Are Muslim religious conservatism and political Islam making a comeback?
Little did Elianu Hia know that a video he posted on Facebook in early 2021 would shape Indonesian policy and turn his life upside...
Sudan tests the limits of Middle Eastern de-escalation
With Saudi-hosted talks to end Sudan fighting producing minimal results and Arab states supporting rival forces, de-escalation in the Middle East faces a major...
Middle Eastern rivalries are alive and kicking despite de-escalation
Middle Eastern battlegrounds are alive and kicking even though rivals seek to balance contentious relations.
Take efforts by the United Arab Emirates, and more recently...
Is Central Asia and the Caucasus the Indo-Pacific’s next stop?
America to the rescue. In a twist of irony, that may be Central Asia's only alternative, with the Russian invasion of Ukraine upsetting the...
Syrian President Al-Assad plays a strong hand in diplomatic poker
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has put restoration of control of all of Syria at the core of efforts to manage multiple Middle Eastern rivalries...
Shaping a 21st-century world order: The nation-state vs the civilizational state
US President Joe Biden positions the Ukraine war as a battle between autocracy and democracy. That reduces what is at stake in the war....
Anglican schism is not just about theology. It’s about geopolitics too
A schism that could tear the Anglican church apart is about more than LGBTQ rights. It's about fundamental cultural and religious differences with potentially...
Confronting problematic tenets of religious law: Judaism could follow Islam
Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and others have been comfortable for over two decades. Post-9/11, international attention focused on perceived Islam problems that supposedly breed violence.
What...
Religion inspired the nation-state, but politics made the difference
Think that the modern nation-state originated with the emergence of the 17th-century beginnings of the era of science and reason? Think again.
In a recently...
Sports are a potential bellwether of how Middle Eastern states manage their differences
Renewed controversy over Saudi ownership of English Premier League club Newcastle United suggests the kind of opposition the kingdom may encounter as it bids...