Muqtedar Khan

A few days ago, I was in Ankara having a conversation with a senior adviser to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. As we were talking, I heard a loud bang outside his office window, as if someone had fired a gun nearby. Needless to say, I was startled, but...

The month of February is celebrated as Black History Month in America. It is also during this month that Malcolm X, an African American Muslim minister and civil rights activist, died in 1965. His legacy is important for Muslims and non-Muslims alike -- and one that has influenced

"Indeed, Allah and His angels shower blessings on the Prophet. O you who believe! Ask blessings on him and salute him with a worthy salutation (Qu'ran 33:56)."

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is deeply revered in the Islamic tradition. Every time Muslims mention his name and every time...

Islam has become an important part of American discourse leading up to the 2012 federal elections and candidates everywhere appear eager to take a position on Islam for political gain.

Across the country, rising Islamophobia has made it difficult for some Muslims to build mosques and practice their...

"The America of today has its roots in the India of Mahatma Gandhi" -- Barack Obama

Thursday January 26th was Republic Day; one of India's two major national holidays. India became independent in 1947, but its constitution was ratified on this day in 1950.

India, the biggest...

I spent the day of the elections, November 25, in two cities; the first half in Marrakesh and the second half in Casablanca. What stood out at once was the obvious lack of excitement or interest in the elections amongst most people. The media talk shows and op-Ed pages are...

The Chateau was very elegant. It was impressive without being ostentatious. As I got out of the car and took a look at it, I thought it was worth making the long trip from the U.S. to Meru, France, a picturesque hamlet outside Paris, to learn and teach in such...

Newark, Delaware - A superficial study of the media coverage in the past two years conveys a misleading picture about the state of American Muslims and their relationship with the rest of the nation. The terrible attack on Fort Hood by Major Nidal Malik Hasan, the attempted June 2010 bombing...

There's hidden sweetness in the stomach's emptiness.
We are lutes, no more, no less.
If the soundbox is stuffed full of anything, no music.
If the brain and belly are burning clean with fasting,
every moment a new song comes out of the fire.
...

I was in Tunis last week participating in a conference that brought together the main political viewpoints now competing for ascendancy in Tunisia. Several American scholars who study transitions to democracy or Islam and politics were also there. The conference was organized by the Center for the...

President Obama announced that a small team of American Special Forces had killed Osama bin Laden and taken his body into custody. Apparently bin Laden was living in a palatial home not far from Pakistan's capital Islamabad.

The news came as a relief and as a satisfaction to Americans who...

President Obama has become the target of a lot of criticism from the Republicans in the U.S. and from many anti-West critics in Europe and the Arab World. The criticisms present a plethora of reasons why the U.S. should not have intervened in the Libyan civil war. These criticisms also...

Saudi Arabia has taken the unprecedented decision to become an imperial power opposed to reform and change.

It has now

We are witnessing the rebirth of the Arab World.

Mubarak resigns and with him ends the age of dictators, repressions and lack of freedom in Egypt. If Egypt becomes democratic, it does not have to become a perfect democracy overnight, it will suffice that it begins transition to democracy in...

Allah will not change a condition of a people, until they change themselves (Quran 13:11).

This is a pivotal moment in the current history of the Arab World. If Egypt is transformed, it will transform the region.

Egypt is the moral and intellectual leader of the Arab World. It sets...

WikiLeaks is in the process of dramatically transforming foreign affairs and international relations. It is revealing over 250,000 cables from US embassies worldwide to the State department and other classified documents. The consequences of this 'mega-scoop' will be very far reaching indeed.

For the United States the...