For the jihadists, Muslim women who embrace Western mores, and wear tight jeans or mini skirts, are hated symbols of corruption that need to be eradicated. For the ideological mentors of Breivik, a similar disturbance comes from the burqa, which is banned in France and Belgium, partly thanks to their efforts. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
What if democracy does not serve liberty? This question is seldom asked in the West, where democracy is often seen as synonymous with liberalism. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
Those who hope to nurture genuine religiosity should first establish liberty. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
There is a heated debate in Turkey these days over whether the government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is furthering democracy or rolling it back. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
The Arab Spring has heightened the ideological tension between Ankara and Tehran, and Turkey’s model seems to be winning. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
While no Muslim worthy of his name would lose his respect for God, the Prophet Muhammad, and other symbols of Islam, he might well refrain from using legal prosecution or violent reaction to those who do not show the same respect. My basis for this claim is nothing other than the holiest source of Islam, the Quran. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
What made al Qaeda retrieve the doctrine of militant jihad, and Breivik the ideas of crusade and reconquest, is a sense of siege. So, we should help both Westerners and Muslims get rid of that sense by easing their political tensions and by fostering dialogue between them. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
Turkey has never been colonized, so it remained as an independent nation after the fall of the Ottoman Empire. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
Disapproving and boycotting is the Quranic thing to do, whereas violence and threats are not. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
The Qur’an not only lacks any earthly punishment for someone who abandons Islam, it even includes verses that imply that such a change of heart should be a matter of free choice. Mustafa Akyol Read Quote
