55% of Brits support racial profiling of Muslims: Arab News/YouGov poll

Arab News, 55% of Brits support racial profiling of Muslims: Arab News/YouGov poll "The majority of Britons agree with racial profiling of Arabs and Muslims, and 69 percent think the UK should take in fewer refugees from Syria and Iraq, an Arab News/YouGov poll has found." Poll details are here. Press release here. PDF of the report is here

KSA cleric banned

Arab News, Senior cleric banned from preaching after insulting women, 23 Sep 2017
" The ban follows Al-Hijri’s claim that when they go shopping, women — who he said only have half a brain to begin with — “end up with only a quarter.” His comments caused uproar on social media."

New and noted: 'European Muslims and New Media'

'European Muslims and New Media', Edited by Merve Kayıkcı and Leen d’Haenens (Leuven University Press, 2017)

Propaganda jailing

Guardian, Slough man jailed for spreading Isis propaganda "Hussain ran two YouTube channels that he used to broadcast extremist material and used WhatsApp and the encrypted messaging app Telegram to send “disturbing” documents advising people to “kill the kuffar [disbelievers] in their own country”."

'The New Netwar: Countering Extremism Online'

BBC News, Warning to UK over jihadist propaganda "Britain is the fifth-biggest audience in the world for extremist content after Turkey, the US, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, Policy Exchange's study said." The link to the think-tank's report (which I have yet to read) is here: Policy Exchange, The New Netwar: Countering Extremism Online

Philippines jihadis

Robert Windrem, NBC News, ISIS Recruits Fighters for the Philippines Instead of Syria " The seven-minute, English-language video, released by the official ISIS media operation late last month, includes messages from several fighters in the Southern Philippines, and scenes from battles with government troops near the city of Marawi, including the pillaging of a Catholic church."

New Saudi policy will ensure clerics fall in line

Hassan Hassan, The National, New Saudi policy will ensure clerics fall in line, 13 Sep 2017 "The clerics – who include Salman Al Odah, Awad Al Qarni and Ali Al Omari, as well as other unconfirmed individuals – are associated with a religious current that dates back to the 1970s, when a broad process of hybridisation between revolutionary Islamist ideas and Salafi teachings led to the birth of a new breed of clerics who portray themselves as reformists. Although products of the trend varied, they tended to be revolutionary. Many of the figures influenced by the trend went on to become jihadis or to directly influence jihadis, while others continued to adhere to peaceful activism."

UAE privacy laws

Khaleej Times, All you need to know about UAE privacy laws, 14 Sep 2017 "Besides, one should be careful while using certain types of emojis while talking online. For example, if one uses the emoji of a 'middle finger' in a conversation and the recipient complaints about the act, it could lead one to jail, fines and deportation."

The Karakaria in Algeria

alarabiya.net, The Karakaria in Algeria: Religious group or ‘foreign conspiracy’? " While the group itself is not new, its emergence in Algeria is. It all started when Musa Belghith, a young Algerian man from the coastal city of Mostaganem, announced on social media that he joined the Karakaria after seeing “the light” and being taught “divine secrets” by his sheikh, in reference to Mohamed Fawzi al-Karkari, the current leader of the group and who resides in the town of Temsamane in Morocco."

British Muslim convert was radicalised by ISIS videos online

Daily Mail, British Muslim convert was radicalised by ISIS videos online "Jurors were told Watson's encrypted chats with undercover agents 'reveal the extent of his hatred for Western society and his avowed intent to take part in terrorist activity'.


"On his phone, police found books including 'The Path to the Land of Battle' by an Al Qaeda figure, '39 Ways to Participate and Serve in Jihad', and copies of the IS magazine Dabiq."

Islam And Hip-Hop

buzzfeed.com, What's The Connection Between Islam And Hip-Hop In America? " So this week on See Something Say Something, Ahmed talks to guests Dr. Su'ad Abdul-Khabeer and artist Salima Rah about the connection between Islam, race, and hip-hop. "

Aussie ISIS bride becomes poster girl for Islamic State terrorists

9News, Aussie ISIS bride becomes poster girl for Islamic State terrorists "Islamic State has paraded an Australian ISIS bride in the latest issue of its online propaganda magazine, featuring the story of how she and her two children secretly sneaked into Syria."

