In The News

Islamic Extremism: Common Concern for Muslim and Western Publics

July 15, 2005
As last week's terror attacks rekindled fears about Islamic extremism in Europe and the US, many journalists and politicians urged Muslims to take action against the extremists hiding in their midst. But it isn't only the residents of non-Muslim countries who worry about extremism. The latest survey conducted by the Pew Research Center indicates that citizens of Muslim countries share...

Iraq, Internet Fuel Growth of Global Jihad

Dan Murphy July 13, 2005
Investigators are still sifting through the evidence of last Thursday's bombings in London and searching for those responsible. But many experts believe that the bombers were likely European Muslims who were radicalized and driven to act in the name of al-Qaida as a result of Britain's involvement in the war in Iraq. Iraqi insurgents have publicized their struggle on the internet,...

Europe's Angry Muslims

Robert S. Leiken July 12, 2005
While Americans worry about terrorists crossing the Mexican border, the newest mujahideen can take an easier route: armed with European passports, they are able to pass through US Customs unchallenged. Radical Islam is gaining in popularity among the disenfranchised and underprivileged second-generation European Muslims. According to writer Robert S. Leiken, Western Europe "never learned...

The True Face of Terror in London and Baghdad

Michael Glackin July 8, 2005
While governments and the media often proclaim that terrorism has no face, the innocent Londoners whose lives were destroyed by Thursday's indiscriminate attacks provided a daunting image of the violence. These bombings, targeting the "ordinary people," are especially perturbing given the tolerance Londoners have shown towards myriad racial groups, nationalities, and religions,...

Giving Voice to British Arab Culture – And Its Discontents

Omar Waraich June 29, 2005
When Reem Maghribi, a 26-year-old British Arab designer, realized that Arabs lacked a voice in the United Kingdom, she founded Sharq, a magazine devoted to the promotion of “British Arab Culture.” With an increasing number of British Arabs questioning their identity amidst a climate of “Arabaphobia,” the self-supported publication is offering them the opportunity to delve into their unique...

A Muslim Woman, a Story of Sex

Alan Riding June 22, 2005
The Almond, the first novel of North African writer Nedjma, has attracted media and critical attention ever since its publication in France last year. The novel is a study of sex – a topic very much off-limits to authors in traditional Arab societies, let alone the women who live within the conservative-leaning social structures. Nedjma, herself a female and a product of Muslim society, has...

The Wages of Fundamentalism

Peter Watson June 22, 2005
Author Peter Watson cites religious fundamentalism as a major cause of the recent decline of US leadership in scientific research and innovation. To be sure, a renewed interest in the sciences in Western Europe and Asia has helped them to catch up in previously American-dominated fields. Equally influential, however, has been a renewal of religious fervor in the US. Teachers in Kansas are...