× Register Login What's New! Contact us
Page 2 of 7 First 1 2 3 4 ... Last
Results 21 to 40 of 125 visibility 58736

US dictating Saudi religious policy

  1. #1
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    Full Member Array سيف الله's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Reputation
    6120
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    US dictating Saudi religious policy (OP)


    Salaam

    Most interesting. Who controls the Sauds?



    DKg7EuTXcAARRGL 1large - US dictating Saudi religious policy

    - - - Updated - - -

    Salaam

    Wow its already having an effect

    Mecca imam slammed for claiming Trump 'steering world to peace'

    Abdul Rahman al-Sudais claims Saudi Arabia and US are leading world to peace and security, sparking outcry on social media



    We have to raise the question whether the Sauds are worthy of being the Custodians of the two holy sites.

  2. #21
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Report bad ads?

    Salaam

    Another comment piece

    Mohammed bin Salman's reforms can't disguise the grim Saudi reality

    The current wave of arrests in Saudi Arabia is part of a larger pattern setting the stage for Mohammed Bin Salman to assume power under a new social contract. The consequences for the kingdom could be huge

    While the world - and global media - have been very taken by Saudi Arabia's announcement of lifting the ban on women driving, other more important developments taking place in the kingdom have not made global headlines. A fresh round of illegal detentions that has taken place recently included judges, preachers and media pundits as well as 21 Saudis for posting dissenting material on social media.

    This is not the first time that Saudi public figures have been arrested and detained in undisclosed prisons without committing any crime. In mid-September Amnesty International issued a statement concerning a "wave of arrests" that included more than 20 figures, among them notable preachers well known and respected beyond Saudi Arabia.

    Any specialist who follows Saudi policies will understand that the current crackdown is part of a larger pattern, whereby the new king to be, Mohammed Bin Salman, is setting the stage for himself to rule on a different platform from his predecessors who used religion as their primary legitimating paradigm.

    International and local distractions

    Last month, calls on social media for protests on 15 September, that were mainly against the economic austerity policies and corruption in the kingdom, were hardly surprising. In the second quarter of this year, the unemployment rate in Saudi Arabia jumped to 12.8 percent, while joblessness is more than 28 percent among Saudis aged between 20 and 29 years old.

    This is a contrast to the optimistic economic plans laid out in "Vision 2030".

    Saudi authorities did not only use the lifting of the ban on women driving as a local and international distraction, but also the commemoration of the 87th National Day of Saudi Arabia on 23 September served a similar purpose. The day, celebrated differently this year than in previous years, was marked by public raves, mixing of genders, dancing and singing. Such scenes were previously unthinkable for Saudi Arabia.

    While lifting the ban on women driving would have been unimaginable a decade ago, Saudi authorities have gone much further by announcing in August its Sharia-free Red Sea resorts, an obvious contradiction to the nature of the political legitimacy in the kingdom.

    Giving in to US pressure

    Saudi Arabia is indeed witnessing a trend of eroding religious influence that manifests itself in many ways. One such example is the curbing of the powers of the Committee for Propagating Good and Forbidding Evil, more popularly known as the "religious police", while at the same time boosting the newly formed General Authority for Entertainment.

    After all, Saudi Arabia has just managed to dodge the American Justice Against Sponsored Terrorism Act (JASTA), and has been fervently trying to prove its moderation to US President Donald Trump and his administration. Trump, who demonised Islam and was the Saudis' least favoured candidate in the US presidential elections, was later appeased at the Arab Islamic American Summit in Riyadh.

    Trump considerably changed his tone on Islam on his return to the US with Saudi deals worth billions. Whether this materialises or not is another issue, but Trump promised the Americans many jobs and economic benefits.

    One could speak more on Saudi compliance with American pressures to change its educational system, curb its charity work and Islamic education abroad. However it would be suffice to quote US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson speaking about Saudi Arabia in his confirmation hearing:

    "These are centuries long differences that doesn't mean that we can’t affect them to change…the pace has been slow, slower than any of us wish. There is a change underway in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia… What I do believe is, it is moving in the direction we want it to move."

    Recently, the handing over of the two Egyptian islands, Tiran and Sanafir, to Saudi Arabia, was in fact a highly significant move by Saudi Arabia (and Egypt) toward Israel. The two islands have no strategic value for Saudi Arabia. In fact, the biggest geostrategic winner of the deal is Israel, as the Gulf of Aqaba will become an international water way where it can sail through freely.

