Excuse me if I crow a bit today and offer a few "Told yah so's." --For months we've been hearing that Jabhat Al Nusrah and radical Islamists had taken virtuall control over the FSA--a major reason for outside restraint in arming the rebels.. --Less than a week ago the Washington Post and the Christian Science Monitor were telling us "the war ... Continue reading »
FILE -- In this Saturday, May 11, 2013 file photo, former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, 78, waves to media, as he registers his candidacy for the upcoming presidential election, at the election headquarters of the interior ministry in Tehran, Iran. Iran’s election overseers say they will bar physically weak hopefuls from running in ne ... Continue reading »
Iran has been on the United States’ radar for a long time for its ongoing and controversial nuclear program. Something that has been dramatically overlooked, however, is its state of religious freedom. Iran routinely and systematically makes it difficult for religious minorities to practice their faith safely and openly. The worst case of this p ... Continue reading »
A man believed to be soldier has been beheaded in a barbaric attack by two men on a street outside Woolwich army barracks in South East London. In the shocking scene, one of the killers addressed witnesses saying "you will never be safe."
In broad daylight two men in their mid-20s attacked a man dressed in a military uniform killing him and appar ... Continue reading »
( خوشا شیراز و وضع بی مثالش ) ( خداوندا نگه دار از زوالش ) Sweet is Shiraz and its comparable site! O God, preserve it from decline! In 1783, Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsá'í travelled through Persia with the expectation that the advent of the Qá'im, the Promised One of Islám is drawing near. Amongst his students was a gifted young man named Siyyid Kázim- ... Continue reading »
The remarks given in the website read: "I would announce this. Everyone should know. Those who were disqualified, are not necessarily incompetent individuals. Do not suppose because this guy was disqualified, he fully incompetent. No. According to the law, he cannot participate in the elections as a candidated. But it's possible that the authority ... Continue reading »
I was raised in a holy city populated by Mosques with tall minarets, parochial schools, clerics with black and white turbines, and plenty of shrines of allegedly decedents of original Imams. The youthful life was quite simplistic, immensely fate-driven and faith-stricken. Being born to and raised in an absolutely devout family left me with no choic ... Continue reading »
For centuries, leaders of what is now modern-day Iran have evoked the legendary Cyrus Cylinder – the legal instrument dating back to 539 B.C.E. by which Cyrus II, the greatest of the Persian emperors, legitimized his rule, promoted civil and religious tolerance and even permitted Jews to return to Jerusalem, where they would rebuild the Second Temp ... Continue reading »
Nobody seems to have noticed this so maybe I'm just seeing what isn't there. Or maybe no one else noticed because Abdullah (Syrian Smurf) didn't know the base's actual name and had the location a bit off when he described events in a few twitter posts. He refers to “the shabihha base in Idlib". Other details Abdullah mentions clearly point to ... Continue reading »
A view of Sheikh Zayed Road - a major highway in Dubai that has been the site of rapid urban development. (Image credit: Al Miller) Passing remarks, it turns out, can make a lasting impression. I had come to appreciate such remarks while conducting my dissertation fieldwork in Dubai during the course of 2010. That year saw me regularly engage ... Continue reading »
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