News and Analysis (9/2/16)

To civil rights activist Yasser Louati, appointing a non-believing former defence minister to reform Islam in France shows that France treats “Muslims as if they are foreign people who need to be disciplined”  :

• France’s Choice of a Non-Muslim to Head French Islam Foundation Ruffles Feathers (France24)

Islam “inspired many works … considered part of the roots of science fiction” including stories about a trip to the moon, the model for Robinson Crusoe, and “what many consider to be the first feminist science fiction book ever written”:

• The Surprising Intersection of Islam and Scifi (Gizmodo)

[T]he first empirical study into why wearing the veil increases alongside modernisation“ suggests that forcing “Muslim women to stop wearing the veil might … [deprive them of the choice and opportunity to integrate”:

• Muslim Women May Wear Veil ‘to Allow Them to Integrate More’ (Guardian)

A cardinal who thinks he “knows better than the assembled bishops of the Second Vatican Council” wants to resurrect the Crusader mentality:

• Cardinal Burke, Islam and the Crusades (Commonweal)

The deaths of so many IS founders could leave control in the hands of those who passed through the ranks under U.S. occupation and are “more dogmatic, resilient and attuned to local dynamics than previous” leaders:

• Can IS Survive Killings of Its Core Leadership? (BBC)

“The United States is a key ally of Saudi Arabia, which has come under fire from human rights groups over the air strikes that have repeatedly killed civilians in Yemen”:

• Yemen’s Houthi Leader Says U.S. Provides Political Cover for Saudi Strikes (Reuters)

“End to war now seems further away than ever as the Kurds, US and Turkey each have goals that are rarely compatible”:

• Turkey’s Syria Offensive Shows How Each Party Is Fighting Its Own War (Guardian)

ImadadDean