Muqtedar Khan
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CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Muqtedar Khan
Newark, Delaware USA
Dr. Muqtedar Khan currently serves as Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Delaware. He is also the Director of the Islamic Studies Program. He earned his Ph.D. in International Relations, Political Philosophy, and Islamic Political Thought from Georgetown University in May 2000. In 2008, he recieved the an award from Aligarh Muslim University for his service to Islam. Dr. Khan is a Fellow with the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding. He was a Senior Nonresident Fellow with the Brookings Institution [2003-2008] and a Fellow of the Alwaleed Center at Georgetown University [2006-2007]. He has been the President, Vice President and General Secretary of the Association of Muslim Social Scientists. He is the author of American Muslims: Bridging Faith and Freedom (Amana, 2002) and Jihad for Jerusalem: Identity and Strategy in International Relations (Praeger, 2004), Islamic Democratic Discourse (Lexington Books, 2006) and Debating Moderate Islam: The Geopolitics of Islam and the West (University of Utah Press, 2007). Dr. Khan frequently comments on BBC, CNN International, FOX and VOA TV, Bridges TV, NPR and other radio and TV networks. His political commentaries appear regularly in newspapers in over 20 countries, and he has lectured in North America, East Asia, Middle East and Europe. Dr. Khan writes a regular Weblog called Globalog. His articles on Islam and American Muslims can be read at Ijtihad and his commentaries on global politics can be read at Glocaleye. | |
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 | | | Park51 | |
Pride and prejudice By Muqtedar Khan, August 23, 2010 Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf's project to build bridges with America has inadvertently become a lightning rod for hatred. If he succeeds in building his center, it will be a triumph for America and its values. But American Muslims will have to pay a big price for it.  ( 2 comments) |
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 | | | Politics | |
Obama’s historic first victory By Muqtedar Khan, March 24, 2010 While passage of President Barack Obama's health care bill will not alleviate all America's health care problems, it demonstrates to those in the public service that short-term political sacrifices are worth making in pursuit of long-term visions. Perhaps true progress in the Middle East will be next. ( 35 comments) |
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 | | | Dr. Muhammed Tahir ul-Qadri | |
A fatwa that might work By Muqtedar Khan, March 8, 2010 The fatwa against terrorism and terrorists by Dr. Muhammed Tahir ul-Qadri, a very prominent religious scholar from Pakistan, is neither the first, and may not be the last Fatwa of this kind. But it certainly might be the longest and most comprehensive one. ( 8 comments) |
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 | | | Interfaith | |
Prophet Muhammad’s promise to Christians By Muqtedar Khan, January 1, 2010 There exists in the Sinai a document written by the Prophet of Islam that clearly lays out the responsibility Muslims have to protect the Christians that live in their midst. It is a potent reminder of our collective responsibility to look after our neighbors. ( 4 comments) |
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 | | | Interfaith | |
“He was the best of the Jews” By Muqtedar Khan, December 28, 2009 If Muslim Imams told the story of Rabbi Mukhayriq to their congregations in America and elsewhere, I am confident that it will contribute to manifestations of increased tolerance by Muslims towards others. ( 4 comments) |
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 | | | Islam and scholarship | |
Religion and the crisis of authority By Muqtedar Khan, November 4, 2009 Consumers of Islamic religious knowledge and opinions are so illiterate in these matters that they lack the ability to distinguish between genuine scholarship and demagoguery - with tragic and even comic results. ( 8 comments) |
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 | | | Foreign Policy | |
It’s time for action, President Obama By Muqtedar Khan, September 16, 2009 Most analysts in the Muslim World are not giving President Obama due credit for the changes he has brought to American foreign policy, waiting instead to see if he acts differently. But very soon, Obama will have to start delivering results. ( 25 comments) |
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 | | | Mideast Politics | |
One step forward, two steps backward By Muqtedar Khan, June 18, 2009 Both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinajad are ensuring through their recent actions that the peaceful and just solution to the Arab-Israeli problem inspired by President Obama is harder to reach. ( No comments) |
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 | | | Pope Benedict XVI | |
The Pope meddles in the East By Muqtedar Khan, May 18, 2009 It is hard to predict what the Pope has accomplished on his pilgrimage to the Holy Land, which essentially used interfaith relations as a means to mediating international relations. But nevertheless, he spoke with sincerity and faith as he linked justice with peace. ( 4 comments) |
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 | | | Torture | |
Torture is evil, not a forensic technique By Muqtedar Khan, May 8, 2009 According to most experts of torture, barring a few like Dick Cheney, torture is ineffective. If we have to waterboard people hundreds of times, then either torture doesn’t work at all, or we have some really very sadistic and mean people working in our government. ( 34 comments) |
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 | | | Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman | |
