy more than a century ago, believes in traditional families too.

Holy joke 
The Guardian, January 10 2005

An intriguing news item was emailed to me last week. The CIA, it said, is trying to infiltrate Muslim groups, both in the US and abroad, by training its agents to act as muezzins in mosques.

Suspect packages 
The Guardian, April 21 2004

An unfortunate fact of life is that most Muslim countries have bad systems of government.

Egyptian doctor who laid the foundations for global jihad 
The Guardian, March 20 2004

Ayman al-Zawahiri, the Egyptian paediatrician and surgeon thought to be surrounded by troops on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, probably did more to shape the strategy of al-Qaida than anyone else - including Osama bin Laden.

Treat the cause, not the symptoms 
The Guardian, March 02 2004

An icy wind was blowing in the streets of Westminster and there were flakes of snow in the air, but the hotel was warm inside. With its wood panelling and comfy armchairs, the lobby resembled something between a gentleman's club and a country mansion: th...

Saudi ban on female doll imports
The Guardian, December 18 2003

Saudi Arabia has banned imports of female dolls and teddy bears, and shopkeepers have been given three months to dispose of any stock. The ban also applies to non-Islamic religious symbols, such as crosses and statues of the Buddha.

Islam at the electronic frontier
The Guardian, August 11 2003

There are two kinds of internet cafe in the Middle East: those where you sit with your back to the wall, and those where you don't.

Religious police told to smile
The Guardian, June 10 2003

Saudi Arabia's feared religious police are being given special training to "deal effectively and pleasantly with the public", the Jeddah-based daily Arab News reported yesterday.

Middle Eastern gulf separates EU and US  
The Guardian, July 08 2002

On either side of the Atlantic, fundamentally different attitudes towards the problems of Israel and Islamic unrest are hardening ...

Worst impressions
The Guardian, June 24 2002

A few days before the planes hit the Twin Towers last September, I was preparing a talk about the reporting of Islam in the British media.

Bin Laden goes electric
The Guardian, April 19 2002

There was something decidely uncanny about the showing of al-Qaida's latest video on television last night. To heighten the suspense and presumably to maximise its audience, al-Jazeera - the Arab satellite channel that has become famous in the west for its Bin Laden scoops - had announced the time of the broadcast several days in advance, while releasing appetising snippets in the meantime.

Doublespeaking of terrorism  
The Guardian, December 03 2001

If the US stretches the definition of terrorism to justify an attack on Iraq, it will stretch the international coalition to breaking point ...

Extremist view of Islam unites terror suspects
The Guardian, October 26 2001

Investigators hunting members of Osama bin Laden's network have discovered that all the suspected terrorists arrested in Europe over the past 10 months follow an extreme Salafi interpretation of Islam, according to a source close to the investigation and a detailed intelligence assessment seen by the Guardian.

Chilling document hints at 'Armageddon'
The Guardian, October 01 2001

Four sides of paper, handwritten in Arabic, appeared on the FBI's website last Friday. The words are thought to have been written by one of the September 11 hijackers, possibly by Mohammed Atta whom the FBI now regards as a central figure in the attacks.

Bestseller Bin Laden book snapped up
The Guardian, September 29 2001

The world's most wanted man stares out from the cover of the book with a Mona Lisa smile. He is wearing white robes, topped with a camouflage jacket, and a cheap digital watch on his wrist.

US pulls the plug on Muslim websites  
September 10 2001

Five hundred websites - many of them with an Arab or Muslim connection - crashed last Wednesday when an anti-terrorism taskforce raided InfoCom Corporation in Texas.

The definition of terrorism 
The Guardian, May 07 2001

Decide for yourself whether to believe this, but according to a new report there were only 16 cases of international terrorism in the Middle East last year.

Pokemon feels force of religious fatwa
The Guardian, April 05 2001

Pikachu, Charmander and Butterfree are fighting for their lives. The Pokemon creatures loved by millions of children around the world stand accused of promoting Zionism, freemasonry, Christianity, Darwinism and Shintoism - not to mention gambling.

Bin Laden stars at Afghan wedding of the year
The Guardian, January 11 2001

Afghanistan's social event of the year was no match for the wedding of Madonna and Guy or Posh and Becks. But the atmosphere was as jolly as it ever gets in Kandahar.

Taliban to execute Muslims who deny Islam
The Guardian, January 09 2001

The head of the Afghanistan Taliban movement warned yesterday that anyone who converted from Islam to another religion would be executed.

Bin Laden: aiming at the symptom, not the disease
December 08 2000

Picture the scene. "So, Mr Bond, we meet at last!" Special Agent 007 has finally made it to Afghanistan and is face to face with a fabulously wealthy but evil genius who is out to destroy the world: Osama bin Laden.