    Additionally, as reported last May by the Wall Street Journal, the GCC countries have offered better relations with Israel in addition to talks about possible secret economic negotiations. There have also been recent rumours that a Saudi prince has visited Israel. Not to mention Bahrain’s rather bold move towards normalisation with Israel that must have had a Saudi seal of approval.

    Consequences

    Saudi Arabia has clearly yielded to American pressure and is publicly beating around the bush when it comes to Israel. It has chosen to give in to pressure from abroad and face down any domestic backlash.

    While the current crackdown recalls a similar wave of arrests in the 1990s, the present situation is rather different: the religious establishment is not remotely as respected as it was under the former Saudi Mufti Bin Baz, who was esteemed by regime opponents although he promoted the state's legitimacy.

    Back then there was no social media to express dissent and generally the region was much more stable. Furthermore the House of Saud was not fundamentally altering the social contract that the kingdom was built upon.

    As the regime continues to erode its Islamic legitimacy, impose austerity policies and silences dissent, the future of Saudi Arabia looks grim.

    http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/how-saudi-arabia-shooting-itself-foot-378177986
    chat Quote

  3. Report bad ads?
  4. #22
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update.

    Saudi scholar: Women need not wear abaya robes

    A senior religious scholar in Saudi Arabia has said women should not have to wear the loose-fitting abaya robe to cover up their bodies in public. Sheikh Abdullah al-Mutlaq, a member of the Council of Senior Scholars - the highest religious body in the country - made the remark in an interview with a local broadcaster on Friday.

    "More than 90 percent of pious Muslim women in the Muslim world do not wear abayas. So we should not force people to wear abayas," he said.

    The call was received with mixed reaction on social media.

    Translation: "Sheikh Abdullah al-Mutlaq must appear on television to fully clarify his remark and take back this peculiar fatwa (religious decree)."

    Some users agreed with the fatwa.

    Translation: "He is right, the abaya is only [mandatory] here, but, in every other Islamic country, veiled women only wear loose clothing rather than an abaya."

    Currently, the robe is mandatory for women in Saudi Arabia, and there is no indication that the custom might change.

    Saudi Arabia has some of the world's tightest restrictions on women, despite ambitious government reforms aimed at boosting female employment. Last month, women were allowed to watch football in stadiums in some cities, and a driving ban was lifted last year, but women are still unable to do many things without their male guardian's permission. Some of the restrictions include applying for a passport, travelling abroad, enrolling in university and getting married, as well as opening a bank account, starting certain businesses and getting optional surgeries. According to the law, they must also be accompanied by a guardian at all times when in public.

    http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/02/saudi-scholar-women-wear-abaya-robes-180211070022064.html
    chat Quote

  5. #23
    فصيح الياسين's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    Full Member
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
    Location
    pakistan
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    459
    Threads
    5
    Rep Power
    57
    Rep Ratio
    11
    Likes Ratio
    33

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    format_quote Originally Posted by Junon View Post
    Salaam

    Another update.

    Saudi scholar: Women need not wear abaya robes

    A senior religious scholar in Saudi Arabia has said women should not have to wear the loose-fitting abaya robe to cover up their bodies in public. Sheikh Abdullah al-Mutlaq, a member of the Council of Senior Scholars - the highest religious body in the country - made the remark in an interview with a local broadcaster on Friday.

    "More than 90 percent of pious Muslim women in the Muslim world do not wear abayas. So we should not force people to wear abayas," he said.

    The call was received with mixed reaction on social media.

    Translation: "Sheikh Abdullah al-Mutlaq must appear on television to fully clarify his remark and take back this peculiar fatwa (religious decree)."

    Some users agreed with the fatwa.

    Translation: "He is right, the abaya is only [mandatory] here, but, in every other Islamic country, veiled women only wear loose clothing rather than an abaya."

    Currently, the robe is mandatory for women in Saudi Arabia, and there is no indication that the custom might change.

