Law and Religion

Saudi Arabia Defies Mideast Upheaval

Saudi Arabia is leading a counter- revolution against the sweeping political changes in the Middle East by using money, force and God. As popular movements for democracy toppled leaders in Egypt and Tunisia and began threatening neighboring Bahrain and Yemen, Saudi Arabia’s Al Saud royal family strengthened control over the […]

Former California First Lady Maria Shriver on Tuesday called “heartbreaking” husband Arnold Schwarzenegger’s admission that he had fathered a child with a former household staff member more than a decade ago.

By Mark Z. Barabak and Victoria Kim, Los Angeles Times Former California First Lady Maria Shriver on Tuesday called “heartbreaking” husband Arnold Schwarzenegger’s admission that he had fathered a child with a former household staff member more than a decade ago. “This is a painful and heartbreaking time,” Shriver said […]

The Ethics of flying while Muslim

A few days after U.S. Navy SEALs assassinated Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad, Pakistan, a Delta connection flight pulled away from the gate at Memphis International Airport in Tennessee. The Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA) passenger jet, bound for Charlotte, North Carolina, never made it to the runway. While taxiing, the […]

Saudi donates billions to charity

Sheikh Suleiman Al Rajhi, one of the world’s richest men, plans to give away lion’s share of his $6bn fortune. Saudi Arabia’s Sheikh Suleiman Al Rajhi, one of the world’s richest men, can now also lay claim to be one of the most generous. The businessman has announced he is […]

Muslims, Not Islam, Need Reform

In her recent Wall Street Journal opinion-editorial, Irshad Manji claims that not just Muslims, but the Quran and Islam itself needs reformation. In conflating the two, Manji ignores the possibility that the owner’s manual might be fine, while the issues lie with the owner. Manji concludes by assuming, again incorrectly, […]

“All believers are brothers, so make peace between your brothers and be mindful of your duty to Allah that you may be shown mercy.” (Sura 49:11)

and: “In case two parties of the believers fight against each other, bring about reconciliation between them. If, however, one of them persists in belligerence and transgresses against the other, bring your collective might to bear upon the one that transgresses to force him until he agrees that his dispute […]

Was bin Laden’s killing and burial legal?

A key detail in the initial narrative of the historic operation that killed the world’s most wanted man – al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden – has proven to be inconsistent, raising concerns about what really happened at the lavish gated compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. US president Barack Obama and his officials announced […]

Every human life is sacred, otherwise none is!

Written and collected by Zia H Shah MD, Chief Editor of the Muslim Times With the election of a son of a Kenyan man to the highest office in USA we see gradual perfection of the vision expressed in the words, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”  […]

What is the International Law?

No one is above the law and no one is below the law!  The term ‘International Law,’ may be thrown around vaguely in the media for the foreseeable future regarding the Extra-judicial killing of Osama Bin Laden.  But, what is ‘International Law?’  What best fits this term is the Universal […]

A new chance in Egypt for Islamic finance

Covered head-to-toe in a black abaya embroidered with red and yellow flowers, Amal Abbas waits for her turn to place a deposit at Cairo’s Al Baraka Egypt Bank, one of Egypt’s two fully-fledged Islamic banks. Although Egypt is considered the birthplace of Islamic finance, which adheres to Islamic principles banning […]

Mahram law heaps frustration on women

By MARIAM NIHAL | ARAB NEWS JEDDAH: Saudi and foreign women in the Kingdom who wish to travel abroad often feel the heat of severe traveling regulations. Saudi laws dictate that women cannot travel without their mahram’s (male guardian) permission and in some cases can only tour with them. GCC countries […]