History Today: ‘The Emperor and the Elephant’ by Sam Ottewill-Soulsby review

By Carine van Rhijn. The Emperor and the Elephant: Christians and Muslims in the Age of Charlemagne by Sam Ottewill-Soulsby surfaces Umayyad and Abbasid perspectives on their Frankish frenemies. The elephant in the title of Sam Ottewill-Soulsby’s study of diplomatic relations between Christians and Muslims in the Carolingian period (800-887) is Abul-Abbas, who having arrived

Asharq Al-Awsat: Questions Regarding the Cultural Themes of War

By Hazem Saghieh. Last Sunday (7/4) the Israeli newspaper “Haaretz” published an investigative report by Judy Maltz, the newspaper’s Jewish World correspondent, entitled “Six Months On: How October 7 and the Gaza War Transformed Jews Across the Globe.” It traces how these two major events have reflected on the lives of Jewish individuals: 7 in

History.com: This Day In History (November 27-1095): Pope Urban II orders first Crusade

By History.com Editors. On November 27, 1095, Pope Urban II makes perhaps the most influential speech of the Middle Ages, giving rise to the Crusades by calling all Christians in Europe to war against Muslims in order to reclaim the Holy Land, with a cry of “Deus vult!” or “God wills it!” Born Odo of

Dawn: Breakaway states

By Dr Niaz Murtaza. MOST states today are either historical ones or were made by colonisers. Only a few broke away from larger states after World War II. Excluding non-UN member breakaway regions like Somaliland, this includes Singapore, Timor-Leste, Bangla­desh, Pakistan and Lebanon in Asia; Eritrea and South Sudan in Africa; six ex-Yugoslav states; Slovakia

New Lines Magazine: How a Satirist Captured the Maladies of the Islamic Golden Age

By Ahmed Fal al-Din. In ninth-century Iraq, the iconoclast al-Jahiz skewered the intellectual pretensions of powerful men working for the Abbasid palace The ninth-century Iraqi theologian and Arabic litterateur Abu Uthman Amr ibn Bahr, better known to the world as al-Jahiz, or “The One With Bulging Eyes,” was among classical Islamic civilization’s wittiest writers and

Rai al-Youm: Whose freedom of expression?

By Abdel Bari Atwan. In the West, it’s one rule for Israel and another for Arabs and Muslims Freedom of expression, the jewel in the crown of Western democracy — invoked to defend burning the Quran, insulting the Prophet Muhammad, and maligning the Islamic faith — is rapidly being eroded with the rise of fascist

History.com: This Day In History (September 24-622): Prophet Muhammad completes Hegira

By History.com Editors. On September 24, 622, the prophet Muhammad completes his Hegira, or “flight,” from Mecca to Medina to escape persecution. In Medina, Muhammad set about building the followers of his religion—Islam—into an organized community and Arabian power. The Hegira would later mark the beginning (year 1) of the Muslim calendar. Muhammad, one of

The Levant News: The Office of the Grand Mufti of Syria – A brief history

By Sami Moubayed. The position of Grand Mufti has just been abolished in Syria, stirring plenty of debate and much controversy. Supporters of the move argue that this post is new to Islam, introduced by Ottoman Sultan Selim, and did not exit neither during the times of the Prophet nor any of his immediate successors,