Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

Media ID: 55326190
Caption:

A picture taken on October 25, 2013 shows members of jihadist group Al-Nusra Front taking part in a parade calling for the establishment of an Islamic state in Syria, at the Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood of Aleppo. (AFP/Karam Al-Masri)

Opinion: The Second Fitna

by Mshari Al-Zaydi | May 7, 2014 | Opinion

Are we in the Arab world currently living through the era of the Second Fitna (tribulation), or a new phase of post-Arab Spring democracy? The First Fitna, of course, was the period of major unrest in the early days of Islam over the assassination of the third Caliph,...

Media ID: 55290272
Caption:

A French soldier checks passengers of a transport truck arriving in Gao, northern Mali, Thursday Feb. 14, 2013. Malian forces have stepped up security around the port an the main market, in an effort to stop the infiltration of rebel fighters in the town. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)

Another Fitna

by Hussein Shobokshi | Feb 11, 2013 | Opinion

Extremism is currently in a very good state; it is experiencing a golden age and is expanding geographically. It has emerged from the tunnels and the caves and has become a part of public life, even acquainting itself with media outlets. It has established parties,...