The Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu reached out to Aung San Suu Kyi, Chairperson of the National League for Democracy (NLD) in Myanmar, and Nobel Peace Laureate, to play a positive role in bringing an end to the violence that has afflicted Arakan State. In a letter to Suu Kyi, the OIC leader wrote: As a Nobel Peace Laureate, we are confident that the first step of your journey towards ensuring peace in the world would start from your own...

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) on June 30 welcomed a decision by the U.S. military to stop using a target depicting a Muslim woman wearing a religious head scarf (hijab) and verses from the Qur’ān to train Navy SEALs at the new close quarters combat range at Joint Base Fort Story in Virginia Beach, Va. The Navy made the announcement after the Washington-based Muslim civil rights organisation sent a letter to Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta ...

The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (IITFC) pledged support to bolster relations and boost Egyptian economy, with billion-dollar deal already signed on July 1 in Cairo. Egypt’s President Mohamed Morsi on July 2 received at the presidential palace in Heliopolis – Cairo, Dr. Walid Wuhaib, Executive Chairman of IITFC, an affiliate of IDB, and the delegation accompanying him, in the presence of Ms. Faiza Abul-Naga, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation. Th...

Crowds of joyful Libyans, some with tears in their eyes, parted with the legacy of Muammar Gaddafi on July 7 as they voted in the first free national election in 60 years. But in the eastern city of Benghazi, cradle of last year’s uprising and now seeking more autonomy from the interim government, protesters stormed polling stations and burned hundreds of ballot papers. Libyans are choosing a 200-member assembly which will elect a prime minister and cabinet before laying the ground for ...

A world meeting on Syria on July 6 urged the UN to use the threat of sanctions to force change in Syria as President Bashar Assad was rocked by the defection of one of his most senior generals. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also rounded on Russia and China, telling delegates from over 100 countries gathered in Paris that the two veto-wielding UN Security Council members were blocking progress toward peace. The “Friends of Syria” meeting insisted that Assad would have to qu...

Islam’s two holy mosques are witnessing the largest ever expansion in their history.
After launching the massive expansion works of the Grand Mosque in Makkah in Ramadhan last year, King Abdullah has now issued an order to expand the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah, a move described as “unprecedented”. Under the move, the central Haram area will be expanded threefold. Once the three-phase expansion is completed, the mosque will have a total area of 1.1 million squar...