By Leila Saad | – ( Human Rights Watch ) – Two Bahraini Shi’a men have been executed in Saudi Arabia following what Amnesty International described as a “grossly unfair trial” on terrorism-related charges. Jaafar Sultan and Sadeq Thamer were arrested in May 2015 and held incommunicado for more than three months, according to Amnesty International. […]
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Wahhabis
Why Most Muslims Celebrate Mawlid, the Prophet Muhammad’s Birthday, despite Wahhabi Disapproval
By Deina Abdelkader, UMass Lowell | – (The Conversation) – Most Muslims celebrate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad on the 12th day of the third month of the Islamic calendar, Rabi’ al-awaal – which starts on the evening of Oct. 7 in 2022. Muslims view the celebration, called Mawlid al-Nabi or simply the Mawlid, […]
Ultimate Hypocrisy: Saudi Crown Prince touts Religious Tolerance in NYC
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s charm offensive in New York allegedly involved meeting Oprah Winfrey, which may be the only canny thing I’ve ever heard of him doing. He also had some religious leaders over to his condominium in NYC to stress the importance of […]
Lebanon PM Hariri Resigns in fear for Life, Slamming Iran
Long known for Saudi Ties, Hariri Accuses Tehran of trying to Destroy Arab World
Top 7 ways Saudi could learn from Qatar about Moderate Islam
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Saudi Crown prince Mohammad Bin Salman has announced that he wants to take his kingdom toward a more moderate Islam. The state religion of Saudi Arabia is what outsiders call Wahhabism, a puritanical and strident interpretation of the religion. Only about 40% of Saudis are thought […]
Saudi Arabia: Official Hate Speech Targets Minorities
Shiites, others, demonized by official clerics
The top 4 Challenges facing the Arab World
By Tarek Osman | (Project Syndicate) | – – LONDON – Fifty years after the Six Days War, the Middle East remains a region in seemingly perpetual crisis. So it is no surprise that, when addressing the region, politicians, diplomats, and the donor and humanitarian community typically focus on the here and now. Yet, if […]
Execution-Crazy Saudi Gov’t railroads 14 Shiite Dissidents with unfair Death Penalty
Human Rights Watch | – – (Beirut) – Saudi Arabia should immediately quash the death sentences of 14 members of the Shia community for protest-related crimes, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today. The Court of Appeal of the notorious Specialized Criminal Court upheld the sentences in May 2017, after they were handed down […]
What is the Sunni-Shiite Divide into Which Trump just Stepped?
Ken Chitwood | (The Conversation) | – – In his address in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, May 21, while calling on Muslim leaders to lead the fight against terrorism, President Donald Trump identified Iran as a despotic state giving safe harbor and financing terror in the Middle East. As Iran is a Shia state and […]