    Saudi Arabia has some of the world's tightest restrictions on women, despite ambitious government reforms aimed at boosting female employment. Last month, women were allowed to watch football in stadiums in some cities, and a driving ban was lifted last year, but women are still unable to do many things without their male guardian's permission. Some of the restrictions include applying for a passport, travelling abroad, enrolling in university and getting married, as well as opening a bank account, starting certain businesses and getting optional surgeries. According to the law, they must also be accompanied by a guardian at all times when in public.

    http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/0...070022064.html
    What ever this news is. We would not confirm this came from scholars of islam through news except any Saudi person confirm this... and also enlighten us that scholar character. Or else this is nothing but division between ummah
    US dictating Saudi religious policy

    قال النبي محمد صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم:*الـحياءُ شُعْبَةٌ مِنَ الاِيِمَانِ*
    و قال ايضا:*الحياء لاياتى الا بخير
    و قال ايضا:*اذا لم تستحي،فاصنع ما شئت*
    chat Quote

  6. #24
    azc's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldskool
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    7,057
    Threads
    391
    Rep Power
    69
    Rep Ratio
    34
    Likes Ratio
    35

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    format_quote Originally Posted by فصيح الياسين View Post
    What ever this news is. We would not confirm this came from scholars of islam through news except any Saudi person confirm this... and also enlighten us that scholar character. Or else this is nothing but division between ummah
    some scholars can say anything...
    US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Allah (swt) knows best
    chat Quote

  7. Report bad ads?
  8. #25
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    Saudi cleric endorses Valentine's Day

    Roses on sale in kingdom as Ahmad Qassim Al Ghamdi describes celebration as 'positive social event'


    Riyadh:
    A prominent Saudi cleric on Wednesday endorsed Valentine’s Day, long forbidden in the kingdom, calling it a “positive social event” that was not linked to religion. The comment from Ahmad Qassim Al Ghamdi, former chief of the Makkah religious police, comes as 32-year-old Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman pursues a far-reaching liberalisation drive that has upended years of conservative tradition.

    “It is a positive social event and congratulating people for it is not against sharia (law),” Al Ghamdi told Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television.

    “It is an act of kindness to share greetings on Western national and social holidays, including Valentine’s Day, exchange red roses with others, as long as it is towards peaceful people who do not share animosity or are being at war with Muslims.”

    Such comments from the Saudi clerical establishment would be inconceivable around two years ago, when the religious police wielded unbridled powers and were notorious for enforcing sex segregation. In recent years, Saudi Arabia launched a series of reforms, including gradually diminishing the their powers to arrest. Prince Mohammad, who has vowed to return the country to “moderate Islam”, has further cut back the political role of hardline clerics in a historic reordering of the Saudi state.

    Florists openly sold red roses and Valentine’s Day memorabilia in cities such as Jeddah on Wednesday without any trouble from the religious police, previously notorious for disrupting celebrations. The declining presence of the religious police has been met with relief from many of the country’s young, but it has also sparked concern over a possible backlash from arch-conservatives.

    http://m.gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-arabia/saudi-cleric-endorses-valentine-s-day-1.2173978

    Comment


    A prominent Saudi cleric Ahmed Qassim al-Ghamdi, endorsed 'Valentine's Day' a 'positive social event' that is not linked to religion and does not go against sharia law.

    The government 'Clerics' who obey regimes that make their political & ideological qibla the US, UK or France and who may never have heard of Valentine's Day until this year - suddenly make it permissible just after Trump visited their masters, Tillerson said he's gonna rewrite the syllabus, MBS launches his liberal drive and one of his mates vetoes abayas.

    Prince Mohammed, who has vowed to return the country to a disease calls "moderate Islam," has further cut back the political role of hardline clerics in a historic reordering of the Saudi state. This so called social reform liberalising Muslim men and women to openly socialise in the public and emulate the western lifestyle, will create future social problem as seen happening in the west.

    Bayhaqi reported that Adiyy ibn Hatim, said: “I came to the Prophet wearing a cross of gold in my neck. And I heard him read from Surah Baraa’ah,

    اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ
    “They took the rabbis and monks as lords beside Allah” - (TMQ: Surah At-Tawba 9:31)

    I said, “O RasulAllah, they do not worship them. He said:

    أجل ولكن يحلون لهم ما حرم الله فيستحلونه ويحرمون عليهم ما أحل الله فيحرمونه فتلك عبادتهم لهم»
    “Yes, but they made Halal for them what Allah forbade and they took it as Halal and they made Haram for them what Allah made Halal and they took it as Haraam and that is how they worshiped them.”

    Today, when our sons and daughters have collectively rejected this kufr sholiday, why is it that the government is insisting on projecting a very small westernized minority as an ideal for the youth to follow?

    Whether one looks at the history of ‘Valentine’s Day’ or ignores it, this is aptly clear that it has nothing to do with the Islamic civilization. Islam organizes the relationship of man and women through the institution of marriage; after this clear injunction of Islam, what the excuse does the government have for celebrating such an immoral festival on state television, radio and universities?

    In the West on Valentine’s Day, students unions distribute free contraceptives, alcohol prices are reduced and a wave of sexual promiscuity erupts. This is the society which our rulers, blind followers of the west, wish to create in this country.

