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.
Summary Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki refused Friday to give up his quest for a third term in power, defying a chorus of critics demanding he step aside as the country faces a Islamist insurgent threat. Maliki has come under mounting pressure since militants from the Al-Qaeda splinter group ISIS […]
JERUSALEM: A Kurdish diplomat has played down the significance of Israeli advocacy of independence for her people, saying this was not coordinated with the autonomous Kurdish government in Iraq and may be intended to serve Israel’s interests. While acknowledging that Israel had sway in Washington, which wants to prevent a […]
Source:NY Times: BERLIN — A 31-year-old German man was arrested this week on suspicion of spying for a foreign power, and Chancellor Angela Merkel was informed on Thursday, her spokesman said. An official statement from the federal prosecutor’s office did not identify the country involved, but German media, quoting government […]
Source: CNN Moscow (CNN) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday he hoped for better ties with the United States in a July Fourth message to his U.S. counterpart, Barack Obama. The Independence Day wishes come at a time when relations between the two nations are at their lowest ebb […]
By Ed Husain, 03 Jul 2014 Most Muslims don’t care about the Isis Caliphate: The Muslim world cares more about the World Cup than about the brutal so-called Caliphate. Al-Baghdadi does not represent Islam I am sorry to spoil the party, but the caliphate fantasy being peddled by ISIS in […]
Daoud Kuttab Daoud Kuttab, an award-winning Palestinian journalist, is a former Ferris professor of Journalism at Princeton University Even though the United Nations has declared 2014 as the year of solidarity with the Palestinian people, there are indications that this year will not bring the peace that Palestinians and Israelis […]
A THOUSAND years ago, the great cities of Baghdad, Damascus and Cairo took turns to race ahead of the Western world. Islam and innovation were twins. The various Arab caliphates were dynamic superpowers—beacons of learning, tolerance and trade. Yet today the Arabs are in a wretched state. Even as Asia, […]
Source: The Rakyat Post KUALA LUMPUR, July 4, 2014: Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad remains adamant that he is not wrong in calling Malaysia an Islamic state and […]
by Lisa Schnell The evening sun shines through the barred windows onto the 18 men. They’re wearing ruby-colored T-shirts and black pants. Some nudge each other’s shoulders out of sheer […]
Source: Stratfor The Islamic State, previously known as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, has changed its name, but otherwise the militant group remains the same. Over the past weekend, a spokesman for the group announced that it had established a caliphate stretching from Diyala province, Iraq, to […]
Source: CNN (CNN) — Ever since the 2003 invasion of Iraq exposed deep-rooted religious and ethnic divisions, analysts have suggested giving up on the colonial-era borders of modern Iraq and dividing the country. Jihadists have felt the opposite, that the region should be united into a new caliphate — indeed […]
Bassem Mroue| Associated Press DAILY STAR LEBANON BEIRUT: A young, red-bearded ethnic Chechen has rapidly become one of the most prominent commanders in Al-Qaeda splinter group ISIS that has overrun swaths of Iraq and Syria, illustrating the international nature of the movement. Omar al-Shishani, one of hundreds of Chechens who […]
Three Israeli teenagers killed by Palestinians. Vicious, cruel, unforgivable. True. At least 37 Lebanese children killed by Israel. Regrettable, unfortunate, but the ultimate fault of “terrorists”. Untrue. The slaughter of the children at Qana in Lebanon in 1996 – among 109 civilians killed by Israeli shellfire as they sheltered in […]
ARABNEWS Published — Thursday 3 July 2014 Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has instructed Grand Mosque authorities to open the newly expanded annex buildings of the […]
A decision by a chain of pharmacies to sell an over-the-counter DNA paternity test has provoked serious ethical concerns. Sun Store, which operates mainly in French-speaking Switzerland, has decided to sell the PATERtest in its larger stores. Although such do-it-yourself tests are available on the Internet, it is believed to […]
Summary Japan took a historic step away from its post-war pacifism Tuesday by ending a ban that has kept the military from fighting abroad since 1945, a victory for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe but a move that has riled China and worries many Japanese voters. The change, the most dramatic […]
SUMMARY: by Rami G. Khouri, The Daily Star, Lebanon There is no single thread that explains the turbulent Middle East today, no single map being redrawn, no one dominant force that motivates the actions of hundreds of millions of agitated people. For thousands of years – almost 10,000 years to […]
By Christoph Reuter, SPIEGEL.DE There’s a loud thump. In the bright midday sun, Mohsen, the driver, fails to see a speed bump on the road to Mosul. Fortunately for him, the speed bump is a Kurdish one, made of asphalt. “The ones made by the government in Baghdad are cement […]
France’s law banning women from wearing face-covering veils in public is not discriminatory, the European Court of Human Rights ruled on Tuesday. The court’s decision follows a case brought by […]
Interview Conducted By Bernhard Zand In an interview, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd, warns that his country is threatened with collapse under the pressure posed by ISIS terrorists. But, he says, it isn’t a civil war yet. You have to cross a total of four checkpoints before you […]