Flirting with fascism By Muqtedar Khan, April 24, 2009 For better or for worse, the US has been an incredible friend to Israel. Will Israel prove its friendship to the US or will its current flirtation with fascism undermine this long-standing alliance? ( 3 comments) |
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 | | | Conflict in Gaza | |
Democracy’s moral recession By Muqtedar Khan, January 4, 2009 Unless we wake up and change course very soon, there may be no difference left between democracy and terrorism - and that will be the ultimate victory for terrorism. ( 19 comments) |
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 | | | Terrorism in India | |
The messages from Mumbai By Muqtedar Khan, December 1, 2008 The Saudis have succeeded in reducing terror through dialogue and re-education of youth. In Iraq, the US won over the Iraqis who had joined Al Qaeda through dialogue and political and monetary incentives. Why can't the same creative approach be brought to South Asia? ( 71 comments) |
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 | | | US Elections | |
Our troubled political journey By Muqtedar Khan, November 3, 2008 In the 2008 US Presidential election, American Muslims have no alternative but to vote for Barack Obama. They should do so with an understanding of what has been achieved in the political sphere - and what has not. ( 5 comments) |
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 | | | Election 2008 | |
Mavericks: Action without thought By Muqtedar Khan, October 6, 2008 Peggy Noonan, a strong supporter of Gov. Sarah Palin, gushed in the Wall Street Journal that Palin "is not a person of thought but of action." Action without thought - that is what we will get if we put McCain and Palin in the White House. ( 31 comments) |
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 | | | Terrorism in Pakistan | |
Celebrating Ramadan, jihadi style By Muqtedar Khan, September 23, 2008 In the month of Ramadan, when even frowning is undesirable, some Muslims with poisoned minds have chosen to murder and maim indiscriminately. ( 15 comments) |
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 | | | Pakistan's Pervez Musharraf | |
A prelude to chaos? By Muqtedar Khan, August 20, 2008 General Pervez Musharraf's 1999 military coup was celebrated on the streets in Pakistan and was seen as a coup against Washington, backed on latent anti-Americanism. Not surprisingly, his resignation as President is being seen the same way. ( 2 comments) |
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 | | | US Foreign Policy | |
Time for US-Iran détente By Muqtedar Khan, July 29, 2008 A gesture of friendship from Bush, a surprise visit to Tehran by Rice, or a gift of six passenger aircrafts, should be enough to send Ahmedinajad packing in the elections due in 2009. ( 11 comments) |
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 | | | Gujarat Minister Narendra Modi | |
Hitler’s avatar tries again By Muqtedar Khan, July 16, 2008 Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister of Gujarat in India, is once again seeking a US visa to visit some of his supporters. As before, those who recall his complicity in the 2002 Gujarat riots will endeavour to keep him out. ( 7 comments) |
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 | | | International Diplomacy | |
Global peacemaking without the US By Muqtedar Khan, June 22, 2008 For six decades, the US has been the primary mover behind the emerging global order, as well as its main underwriter. But if the US turned its back to the global order and refused to sustain it, or lost the capacity to do so, would it collapse? ( 6 comments) |
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 | | | Interfaith dialogue | |
The imam and the rabbi By Muqtedar Khan, May 9, 2008 In one evening, we did not solve the great problems that plague US-Islamic or Jewish-Muslim relations. But Jews and Muslims who were there went home a bit more hopeful. ( 3 comments) |
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 | | | Crisis in Pakistan | |
A coup within a coup By Muqtedar Khan, November 5, 2007 Pervez Musharraf's declaration of emergency both derails the latest effort to usher in democracy and brings Pakistan's political stability to the tipping point, emboldening the Islamist opposition in the process. ( 7 comments) |
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 | | | US/Muslim world relations | |
The US-Pakistan tango By Muqtedar Khan & Kamran Bokhari, March 25, 2007 The tangled relationship between Washington and Islamabad has its roots in shortsighted strategies on both sides. But it's still better to be strong allies than adversaries. ( 9 comments) |
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 | | | Terminology | |
Agreeing on a definition of Islamophobia By Muqtedar Khan, December 20, 2006 American Muslims must work with our government to challenge anti-Islamic discourse and correct some of the misunderstandings that the government itself may be harboring. ( 13 comments) |
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 | | | Islam in the West | |
Islam in Oxford By Muqtedar Khan, October 12, 2006 The Muslim population of Oxford is a good example of a well-integrated Muslim community in the West. Other European Muslim communities would do well to follow their lead. ( 9 comments) |
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 | | | War in Iraq | |
There is a third way By Muqtedar Khan, October 2, 2006 So far there are two plans for Iraq: staying the course and scheduling an early withdrawal. In my opinion, neither plan truly safeguard's America's security. ( 21 comments) |
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 | | | Lebanon Crisis | |