Letters from a Jihadi

Joanne Slater & Colin Freeze, Globe & Mail, Letters from a Jihadi: inside the mind of a Canadian accused of joining al-Qaeda "What drove three students at the University of Manitoba to travel to Pakistan to join al-Qaeda? Newly-released correspondence reveals their state of mind in their own words, including a nine page handwritten letter home."

The Contradictions of Hajj, Through the Lens of a Smartphone

Wajahat Ali, NYT, The Contradictions of Hajj, Through the Lens of a Smartphone, 11 Sep 2017 "Awe-struck by the privilege of participating in this tradition while often agitated by the contradictions that surround it today, I made sense of the experience by sharing it — filtering the pilgrimage through the lens of my smartphone."

Isis defectors

Martin Chulov, Guardian, Hundreds of Isis defectors mass on Syrian border hoping to flee, 12 Sep 2017 "Hundreds of defectors from Islamic State have massed in Syria’s Idlib province, with many planning to cross the nearby Turkish border and find ways back to the Middle East, North Africa and Europe."

Two leading Saudi dissident clerics among 20 arrested: Reports

middleeasteye.net, Two leading Saudi dissident clerics among 20 arrested: Reports

Muslim robot (parody)

parody from Light, Inc. which raises some significant issues

Interactive Qur'an app

Standard, Extreme vetting: Zeena Qureshi on her mission to combat terrorism with an interactive Koran app This relates to the Ananas Koran app, which I have yet to see. According to the Standard: "Currently there are a number of Koran apps with different translations of the text. The Ananas platform, in contrast, will give information on each verse, explaining what different denominations believe, showcasing research and allowing users to search by a theme or word to see every mention of it in the Koran."

You've Got Veil: Millions Of Text Messages Remind Tajiks To Obey New Dress Code

RFEFL, You've Got Veil: Millions Of Text Messages Remind Tajiks To Obey New Dress Code "Private mobile-phone companies in Tajikistan have begun sending out text messages to millions of citizens, reminding them to obey a new law that makes Tajik national clothing obligatory at “traditional” gatherings such as weddings and commemorative ceremonies for the dead."

Egyptian intelligence services extend control over media

RSF, Egyptian intelligence services extend control over media  "Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is worried about the way Egyptian media outlets are being taken over by businessmen linked to the government and intelligence services. The regime’s domination of the media continues to grow and is even affecting pro-government media."

Yemenis show solidarity with little girl orphaned in Saudi air strike by posting one eye shut photos

Independent, Yemenis show solidarity with little girl orphaned in Saudi air strike by posting one eye shut photos "Thousands of Yemenis are uploading photos of themselves with one eye closed and using a hand to open the other eye wider to show solidarity with the plight of a toddler who lost her entire family in an air strike on Sanaa last week."

Aylan Kurdi Death: 2 Years Later, Mediterranean Is Still Deadly

NBC News, Aylan Kurdi Death: 2 Years Later, Mediterranean Is Still Deadly " Two years since a photo of lifeless Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi lying face down on a Turkish beach captured the world's attention, the migration crisis has shifted to the other side of the Mediterranean Sea."

The Caliphate in the Countryside

BBC. Heart & Soul, The Caliphate in the Countryside "Ahmadiyya Muslims are outcasts within their own faith and often persecuted and ostracised across the world. They preach against violent Muslims and criticise extremism. "

Moments in migration

The Observer, Moments in migration: Polaroids from the refugee crisis – in pictures

How IS agent tried to groom a reporter for London attacks

BBC News, How IS agent tried to groom a reporter for London attacks "A BBC investigation has unearthed evidence that Islamic State (IS) agents were trying to recruit people in 2016 for an attack on central London."

Robert Fisk's review of Nickolaos Van Dam's 'Destroying a Nation: The Civil War in Syria'

Robert Fisk, When did protest against the Assad government turn to war in Syria? "Instead of serious political advice, the West, especially the US and their proxy Arab allies in the Gulf, then poured weapons into Syria – enough arms to destroy Syria but not enough to overthrow the regime, as one ex-rebel told me."

Hijabistas

Harmeet Kaur, CNN, Hijabistas: Young Muslim women meld fashion and faith "To Mariam Moufid, another hijabista, being able to choose what she wears is freedom. Showcasing her fashion sense to the more than 630,000 followers on her @hijabmuslim account is a way of staking out her own space."

Apps and Eid

Kaveh Waddell, The Atlantic, How New Technology Is Changing Eid Celebrations, 31 Aug 2017
"The robust Islamic app economy includes a program for ordering up sacrificial livestock." The article includes a contribution from myself.