Shortly after ISIS was driven out of its stronghold in Mosul, it became clear that the war was not yet won. As ISIS continues to lose territory, fighters and credibility in the conventional war, it will resort to more unconventional tactics. And it is able to do so for one simple reason: the conditions that allowed ISIS ideology to flourish in the first place still remain. One of the movement’s most effective strategies has been to exploit ethnic and sectarian tensions, turning Sunni against Shia, sowing division and distrust. And those who have suffered the most from this violence are children and ... Read More

The recent terror attacks in Barcelona and Finland stand as a stark reminder of the dangers of not just terrorism, but also the radicalization underpinning it. Shortly after the attacks, ISIS came forward to claim responsibility – for good reason. These latest attacks, like others before them, seems to reinforce just how devastating the effects of extremist narratives and propaganda can be in inspiring people to committing grotesque acts of violence. For ISIS, propaganda is arguably its greatest strength. Despite the group’s recent territorial losses in Iraq and Syria, propaganda is why the group can still win recruits willing to ... Read More

Of all Islamic concepts, the concept of Jihad has been most distorted and misused in recent years by a number of movements and sects, each saw in itself the sole legitimate representative of Islam, and set itself as the only authority to speak on its behalf and to defend its values. The concept of Jihad, which was first declared to preserve the values of security, peace and freedom, to save people’s lives and to secure their properties, also is bound by strict rules and conditions, which are no longer considered nowadays. Such rules, as dictated by the Prophet Mohammed and ... Read More

It is saddening to note that nowadays, suspicion, tension, disharmony and distrust continued to dominate the interrelationships between cultures and civilisations. Globalisation has somehow shown a concerning flaw, where it was once seen as a bridge between civilisations and cultures, but now it serves as a factor towards the increasing gap between Islamic and Western cultures. This unfortunate reality exists in global political and social discourses where we find the West is now tend to stereotype Islam and Muslims as violent and militant, to stigmatize the religion as posing a threat to the western cultures, to accuse the latter of ... Read More

In an amazing narration reported by Hudhaifa, the Messenger of God (PBUH) said, ‘Verily, I fear about a man from you who will read the Qur'an so much that his face will become enlightened and he will come to personify Islam. This will continue until Allah desires. Then these things will be taken away from him when he will disregard them by putting them all behind his back and will attack his neighbour with the sword accusing him of Shirk. The Prophet was asked which of the two will be deserving of such an accusation? The attacker or the attacked? ... Read More

Islamophobia is one of the most important phenomena that disturb the civilizational coexistence and social peace of Muslims in non-Muslim societies, being a prominent phenomenon in Western societies compared to non-Western societies, in which Muslims live as minorities. There is no doubt that the historical roots of the relationship between Islam and the Western World in its Christian form plays a prominent role in the crystallization of negative perceptions of the Muslim other in the Western mentality, but the impact of these historical roots is limited to the impact of contemporary factors which re-formulated the relationship of the Western culture ... Read More

Islam is the religion of peace, compassion, tolerance, empathy and love granted by Allah for the whole universe. There is no place for barbarism cruelty terrorism and extremism in Islam. Moderate way has always been encouraged in Islam. This nation is addressed as the moderate nation in the holy Quran. Those miscreants are mixing up Jihad with terrorism spreading misconceptions about Islam. Jihad and terrorism are completely different. While Jihad is an order of Allah terrorism is strictly prohibited is Islam. Killing is such a grave crime in Islam that is clearly declared in Quran. "Whoever kills a person [unjustly] ... Read More

In the midst of the increasing violence and terrorism following the recent Barcelona attacks, followed by other lone wolf attacks in Finland and Russia, and the previous run-offs in Britain, France, Germany and Sweden, most recent studies tend to link the perpetrators' record in criminality and the lack of religious commitment to these attacks. In addition to their existence in an environment that does not encourage real religious devotion. In a study conducted by Edwin Bakker between September 2001 and October 2006, 31 of the terrorist attacks (58 out of 242), which means 24% of those who committed such attacks, ... Read More

The threats made by ISIS against Egyptian Copts on 19 February 2017 contained a great deal of hatred and arrogance to the extent that ISIS was ignorant of the fundamentals of religion, the basic teachings of the Prophet, and the foundations of Islamic history which had witnessed intimate and peaceful relations between Christians and Muslims in Egypt over the past 14 centuries. ISIS and their supporters and followers from Ansar Al-Maqdis and Agnad Misr groups did not hesitate to translate their threats into action by blowing up the St. Mark’s Cathedral in Cairo on December 11, 2016. Following their last ... Read More