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.
By Dana Al Emam – Mar 17,2016 – JORDAN TIMES A video grab from a commercial by the Jordan Tourism Board promoting the ‘Mars-like’ landscape of Wadi Rum (Photo courtesy of JTB) AMMAN — In a bid to transform sightseeing into sight-doing, the Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) seeks to […]
By Reuters – Mar 17,2016 – JORDAN TIMES Refugee children walk along railway tracks at a makeshift migrant camp in the northern Greek border post of Idomeni, on Thursday (AP photo) BRUSSELS — European Union leaders met on Thursday seeking agreement with Turkey to stop migrants reaching Greece […]
By JT – Mar 18,2016 – JORDAN TIMES A view of Al Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem. Jordan is installing surveillance cameras in Al Haram Al Sharif to document […]
Mar 16,2016 – JORDAN TIMES – MICHAEL JANSEN The dread word “federalism” is back on the forked tongues of politicians and diplomats in discussions of the shape of Syria, if and when the war ends. UN mediator Staffan de Mistura should be ashamed to have put “federalism” on the agenda […]
24 FEB 2016 POSTED BY SHEHLA AHMAD, AHMADIYYA MUSLIM COMMUNITY TACKLING THE MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MUSLIM PLACES OF WORSHIP. President Obama recently made his first official visit to an American mosque. […]
Kabrina Krebel Chang MARCH 15, 2016 Since 2007, the number of complaints for religious discrimination filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has risen significantly. It’s not hard to see why: An increase in immigrants of diverse faiths, greater workforce diversity, and the globalization of business all play […]
WHERE LIFE IS GOOD Switzerland loses top spot in happiness report By Simona Verrazzo MAR 16, 2016 – 11:08 Sunset along the shores of Lake Zug: the Swiss remain among the happiest in the world, at least according to the 2016 World Happiness Report. (Keystone) Switzerland’s status as the world’s […]
EXPLAINER By Simon Bradley, Geneva MAR 14, 2016 – 11:26 A child injured in an unidentified bombing at Douma, north-east of Damascus, Syria on 10 March 2016 (Keystone) United Nations-brokered talks aimed at ending Syria’s five-year civil war are getting underway in Geneva on Monday. Here is a short guide […]
Three Royal Brunei Airlines pilots have made history by being the company’s first all-female flight crew, making their first journey to Saudi Arabia, where women are not allowed to drive.The […]
MAHIR ALI WWW.ARABNEWS.COM Published — Wednesday 16 March 2016 IT is wise of Angela Merkel not to have panicked in the wake of setbacks for her Christian Democrats (CDU) in Sunday’s three regional elections. The German chancellor acknowledged the blow, but discounted the likelihood of abrupt changes to […]
Mar 15,2016 – JORDAN TIMES – RAMZI BAROUD Condemnations of the boycott of Israel seem to have fallen on deaf ears. Calls from Western governments, originating from the UK, the US, Canada and others, to criminalise the boycott of Israel have hardly slowed down the momentum of the pro-Palestinian boycott, […]
By Reuters – Mar 15,2016 – JORDAN TIMES OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — Israel has appropriated large tracts of land in the occupied West Bank near the Dead Sea and the Palestinian city of Jericho, Israeli Army Radio said on Tuesday. Israel’s Peace Now movement, which tracks and opposes Israeli settlement […]
Mar 15,2016 – JORDAN TIMES – Hasan Abu Nimah US President Barack Obama seems to be considering ideas that could facilitate a deal between the Palestinians and the Israelis, not while still in office, as time is running short for that, but for the benefit of his successors. “Middle East peace […]
By Anand Chandrasekhar with input from Surbhi Kaul, Verbier MAR 15, 2016 – 11:00 It is estimated that between 300,000 to 500,000 military and paramilitary soldiers are deployed in Kashmir, mainly along the border with Pakistan (Keystone) Lured by virgin snow, adventurous skiers are ignoring travel advisories to stay away […]
By Hana Namrouqa – Mar 13,2016 – JORDAN TIMES MCT illustration AMMAN — Jordan’s first experiment in artificial rainmaking is scheduled to take place during spring in the Jordan Valley over the catchment area of King Talal Dam, a government official said on Sunday. The first experiment will be […]
By AP – Mar 13,2016 – JORDAN TIMES Palestinian primary school teacher Hanan Al Hroub reacts after she won the second annual Global Teacher Prize in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Sunday (AP photo) DUBAI — A Palestinian primary school teacher who grew up in a refugee camp won […]
By Mohammad Ghazal – Mar 14,2016 – JORDAN TIMES AMMAN — Muslims can and need to do more to empower the moderate and counter the narrative of terrorists and radical groups, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said in an exclusive interview with The Jordan Times during her visit to […]
Five years ago, we were high on Arab revolutions, and journalists were growing used to ‘liberating’ Arab capitals Robert Fisk @indyvoices Sunday 13 March 2016 Just before I left Syria last month, a tall and eloquent Franco-Lebanese man walked up to me in a Damascus coffee shop and introduced himself […]
By Natasha Bertrand March 2, 2016 View gallery . (Thomson Reuters) A boy looks on while residents inspect a damaged building in the rebel held besieged city of Douma, a suburb of Damascus A cessation of hostilities agreement in Syria, brokered by the US and Russia, officially came into effect last Saturday.In an […]
At a Dunkirk refugee camp, Sarah Whitehead hears a story of five sons who lost their mother but who refused to give up until they found her again Beshwar and […]