Original essays, research notes, and reports
Demonstrators face legal charges for eroding image of respectability of national founder Tens of thousands of Iranians have staged rallies on Friday to protest what they deem as acts “of desecration of the image of the late founder of the Islamic revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khumeini. This wave of protests is a reaction to TV footages Read more
Continue ReadingBy A.E. SOUAIAIA Swiss Justice Minister, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, said that Sunday’s referendum, during which voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional ban on minarets, was not “a referendum against Islam… but a vote directed against fundamentalist developments.” I say, what the &%@#! Seriously, can someone explain to me how a ban on building minarets could fight fundamentalism? Read more
Continue ReadingBy Ahmed E. Souaiaia* October 19, 2009 War is very destructive. However, despite the human and economic costs, war also creates new opportunities and ends oppressive political and administrative stagnation. The human cost of the Iraq war could be mitigated by the economic and political return of the reshuffling of the cards in the Middle Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed Souaiaia In a speech given at the 2009 O’Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing conference, while attempting to highlight the advances in print and press technology, Jason Epstein, declared: “Retrograde Islam banned Gutenberg’s technology as satanic, confining its followers within a single book.” Granted, Mr. Epstein is a successful business person with a Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia President Nicolas Sarkozy of France has become the most vocal supporter of the ban on religious symbols worn by people in public (government) institutions; specifically, the ban on the headscarf worn by Muslim women. His foundation for this argument is this: France is for French and anyone wishing to live in Read more
Continue ReadingPolitics of nuclear arms issue complex By Jacob Maxson For the Press-Citizen This week’s Q&A is with Dr. A. E. Souaiaia. He is a professor of Modern Religious Thought at the University of Iowa. He teaches and researches on the subjects of Islamic ethics and moral philosophy, Islamic law, human rights, and religion and politics. Read more
Continue ReadingIowa City Press-Citizen Q&A with Professor A. E. SOUAIAIA 1) Why is there a taboo against any visual depictions of the prophet? Western media has been reporting that Muslims’ reaction to the depiction of the Messenger Muhammad stems from the Islamic prohibition of visual representation of prophets. Such prohibition is couched in the explicit Qur’ānic Read more
Continue ReadingMuslims condemn cartoon-sparked violence By LYNN CAMPBELL AND SHIRLEY RAGSDALE REGISTER STAFF WRITERS February 7, 2006 Offensive cartoons of the prophet Muhammad tempt outrage, Iowa Muslims said Monday, but the religious leaders condemned the violence that continued Monday in protests around the world… Read full story on Des Moines Register ——————————————————————————— Transcripts of the Question Read more
Continue ReadingSunday, October 17, 2004 Afghanistan election raises questions By Jeffrey Charis-CarlsonFor the Press-Citizen This week’s Q & A is with Ahmed Souaiaia, assistant professor of religious studies at the University of Iowa. Q: Earlier this month, Afghanistan held its first presidential elections since the Soviet invasion more than 20 years ago. U.N. officials have reported Read more
Continue ReadingDemocracy: Historical Victim of “Operation Iron Hammer” With the stream of data coming from Iraq, any informed individual can conclude that the days ahead may be even harder to manage. With the rising death toll and spiraling violence that is spreading to formerly quiet areas, one does not need a CIA analyst’s opinion to surmise Read more
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