Iran

Iran: protest conviction of Sufi activists

Human Rights Watch called upon Iran’s judiciary to drop charges and quash the verdicts against 11 members of a Sufi order convicted in what the rights group called unfair trials.

Europe

France: whither the hijab intifada?

The on-again/off-again Parisian intifada has exploded once more—this time over the arrest of a man whose wife was ticketed for wearing a face veil in the suburb of Trappes.

South Asia

Bangladesh Islamist sentenced for war crimes

Street clashes erupted as Islamist leader Ghulam Azam was sentenced to 90 years by the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal for crimes against humanity in the 1971 war. 

Southeast Asia

US troops to Philippines amid Mindanao fighting

The White House is finalizing a deal with the Philippines that will allow the US to deploy more troops—as new fighting is reported from Mindanao despite talks with Islamist rebels.

Greater Middle East

Egypt: escalating violence in Sinai Peninsula

Troops fired on protesters in the Sinai, and militants retaliated with armed attacks on police. A new Salafist network, Ansar al-Sharia in Egypt, pledges to resist the new regime.

Greater Middle East

Egypt: revolution redux or military rule?

A new dictatorship could position the Muslim Brotherhood to recoup its losses—allowing it to pose once again as champion of the oppressed rather than oppressor.

Greater Middle East

Egyptian anarchists say no to dictatorship

The Egyptian anarchist bloc is participating in the anti-Morsi protests—but with a dissident perspective that warns against either Islamist or military dictatorship.

Greater Middle East

Egypt: Tahrir Square occupied again

Street clashes between supporters and opponents of President Mohamed Morsi shook Egypt's cities in a day of rival protests nationwide that left two dead.

Palestine

Islamic Jihad severs ties with Hamas

The Islamic Jihad movement in Gaza announced that it is suspending ties with Hamas, accusing Gaza authorities of being responsible for the death of one of the group’s members.