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.

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Muslim leaders reject Baghdadi's caliphate Prominent Muslim leaders rebuke the Islamic State group's self-proclaimed caliphate, calling it 'void' and 'deviant'.

Muslim scholars and movements from across the Sunni Islamic spectrum have rejected the caliphate declared by the Islamic State group, with the fighters receiving scathing criticism from both mainstream religious leaders, and those associated with their former allies, al-Qaeda. Assem Barqawi, also known as Abu Mohamed al-Maqdesi, who was released […]

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Iraq parliament delayed for five weeks

Summary Iraq’s new parliament delayed its next session for five weeks Monday, extending the country’s political paralysis in the face of a Sunni Islamist insurgency which claimed the life of an army general on the northwestern outskirts of Baghdad. Saudi Arabia reported three shells hit the Arar area inside the […]

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Maliki exit path to hope

Summary Maliki exit path to hope Despite growing unease over his tenure by allies in the West and the region, including internal partners in Iraq, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki appears as determined as ever to retain power, but his obstinacy looks to threaten the stability of the entire region and […]

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Whitewashing the failure in Iraq

RAMZY BAROUD Published — Tuesday 8 July 2014 AS Iraq stands on the verge of a complete breakdown into mini sectarian states, former leading neoconservative and Iraq war advocate Richard Perle made a sudden appearance on Newsmax TV. His statements in the interview were yet another testament to the intellectual […]

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OPINION: Israel's impunity culture: War crimes, intimidation and oppression

Palestinian children continue to suffer high levels of violence and intimidation from Israeli forces. Brad Parker is a staff attorney and international advocacy officer with Defence for Children International Palestine, an independent child-rights organisation dedicated to defending and promoting the rights of children living in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Israel […]

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The making of a third intifada emerge

Occupied Jerusalem: Like many residents of the prosperous Occupied East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Shuafat, Waleed Abu Khudair lives a life in two cultures: His neighbours are predominantly Palestinian, but his boss and customers at a popular West Jerusalem bakery are Jewish. It’s a dualism that has worked for years. But […]

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Bishop Matar calls for inter-Islamic dialogue

The Daily Star BEIRUT: Maronite Bishop of Beirut Boulos Matar called Sunday for dialogue between different Muslim religious groups to end the “purposeless” struggle, stressing that Lebanon was the best example of religious coexistence. “[We] need an Islamic-Islamic dialogue to save the Eastern people from all the wars that threaten […]