Southeast Asia
Philippines: Moro autonomy deal signed
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) officially ended four decades of armed struggle in the Philippines, when it formally signed a pact on regional autonomy.
Tag: struggle within Islam
Greater Middle East
Syria: ISIS destroy Sufi shrine, impose jizya tax
Qaeda-aligned insurgent group ISIS destroyed a Sufi Muslim shrine in Syrian Kurdistan and announced a "jizya" tax on non-Muslims in their zones of control.
North Africa
Mali: jihadis step up attacks on Tuaregs
The Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) was blamed for a massacre of some 30 Tuaregs in a road ambush near the desert city of Gao in northern Mali.
South Asia
Pakistan: jihadis step up attacks on Sufis
Gunmen attacked a Sufi religious gathering in Pakistan's port city of Karachi, leaving eight dead—the latest in a wave of such attacks by Deobandi fundamentalist militants.
North Africa
Algeria: Berbers targeted in sectarian attacks
National Gendarmerie troops have been rushed to Algeria's desert city of Ghardaia amid a wave of sectarian attacks on Berber followers of the Ibadi sect of Islam.
Africa
Anti-gay witch-hunt in Nigeria
The local Islamic police in Nigeria's Bauchi state are carrying out a hunt for members of a putative "homosexual organization," who may face death by stoning.
Greater Middle East
Egypt: new charter approved amid violence
A police station was bombed and 10 killed in clashes as Egyptian voters approved a new constitution that emphasizes secularism but gives greater power to the military.
Iraq
Qaedists lose ground in Syria; gain in Iraq
Syrian rebels launched an offensive against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)—just as the Qaeda-inspired army has seized the Iraqi towns of Fallujah and Ramadi.
The Caucasus
Volgograd terror: revenge of ‘Caucasus Emirate’?
In the wake of the Volgograd terror blasts, Putin is preparing a new offensive against Chechen insurgents seeking to rebuild the 19th century "Caucasus Emirate."
Greater Middle East
Syria: new chemical revelations; aid cut to rebels
The US ironically announces a halt in aid to the Syrian rebels on the same day that the UN concludes there have been multiple chemical attacks in the country this year.
North Africa
Beyond Benghazi: Libya faces converging crises
The death of a US national in Benghazi thrust Libya briefly into the news—as lawless militias, ethnic conflicts and labor strife daily claim lives across the country.
South Asia
Pakistan: sectarian strife mars Ashura
Celebrations of Muharram, the Shi’ite holy month highlighted by the Ashura festival, saw sectarian violence that left several dead across Pakistan.