Is the US part of the problem? By Muqtedar Khan, July 28, 2006 All major US goals in the region - democracy promotion, support for moderates, winning hearts and minds, undermining support for radicalism - will be buried under Lebanon's debris. ( 2 comments) |
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 | | | Middle East Crisis | |
America fails to defend its interests By Muqtedar Khan, July 14, 2006 An escalation of violence between Israel, Hezbollah, and Hamas serves no one's interests, not even Israel's or Americas. And yet, Arabs and Muslims continue to suffer. ( 48 comments) |
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 | | | Islam in Germany | |
Mosques with foreign flags By Muqtedar Khan, June 1, 2006 With Islamophobia on the rise in most western countries, in your face displays of allegiance to foreign nations can only be described as spectacularly stupid. ( 49 comments) |
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 | | | Islamic thought | |
Two theories of Ijtihad By Muqtedar Khan, March 28, 2006 Muslim societies today have to distinguish between Islam and culture, retain their Islamic essence and reform dysfunctional cultural habits that hinder development. ( 1 comment) |
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 | | | Palestinian Elections | |
In Hamas victory, an opportunity for change By Muqtedar Khan, January 31, 2006 What can be a more spectacular advertisement for the idea that democracy makes politicians out of terrorists than the electoral victory of Hamas in the recent Palestinian elections? ( 1 comment) |
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 | | | Islam in the West | |
Between integration and discrimination By Muqtedar Khan, December 12, 2005 While discrimination against Muslims in America has certainly risen after 9/11, it looked insignificant compared to what Muslims in Belgium face routinely. ( 6 comments) |
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 | | | Fighting extremism | |
Karen Hughes & American Muslims By Muqtedar Khan, September 10, 2005 US policies must change, and if she can communicate that this change is genuine and not cosmetic, then we will see some positive progress. ( 3 comments) |
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 | | | Qur'an desecration | |
Far worse than Abu Ghraib By Muqtedar Khan, May 19, 2005 It will take more than a retraction and another empty "Pentagon enquiry" to ameliorate the anger towards the US that is now felt widely in the Muslim world. ( 11 comments) |
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![]() | | | The politics of headscarves | |
Epistemological hijab By Muqtedar Khan, April 20, 2005 The Hijab has become a site for the cultural struggle between Islam and modernity and between contemporary and traditional interpretations of Islam. ( 4 comments) |
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 | | | Narendra Modi's US Visit | |
American Business & genocide linked again? By Dr. Muqtedar Khan, March 11, 2005 Perhaps "Hotel Gujarat", a film about genocide in India, will open with a shot of Narendra Modi being honored by the Asian American Hotel Owners association. ( 1 comment) |
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 | | | Islam In The West | |
The threat of internal extremism By Muqtedar Khan and John L. Esposito, February 18, 2005 The struggle for acceptance of Islam and Muslims in the West cannot be divorced from the acceptance of the West within its Muslim communities. ( 1 comment) |
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![]() | | | Terror In Darfur | |
Can American Muslims do something? By Muqtedar Khan, July 2, 2004 It began with the indiscriminate use of violence against civilians. Now some Muslims are determined to unleash their venom against other Muslims too. ( 1 comment) |
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altmuslim this week - august 23, 2010 - This week, is there a connection between the heated rhetoric over Park51 and increased hate crimes against Muslims? Also, parallel struggles against anti-Muslim protests in Bradford, England and the innovation (and integration) on display in the 30 Mosques, 30 States and 30 Nights, 30 Grants projects.
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How Miss USA will push the secret Muslim agenda - A leaked memo confirms a nefarious plot to infiltrate America using the one weapon we can't resist: Total hotness. (May 17, 2010)
South Park: The controversy continues - In a special for Salon.com, our Associate Editor Wajahat Ali offers his take on the controversy over South Park. If you think South Park's Muslim brouhaha was messy, you should see what's going on in the neighboring town of East Park. (April 28, 2010)
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altmuslim review 033 - We're baaaaack! We speak about the ongoing controversy over Park51 and what means for the future of lower Manhattan. Also, a discussion with Farhad Chowdhury of the M100 Foundation, which seeks to change the way Muslims pay zakat (August 13, 2010)
altmuslim review 032 - Muslim writers everywhere! We speak about the new wave of Western Muslim literature and interview two authors with recently released books. Our own Irfan Yusuf talks about his memoir, Once Were Radicals and Reza Aslan tells us more about his second book, How to Win a Cosmic War (June 11, 2009)
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Recent and upcoming talks and offsite articles by altmuslim contributors
It's the occupation, stupid, Wajahat Ali, Salon.com, June 4, 2010
Sex and the City 2's stunning Muslim clichés, Wajahat Ali, Salon.com, May 28, 2010
Draw Muhammad Day: Collectively Punishing Muslim Americans, Shahed Amanullah, Huffington Post, May 25, 2010
Shahed will be a guest on the BBC World Service's World, Have Your Say discussing the proposed French ban on niqab (and fines for husbands who compel their wives to wear them) on May 18, 2010.
