Podcasts about salafists

This week, I am replaying a panel discussion in which I participated, speaking about the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Solaimani,  along with Preity Upala (geopolitical analyst with the Jersalem Post and Times of Israel), William Pounds (Independence Media Network), and Chad Wilson (Green Party, running for the party's Presidential candidacy)We discuss:- the legitimacy (or not) of the US assassination of Iranian General Solaimani- US disregard of other nations' sovereignty- the problem of US ignorance of the difference between Ba'athist, Arab nationalists, Arab socialists, Salafists, Wahabbis, Shias, Sunnis, etc. despite the War on Terror- the possibility of increasing World Peace by requiring US Congressional approval and re-introducing the draft- re-alignment of global military and political alliances- Iran's economic and deep historical connection to India, and the complication of the India-US relationship- double standards with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia state-sponsoring of terrorism, as opposed to Iran opposition to terrorism- the difference between the Lebanon-Israel conflict, and Jihadist Salafist terrorism- nuclear weapons as a deterrent for regime change- uniting an anti-war political movement in the US across left and right- the contradiction of Trump's anti-Imperialism -- calling out the Deep State, CIA, FBI, military-industrial complex, G7, NATO -- and the neocon American Imperialists in his Cabinet- how ISIS and others are benefiting from the US attack on Iran, and the miseducation of the general public- the necessity of fighting Jihadist terrorism, and understanding it properly, historically and ideologically- How Christian, Jewish, and Muslim eschatology drives foreign policy in many important ways, but which is ignored in mainstream discourse- the breakup of the Ottoman Empire as the root of the current confusion in the Middle East- the spread of Wahhabism as behind Muslim radicalism around the world in Russia, Nigeria, the former Yugoslavia- Islamism and the left- The contradictions of American Christianity- The controversy over the Citizenship Amendment Act in India- possible implications and repercussions of the Solaimani assassination

Dr. Mary Habeck lectures on al-Qaeda and ISIS, as well as on military strategy and history, at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Georgetown University, and American University. Her recent monograph for the Heritage Foundation is titled The U.S. Must Identify Jihadi-Salafists through Their Ideology, Practices, and Methodology-and Isolate Them. She is the author of Knowing the Enemy: Jihadist Ideology and the War on Terror (Yale, 2005) and three forthcoming sequels, Attacking America: Al-Qa’ida’s Grand Strategy; Managing Savagery: Al-Qa’ida’s Military and Political Strategies; and Fighting the Enemy: The U.S. and its War against al-Qa’ida. She is also a Senior Fellow with the Foreign Policy Research Institute. From 2005-2013 she was an Associate Professor in Strategic Studies at SAIS, teaching courses on extremism, military history, and strategic thought. Before moving to SAIS, Dr. Habecktaught American and European military history in Yale’s history department, 1994-2005. She received her PhD in history from Yale in 1996, an MA in international relations from Yale in 1989, and a BA in international studies, Russian, and Spanish from Ohio State in 1987. Dr. Habeck was appointed by President Bush to the Council on the Humanities at the National Endowment for the Humanities (2006-2013), and in 2008-2009 she was the Special Advisor for Strategic Planning on the National Security Council staff. Her other books include Storm of Steel: The Development of Armor Doctrine in Germany and the Soviet Union, 1919-1939 (2003), Spain Betrayed: The Soviet Union in the Spanish Civil War, co-editor (2001) and The Great War and the Twentieth Century, co-editor (2000).

Yemen has been engulfed in a civil and regional war since September 2014. It is a multi-layered conflict with domestic, regional and global stakeholders with the Yemeni people caught in the middle. Laurent Bonnefoy, researcher at The French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), explains the Salfist movement in Yemen, how it relates to the conflict, if there is a role for the Salafists in a peace process and the geopolitical aspect of the Salafists in Yemen and neighboring countries (Saudia Arabia for example). Laurent Bonnefoy's most recent book is entitled 'Yemen and the world: beyond insecurity' published by Hurst in October 2018. He is currently based in Muscat, Oman.

