In our new research we examined popular music videos which drew on historical myths and contemporary clergymen to mobilise Iraq’s Shia population to fight the Islamic State.
A scholar of Afghan affairs explains the religious affiliations of different ethnic groups in Afghanistan and why they may not share a common understanding of Islam.
Day 3 of our Understanding Islam series. Many Muslims belong to one of two sects of Islam, which agree on most of the fundamentals of Islam but vary in others.
Day 4 of our Understanding Islam series. Knowing the historical contributions of Islam and its influence on other faiths can help counter many assumptions about the religion today.
Saudi Arabia is barring international visitors for the hajj. A scholar explains a long history of disease, politics and war that have previously prevented people from making the journey to Mecca.
Jeff Bachman, American University School of International Service
The US has supported a Saudi-led military coalition that has inflicted profound and deadly damage on Yemen. A Senate vote could end what a human rights scholar says is US complicity in genocide.
Trump recently tweeted about prayer rugs being left along the border. Many may not know the role and history of Muslim prayer rugs and why they are not likely to be left behind.
The Houthis belong to the Shiite branch of Islam. The Houthi insurgency began in the early 1990s, spurred in part by growing influence of different Sunni branches of Islam.
Jeff Bachman, American University School of International Service
The Obama and Trump administrations have supported a military coalition that has inflicted profound and deadly damage on Yemen. A human rights scholar says the US is complicit in genocide.
The de Young Museum of San Francisco recently opened an exhibit devoted to the Islamic fashion scene. Here’s how Muslim women’s fashions challenge popular stereotypes.
The West needs to push for local action against Islamic State’s reign of terror in the Middle East. States in the region must find solutions to the conflicts to bring peace and stability.
Senior Research Fellow, Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at IUPUI and Journalist-fellow, Religion and Civic Culture Center, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences