Research Excellence Framework 2014

UWTSD ranked joint first in the UK for the impact of it research in Theology and Religious Studies this relates to some of the research associated with this blog.

Why do internet companies have one rule for paedophilia and another for terrorism?

Why do internet companies have one rule for paedophilia and another for terrorism? - Spectator Blogs

Experts scour Derby's Facebook and Twitter traffic for extremist messages

Derby Telegraph, Experts scour Derby's Facebook and Twitter traffic for extremist messages

Muslims in Britain against extremists

Muslims in Britain against extremists | All media content | DW.DE | 10.12.2014 "Young British Muslims are appearing in videos to show their solidarity against IS, and to send the message that IS does not represent them or their values. The videos enjoy tens of thousands of supporters, while President Barack Obama has praised the campaign for its courage. But other Muslim groups have criticized the campaign. They say Muslims aren't responsible for the actions of extremists and shouldn't have to publicly distance themselves from extremists." Refers to Muslims in Cardiff

Mum jailed for Facebook terror posts

BBC News, Mum jailed for Facebook terror posts "A mother-of-six has been jailed for five years and three months for promoting terrorism on Facebook."

Funds audit 'clears Islamic charity'

BBC News, Funds audit 'clears Islamic charity' "Britain's biggest Islamic charity says an audit of its activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territories has found no evidence to support accusations it has funded terrorism."

Is Chicago more dangerous than Riyadh?

Abdulrahman al-Rashed, alarabiya.net, Is Chicago more dangerous than Riyadh? "It is the height of contradiction to be a Saudi, a Kuwaiti or an Egyptian and worry that your children who are studying or working in the United States or Europe may turn into extremists who desire to join organizations like al-Qaeda and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)." Interesting discussion that applies equally in UK contexts.

Switzerland orders community service for returned Islamic State jihadist

Switzerland orders community service for returned Islamic State jihadist - Telegraph alternative approaches to UK (and elsewhere): " Switzerland has ordered a returned recruit of the Islamic State group to do 600 hours of community service and will not send him to prison, in the country's first sentencing of a foreign jihadist fighter."

Online dating and Islam

Lydia Green, BBC News, Why millions of Muslims are signing up for online dating, 10 Dec 2014 "Arranged marriages are standard practice in many societies, but the introductions and screening process can be an ordeal for the young people involved - even if they are pleased with the eventual outcome. Some Western Muslims have concluded that online matchmaking can help reduce embarrassment."



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alarabiya.net, Online dating gains traction among Muslims in West "Adeem Younis, founder of matchmaking site Single Muslim, which boasts of having over one million members, told the BBC that he set up the service after to avoid the pain of family-orchestrated matchmaking – and as an alternative to the more casual hook-up culture prevalent with many secular dating sites."

Conservative Muslims, Liberal Britain - radio programme

Conservative Muslims, Liberal Britain, Analysis - BBC Radio 4 "The recent so called Trojan Horse dispute in some Birmingham schools shone a light on how separately from the liberal British mainstream a significant conservative bloc of British Muslims wants to live. Although some Muslim parents objected, most seemed happy to go along with rigorous gender segregation, the rejection of sex education and ban on music and arts lessons.



"Why is it that so many British Muslims - especially from Pakistani and Bangladeshi backgrounds - seem to be converging much more slowly, if at all, on liberal British norms? Is this a problem in a liberal society and what are the future trends likely to be?



"David Goodhart, of the think tank Demos, visits Leicester in search of some answers. He listens to many different Muslim voices from a mufti who advises Muslims on how to navigate everyday life in a non-Muslim society to a liberal reformer who is dismayed at seeing more women wearing the niqab."

European Muslim groups angered by inclusion on UAE's terror list

European Muslim groups angered by inclusion on UAE's terror list - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Cairo to Constantinople: London photo show frames Victorian travels

Cairo to Constantinople: London photo show frames Victorian travels "A new exhibition entitled “Cairo to Constantinople: Early Photographs of the Middle East” is currently showing at The Queen’s Gallery, in London’s Buckingham Palace. It’s a collection from 1862 which documents the first-ever visual record of a royal tour, when photography was relatively a new invention." Time for a visit to the Palace??

Malcolm X in Oxford, Archive on 4

Malcolm X in Oxford, Archive on 4 - BBC Radio 4 "Stephen Tuck discovers what brought Malcolm X to Oxford in 1964 just weeks before his assassination, and how the speech he made there was one of the most important of his life."

Nur joins Muhammad in top baby names list

Daily Mail, Nur joins Muhammad in top baby names list