    The fruits of this sexual perversion are spread everywhere in the west; where the fatherless children are involved in drugs, gangs and criminal activities. AIDS is destroying the society from within and a woman is dishonored every few minutes. Whilst the torment of the last day that awaits these followers of Satan is even worse. Allah سبحانه وتعالى says in the Qur’an:

    وَلاَ تَقْرَبُواْ الزِّنَى إِنَّهُ كَانَ فَاحِشَةً وَسَاء سَبِيلاً
    “Nor come near to adultery: for it is a shameful (deed) and an evil, opening the road (to other evils).” [TMQ: Sura Isra’a:32]

    Thus by virtue of this ayah, not only adultery rather any action that leads towards this wicked act also becomes Haraam. ‘Valentine’s day’ and similar festivities are created for the sake of depravation and degradation of the society. We call upon all Muslims especially the youth to boycott this government backed kufr holiday and raise their voice against it.

    https://www.facebook.com/AlKhilafahGlobal/posts/1230627407072255
    Last edited by سيف الله; 02-16-2018 at 09:51 PM.
    chat Quote

  9. #26
    azc's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldskool
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    7,057
    Threads
    391
    Rep Power
    69
    Rep Ratio
    34
    Likes Ratio
    35

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Did this shaykh himself participate in valentine's day celebration...?
    | Likes فصيح الياسين liked this post
    chat Quote

  10. #27
    فصيح الياسين's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    Full Member
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
    Location
    pakistan
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    459
    Threads
    5
    Rep Power
    57
    Rep Ratio
    11
    Likes Ratio
    33

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    format_quote Originally Posted by azc View Post
    Did this shaykh himself participate in valentine's day celebration...?
    Hahahaaha

    Sent from my GT-I9301I using IslamicBoard mobile app
    US dictating Saudi religious policy

    قال النبي محمد صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم:*الـحياءُ شُعْبَةٌ مِنَ الاِيِمَانِ*
    و قال ايضا:*الحياء لاياتى الا بخير
    و قال ايضا:*اذا لم تستحي،فاصنع ما شئت*
    chat Quote

  11. #28
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    All that jazz: Saudis attend country’s first jazz festival

    While some showed up out of a love for jazz, many came to enjoy the chance to hear music at an outdoor event, with food trucks, a vintage car display and a relaxed atmosphere


    Men and women swayed to music at Saudi Arabia’s first-ever jazz festival on Friday, the second of a three-day outdoor event that showcases the Kingdom’s recent efforts of shedding its conservative image.

    Locals and foreigners flocked to the festival to watch bands from Riyadh, Beirut and New Orleans. The crowd sang along when Lebanon’s Chady Nashef performed the Eagles’ “Hotel California” – an unusual moment in the Islamic country after the religious police last year condemned concerts that feature singing as harmful and corrupting.

    On Thursday, the General Entertainment Authority announced it will stage more than 5,000 shows, festivals and concerts in 2018, double the number of last year.

    The entertainment plans are largely motivated by economics, part of a reform programme to diversify the economy away from oil and create jobs for young Saudis.

    They also mark a change in social Saudi life and the gradual relaxing of gender segregation, although restrictions persist. At the festival, the area in front of the stage was divided into two sections – one for men and one for women – but people mixed in family seating areas on the side and in the back.

    “I am so so happy I got up from bed this morning and went to a jazz festival and performed in front of a crowd like me, my countrymen,” said Saleh Zaid, a Saudi musician from the local band Min Riyadh.

    While some showed up out of a love for jazz, many came to enjoy the chance to hear music at an outdoor event, with food trucks, a vintage car display and a relaxed atmosphere.

    While reforms have taken place in the Kingdom, with a 35-year cinema ban lifted and women set to drive later this year, the majority of the country is conservative, which is reflected in government decisions.

    Earlier this month, authorities detained a man after a video of him dancing with a woman in the street went viral.

    But on Friday, women in abayas, loose-fitting robes, moved with the music, unconcerned with the possible backlash.

    “This festival shows that the leadership here wants to let the people open up, to see more things, more cultures,” said Salem al-Ahmed, who with his stylish young friends jumped at the opportunity to attend his city’s first-of-a-kind festival.

