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 Qasim Rashid We read with interest the Trentonian Editorial Board’s article, “U.S.-Approved ‘Muslims’” (May 21). While we appreciate the newspaper’s efforts to highlight some of the repression that the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community faces, we must take exception to several of the article’s erroneous and speculative assertions concerning the Community. […]
GENEVA: ARAB NEWS Saturday 25 May 2013 The World Health Organization said yesterday it would help Saudi Arabia dig deeper into deadly outbreaks of a new SARS-like virus to draw […]
By Kevin Sullivan, Saturday, May 25, 2013 ISKENDERUN, Turkey — The Nissos Rodos, a 630-foot ferry, used to cruise the Greek islands, moving tourists from one sunny paradise to the next. Business dried up when the Greek economic crisis hit three years ago. But then came the war in Syria, […]
Source: The Local A leading German Catholic cardinal says the government should encourage women to stay at home and breed – rather than bring immigrants into the country to solve its demographic problems. More:
Carolina Jemsby and David Bartal, Special for USA TODAY STORY HIGHLIGHTS Stockholm is one of the world’s richest cities, but it is also very segregated 15% of residents in the […]
Europe’s persistent downturn is showing few signs of abating. The decline in business activity in the 17-nation eurozone slowed in May, but surveys published Thursday suggest the region’s longest recession will extend into another quarter. Financial data provider Markit said its flash reading of eurozone purchasing managers’ sentiment rose to […]
by Simon Bradley in Lebanon, swissinfo.ch May 22, 2013 – 11:01 Resettlement in the West for the most vulnerable of the more than 1.5 million people who have fled Syria is as good as winning the lottery. For its part, Switzerland has only taken a handful and there are obstacles […]
DR. MUHAMMAD SALMA ARABNEWS Friday 24 May 2013 FEARING Allah is a positive trait that once properly settled into the heart changes one’s life considerably to be in conformity with divine injunctions. Therefore, as once said by one of the early pious predecessors, when fearing others, you flee from them, […]
JORDAN TIMES OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — US Secretary of State John Kerry held separate talks with Israeli and Palestinian officials on Thursday and acknowledged there was considerable scepticism that the two sides would resume peace negotiations. There were no signs of any breakthrough as Kerry visited Israel for the fourth time […]
by Hani Hazaimeh | May 23, 2013 | JORDAN TIMES AMMAN — Jordan border guards apprehended six members of an Israeli family after illegally crossing into Jordan, sources told The Jordan Times Thursday. The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the parents and four children — aged between […]
ISLAMABAD: ARAB NEWS Friday 24 May 2013 Saudi Arabia is expected to extend a bailout package of about $ 15 billion to Pakistan. It will help the country’s highly indebted energy sector by supplying crude and furnace oil on deferred payment to enable it to resolve the chronic circular debt […]
JEDDAH: KHADIJA HABEEB ARABNEWS Friday 24 May 2013 Credible Saudi charities are facing a funding crisis because of recent measures aimed at clamping down on terrorists using charities as fronts to raise funds and launder money. A number of charity workers here are now concerned that their work in the […]
Traders The commercial importance of Kumasi encourages both men and women to trade, and many moved here for that purpose. The savannah-based trading networks to the north of Kumasi are […]
In early times, people believed that the earth is flat. For centuries, men were afraid to venture out too far, lest they should fall off the edge. Sir Francis Drake […]
SANLIURFA, Turkey — I’ve been traveling to Yemen, Syria and Turkey to film a documentary on how environmental stresses contributed to the Arab awakening. As I looked back on the trip, it occurred to me that three of our main characters — the leaders of the two Yemeni villages that […]
Source: NY Times. By STEVEN GREENHOUSE American retailers remain sharply opposed to joining an international plan to improve safety conditions at garment factories in Bangladesh as their European counterparts and consumer and labor groups dismiss the companies’ concerns about legal liability. A few shareholders at Gap’s annual meeting this week […]
Source: NY Times. By MOSI SECRET She fled her husband and her family, sneaking out of her home in Pakistan to take sanctuary in the American Embassy, which then whisked her to a secret hide-out in the United States. The thrilling escape seemed to end the harrowing ordeal of Amina […]
Pope Francis rocked some religious and atheist minds today when he declared that everyone was redeemed through Jesus, including atheists. During his homily at Wednesday Mass in Rome, Francis emphasized […]
If you thought it was tough to organize a couple hundred guests at your wedding, imagine if 25,000 well-wishers decided to drop by. A wedding between two members of one […]
SAN FRANCISCO — Sanket Sant, a citizen of India, came to the United States at age 21, earning a master’s degree in engineering, followed by a doctorate and then landing a well-paying job at a company making semiconductor equipment. Then, he waited for the American government to decide if he […]