Dr. Shaker Al-Nabulsi T he Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) mourns the passing of its Board of Advisors member Dr. Shaker Al-Nabulsi, a liberal university professor and author of over 40 books who was a courageous advocate for freedom and reform in the Arab and Muslim world. Over the years MEMRI has translated from Arabic and published many articles by Dr. Al-Nabulsi, as can be seen in the list below. His last article, on the subject of solving the crisis of terrorism, was published ...
In a recent article, Indian columnist Hasan Suroor analyzed the failure of the Arab Spring revolutions to usher in an era of democratic change in Islamic countries, warning that Islam is facing an existential crisis. Following are excerpts from the article, originally in English and published by the liberal Indian daily The Hindu : "With Osama Bin Laden Dead And Al-Qaeda In Disarray, Moderate Muslims Were Set To Reclaim The Much-Maligned Political Islam From Extremists During The Arab Spring ...
In December 2013, two unusual events relating to the Holocaust took place in the Arab world: a first official conference on the Jewish Holocaust was held in Tunisia, dealing with Holocaust of the Jews in that country, and the first visit by an Arab diplomat to a Holocaust memorial site took place as well, when Bahraini ambassador to France Nasser Al-Balushi visited a memorial in Drancy, near Paris. It should be mentioned that on July 27, 2012, Ziad Al-Bandak, the Christian affairs advisor to PA ...
In a January 2, 2014 article titled "Quenelle: Courage Or Reverse Nazi Salute?" on the gesture invented and promoted by the French antisemitic comedian Dieudonné Mbala Mbala, 1 – a combination of the French bras d'honneur "up yours" gesture and an inverted Nazi salute – the Iranian regime Press TV outlet wrote that the gesture actually looks like "someone brushing lint off their sleeve." This comparison hints at the "brush your shoulder" gesture in American rapper Jay-Z's 2003 song "Dirt Off ...
The following are some of this week's reports from the MEMRI Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Project, which translates and analyzes content from sources monitored around the clock – among them the most important jihadi websites and blogs. (To view these reports in full, you must be a paying member of the JTTM; for membership information, send an email to jttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.) Note to media and government: For a full copy of these reports, send an ...
Introduction French comedian Dieudonné M'bala M'bala, whose comedy has long centered around antisemitic, anti-Zionist, and revisionist themes, has had numerous convictions for defamation, in both France and in Canada, and has had shows cancelled in Canada and in Belgium. 1 In January 2014, his antisemitic show "Le Mur" was cancelled across France. 2 Dieudonne is also known for his invention and popularization of the use of the quenelle, a sort of reverse Nazi salute; the use of the gesture has ...
Top Iranian spokesmen have been depicting the Geneva deal as an Iranian victory over the U.S. and the other superpowers. Following are excerpts from their statements: Iranian President Rohani: The Superpowers Have Surrendered To Iran On January 14, 2014, in a speech in Ahwaz, in southeastern Iran, Iranian President Hassan Rohani said: "In a few days, the Geneva agreement will be implemented. Do you know what the Geneva agreement is? It means the superpowers' surrender to the great Iranian ...
On January 8, 2014, Iran's President Hassan Rohani published a column on the website project-syndicate.org stating that Iran seeks to improve its bilateral relations with the U.S. and with European countries. The very next day, January 9, 2014, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei delivered a speech in Qom in which he described the U.S. as an "enemy" and "Satan." His words were accompanied by the crowd's chants of "Death to America." 1 ( For part of Khamenei's speech, see MEMRI TV Clip 4100 .) ...
Introduction This is an initial paper analyzing the ramifications for the Middle East of the Joint Plan of Action signed in Geneva by Iran and the 5+1 group on November 24, 2013, and the roots of the U.S.'s policy change that led to this deal. This policy change concerns not only Iran, but also the entire Arab and Muslim world. This paper focuses on very recent developments and on the crystallization of historic changes. It does not presume to explain the entire spectrum of events in the Middle ...