    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180224-all-that-jazz-saudis-attend-countrys-first-jazz-festival/

    chat Quote

  12. #29
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    The secret sounds of Saudi Arabia — from rock and rap to black metal

    Musicians are cautiously optimistic about the gradual cultural liberalisation of their country

    “Should we or shouldn’t we?” asks Hasan Hatrash. The frontman of Saudi Arabian band Most of Us is recalling the discussions he and his bandmates had about a song they recorded last year — a comic version of Steppenwolf’s “Born to Be Wild”, celebrating the new edict permitting Saudi women to drive.

    Hatrash and his bandmates, bassist Khalid Sharani, drummer Amro Hawari and keyboardist Amer Abbas, were worried that the Saudi authorities — not noted for their appreciation of rock parodies — would fail to see the funny side. “But we have reached a state of mind that we are so f***ing bored and are getting too old, man,” he tells me. “You know, who dares wins! We saw it as a wave that we can ride. There could be risks but so what?”

    The song’s video was a hit in Saudi Arabia. To Hatrash’s surprise, there was no hint of official disapproval. Duly encouraged, Most of Us have now released a song welcoming a new law permitting the reopening of cinemas. “Don’t travel to Bahrain to see a couple of movies,” Hatrash sings in Arabic. “Cinema is here!”

    Saudi society is undergoing a dizzying period of change. The repressive kingdom of religious police and strict prohibitions is being rebooted. Instigated by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, there are plans to spend $64bn turning the kingdom into an entertainment hub. If the scheme succeeds, Saudis will no longer have to travel to neighbouring Gulf states for trips to the cinema or concerts.

    Music is at the vanguard of the new policy. Last year American country musician Toby Keith — Stetson-wearing maker of songs such as “She’s a Hottie” and “Drunk Americans” — played a gig in Riyadh for an all-male audience. In December, Lebanese singer Hiba Tawaji played the first female-only concert in the Saudi capital. Last month it staged its inaugural jazz festival.

    Yet the general western impression of an artless wasteland being transformed by large sums of money and imported talent is not quite correct. Musicians already exist in the kingdom, not just making Arabic music but western forms as well: rock, pop, rap, heavy metal, even black metal.

    “I want to show the world that we have a lot of art here, that we have been misrepresented,” Hatrash tells me over Skype from Most of Us’s studio in Jeddah. Now 43, the former journalist — described by American author Dave Eggers as a “poet, troublemaker and friend” — founded Most of Us in 1998. His classic rock-influenced outfit is a rare survivor of the first wave of Saudi rock bands.

    Raised abroad until he was nine in a diplomatic family, Hatrash was part of a fledgling music scene that emerged in the 1990s. It was oriented around heavier styles of rock such as thrash metal. “That harsh music gave a sense of rebellion, a sense of screaming against the society,” he says. He learnt guitar by laboriously practising Metallica riffs by ear (“That was really hellish”).

    Hatrash was among hundreds of young men interrogated after a police raid on an event featuring a rock band in Jeddah in 1995, set up “supposedly legally” by a local record label. “It created a kind of phobia. We got inward, we started playing at home, in private places,” he says.

    There was no overt law against playing rock music. “It was more an un-spoken prohibition, driven by the culture.” Private shows, in residential compounds or consulates, were semi-tolerated, although there were periodic crackdowns. “The government didn’t want to create a clash with society. They didn’t want to create a fuss.”

    Sound of Ruby, a fierce noise-rock band, were founded in 1996. Their leader, Al-Hajjaj, 38, based in Dammam City, cites Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” and Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger” as drawing him to guitars and drums in the 1980s. “Electric guitars were also part of 1960s Arabic music, particularly the work of [pioneering Egyptian guitarist] Omar Khorshid,” he says by email.

    At the start of their career, Sound of Ruby played gigs in a tent in the desert. “We needed to be far away so as to not disturb anybody with our loud sound,” Al-Hajjaj says. The arrival of the internet was transformative, “to connect with other local bands and musicians and to organise small gigs”.

    “Suddenly rock, metal, hip-hop, everything started coming up,” Hatrash says of the spread of the web in the 2000s. Appetite for music was fuelled by petrol-dollar affluence and demographics: more than 60 per cent of Saudis are under 30. Official attitudes to the popularity of western music have fluctuated between pragmatism and suppression. The coastal city of Jeddah has traditionally been more liberal than Riyadh, the desert-locked capital.

    Last year hip-hop was recognised as an official art form by the Saudi Arabian Society for Culture and Arts. It came after a campaign by the country’s most celebrated rapper, Qusai Kheder, aka Don Legend the Kamelion, who raps in Arabic and English. He released his first album in 2002, while his 2012 song “Yalla” notched up 11m YouTube views. (He was not available for comment.)

