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.
STORY SUMMARY By Rami G. Khouri The Daily Star A New Year’s reflection on the past and coming 12 months is a useful exercise if it avoids predominantly egotistical ventures such as single-handedly anointing the best books, articles, tweets, documentaries or photos of the past year. The armed forces will […]
JEDDAH: NADIM AL-HAMID Published — Friday 3 January 2014 The government has appropriated 5,800 properties at a cost of SR75 billion for the expansion of the Grand Mosque in Makkah, according to the mayor’s office. The latest appropriations include the Dar Al-Tawhid InterContinental Hotel and the building next to it […]
ARAB NEWS Published — Friday 3 January 2014 God said: What prevented you (O Satan) that you did not prostrate when I commanded you? Iblees (the Satan) replied: I am better than him (Adam). You created me from fire, and him You created from clay. (Qur’an 7:12) Satan thought himself […]
Analysis When England adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1752, some 170 years after it was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, Benjamin Franklin wrote, “It is pleasant for an old man to be able to go to bed on Sept. 2, and not have to get up until Sept. 14.” Indeed, […]
According to a new Pew Research Center analysis, six-in-ten Americans (60%) say that “humans and other living things have evolved over time,” while a third (33%) reject the idea of evolution, saying that “humans and other living things have existed in their present form since the beginning of time.” The […]
Deutsche Welle: In the past few days more than 30 people have died in suicide bombings in the Russian city of Volgograd. So far no one has claimed responsibility for the attacks. Who do you consider to be possible suspects? Eberhard Schneider: I assume there’s a connection with the self-styled […]
STORY SUMMARY Morocco on Thursday launched an operation to give residency permits to tens of thousands of immigrants living in the country illegally, after the king expressed concern about their harsh treatment by the police. Hundreds of people, almost all of them sub-Saharan Africans, queued outside the governor’s office in […]
The Jordan Valley must remain part of Israel in the event of any negotiated settlement, declare MKs, Ministers on a tour of the area. By David Lev First Publish: 1/2/2014, 11:58 AM The Jordan Valley must remain a part of Israel in the event of any negotiated settlement, Interior Minister […]
BY NILUKSI KOSWANAGE KUALA LUMPUR Thu Jan 2, 2014 5:18pm IST (Reuters) – Islamic authorities in Malaysia on Thursday seized 321 Bibles from a Christian group because they used the word Allah to refer to God, signalling growing intolerance that may inflame ethnic and religious tension in the Southeast Asian […]
By Steffen Winter Spiegel.de A German-American lawyer and his family have been fighting for over two decades to reclaim lucrative properties lost under the Nazi regime. But he continues to face legal hurdles in trying to restore their legacy. Peter Sonnenthal has plenty of experience hunting down the cheats, crooks […]
JEDDAH: P.K. ABDUL GHAFOUR Published — Thursday 2 January 2014 ARABNEWS Iyad Madani, former Saudi Haj and information minister, took charge as the new secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic […]
By Sharif Kaf Al-Ghazal Monday, 16 December 2013 00:00 Source: OnIslam.net Ala-al-Din Abu al-Hasan Ali Ibn Abi al-Hazm al-Qarshi al-Dimashqi (known as Ibn Al-Nafis) was born in 1213 A.D. in Damascus. He was educated at the Medical College Hospital (Bimaristan Al-Noori) founded by Noor al-Din Al-Zanki. Apart from medicine, Ibn […]
Most Black American Muslims trace their roots to a recent religion founded in Newark in 1913. By Daniel Pipes The year 2013 marks the centenary of the reported founding of […]
DUBAI: Dubai shattered the world record for the largest ever pyrotechnic display on New Year’s Eve with a show involving more than half a million fireworks, Guinness World Records said Wednesday. “Ten months in planning, over 500,000 fireworks were used during the display which lasted around six minutes, with Guinness […]
By Zubair Khan: Photos: Bilal Aslam: (Photos of Participants of Waqare Amal in Majlis Bensheim) It has become a norm and a religious tradition of the Ahmadiyya Community to start every year with prayers and supplications and serving mankind through social and community work. The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Germany […]
December 31, 2013 12:29 AM By Hassan Rouhani The Daily Star STORY SUMMARY When I campaigned to become president of Iran, I promised to balance realism and the pursuit of the Islamic Republic’s ideals – and won Iranian voters’ support by a large margin. That commitment led directly to the […]
JOHN DAVISON | AFP ARABNEWS Published — Tuesday 31 December 2013 JERUSALEM: Israel freed 26 Palestinian prisoners Tuesday as part of US-brokered peace talks ahead of Secretary of State John Kerry’s latest visit to the region. The release prompted elation among Palestinians, who welcomed the prisoners back into the West […]
Geneva is one of those cities that is on everyone’s must travel list; I know it was on mine before I finally visited. My mother and aunt lived there and attended college in a nearby city, Lausanne. Hearing their stories about this magical city made me want to visit, especially […]
Saudi Arabia has pledged $3bn in aid to the Lebanese armed forces, a gift that comes in a time when tensions run high, both inside Lebanon and across the region. Lebanese President Michel Sleiman announced the donation on Sunday describing it as the largest grant ever given to the country’s […]
Author: Atif Munawar Mir How bittersweet the time of New Year’s The scope of celebration beyond a mere digit’s change ‘Tis a time when: New hopes are born. Old dreams fade away. Fresh resolutions are made. Old ones pass away. The magic of possibility imbues the mundane. The power to […]