A few weeks ago, Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal delivered a speech to the Henry Jackson Society in London focusing on the dangers posed by “radical Islam” to the world’s “freedom- loving people”. It was little more than a mix of sloganeering and jingoism. Mr Jindal is no simple-minded demagogue like Sarah Palin or Michele Bachmann. As a former Rhodes Scholar and a White House aspirant, one supposes that he thought through his remarks.
And yet, he ended up raising questions about Islam and Muslims in general. For example, after noting that he had no interest in defaming any religion, he disingenuously asked: “How many Muslims in this world agree with these radicals? ... I hope it’s a small minority. But it is clear that far too many do.” He later added: “A so-called religion that allows for and endorses killing those who oppose it is not a religion at all, it is a terrorist movement ... Let’s be honest, Islam has a problem.”
The subtext was inflammatory too. He warned against “non-assimilationist Muslims” moving to the West where they have taken advantage of the “wide berth” that democracy provides and established “their own nation within a nation”. These are “no-go zones”, he said.
But he was wrong, just like Ms Palin and Ms Bachmann who said the same sort of things. Polling by Zogby Analytics shows that extremist violence has scant support across the Arab world. Most Muslim religious institutions have condemned the violent groups that use religion to justify their actions, as have the many Arab and Muslim states that have declared war on ISIL and other forms of extremism.
Further, the charge that there are “no-go zones” in western democracies has been debunked. When a so-called terrorism expert made that claim on Fox News about Birmingham, England, British prime minister David Cameron said he was “clearly a complete idiot”. The channel apologised three times.
But not Mr Jindal. He has repeated his “no-go zones” remark several times, even suggesting that America needs to be careful the same doesn’t happen to it, complete with the “imposition of Sharia”. What concerns me is not just that he is dead wrong but that his Republican Party intends to double down on this theme in the forthcoming election campaign.
In 2008, Ms Palin, the party's vice-presidential candidate, suggested that Barack Obama might be a Muslim and a whispering campaign took hold and tried to make much of the Democratic nominee's middle name, Hussein. That didn't work, nor did the party's 2010 opposition to the effort to build a Muslim community centre in lower Manhattan, not far from the site of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Several of the party's Congressional candidates ran ads suggesting that it would facilitate a Muslim takeover of America. But 15 of those 17 candidates lost.
In 2012, the Republicans tried Muslim-baiting again but that effort died an early death.
But that’s not all. Despite the fact that no Muslim in the US has ever even suggested imposing Sharia, Republican law makers in more than two-dozen states have attempted to pass anti-Sharia law legislation. And in every one, the efforts have failed.
With this sorry history, one would think that a Rhodes Scholar such as Mr Jindal might drop the issue. But no, he has brought it back to the fore. Why? The simplest answer is that, despite its wrongheadedness, the issue remains red meat for the Republican faithful. Our polls show that there is a deep partisan divide on matters involving Islam and Muslims. Strong majorities of self-identified Republicans have unfavourable views of Muslims.
There is also a demographic divide. Younger voters, educated women and racial minorities are on one side. These voters tend to have a more tolerant and open view of the world and are more accepting of Muslims and other minority groups. But older white voters and those calling themselves “born again Christians” are far less tolerant. On this issue, self-identified “independents” largely support a more tolerant view of Muslims. The result is that while the Muslim-baiting tactic might work with the Republican Party faithful, it’s a proven loser with the broader electorate.
While I have little concern that this Jindal nonsense will win out, the damage that it continues to do to our public discourse and the hurt that it creates for Muslims in America remain a concern. America will not be the one nation it claims to be until the Republicans stop acting like Europe’s fringe far-right groups.
Considering that a substantial minority of Republicans actually believe that president Obama is Muslim, he can’t be the one to challenge them on this issue. Muslim-baiting will not end until a Republican leader steps forward and takes on the likes of Jindal, Palin, Bachmann. When that happens, we will be back on the road to sanity.
James Zogby is the president of the Arab American Institute
On Twitter: @aaiusa
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
2019 ASIA CUP POTS
Pot 1
UAE, Iran, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia
Pot 2
China, Syria, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Qatar, Thailand
Pot 3
Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Palestine, Oman, India, Vietnam
Pot 4
North Korea, Philippines, Bahrain, Jordan, Yemen, Turkmenistan
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
World ranking (at month’s end)
Jan - 257
Feb - 198
Mar - 159
Apr - 161
May - 159
Jun – 162
Currently: 88
Year-end rank since turning pro
2016 - 279
2015 - 185
2014 - 143
2013 - 63
2012 - 384
2011 - 883
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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Russia's Muslim Heartlands
Dominic Rubin, Oxford
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
UAE%20medallists%20at%20Asian%20Games%202023
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LA LIGA FIXTURES
Friday Celta Vigo v Villarreal (midnight kick-off UAE)
Saturday Sevilla v Real Sociedad (4pm), Atletico Madrid v Athletic Bilbao (7.15pm), Granada v Barcelona (9.30pm), Osasuna v Real Madrid (midnight)
Sunday Levante v Eibar (4pm), Cadiz v Alaves (7.15pm), Elche v Getafe (9.30pm), Real Valladolid v Valencia (midnight)
Monday Huesca v Real Betis (midnight)
GCC-UK%20Growth
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The biog
Place of birth: Kalba
Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren
Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken
Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah
Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”
If you go...
Flying
There is no simple way to get to Punta Arenas from the UAE, with flights from Dubai and Abu Dhabi requiring at least two connections to reach this part of Patagonia. Flights start from about Dh6,250.
Touring
Chile Nativo offers the amended Los Dientes trek with expert guides and porters who are met in Puerto Williams on Isla Navarino. The trip starts and ends in Punta Arenas and lasts for six days in total. Prices start from Dh8,795.