    The pseudonymous members of Al-Namrood play black metal from an unknown location. Founded in 2008, the band, named after the Babylonian king Nimrod, make an uncompromising racket with lyrics attacking all religions. “Throughout the years, we have achieved a lot”, they say in a Facebook post about their 10th anniversary: “Most importantly we managed to keep our heads attached to our bodies!” They will not speak to the FT because “the top leadership” reads this newspaper, their Canadian record label states.

    Loulwa Alsharif, 30 and from Jeddah, sings soul, blues and jazz. “There are many beautiful female musicians, from pianists to guitarists to oud and singers too,” she tells me by email. “When I started singing live, I told myself, Loulwa, you should have courage and be strong and start the first step!”

    She began performing in a band led by blues guitarist and singer Moiz Rahman four years ago. Her first show was in a private compound “because it’s the safest place to do events in for a mixed [sex] audience”. A “very few people” warned her to be careful.

    “But I wasn’t afraid at all. As long as I’m doing what I love in a respectable way, then no one has the right to stop me,” she says. “Fear either will stop us, or push us to be better, all we need is courage and belief in our self so we can move on, that is how Saudi women are becoming more successful.”

    The human rights organisation Amnesty International cautions that women drivers and reopened cinemas “barely scratch the surface of the reform needed within the country”. Since becoming Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman has intensified a crackdown on activists and journalists and escalated a vicious war in Yemen. Only last year Saudi singer Abdallah Al Shahani was arrested for doing a “dabbing” dance move during a concert in the city of Taif.

    However, the musicians I speak to are optimistic. “Each week, we’re seeing local bands and artists playing in public,” says Sound of Ruby’s Al-Hajjaj. “Saudi Arabia has become so liberal in a blink of an eye,” says Loulwa Alsharif, who plans a record with Hatrash’s band Most of US. As Hatrash himself says: “After 20 years now I can say we are starting to establish ourselves, like a new beginning. It’s a unique situ-ation. A very closed society suddenly becomes open. You can’t predict what will happen. Fingers crossed, man.”

    https://www.ft.com/content/2cc2fb5e-2066-11e8-a895-1ba1f72c2c11
    chat Quote

  13. Report bad ads?
  14. #30
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    This is concerning does anybody here knows whats going on?

    chat Quote

  15. #31
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    Saudi Arabia closes twitter account of Makkah Imam

    saoudshuraim1256jpgresize4442C333quality 1 - US dictating Saudi religious policy

    The Saud Arabian authorities closed the twitter account on Friday morning of Sheikh Saud Al-Shuraim, one of the Imams in the Grand Mosque in Makkah, AlKhaleejonline.com has reported.

    Al-Shuraim had posted comments about political and social issues in the Kingdom and criticised what he believes are violations of Islamic teachings.

    The Imam was born in Riyadh in 1964. He has held several senior academic positions, including the Dean and Specialist Professor at Umm Al-Qura University in Makkah. He is also a judge at the High Court in the Holy City.

    His fellow Imam at the Grand Mosque, which houses the Sacred Kaaba, is Sheikh Abdul Rahman As-Sudais, who is loyal to the policies of the Saudi royal family. While Al-Shuraim has been praised by Muslims within and beyond the Kingdom over his courageous stances, Al-Sudais has been criticised for his “blind” support for the ruling House of Saud, which is regarded by many as irreligious.

    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180407-saudi-arabia-closes-twitter-account-of-makkah-imam/
    chat Quote

  16. #32
    Misbah-Abd's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    Full Member
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Location
    Darul Kufr
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    494
    Threads
    7
    Rep Power
    38
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    64

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    May Allah reward him for speaking the truth in the face of an unjust ruler. There have been too many appeasement concessions of late by the Prince on his tour of Darul Kufr.
    | Likes Zafran liked this post
    US dictating Saudi religious policy

    "When a person sees the road as too long, he weakens in his walk." - Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah
    chat Quote

  17. #33
    Zafran's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    Earth -UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    2,737
    Threads
    17
    Rep Power
    103
    Rep Ratio
    47
    Likes Ratio
    21

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Horrible behavior from the Saudis. Allah swt preserve the scholars.
    | Likes سيف الله liked this post
    US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Do you think the pious don't sin?

