On Wednesday this week, the Emir of Kuwiat Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah appeared on Kuwaiti state television to announce that he had dissolved his country's parliament and was seeking to schedule new elections. The Emir's actions again highlight not just the fragility of pluralist political structures in the Arab world, but their ultimate hollowness.

The war in Afghanistan is at a tipping point. For the past 8 years, the NATO-led forces have been fighting doggedly against a highly resilient and surprisingly adaptable Taleban insurgency. However, the inability of the Bush administration to articulate a clear strategy beyond “search and destroy” missions has seen the operation stuck in a tail chasing exercise that requires fresh thinking and innovative new approaches.

As an academic in the field, it never ceases to amaze me how the expression 'Islamic Studies' is almost taken as a universally understood concept. But, it is only when one travels through different communities that it becomes clear how 'Islamic Studies' can vary in meaning based on language, culture, region and, most importantly, worldview.

Ayman Nour, the public face of Egypt's liberal, centrist and secular opposition, was released from prison in February this year (officially for health reasons, Nour being diabetic), prompting speculation as to why the Egyptian government had seen fit to allow one of its most vocal critics back into the political spotlight.

What is ijtihad?

Whilst overtures were made during what seemed an endless Presidential campaign through 2008 as to a change in direction in US Middle East policy under an Obama administration, intrigue has remained as to what the first moves and first priorities of the new foreign policy team would be.

This blog deals with the theory and practice of studying Islam, encompassing all stages and levels of education. There is a strong focus on three aspects of the study of Islam: 1) the historical dimension looks at how aspects of the study of Islam developed or remained consistent since the time of Prophet Muhammad; 2) current issues in the study of Islam; and 3) methodologies of scholarship on Islam (including Western perspectives). Useful and constructive contributions (to be moderated) are invited on any of these three aspects on the study of Islam.