Pope laments “persecutions” of Muslims in Myanmar
Associated Press VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis decried the persecution of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar and prayed they receive “full rights.” The pontiff said Sunday there was “sad news about the […]
Author Archives
Rafiq A. Tschannen
Rafiq A. Tschannen is a Swiss national. He converted to Islam and joined the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community at the age of 16 after reading the German translation of the Holy Qur'an. He worked in 15 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, first as Finance Director in the private industry and later as Chief Executive Officer of NGOs and International Governmental Organizations. He is now devoting his time to The Muslim Times as Editor for Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Palestine and Switzerland and as Associate Chief Editor.
Is Al-Azhar University a Global Security Threat?
By Cynthia Farahat Al-Azhar University, the world’s largest Sunni Islamic educational institution, is where many of the world’s most brutal terrorists received their formal religious training. This is to be expected, given the nature of the material taught there. Al-Azhar has thousands of affiliated mosques, schools, learning centers, and universities […]
Hajj revenues poised to exceed $150bn by 2022: Experts
SAUDI ARABIA TARIQ AL-THAQAFI | Published — Monday 28 August 2017 Saudi military police officers assist pilgrim at the Grand Mosque in Makkah on Sunday. (AN photo by Ahmed Hashad) MAKKAH: Economic experts have said Hajj and Umrah revenues are poised to exceed $150 billion by 2022 in light of […]
Hospitals, airports, schools, football clubs: KSA hangs up the ‘for sale’ signs
The summer months appear to have been anything but restful for policymakers in Saudi Arabia working on the Kingdom’s enormous privatization program, judging by the amount of public information that has been made available on this crucial subject. Just by way of background: The Vision 2030 strategy, aimed at diversifying […]
Tillerson raps some U.S. allies for religious freedom violations, slams IS
Reuters International AUGUST 16, 2017 U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson adjusts his glasses as he delivers remarks on the 2016 International Religious Freedom Annual report at the State Department in Washington, U.S. August 15, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (reuters_tickers) By Yeganeh Torbati WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. allies including Saudi […]
Integration of Muslims better in Germany than in rest of Europe: study
DPA/The Local news@thelocal.de 24 August 2017 Photo: DPA Muslims who have already lived in Germany for a while are better integrated than Muslims in other European countries, according to a study released by the Bertelsmann Foundation on Thursday. But the study revealed some weaknesses in integration, too. The study called […]
Turkey’s secret investigation into the Qatar hacks
YAHYA BOSTAN@yahyabostan The allegation about the UAE’s involvement in hacking the QNA website seems to be leading to new tension in the region The Gulf crisis, which resulted in sanctions being imposed by several countries on Qatar, had started with the publication of a controversial story by the Qatar […]
Thousands of Syrians leave Turkey for Qurban Bayram
DAILY SABAH WITH AGENCIES Syrian refugees arrive at the Öncüpınar crossing gate, close to the town of Kilis, south central Turkey, in order to cross to Syria for Qurban Bayram (Feast of the Sacrifice), also known as Eid al-Adha, holiday, Aug. 28, 2017. (AFP Photo) Tens of thousands of Syrians […]
Donald Trump’s lack of understanding of the tension between India and Pakistan risks destabilising the region
Trump’s speech, which asked India to ‘help more’ with Afghanistan, amounted to calling for calm while also setting the house on fire Abhishek Parajuli 120 comments If Donald Trump had read this anecdote from a book by a formerBritish Army Officer, the Afghan strategy he laid out on Monday might […]
Iraqi forces poised for victory over Daesh in Tal Afar
By AFP – Aug 28,2017 – JORDAN TIMES Fighters from Hashed Al Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation units), backing the Iraqi forces, gather at Tal Afar’s airport during an operation to retake the city from the Daesh terror group on Sunday. Iraqi forces backed by local militia and a US-led coalition […]
Algeria’s Ahmadis, an ‘Israeli plot,’ forced to worship behind closed doors
Pacifist Muslim sect, which operates freely in Israel, is accused by Algerian government minister of working with Israel to destabilize country BY AMAL BELALLOUFI August 25, 2017, A member of Algeria’s small Ahmadi community sits at a house in Tilpasi, west of Algiers, near a photo of Mirza Ghulam […]
Saudi cleric condemns inter-Muslim conflict ahead of pilgrimage
Reuters International THIS CONTENT WAS PUBLISHED ON AUGUST 25, 2017 Muslims attend Friday prayers at the Grand mosque ahead of the annual Haj pilgrimage, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia August 25, 2017. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (reuters_tickers) By Mahmoud Mourad MECCA (Reuters) – The imam of Mecca’s Grand Mosque denounced those who […]
Switzerland: MUSLIM ‘HATE PREACHER’: Biel to open anti-extremism centre
AUGUST 25, 2017 5:10 PMAUG 25, 2017 – 17:10 The city of Biel is taking measures against extremism (Keystone) Biel has announced that it will open a contact centre for preventing extremism and violence. The news comes in the midst of a scandal over a local imam who preached […]
Video shows touching moment father of youngest victim of Spain terror attacks hugs imam
DAILY SABAH ISTANBUL The father of the youngest victim of last week’s tragic terror attacks in Cambrils and Barcelona hugged a local imam in an emotional protest against terror and Islamophobia. Xavier Martinez, who lost his three-year-old son Xavi in the attack on Las Ramblas avenue, embraced Spanish imam Driss […]
Thousands to defy Daesh terrorism in Barcelona peace rally
FRENCH PRESS AGENCY – AFP BARCELONA Muslims attend a demonstration in Granada on August 23, 2017 in protest against a surge in anti-Islamic hate crimes following last week’s deadly attacks in Barcelona and Cambrils (AFP Photo) Tens of thousands of Spaniards and foreigners are to stage a defiant march […]
Concerns over suspicious cult in Algeria
August 22, 2017 | Published in: Africa, Algeria, News Karakaria sect in Algeria [Echoroukonline.com] August 22, 2017 at 3:40 pm Imams and sheikhs in Algeria have issued warnings about a […]
Pakistan’s population tops 207 million, new census says
Source: Arab News ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s population has surged by more than half to 207 million, according to provisional results of the country’s first census in almost two decades released by […]
Kingdom’s expansion projects, development of holy sites raise Hajj pilgrim numbers
SAUDI ARABIA Arab News | Published — Saturday 26 August 2017 Hundreds of thousands of Hajj pilgrims listen to a first Friday sermon of Dul Hajjah at the Grand Mosque in Makkah. (SPA) MAKKAH: Continuous expansion of the Two Holy Mosques and the holy sites, as well as the upgrading […]
Daesh asks Hizbollah, Syrian army for withdrawal from Syria-Lebanon border — source
By Reuters – Aug 24,2017 – JORDAN TIMES Syrian pro-government forces fire towards extremist positions, in the western Qalamoun, on Wednesday, during an offensive against Daesh extremists (AFP photo) BEIRUT — The Daesh terror group has asked the Syrian Army and its ally Hizbollah to let it withdraw from […]
We need to talk about the Spanish and Catalan reactions to the Barcelona attack – even if it’s not a nice conversation
It may be a jolly idea that the cultist murderers of Isis – however unwittingly – could create Spanish unity on the eve of Catalonia’s independence vote, but the idea that this potentially catastrophic moment in Spanish history played no part in the aftermath of the massacre is ridiculous Robert […]