    They merely:
    Veiled themselves and didn't flaunt it
    Sought forgiveness and didn't persist
    Took ownership of it and don't justify it
    And acted with excellence after they had erred - Ibn al-Qayyim
    chat Quote

  18. #34
    azc's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldskool
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    7,057
    Threads
    391
    Rep Power
    69
    Rep Ratio
    34
    Likes Ratio
    35

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    format_quote Originally Posted by Junon View Post
    Salaam

    Another update

    Saudi Arabia closes twitter account of Makkah Imam

    saoudshuraim1256jpgresize4442C333quality 1 - US dictating Saudi religious policy

    The Saud Arabian authorities closed the twitter account on Friday morning of Sheikh Saud Al-Shuraim, one of the Imams in the Grand Mosque in Makkah, AlKhaleejonline.com has reported.

    Al-Shuraim had posted comments about political and social issues in the Kingdom and criticised what he believes are violations of Islamic teachings.

    The Imam was born in Riyadh in 1964. He has held several senior academic positions, including the Dean and Specialist Professor at Umm Al-Qura University in Makkah. He is also a judge at the High Court in the Holy City.

    His fellow Imam at the Grand Mosque, which houses the Sacred Kaaba, is Sheikh Abdul Rahman As-Sudais, who is loyal to the policies of the Saudi royal family. While Al-Shuraim has been praised by Muslims within and beyond the Kingdom over his courageous stances, Al-Sudais has been criticised for his “blind” support for the ruling House of Saud, which is regarded by many as irreligious.

    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20...f-makkah-imam/
    Kudos to sh al Suraim for his courageous stance.
    chat Quote

  19. Report bad ads?
  20. #35
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    Saudi officials apologise for 'indecent women' images at pro-wrestling show

    Saudi sports officials have apologised after images of scantily clad women appeared on big screens during a pro-wrestling event held in the kingdom.

    The Saudi General Sports Authority apologised in an online statement on Saturday. Viewers said the broadcast of the WWE's "Greatest Royal Rumble" was cut off for a few moments as the images played.

    The sports authority said there were shots of woman who were "indecent."

    It also said it will not show matches involving female wrestlers. Organisers only allowed women to watch the show at King Abdullah Sports City if they were accompanied by male guardians. Friday night's event got political when Iranian-US wrestlers entered the stage waving the Iranian flag and confronted four amateur Saudi wrestlers in the ring.

    The stunt provoked jeers and boos from the crowd.

    Saudi Arabia and Iran are locked in an bitter rivalry with both countries competing for influence in the region.

    The event comes as the ultra-conservative kingdom is gradually loosening restrictions on public entertainment.

    https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2018/4/28/saudi-officials-apologise-for-indecent-images-at-pro-wrestling-show
    chat Quote

  21. #36
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    chat Quote

  22. #37
    'Abd-al Latif's Avatar Super Moderator
    brightness_1
    CagePrisoners.com
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Jun 2007
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,680
    Threads
    344
    Rep Power
    125
    Rep Ratio
    108
    Likes Ratio
    49

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    format_quote Originally Posted by Junon View Post
    Salaam

    This is concerning does anybody here knows whats going on?

    This person isn't an imam. He's not even part of the masjid. He forced his way on the pulpit just before Friday prayers and refused to cooperate with security. They had to force him off.
    US dictating Saudi religious policy

    And verily for everything that a slave loses there is a substitute, but the one who loses Allah will never find anything to replace Him.”
    [Related by Ibn al-Qayyim in ad-Dâ' wad-Dawâ Fasl 49]


    chat Quote

  23. #38
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    Top cleric 'detained by Saudi authorities'

    Sheikh Safar al-Hawali had been a prominent critic of American influence in Saudi Arabia

    ssss 1 - US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Saudi Arabia has detained a prominent Islamic scholar, activists said Thursday, in a widening crackdown on dissent in the ultra-conservative kingdom, which is undergoing sweeping economic and social reforms.

    Rights campaigners and online activists said Sheikh Safar al-Hawali, a Sunni Islamist scholar and leading figure in Saudi Arabia's Islamic Sahwa reformist movement, had been taken into custody.

    They did not give further details about the case of the scholar, who has pushed a line of anti-Americanism and Islamic rule.

    Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, named heir to the throne in June 2017, has spearheaded a string of reforms over the past year aimed at improving his country's image and economy.

    The changes have coincided with a widening crackdown on all forms of opposition.

    Authorities last month arrested a number of prominent women's rights campaigners, just days before the kingdom ended a decades-long ban on women driving.

    Hawali was jailed in the 1990s for opposing his country's ties to US troops leading a military operation to expel Iraqi forces from Kuwait.

