By Rafia Zakaria It is often offered as a solution to the problem of destitute women. If every man married four of them, some have stated, then all women would have a male guardian, a protector, someone to support them. The reality of polygamy, however, is often neither this neat nor this simple. Last week, The National, a leading newspaper …

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Friday announced that Canadian fighter jets will participate in the battle against Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq for six months. Harper told the Canadian parliament to send air-to-air refueling airplanes as well as two surveillance airplanes to the region. Harper, however, did not mention how many jets will take part in the campaign, …

The European Union on Friday said that Israel’s plans for building new settlement houses in East Jerusalem posed a threat to peace in the region and Israel’s relations with the EU, joining the US in its criticism of Israel’s decision – Germany, France and the US have all called Israel out on the planned settlement blocs. “This represents a further …

The following are some interesting figures from September: It will cost  $7.8  billion to reconstruct Gaza, according to a study by the Palestinian Authority. 43 members of the elite intelligence-gathering Unit 8200 of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) sent a letter to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stating their refusal to serve in reserve duty in Palestine. The refuseniks decried many tactics …

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu promised that his government will do whatever it can to stop Islamic State (IS) militants from capturing the Syrian Kurdish town Kobane, saying that the Turkish Parliament has approved military action in Syria. The IS has been advancing towards the town of Ain al-Arab, known among the Kurds as Kobane, which lies close to the …

By Ramzy Baroud What if the so-called Islamic State (IS) didn’t exist? In order to answer this question, one has to liberate the argument from its geopolitical and ideological confines. Flexible Language Many in the media (Western, Arab, etc) use the reference “Islamist” to brand any movement at all whether it be political, militant or even charity-focused. If it is …

Extremist group Islamic State (IS) on Thursday attacked Iraqi bases in two towns in western Iraq, leaving over 40 extremists and 17 security force personnel dead, medical and security sources said. Four soldiers and seven policemen were killed when IS militants attacked police headquarters of the town of Heet, while another six security force members were killed in an attack …

Top Muslim leaders in Oklahoma City are fearful for their life after the beheading of a Vaughan Foods staffer last week in Moore. 30-year-old Alton Nolen has been accused of killing 54-year-old Vaughn Foods employee Colleen Hufford and for attacking two other people last Thursday after he was suspended from his job for using racial slurs. Tensions flared up in …

Islamic State (IS) fighters in Iraq are inflicting shocking human rights violations that could amount to war crimes, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said on Thursday. “The array of violations and abuses perpetrated by ISIL and associated armed groups is staggering, and many of their acts may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity”, …

On Wednesday, over 30 Syrian school-going children were killed in a double bombing carried out by a lone assailant in regime-controlled city Homs, the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights said. The monitor said that at least 39 people had died in the attack on a school in the Akrameh neighborhood of Homs. “At least 30 children were among 39 people …