Even Controversial Views Should Be Protected by Freedom of Speech, Asma Uddin, The Huffington Post, May 7, 2010.
What I understand about Faisal Shahzad, Wajahat Ali, Salon.com, May 6, 2010
No freak out about South Park, Zahed Amanullah, The Guardian, Comment is Free, April 23, 2010.
Shahed will be a guest on the BBC World Service's World, Have Your Say discussing the South Park controversy along with Zarqa Nawaz (Little Mosque on the Prairie) and other guests on April 22, 2010.
Shahed will be a guest on NPR's State of Belief discussing Barack Obama's outreach to the Muslim world, April 17, 2010.
Zahed will be attending a panel discussion entitled " Are Islam and Free Speech Compatible?" in London, England on Friday, March 26, 2010 sponsored by The City Circle. He will be accompanied by Riazat Butt (The Guardian), Hamid Khan (Consultant in Offender and Youth Development), Abu Muntasir (JIMAS), and Dr Usama Hasan.
'Jihad Jane': not the usual suspect, Wajahat Ali, The Guardian, Comment is Free, March 18, 2010.
Al-Awlaki, a new public enemy, Zahed Amanullah, The Guardian, Comment is Free, December 30, 2009.
Islamophonic: Review of the year, Riazat Butt, Zahed Amanullah and David Shariatmadari, Cif Belief (The Guardian), December 18, 2009.
Fort Hood has enough victims already, Wajahat Ali, Comment is Free (The Guardian), November 6, 2009
The pitfalls of filming Muhammad, Shahed Amanullah, The Guardian, Comment is Free, November 4, 2009.
Children of Dust (published by HarperOne, an imprint of HarperCollins), the first book by longtime altmuslim.com contributor Ali Eteraz, is released in the US, Canada, and the UK on October 13, 2009.
Shahed will be attending the m100 Sansoucci Colloquium in Potsdam, Germany, September 14-16, 2009. He will be moderating a panel discussion on the Danish cartoon crisis with Denis MacShane MP, Jasim Al-Azzawi (Al Jazeera English), and Flemming Rose (Jyllands Posten).
Associate Editor Wajahat Ali's play "The Domestic Crusaders" is having its premiere at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York City, NY, September 11, 2009. The play will continue through Sunday, October 11, 2009.
Shahed will be moderating or participating in three panel discussions at the Islamic Society of North America's annual convention, including Muslim Journalists: The View from the Inside, Supporting Social Entrepreneurs and Civic Leaders, and Blogistan: Muslim Americans on the Web in Washington, DC, July 3-6, 2009.
State-sponsored Sufism, Ali Eteraz, Foreign Policy, June 10, 2009.
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Media appearances and analysis featuring altmuslim editors
Helping U.S. reach out to young Muslims worldwide - Soon after Farah Pandith was named last year as the State Department's first special representative to Muslim communities, she sat down with the editor of an independent Muslim website for her first official interview. Altmuslim.com, a forum for opinion and analysis about current issues facing Muslims, was a fitting choice. Pandith has said a strong focus of her work is to reach out to younger Muslims around the world, often those most likely to use the Internet for news and networking. (June 5, 2010)
Censorship is in the ascendant - Zahed Amanullah, associate editor of altmuslim.com, has argued in a national newspaper blog that, since the warning came from an unrepresentative group, the media interest was not justified. As for events of the past – the fatwa on Salman Rushdie, the Danish cartoons, the murder of van Gogh – they were "three incidents over a 20-year period from amongst 1.6 billion people. These things do happen. But we all need a bit of perspective." (April 30, 2010)
Muslims say new security rules unfair, ineffective - ''Muslims are doing their duty. Muslim parents are being attentive. It's the TSA that's not being attentive. It's the TSA that's not doing its duty," said Shahed Amanullah, an editor at the Web site altmuslim.com. "There's nothing more that Muslims can do than turn in their own families." (January 7, 2010)
US Muslims & media… Lost love - "We have a big problem; it’s that other people are shaping the story about us," Shahed Amanullah, editor-in-chief of altmuslim.com, told IslamOnline.net. (December 16, 2009)
Moves to Seize Mosques Spark Outrage - "I'm extremely skeptical that the link between these mosques and this organization is so strong as to merit the seizing of a considerable amount of assets that do a lot of good for the Muslim community," says Shahed Amanullah, a prominent Muslim blogger based in Austin. "The government better be prepared to make a very good case, because this is unprecedented." (November 17, 2009)
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