The house of Islam contains nearly 2 billion believers, but keeping it together is a challenge, as Sunnis, Shias, Salafists and Sufis battle for the hearts and minds of Muslims. Author Ed Husain gives us an introduction to this great tradition in his new book 'The House of Islam: A Global History'.

The house of Islam contains nearly 2 billion believers, but keeping it together is a challenge, as Sunnis, Shias, Salafists and Sufis battle for the hearts and minds of Muslims. Author Ed Husain gives us an introduction to this great tradition in his new book 'The House of Islam: A Global History'.

In order to win the war against the Islamic State and al-Qaeda, the United States must understand the enemy. Yet the problem of knowing the enemy has never been more acute, and the lack of consensus around this issue has never been more debilitating, for American foreign policy.Without a clear vision of who the U.S. is fighting, the government and military will not be able to distinguish ordinary Muslims from the extraordinary extremists, will be incapable of devising effective strategies for military and political efforts, and will not know which allies can be safe partners and which need to be avoided for being too close to the extremists. While there are many reasons for a lack of understanding the enemy, one of the most important is a deep disagreement about the role that Islam plays in motivating al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.This event will explore the notion that while a marginal version of Islam is the driver of extremism, it is possible to distinguish the jihadi-salafists from the majority of Muslims. A close examination of the jihadi- salafists’ belief system and methodologies will help the U.S. and allied governments formulate strategies to stop their spread. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In Germany according to a Federal Gov report Under the guise of humanitarian aid, Islamists succeed in radicalizing migrants.

The house of Islam contains nearly 2 billion believers, but keeping it together is a challenge, as Sunnis, Shias, Salafists and Sufis battle for the hearts and minds of Muslims. Author Ed Husain gives us an introduction to this great tradition that's global, divided and according to him, in need of some urgent housekeeping. He's in Australia to launch his new book 'The House of Islam: A Global History'.

The house of Islam contains nearly 2 billion believers, but keeping it together is a challenge, as Sunnis, Shias, Salafists and Sufis battle for the hearts and minds of Muslims. Author Ed Husain gives us an introduction to this great tradition that's global, divided and according to him, in need of some urgent housekeeping. He's in Australia to launch his new book 'The House of Islam: A Global History'.

