Muslims liberated Makkah from the clutches of the mushrikeen in the 8th year of the Hijrah. The Ka‘aba was cleansed of its idols. What led to the Muslims’ march on Makkah that the Prophet (pbuh) led and what lessons we can draw today from this momentous event from Islamic history?

America may have the world’s largest economy and the biggest war machine but it is a deeply divided country. To the traditional fault lines—race, urban-rural divide and great disparities in wealth—must now be added the very serious threat of conflict erupting between Trump and Biden supporters.

The odds facing the people of Gaza are immense. They face the biggest and most ruthless military machine in the region. Yet the Palestinian people remain steadfast in the face of indescribable brutality and oppression. What give them such strength?

Dr Kalim Siddiqui was a towering figure in the eighties and nineties. He was far ahead of his time. The ideas he propounded as early as the 1970s are not only still relevant but also necessary to extricate the Muslim world from its present predicament.

Some Muslims, perhaps many, are too wedded to information passed on to them in their books about early Islamic history based on a particular sectarian slant. It is important to revisit this information as Abu Dharr shows in this ongoing series of articles.

Though seldom stable, Pakistan is currently undergoing a very serious crisis that is political, economic and ideological. The over-bearing military, especially a few generals at the top, have exacerbated these problems. The country’s very survival is at stake.

British minister Michael Gove’s threats against Muslim organizations in Britain branding them as “extremist” is likely to backfire. His attacks have also exposed the hollowness of western liberalism, particularly British liberalism.

The UN Security Council is a relic of the past. It was established after the second world war in which the victors, especially the US, arrogated to themselves certain exclusive powers. The Security Council must be overhauled if the world is to have any peace and security.

Hizbullah’s pressure on the zionists in northern Palestine has emptied out occupied areas of illegal settlers. It may not be long before the whole of Palestine is liberated and back in the hands of its indigenous population. Hizbullah will be a major component of this effort.

What qualifies a person to assume leadership position among Muslims? Knowledge is necessary but not sufficient. Qualities such as sense of justice, self-sacrifice, care for Muslims and the oppressed people around him are also required to fulfill the responsibilities of leadership.

Given the domination of un-Islamic systems in the world, Muslims have fallen into an inferior complex syndrome trying to fit within it. Muslims must turn to the divine message (the Qur’an) and the Prophetic Sunnah and Seerah to establish our position in life.

The Aliyev regime in Azerbaijan is well-known for its persecution of committed Muslims. So, what explains its interest in trying to position itself as a champion against Islamophobia as evident from holding anti-Islamophobia conferences?