mullahs

10 Stories

Afghan Mullah Arrested for Marrying 6-Year-Old

Sayed Mohammad Karim says girl was 'gift' from her parents; they say she was kidnapped

(Newser) - A case in Afghanistan has pitted a religious figure against the outraged parents of a 6-year-old girl, underscoring the ongoing problems surrounding child marriages there. Per Radio Free Europe , Sayed Mohammad Karim, a mullah in the Ghor province said to be in his 50s, was arrested last week and charged...

Malaysia Swoons Over Hotttest Imam Reality Search

They sing, gather corpses in new program

(Newser) - They're young, tall-ish, dark and handsome and they've captured the hearts of Malyasian TV viewers mesmerized by their quest to be declared the nation's hottest up-and-coming imam. Contestants on the new reality show Young Imam are judged by one man— the former grand mufti of Malaysia's national mosque—and are...

A Baptist and a Mullah Team Up to Fight Taliban

US captain urges Afghan colonel to show faith to locals

(Newser) - A Baptist Army officer has teamed up with an Afghan mullah to fight Taliban propaganda that calls the Afghan army godless. “The only way we can keep people from becoming Taliban is by promoting the Muslim nature of the Afghan National Army,” says the mullah, Lt. Col. Abdul...

Mullahs to Marines: Earn Our Trust or Leave

Elders tell American forces to earn their trust or leave

(Newser) - In their first meeting with local elders in the southern Afghanistan village they’re trying to rid of the Taliban, US Marines received a rather unusual greeting: Earn our trust or leave. Mullahs delivered the stern warning after the American forces promised not to leave until they improved the lives...

You Want a Revolution? There's a Cost
 You Want a 
 Revolution? 
 There's a Cost 
OPINION

You Want a Revolution? There's a Cost

To get real change, people will have to vote with bodies, not ballots

(Newser) - When revolution came to Iran in 1979, it took thousands of people taking to the streets to finally break down the shah's authority. Now the revolutionary government has all that power and oil money, and the only way to elect a leader it doesn't approve of is with bodies, not...

As Iran Unrest Goes On, Watch the Clerics
As Iran Unrest Goes On, Watch the Clerics
ANALYSIS

As Iran Unrest Goes On, Watch the Clerics

Mullahs far from Tehran may step in to end election dispute

(Newser) - As protesters continue to express anger and defy arrest, the endgame of Iran's disputed election may take place not in Tehran, but in the holy city of Qom—where the country's powerful clerics have so far kept silent. Except for a few prominent reformists, Iran's mullahs have refused to take...

Israel Should Attack Iran
 Israel Should Attack Iran 
OPINION

Israel Should Attack Iran

(Newser) - No matter who wins tomorrow’s presidential election in Iran, the threat of its nuclear program won’t go away, and that’s why Israel should attack sooner rather than later, writes former UN ambassador John Bolton in the Wall Street Journal. Attacking Iran now won’t be safe or...

Obama 'Kowtowing' to Iran: Kristol

(Newser) - President Obama’s recent address to Iran isn’t just weak, and it doesn’t just backpedal—it’s flat out “kowtowing,” William Kristol writes in the Weekly Standard. Unlike President Bush, Obama shows minimal respect for the Iranian people. Instead, he focuses on extending an olive branch...

Iran Faces Its Nightmare: Falling Oil
Iran Faces Its Nightmare:
Falling Oil
OPINION

Iran Faces Its Nightmare: Falling Oil

Suddenly negotiating is starting to look pretty smart, says Friedman

(Newser) - Barack Obama's promise to negotiate with Iran once seemed like a dubious idea to Thomas Friedman—pre-conditions or not, the US had no leverage. But everything's changed now that the price of oil is at $57 and falling, writes the New York Times columnist. Once the mullahs went on a...

Countrywomen Rate Bhutto's Feminist Legacy

Ex-PM advanced women's rights; but not as much as hoped

(Newser) - Benazir Bhutto wasn't always a staunch defender of women's rights, but for Pakistani women the fight for gender equality is a lot tougher now that she's gone. Bhutto may have jump-started women's health care and job programs, but she missed opportunities to repeal harsh anti-egalitarian laws—failures her defenders chalk...

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