    In 1993, he was banned from public speaking and dismissed from his academic posts along with prominent cleric Sheikh Salman al-Awda.

    While no charges were pressed, the two were accused of aiming to incite civil disobedience. They were arrested again in 1994 but soon released.

    https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/top-islamist-cleric-detained-saudi-authorities-1156314858

    A debate

    Last edited by سيف الله; 07-14-2018 at 07:02 PM.
    chat Quote

  24. #39
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    chat Quote

  25. Report bad ads?
  26. #40
    سيف الله's Avatar Full Member
    brightness_1
    IB Oldtimer
    star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate star_rate
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male
    Religion
    Islam
    Posts
    3,939
    Threads
    334
    Rep Power
    95
    Rep Ratio
    16
    Likes Ratio
    15

    Re: US dictating Saudi religious policy

    Salaam

    Another update

    Sh Safar al-Hawali and Salman al-Awda face deteriorating health in Saudi prison

    Reports have emerged suggesting that the medical condition of Sheikh Safar al-Hawali and Sheikh Salman al-Awda is deteriorating due to medical negligence according to the advocacy group ‘Mu’taqilī al-Ra’ī‘ or ‘Prisoners of Conscious’. [1]

    In a tweet the group claimed that Sheikh Safar al-Hawali and his children have been pressured to disavow themselves from his book “Muslims and Western civilization”, and to claim that the book was not written by the Sheikh, in return for their release.[2]

    Sheikh Safar al-Hawali and three of his sons were arrested on July 12th, a few days after the publication of his book, attributed to the Sheikh, in which he imparts on advice to the ruling family and the Council of Senior Scholars close to the monarchy.

    In his book, the Sheikh criticises the ruling family in Saudi Arabia and the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed. [3] The prominent Sheikh criticises the ruling family’s over-sized expenditure, saying it: “has been wasting funds on fake projects” and calling the Crown Prince’s cosy relationship with Israel a “betrayal”.

    Human Rights activists have stressed that this form of blackmail is a “humanitarian crime and a blatant exploitation of the Sheikh’s deteriorating health.”

    “The Saudi authorities want to silence everyone,” Saudi lawyer and Human Rights activist Sultan al-Abdali said.

    A previous report by Al Jazeera suggested that the arrest of Sheikh Safar al-Hawali was because of what was contained of advice directed at the Saudi Arabian ruling family, scholars and activists.

    The ‘Prisoners of Conscious’ also reported that a number of scholars have been transferred from al-Zahaban prison to al-Ha’ir prison in preparation for their ‘trials’. [4] Many have expressed concern and fear that such trials may be conducted in secret and in accordance with the Saudi authorities Terrorism Act, inevitably resulting in hefty prison sentences.

    The Saudi authorities have arrested scores of scholars and activists in what is seen as a significant shift in internal policy led by Crown-Prince Mohammad bin Salman. The measures have been dubbed by some as a precursor to introducing more secular-leaning laws. [5]

    According to various news agencies, Saudi authorities have arrested dozens of scholars, activists and academics, including Sheikh Salman al-Awda, Sheikh Awad al-Qarni, Sheikh Mohammad Musa al-Sharif, Sheikh Muhammad Saleh al-Munajjid and Sheikh Abdul Aziz at-Tarefe.

    Sheikh Salman al-Awda was arrested in September 2017, because of what was allegedly a gleeful remark in which he invoked Allah to bring together the hearts of Muslims after the news of a telephone call between the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and Saudi Crown-Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Sheikh believed that the call would trigger reconciliation, only for the crisis to deepen further. [6]

    https://www.islam21c.com/news-views/safar-al-hawali-and-salman-al-awda-face-deteriorating-health-in-saudi-prison/
    chat Quote


  27. Hide
Page 2 of 7 First 1 2 3 4 ... Last
Hey there! US dictating Saudi religious policy Looks like you're enjoying the discussion, but you're not signed up for an account.

When you create an account, we remember exactly what you've read, so you always come right back where you left off. You also get notifications, here and via email, whenever new posts are made. And you can like posts and share your thoughts. US dictating Saudi religious policy
Sign Up

Similar Threads

  1. Policy
    By Huzzy_786 in forum Feedback & Suggestions
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 01-23-2012, 10:18 PM
  2. Replies: 3
    Last Post: 05-02-2011, 04:20 PM
  3. Replies: 2
    Last Post: 08-09-2008, 04:23 PM
  4. No religious tolerance in Saudi Arabia??
    By Bittersteel in forum World Affairs
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 10-03-2005, 01:32 AM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
create