When a mosque in Egypt’s Sinai region was attacked by affiliates of the Islamic State armed group in November leaving over 300 people dead the attackers said they were targeting what they described as 'heretics of Islam', known to the wider world as Sufis.Who are the Sufis and why have they been singled-out by some other Muslims? The term ‘Sufi’, will, for many, conjur up images of poets like the Persian Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī from the 13th century, or the Abū 'Abdillāh Muḥammad ibn 'Alī ibn Muḥammad ibn `Arabī from Andalusia in Spain from the 12th century, or even Turkey’s whirling dervishes. While poetry and dervishes can be part of different Sufi orders, at the heart of Sufism, is Islam, and its interaction with the prophet Mohammed. Sufis, however, have always differed because they have evolved and adapted their practice of Islam. According to Hamza Malik, a lecturer in Sufism at the department of the Near-and-Middle-East at SOAS, University of London, Sufism strarted to distinguish itself from mainstream Islam in the 1800s. Malik explains that those studying Sufism often sought something that didn’t resemble the strict interpretation of Islam, but instead included some elements closer to Christianity. Such differences become more apparent during the wave of colonization in the 19th century. It's at this point that Muslims began to question where they had gone wrong since they were losing control of their lands. "The answer generally lay in [the fact that] they had moved away from [the] original teachings of Islam” explains Malik. 21st century Sufis Getting a true number of practicing Sufis is hard to come by, since it depends on the order and how one defines a Sufi. In fact, many do not consider themselves Muslim. One article by Stephen Schwartz, a practicing Sufi himself, says out of the roughly 1.3 billion Muslims worldwide, five percent are Sufis. But much of the confusion in defining Sufis as Muslims stems from the fact that Sufism evolved differently than mainstream Islam. Malik explains that this willingness to look deeper into the “spiritual essence of Islam” rather than just its literal adherence to routine, is what attracted people. Different Sufi communities follow different Sufi orders. The orders are based on individual Sufis in history who inspired followers. Rabia and Hasan are two practicing Sufis who grew up in the United States as Presbyterian Christians, but later converted to Sufism. They practice the Sufism developed by Hazrat Inayat Khan, an Indian musician who worked in the early twentieth century. “He [Hazarat] was a court musician in India and was also a Sufi. This was [in] 1910, and he believed very strongly that Islam and Hinduism and [other religions] and Christianity were all facets of the same thing” explains Hasan. “They were all trying to reach something deeper. So he felt that you didn't have to be a Muslim, or a Hindu as such. You weren't being locked into one thing.” Not being locked into one thing is why Sufism was never about a religion, adds Rabia. “Sufism was never a religion. Islam is a religion.” Sufism and Islam But most specialists disagree and insist that Sufism comes from Islam and the Koran. Hisham Hellyer is a senior non-resident fellow at the Atlantic council and a professor at the Centre for advanced study of Islam, science and civilization in Malaysia. He says the two cannot be separated because he believes it's “historically not true”. He adds: “Very basic practice of all Sufis is to read the Koran and that's the Islamic revelation part par excellence and to imagine that is something that can be separated from Islam, I'm not sure how you can do that." But for hundreds of thousands of people around the world, Sufism has become a means of achieving a spirituality that is rooted in Islam, but that is not necessarily part of the religion. This ability of Sufis to draw in more followers by adapting the religion to the local culture is how it was able to adapt to local cultures and taken in those customs. “To give an example, when Islam came to India, they conquered the original people, but a lot of the people who became Muslim became Muslim through the Sufis. And what the Sufis did was they learned the local languages, and then they wrote poetry in the local languages,” explains Malik. The fact that Sufism has an ability to evolve and to adapt, unlike traditional branches of Islam, means it is criticised by some conservative Muslims. “…In essence the Sufis don't do anything too different in their day shift, they don't do anything too different than normal Muslims do, but they definitely have a particular kind of outlook. And historically they've always been quicker and faster in taking the local culture and be able to see what's not harmful about the local culture and try to bring it into focus” adds Malik. Sufis as targets? But at what point did Sufis start becoming targets for fellow Muslims? Malik points to when Sufis began introducing changes to the religion. Such deviation from the “pure form” was seen as something to be purged. “So Sufis began to be seen perhaps as a people who were stuck in their own ways and promoting more cultural aspects and aspects from other religions” which in turn gave fuel to those hardliners who believed “we must cleanse and go back to a pure origin”. Many of the main opponents to Sufis are conservative Muslims, like the Salafists or Wahabbis in Saudi Arabia. Hellyer points to a more recent emergence of Salafism beginning in the 1700s, which was “very critical of Sufism” and put itself in direct opposition to what mainstream Sunni Islam had actually relied upon. But what exactly is the basis for Sufism in Islam? Hellyer says the starting point is in the life of the prophet Mohammed. The story goes that at one point in his life when he is out with some of his companions a man comes upon them who is dressed in white. This man is the archangel Gabriel and he proceeds to ask the prophet to define Islam. He does so referring to the five pillars of Islam. Gabriel then asks Mohammed to define Iman, which means faith. And Mohammed provides an answer referring to certain articles and the belief in the day of judgement. A third question is then put to Gabriel asking to define Ihsan, which means perfection. This “third dimension relates to spiritual matters, excellence. And from that you'll get Sufism. And they'll be other names of disciplines, sometimes not Sufism but it all relates to that dimension of Ihsan” explains Hellyer. This story is a pivotal moment for Sufism according to most Islamic authorities, because it is the basis for correct form and practice for Sufi Muslims. But, for Malik, it’s not the only basis. “There's quite a few different verses and traditions that are used and the Gabriel one is definitely often used as being the third aspect that fits in nicely.” While many practicing Sufis today may not consider themselves Muslims, Sufism has always been an element of Islam for some who are trying to reach a higher level of spirituality. It has had the room to interpret and question its evolution and this has given it a place in modern times, but also, as we've seen, a reputation for being something separate, and something different, to mainstream Islam.

