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.

A six years old child was beheaded in Saudi Arabia – Shia Rights Watch

A six years old child was beheaded in Saudi Arabia In an unprecedented incident, a six years old boy was beheaded in front of her mother after he was confirmed to be Shia. The mother and her son took cab to visit the shrine of Prophet Muhammad in Medina.

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Papal visit boosts UAE effort to redefine concepts of tolerance

There is no doubt that the UAE is a leader in the Muslim world in promoting concepts of religious tolerance and prevention of religiously packages militancy. In hosting the pope as the star of an inter-faith dialogue organized by the UAE-sponsored Council of Elders, entitled International Interfaith Meeting on Human Fraternity in the United Arab Emirates, the UAE hopes to cement its position as the icon of Muslim tolerance.

Bahrain: Unabated Repression

(Beirut) – Bahrain cracked down on peaceful dissent during 2018, virtually eliminating all opposition, Human Rights Watch said today in releasing its World Report 2019 . No independent media were allowed to operate in the country in 2018, and ahead of parliamentary elections in November, parliament banned members of dissolved opposition parties from being able to run .

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.

Look Who’s Talking: Sectarianism, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia

Contact: Christopher Denbow T:202-466-9500 Wednesday, 2 July 2014 Washington, DC – The Institute for Gulf Affairs released a comparative analysis on sectarianism and marginalization in Iraq and Saudi Arabia. This 20-page analysis takes into consideration the recent allegations of sectarianism and marginalization against the Iraqi government made by the Saudi Foreign Minister Saud AlFaisal, ironically, one of the most sectarian Saudi officials.

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.

Saudi security operation kills two in Shi’ite town: TV

DUBAI (Reuters) – Two people were killed and others arrested in a “preemptive” security operation in Saudi Arabia’s eastern Qatif province, Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television said on Tuesday. Violence in the area has become more rare since security forces largely flushed out Shi’ite Muslim gunmen in a 2017 campaign that left much of the town’s old quarter flattened.

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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Bahrain’s Unending Shia Repression

by Emile Nakhleh Amid the Saudi-caused horrific human tragedy in Yemen and the ongoing investigation into the premeditated murder of Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, …