War on Terror
*Algeria: Taking the Pulse of al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb
<http://www.newageislam.org/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1512>*
*Coming Home to Roost?*
In addition to fighting against the regime in Algeria, Algerian militants
have also been very conspicuous on jihadist battlefields such as Bosnia,
Chechnya, Afghanistan and Iraq. Some studies have even concluded that
Algerians were the single largest group of foreign jihadists who fought in
Iraq during the height of the insurgency.
One of the things we have been anticipating for several years now is a
boomerang effect as foreign jihadists leave places such as Iraq and Pakistan
and return home. While many foreign jihadists have been killed in such
places, those who survive after fighting sophisticated foes like the
American military are not only hardened but also possess insurgent
tradecraft skills that make them far more lethal when they leave those
battlefields than when they entered them. Indeed, we have seen a migration
of IED technology and tactics from Iraq to other theatres, such as
Afghanistan.
With developments in Iraq over the last few years that have made Iraq
increasingly inhospitable to foreign jihadists, and with Pakistan now
quickly becoming less friendly, many of the Algerian militants in those
places may be seeking to return home. -- *Scott Stewart and Fred Burton,
Stratfor*
More...<http://www.newageislam.org/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1512>
Islam and the West
*The Real Struggle in Iran and Implications for U.S. Dialogue
<http://www.newageislam.org/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1511>*
*The Struggle Within the Regime*
The key to understanding the situation in Iran is realizing that the past
weeks have seen not an uprising against the regime, but a struggle within
the regime. Ahmadinejad is not part of the establishment, but rather has
been struggling against it, accusing it of having betrayed the principles of
the Islamic Revolution. The post-election unrest in Iran therefore was not a
matter of a repressive regime suppressing liberals (as in Prague in 1989),
but a struggle between two Islamist factions that are each committed to the
regime, but opposed to each other.
The demonstrators certainly included Western-style liberalizing elements,
but they also included adherents of senior clerics who wanted to block
Ahmadinejad’s re-election. And while Ahmadinejad undoubtedly committed
electoral fraud to bulk up his numbers, his ability to commit unlimited
fraud was blocked, because very powerful people looking for a chance to
bring him down were arrayed against him.
The situation is even more complex because it is not simply a fight between
Ahmadinejad and the clerics, but also a fight among the clerical elite
regarding perks and privileges — and Ahmadinejad is himself being used
within this infighting. The Iranian president’s populism suits the interests
of clerics who oppose Rafsanjani; Ahmadinejad is their battering ram. But as
Ahmadinejad increases his power, he could turn on his patrons very quickly.
In short, the political situation in Iran is extremely volatile, just not
for the reason that the media portrayed. -- *George Friedman, Stratfor*
More...<http://www.newageislam.org/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1511>
Islam, Women and Feminism
*The Burqa: Don’t ban it, question it
<http://www.newageislam.org/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1510>*
Above all, to question the veil, Muslims must challenge what the US-based
academic of Hyderabad origin, Muqtadar Khan, calls the “epistemological
hijab”, the curtain that the male Muslim clergy has kept between Islamic
scripture and women. Muslims engaged in ripping apart this epistemological
curtain can see that during the lifetime of the Prophet and for a while
thereafter, the Muslim woman was acknowledged as an autonomous human being.
She was considered a person in her own right, not just a mother, sister,
wife or daughter. Over fourteen centuries ago, it was both an obligation and
a right of Muslim women to participate actively in the religious, economic,
social and political life of the community. The clergy must explain how it
happened that the female sex subsequently got pushed out of the common
public space. The “pious burqa” is but a manifestation of this subversion of
early Islam. -- *Javed Anand *
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Islam and the West
*The Burqa Debate: understanding the backdrop
<http://www.newageislam.org/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=1509>*
France has also been a pioneer of sorts when it comes to the feminist
movement of the world. Feminism was conceived and practiced first in France
and has been a source of inspiration all over the world. France is also
known for its outspoken feminine sexuality which might sometimes be beyond
the comprehension of the eastern mind-set. Catherine Breillat, for instance,
is a movie-maker whose films have created ripples worldwide on this issue
but even their concept couldn’t have been imagined in Asian or Middle
Eastern societies. French society is a developed society today but it has
sacrificed a lot in reaching where it has.
Sarkozy’s remark can be viewed as a result of a compelling pressure of
French ethos and its history as Burqa is the symbol of the regressive
civilization of medieval ages which is gaining currency in French society
amongst immigrant Muslims. To any French national who knows the history of
his liberal culture that set women free from medieval bonds, this might seem
like an imminent threat to his society’s value system.
But we should also try to understand the psychology of the Muslims world
over who are under constant attack from Western Media and who are facing
military aggression as well. Muslims are suffering from a loss of identity
especially in the western world. -- *Shamshad Elahee Ansari*
5 Comments
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