The A-Team of Syria commentators is assembled and ready for duty. Joining me this week for a 3-part interview on the Syria conflict, its history, its context and our response to recent events are Rania Khalek and Ben Norton. Rania is an independent journalist and co-host of the Unauthorized Disclosure Podcast. Ben is a staff writer for Alternet, a former columnist at Salon and an incredibly knowledgeable guy on Middle East Affairs. In Part 1, we cover the history of the so-called Arab Spring, the history of the Saudi-US relationship, and the nature of Sunni supremacism stemming from the far right, reactionary and downright fascist Salafist movement.

Welcome to the new format! This is show started as the Fallacy Friday Podcast and now you get MORE show. It is now Logical Anarchy Today and it is a Monday through Friday half hour show tackling the fallacies in the news.One today's show, Jon tackles Turkey shooting down a Russian plane as well as the end of bulk data collection at the NSA due to the "USA Freedom Act".News Mentioned:Turkey will not apologise for shooting down a Russian jet.Turkey caught smuggling 800 shotguns into Belgium.Would Turkey Act without US permission?The US Government created ISIS by supporting "Salafists" in Syria.McCain met with ISIS and didn't know it.NSA Must stop Collecting Data - Reason Article.Yahoo Article.Justin Riamondo's Opinion on the USA Freedom Act.Support the show by entering Amazon through our link HERE!Support the show on Patreon HERE!Use this address to add the Logical Anarchy Today show to your podcatcher or subscribe on iTunes!http://shoutengine.com/LogicalAnarchyToday.xml

The ultra-conservative Salafist movement, which is said to be the fastest growing branch of Islam, has been blamed for being behind many of the recent violent protests over an anti-Muslim film which appeared on the internet. Jenny Cuffe investigates the spread of Salafism across the countries of the Arab Spring. She asks what threat it poses to democracy in the whole region and also examines concerns in Europe that Salafists now represent a significant security risk. Presenter: Jenny Cuffe Producer: Ian Muir-Cochrane.

The main focus of the violence in the North Caucasus these days is in Dagestan, Chechnya's neighbour. Shoot-outs between police and Islamist militants occur almost daily, and suicide bombings and assassinations have become common. In response, the authorities use what many see as excessive force and the violence spirals still further. In the past two years suicide bombings in the Moscow metro and a Moscow airport have been traced to the region. In Dagestan it's a war that has touched almost every community and family, and one where differences between the opposing sides are apparently irreconcilable. For the authorities, Dagestan is part of Russia and subject to its secular laws; for the militants the region should be a sharia state independent of Moscow. After ten years trying to combat the militants and their appeal, Russian businessman Suleiman Kerimov has hit on a new idea - football. Sports facilities and pitches are being built across this impoverished and deeply conservative Muslim republic, encouraging young boys and men to play on the pitch rather than join the militants in the forest, and girls to watch them instead of withdrawing behind the veil. Dagestan's top club Anzhi Makhachkala has been bought up by the pro-Kremlin Dagestani billionaire and now he is buying world-class footballers, including Samuel Eto'o, currently the highest-paid player on the planet. Lucy Ash asks whether this is just bread and circuses for the masses or whether it is making a real difference in this restive Russian republic. Mr Kerimov is bankrolling many other projects from mosque building to job creation, from a glass factory to a glistening vision of an entirely new city. The reclusive billionaire's representative in Dagestan says he is trying to find an economic solution to one of the poorest and most troubled regions in Russia. The government is also trying a new tactic; it has recently set up a commission to persuade young fighters to lay down their arms and return to a peaceful civilian life. Lucy watches an anti-terrorism policeman lecturing university students in the capital, Makhachkala, on the dangers of radical Islam.But with entrenched corruption, heavy-handed policing and a blatant disregard for law, the Islamic underground shows little sign of retreat. More alarmingly, it looks as if the insurgency is spreading from the north to the traditionally peaceful and secular south of the republic. Lucy visits the village of Sovetskoye where in May this year police beat up dozens of young Salafists. A few months later the head teacher was murdered, allegedly because he'd banned the hijab in class. Can a massive injection of cash really neuter deep-seated pressures for change?