Religious Extremism

"Women-Only Parks" Reveal Sociopolitical Tensions in Iran

August 10, 2017

The emergence of "women-only parks" in Iran, similar to those in other Islamic theocracies like Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, is generating unexpected debate in Iran over the effects of sociological, political, and health effects of sharia regimes that impose strict gender separation and religious dress-code coverings on women.
Qatar-Saudi Imbroglio Highlights Problem of Islamist Patron States

August 08, 2017

The continuing standoff pitting a Saudi-led coalition of Gulf monarchies against Qatar, over the latter's alleged support for both Sunni radical propaganda and Iranian Shiite extremism, has revealed the reality of the dispute as a power struggle for control over competing voices of Sunni Islamist extremism by a cluster of patron states in the globalization of jihadist ideology and terror.
Iranian President Deals Blow to Reformist Supporters

August 04, 2017

President Hassan Rouhani has dealt a wake-up call to Iranian voters who supported him in his second-term election as a reformist compared to the country's hardline Islamic theocratic forces with his announcement of the exclusion of women and young politicians from his cabinet.
Egyptian Fatwa Kiosks Draw Criticism

August 04, 2017

Egypt's highest Islamic body, al-Azhar al-Sharif, is aiming to counter radical Islamist ideas by quick religious opinions offered in "fatwa kiosks" opened at Cairo metro station stops, a move experts are criticizing as a cosmetic, superficial response to the country's serious problems with Islamist violence and extremist ideology.
Islamist Groups Continue to Condone "Revenge Rape" in Pakistan

August 04, 2017

Despite the arrest of a man for yet another episode of "revenge rape" in Pakistan, the widespread practice of raping girls and women to "protect family honor" continues to enjoy the support of the country's leading Islamist parties and organizations, which have opposed efforts by politicians to criminalize the act.
Saudi Vision 2030 Is Best Hope to Reform Wahhabi Islamism

July 26, 2017

According to a recent report by Harvard University experts, the best chance for moderating the destabilizing, violent effects of Saudi Arabia's Wahhabi extremist Islamism is the success of the ambitious socioeconomic reform program known as Vision 2030.
Saudi-led Row with Qatar Is Wahhabi Power Struggle

July 24, 2017

The geopolitics of the ongoing crisis pitting a Saudi-led coalition of Arab Gulf monarchies against Qatar have a crucial Islamist subtext based on the competition between Riyadh and Doha for the unrivaled mantle of Wahhabi leadership and, therefore, for control over the strategy for internationalizing that puritanical form of Islamism.
Egypt's Islamist Culture Fuels Anti-Christian Violence

July 24, 2017

Egypt's myriad Islamist organizations, including leading imams at the well-known al-Azra's University and the Muslim Brotherhood, are spreading a populist culture of hatred and incitement against the country's Coptic Christian community, leading to escalating episodes of anti-Christian violence and to a climate of discrimination and hostility.
Turkey's Islamist Conflict Fuels Authoritarianism, Instability

July 21, 2017

The intensive competition between Turkey's competing Islamist factions, the governing AKP and the Gulenist movement, is fueling authoritarian nationalism and social unrest in the country, regional instability through jihadist support, and disruptions inside NATO.
Saudis Arrest Woman in Miniskirt for Violating Dress Code

July 19, 2017

The Saudi Arabian religious police, the "Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice," recently detained a woman shown in a social media video wearing a miniskirt and walking unaccompanied in a town in Saudi Arabia for violating the strict Wahhabi Islamist laws requiring Saudi women to be completely covered and accompanied by a male guardian whenever in public.