In a Pure Muslim Land | Simon Wolfgang Fuchs | University of North Carolina Press

“Challenges common assumptions about Shi’i Muslims, focusing less on Iran and more on Pakistan…Those who wade into the depth of Fuchs’s impeccable scholarship will find a nuanced picture of the debate in Pakistan about the ideal Muslim state in the modern world.”– Publishers Weekly “Exciting, stimulating, and convincing, this richly conceived study of the Shi’a in the Indian subcontinent raises crucial points about transnational links, religious authority, and doctrinal positioning.

Untold Stories, The Suffering of Shia Muslims – Shia Rights Watch

Annual report of Anti-Shiism around the Globe This report reflects investigative work Shia Rights Watch staff undertook in 2018 Shia Rights Watch 2018 Annual Report_2 Size: 1.37 mb Format : PDF Preview Introduction Parallel to the rise of coverage of the Shia identity came to an increased need for recognition for the dynamics of …

At least 20 killed in market blast in Pakistani city of Quetta

At least 20 people were killed in the Pakistani city of Quetta on Friday, after a bomb blast ripped through a fruit market.

See also al-Jazeera.
See also BBC.

Balochistan: A powder keg at a geopolitical crossroads

Balochistan should be oozing with optimism as Chinese and Saudi investment pours into the troubled Pakistani province. It is not. Instead, Balochistan, a key node in China’s Belt and Road initiative that borders Iran, is gripped by anger, fear and uncertainty.

The Middle East’s Great Divide Is Not Sectarianism

The spectre of sectarianism haunts the Middle East. It is blamed for chaos, conflict, and extremism. It defines what is seen as the region’s principal fault line: Sunni versus Shiite. It has the power and elegance of a grand theory that seemingly explains all.

South Asian Geopolitics: Saudi Arabia: 1 Iran: 0?

Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi seemed to fine tune the officer’s statement by not mentioning Yemen in his remarks to the Saudi paper and limiting Pakistan’s commitment to the kingdom itself. “If anyone would create chaos in or attack the Kingdom, Pakistan would stand by its brethren Saudi Arabia,” Mr. Qureishi said.

Geopolitics, the black swan in Saudi-Indian relations – Firstpost

When Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets Prime Minister Narendra Modi next week, the elephant in the room is likely to be what weighs more: the issues the two men agree on or the ones that divide them.

Incidents of Anti-Shiism in November, 2018 – Shia Rights Watch

Shia rights violations continued in November. Anti-Shia incidents were witnessed in some countries. Most violation reports are from Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Anti-Shia violations, including but not limited to, imprisonment, physical and emotional torture, limited or no access to medical assistance, hate speech, explosion, and executions.

Managing minefields: Saudi/UAE aid puts Pakistan-Iran relations on the spot

Pakistan is traversing minefields as it concludes agreements on investment, balance of payments support and delayed payment oil deliveries with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates worth USD$13 billion that are likely to fawn growing distrust in its relations with neighbouring Iran.

Indian Muslims: A rich hunting ground for Middle Eastern rivals

By James M. Dorsey

When President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently declared that Turkey was “the only country that can lead the Muslim world ” he probably wasn’t only thinking of Middle Eastern and other Islamic states such as Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Increasingly, there is evidence that Indian Muslims, the Islamic world’s fourth largest community after Indonesia and the South Asian states, is on Mr. Erdogan’s radar.

Mr. Erdogan’s interest in Indian Muslims highlights the flip side of a shared Turkish and Indian experience: the rise of religious parties and leaders with a tendency towards authoritarianism in non-Western democracies that, according to Turkey and India scholar Sumantra Bose, calls into question their commitment to secularism.

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