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Supreme Leader: Martyrdom Is At The Very Core of Iran’s Identity

The Islamic Republic News Agency reports that the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said that belief in martyrdom and the culture of glorifying status of martyrs is at the very core of Iran’s identity… Continue reading

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Iran-Syria Bloc Consolidates Alliance With Turkish Regime

In effect, Ahmadinejad is saying: I insult America! I am leader of the Palestinian struggle! I’m going to get nuclear weapons! I’ve got it all. Now, if there was only some Western leadership to organize the other side there might be more hope of… Continue reading

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Terrorism Is Haram In Islam

Iranian Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani says Islam considers terrorism as “haram” (religiously prohibited), Mehr News Agency reported last week. Larijani made the remarks in an address to a gathering of officials… Continue reading

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Islamophobia Or Dupophobia?

This is a new cartoon by Yaakov Kirschen on Islamophobia. It’s of course satire, but his insight and humor is pointing out how media is biased on Israeli Issues and how political correctness is denying true criticism of Islam… Continue reading

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Multiculturalisme In Een Witte Broden Cultuur

Nu de rookdampen optrekken rondom de formatie van een nieuw kabinet en we maandenlang via de media (en met name Pauw en Witteman) hebben mogen luisteren naar het demonizeren van Geert Wilders en de PVV-aanhang, kunnen we eens terugkijken naar de werkelijke redenen voor… Lees verder

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Ahmadinejad’s Lebanon Visit Boost For Hezbollah

Thousands of cheering Hezbollah supporters welcomed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Lebanon on Wednesday. Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz called on Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad not to cause an irreversible situation during his visit to… Continue reading

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Iran’s Movie Industry Clashes With Ministry of Islamic Guidance

A serious conflict broke out in recent days between top personalities in Iran’s movie industry and the Ministry of Islamic Guidance. The conflict began following the 14th annual film festival held at Tehran’s Cinema House on September 16. In his acceptance speech, Farhadi criticized the government’s policy on culture and cinema, expressing… Continue reading

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Iranian Reformist Cleric Accuses Khamenei of Overstepping His Authorities

Ayatollah Ali-Mohammad Dastgheib, a top cleric affiliated with the reformist bloc, has recently published on his official website a religious ruling challenging the regime’s interpretation of the concept of “rule of the religious jurisprudent”, which has been in place since… Continue reading

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Broad-Based Support for President Ahmadinejad’s Speech to UN General Assembly

This week, Iranian media and top officials commended President Ahmadinejad for the speech given to the UN General Assembly last Thursday (September 23). In his address, the president claimed that the majority of the American people as well as other… Continue reading

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Reformist Opposition Leader Mehdi Karoubi Challenges Supreme Leader Khamenei

Karoubi called on Rafsanjani to exercise the constitutional powers of the assembly and take all measures necessary to prevent the principle of “rule of the religious jurisprudent” from being eroded by the Supreme Leader’s negligence in performing his duties and abuse of his powers… Continue reading

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Quds Day Events Used to Support the Palestinian Cause and Hostility Towards Israel and the West

The Iranian regime took advantage of the annual Quds Day events to highlight an alternative political and ideological agenda to that of the US; strongly criticized the Israel-PA negotiations; called to continue the “resistance” (terrorism); and spread vicious incitement against Israel, the Jewish people, the US, and the West… Continue reading

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Torn Turkey, European Turkey

Sam Huntington was right to consider Turkey his chief example of a “torn country.” The results of the Sept. 12 vote on the constitutional amendments proposed by the ruling Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party, or AKP, show that officially secular Turkey is torn not just between the East and the West, but that it is also divided… Continue reading

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Discussions in Iran on Policy of Boycotting Israeli Athletes

The affair began when Iranian wrestler Taleb Ne’matpour was forced to withdraw from the World Wrestling Championship in Moscow last week when he was drawn against an Israeli opponent. In an interview given by Mohammad Reza Yazdani-Khorram, head of the Iranian Wrestling Federation, following… Continue reading

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Understanding the Middle East: The Sources of Iranian Negotiating Behavior

This analysis identifies patterns exhibited by the Iranian government and the Iranian people since ancient times. Most importantly, it identifies critical elements of Iranian culture that have been systematically ignored by policymakers for decades… Continue reading

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The Arab League Refuses to Recognize Israel as Jewish State

While negotiations on a future peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians have just been resumed, the Arab League draws a line in support of the Palestinian decision not to recognize a Jewish State. As a consequence, the members of the Arab League will also not… Continue reading

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Trying To Bring Reality Into the Debate On Islam and Islamism

People are fascinated by the discussion over Islam and seem hungry for some honest and accurate analysis on it. So let me continue to try to bring reality into this debate. Now I know too many Muslims and how they act in practice to accept some mechanistic model that they respond like robots to the presence of radical concepts in… Continue reading

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Americans Wake Up to Islamism

The furor over the Islamic center, variously called the Ground Zero Mosque, Cordoba House, and Park51, has large implications for the future of Islam in the United States and perhaps beyond. The debate is as unexpected as it is extraordinary. One would have thought that the event to… Continue reading

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Israel, Islamism and the War Within Islam

I would stress that “Islam” as a religion functioning in the world is not at war with anyone as such. There are those who want to steer Islam toward an active war against how the majority of Muslims live at present and almost all the governments… Continue reading

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Iranian Envoy: Israel-PA Direct Talks Doomed to Failure

The new round of talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority will fail to produce any positive results for the oppressed Palestinian people. The real representatives of the Palestinian people (i.e. Iran’s proxy Hamas) had serious qualms about these negotiations… Continue reading

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Help Us By Telling the Truth

During my last speaking trip, which usually focused on the battle between Islamists and nationalists, there were Arabs or Iranians present at each event who enthusiastically endorsed what I said. In one case, a Palestinian… Continue reading

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Hezbollah and Shia Lebanese TV Channels Broadcast Anti-Christian and Anti-Semitic Series

For the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV and the Shi’ite Amal NBN-TV broadcast “The Christ,” an Iranian-produced series rife with an anti-Christian anti-Semitic expressions. The Lebanese Christians protested the program’s airing and it was taken off… Continue reading

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Media Outlets Miss Critical Analysis of Overhyped Muslim Counter-Radicalization Video

The New York Times, CNN, and other “mainstream media outlets” recently reported on a video that was put out by the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC). The video was dished up by both the Times and CNN with virtually no critical assessment or investigation… Continue reading

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The Real Middle Eastern Cold War

This new Cold War represents the current ideological division in the Middle East between the “revolutionary bloc,” led chiefly by Iran, Syria, and more recently Turkey, and the “status-quo bloc,” led by Saudi Arabia and Egypt… Continue reading

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Some Thoughts on the Ground Zero Mosque

Here are some thoughts, cartoons and youtube video’s on the Ground Zero Mosque controversy. In these days, the issue of the Muslim decision to build a mosque near the place where the crime of… Continue reading

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IDF Soldiers Describe Guarding Checkpoints During Holy Month of Ramadan

Three soldiers recount their training and experiences while working at checkpoints with Palestinians. The soldiers explain how they are taught to respect those crossing through and accommodate them during… Continue reading