Kenyan president: Terrorists defeated
NAIROBI, Kenya: The terrorists who took control of a Nairobi mall and held off Kenyan security forces for four days have been defeated after killing at least 67 civilians and […]
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.
Pilgrim reduction leads to Makkah rent fall
The government’s decision to reduce the number of domestic pilgrims this year by 50 percent has forced Haj service providers to double their charges in order to offset their losses, […]
Sri Lanka Muslim leader criticises own govt. over extremism claims
Tuesday September 24, 2013 8:35 PM, IINA Colombo: Sri Lanka’s main Muslim political leader, who is also the justice minister, criticized his own government for blaming religious tensions in the mainly Buddhist nation on Islamists. Rauf Hakeem said he had been “disturbed” by recent comments from the country’s defense minister, […]
Rise above the veil of misinformation about Muslims
When it comes to Muslim-related issues we, in Britain, do things differently. We do not ban the face veil which is worn by some Muslim women, like they do in […]
Balochistan Earthquake Creates New Island
Source: Samaa TV Channel For English News Read Here – Dawn News by Syed Ali Shah
Switzerland: FOREIGN WARS: Mercenary services outlawed by parliament
September 24, 2013 – 12:04 Private security contractors based in Switzerland will no longer be allowed to provide mercenaries and will have to report to the federal authorities any services they plan to supply beyond the country’s borders. New legislation, which was approved Monday by parliament, will be applied to […]
Manhunt after Israeli soldier gunned down
JERUSALEM: Israeli troops on Monday hunted for a suspected Palestinian gunman who shot a soldier dead in Hebron, days after another Palestinian killed a soldier in a separate incident. The killings have cast a pall over peace talks relaunched last month after a three-year hiatus, with Israeli ministers calling on […]
THE AMERICAN FILMMAKER WHO BECAME A FREEDOM FIGHTER IN LIBYA
By Greta Hofmann Matthew VanDyke has had an interesting few years. In 2008, the Baltimore-born filmmaker set off on a three-year motorcycle expedition around North Africa and the Middle East, […]
A REPORTER AT LARGE: THE SHADOW COMMANDER
Qassem Suleimani is the Iranian operative who has been reshaping the Middle East. Now he’s directing Assad’s war in Syria. BY DEXTER FILKINS Last February, some of Iran’s most influential leaders gathered at the Amir al-Momenin Mosque, in northeast Tehran, inside a gated community reserved for officers of the Revolutionary […]
German hackers crack iPhone security system
Source: the Local German hackers said on Monday they have been able to get past the new biometric identification system contained in the latest generation of Apple’s iconic iPhones. […]
Arabs, Beware the “Small States” Option
By Sharmine Narwani – Mon, 2013-07-29 15:28- Sandbox At the heart of all politics lies cold, hard opportunism. New circumstances, changed alliances and unexpected events will always conspire to alter one’s calculations to benefit a core agenda. In the Middle East today, those calculations are being adjusted with a frequency […]
“I am ashamed of being a Muslim”
Source: Dawn.Com My Christian brothers, today I am ashamed of being a Muslim. The death of 81 Christians in a Peshawar church on Sunday shows how criminal we are. Please do not forgive me for being silent while other Pakistanis are killed by mad mullahs. Please condemn me. More:
Church bombing analysis: Diagnosis first, dialogue later
Source: ET The September 22 deadly twin suicide bombings at a church in Peshawar left no ambiguity about it – the nature of these strikes manifests a campaign targeting innocent Pakistani citizens, irrespective of faith, caste or creed, as well as the entire security apparatus. The masterminds of attacks on […]
Head of Islamic Bloc Wants His Group to Have Permanent Seat on U.N. Security Council
Source. The Conservative Papers: (CNSNews.com) – With key Muslim countries on the rise and the Muslim population on track to exceed a quarter of the planet’s projected total population by 2030, the Islamic world deserves a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council, says Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary-General […]
Ministry instructs Haj service establishments to keep environment clean at holy sites
The Ministry of Haj has urged Haj service companies and establishments to maintain the cleanliness of pilgrim tents and the areas surrounding the holy sites in a bid to ensure […]
Muslim Youth League assails clerics on marriage age row
By Express News Service – THRISSUR Published: 24th September 2013 11:13 AM Last Updated: 24th September 2013 11:13 AM The Muslim Youth League will not support or entertain the moves to reduce the legal marriage age of Muslim women to 16, even if the Muslim clerics pitch for it, said […]
Abercrombie settles Calif. suits over head scarves
By By PAUL ELIAS MSN MONEY SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Trendy clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch has agreed to make religious accommodations and allow workers to wear head scarves as part of a settlement of discrimination lawsuits filed in California, lawyers announced Monday. The retailer will now allow hijabs, the […]
Questions Plague UN Report on Syria
By Sharmine Narwani and Radwan Mortada A senior United Nations official who deals directly with Syrian affairs has told Al-Akhbar that the Syrian government had no involvement in the alleged Ghouta chemical weapons attack: “Of course not, he (President Bashar al-Assad) would be committing suicide.” When asked who he believed […]
Pope expresses good will to Muslims in letter to Sunni imam
Cairo, Egypt, Sep 23, 2013 / 01:03 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis has indicated respect “for Islam and Muslims” in a letter to the head of the main cultural institution of Sunni Islam, marking the end of Ramadan. Ahmed el-Tayeb, grand imam of al-Azhar University, perhaps the highest authority in […]
Pakistan Church Bombings and Nairobi Mall Attack are Al-Qaida’s retaliation for Obama’s Syrian military proposal?
Source: The Daily Beast Pakistani Church Bombing Kills Dozens http://www.thedailybeast.com/galleries/2013/09/23/pakistani-church-bombing-kills-dozens-photos.html#0414f32e-1388-47e0-8d46-01ba0ea355b6 Were Americans Among the Al-Shabab Nairobi Mall Attackers? by Jamie DettmerSep 23, 2013 5:45 AM EDT Somalia’s al Qaeda affiliate says three Americans joined its assault on an upscale shopping mall in Nairobi that left at least 68 dead. Jamie […]