Officially, the taking of hostages is forbidden in Islam. A stance reiterated today by the Ithna’ashari scholars in Iraq. So that means the kidnappers are either Sunni or are acting out of an interest other than Islam. I don’t believe they are Sunni at this point – are at least are not acting under that identity – as it would disenfranchise the community. These are pseudo-nationalists, and the behavior is not intrinsic to Muslims. Just a clarification for those who were wondering if hostage taking was tenet of faith.
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istanbul – Ashura procession
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IIA Notes
Unfortunately, I was quite involved in running around during the Islam in America Conference, so I was unable to get good notes. I’m hoping Sam I Am (here at islamicate) and HijabMan will cover the difference. It was great finally meeting Mr. Hijab himself, and he’s agreed to give us the occasional post as well. A nagging question I have though is since I’ve seen his face, does that mean we have to get married now? 😉 I do have some thoughts on the presentations will be posting them slowly during the week.