Rising Above Social Issues in 2016
Scroll down for an interactive timeline of articles focusing on some of the important issues affecting society in 2016 The last year we witnessed major historical events both internationally and domestically. This past year at Islam21c we sought to bring information, guidance and solutions to our readership during these tumultuous times and helped address the social struggles we face as Muslims in the ‘modern day’. Aiding our Ummah Perhaps most impactful the world over in 2016 was the mass slaughter and suffering of the people of Syria and their subsequent fleeing from their war-torn land. The migration of Syrian refugees…
REVEALED: inside story of Labour Party’s anti-Semitism “scandal”
Footage captured by Al-Jazeera shows process involved in reporting incidents on anti-Semitism in the Labour party A political activist who was accused of anti-Semitism at the Labour Party conference in September by a pro-Israel MP has been exonerated in undercover footage seen by Middle East Eye. Video footage secretly filmed at the conference in Liverpool in September 2016 shows a woman engaged in a heated discussion at the Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) stall with Joan Ryan, the MP for Enfield North, about the two-state solution. Later, Ryan discussed the exchange with other members of the group. Details subsequently appeared…
Muslim girls must attend Swiss mixed-sex swimming lessons
Muslim girls must attend mixed-sex swimming lessons in Switzerland, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled. The ruling from the Strasbourg-based court follows an appeal from Muslim parents, who objected to sending their young daughters – aged seven and nine – to the classes. The two Swiss citizens, originally from Turkey, had been fined €1,300 in 2010 (£1,130 at 2017 rates) for "breach of their parental duty", leading them to take up the lawsuit. Seven ECHR judges unanimously decided on Tuesday (10 January) that the children's integration into "local customs" took precedence over the parents' desire to exempt…
Nurturing the Ummah in 2016
Scroll down for an interactive timeline on articles focusing on nurturing the next generation Children are a blessing from Allāh. In the Qur’ān when children are mentioned they are referred to as a gift or a granted treasure. Few examples include At that, Zakariyah called upon his Lord, saying, "My Lord, gift me from Yourself a good offspring. Indeed, You are the Hearer of supplication." “My Lord, grant me from among the righteous." And those who say, "Our Lord, grant us from among our wives and offspring comfort to our eyes and make us an example for the righteous." Islām…
Morocco bans production and sale of Burqas
Morocco has banned the production and sale of full-face veils apparently for security reasons, according to local media reports. While there was no official announcement by authorities in the North African nation, the reports said the interior ministry order would take effect this week. "We have taken the step of completely banning the import, manufacture and marketing of this garment in all the cities and towns of the kingdom," the Le360 news site quoted a high-ranking interior ministry official as saying on Tuesday. It said the measure appeared to be motivated by security concerns, "since bandits have repeatedly used this…
The Obama Legacy: 26,171 bombs dropped in 2016 alone
Most Americans would probably be astounded to realize that the president who has been painted by Washington pundits as a reluctant warrior has actually been a hawk. The Iran nuclear deal, a herculean achievement, and the opening of diplomatic relations with Cuba unfortunately stand alone as President Obama’s successful uses of diplomacy over hostility. While candidate Obama came to office pledging to end George W Bush’s wars, he leaves office having been at war longer than any president in US history. He is also the only president to serve two complete terms with the nation at war. President Obama did…
Israeli plot against UK politicians
The Israeli government is in the midst of a brazen, covert influence campaign in Britain, a six-month undercover investigation by Al Jazeera will reveal. Each episode of the four-part series "The Lobby" will be broadcast daily on Al Jazeera from January 11 at 22:30 GMT. For half a year, Robin (alias), an undercover reporter, met with members of Britain's lobby network that enjoys strong support from the Israeli government by way of the Israeli embassy in London. Robin posed as a graduate activist with strong sympathies towards Israel who was eager to help combat the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement…
Plotter behind Prophet’s Mosque attack killed
One of the two extremists killed in Saturday’s attack in Riyadh has been identified as Tayea Salem Yaslam al-Sayari, who has been wanted to plotting the attack on the Prophet’s Mosque last year. Al-Sayari was said to have designed the explosive belts and other devices that were used in the attack on the Prophet’s Mosque in July 2016 as well as the attack on a mosque used by Saudi special forces in the southern Saudi city of Abha a month later. Saudi security forces killed another wanted extremist named Talal Samran al-Saadi during the security operation in the Yasmeen district…
People the Ummah lost in 2016
Despite knowing that death is inevitable, most people are engrossed in the trappings of this worldly life and neglect to prepare adequately for the certainty of what follows – our death and ultimate reckoning. Our stay in this world is temporary and it is when we recognise this and live by this that we may be successful. The Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) said, "Remember often the destroyer of pleasures - death." This past year we remembered the inevitable reality with reflections and motivations taken from the lives of over a dozen influential individuals whose passing shook the Ummah…
Erasing Islam from Rumi’s poetry
A couple of years ago, when Coldplay’s Chris Martin was going through a divorce from the actress Gwyneth Paltrow and feeling down, a friend gave him a book to lift his spirits. It was a collection of poetry by Jalaluddin Rumi, the thirteenth-century Persian poet, translated by Coleman Barks. “It kind of changed my life,” Martin said later, in an interview. A track from Coldplay’s most recent album features Barks reciting one of the poems: “This being human is a guest house / Every morning a new arrival / A joy, a depression, a meanness, / some momentary awareness comes…
