This thesis aims to analyse the religious significance of the Holy City of Jerusalem to both Jews and Muslims, as well as its relation to the ongoing Arab - Israeli conflict and the failed attempts...Show moreThis thesis aims to analyse the religious significance of the Holy City of Jerusalem to both Jews and Muslims, as well as its relation to the ongoing Arab - Israeli conflict and the failed attempts at peace negotiates through answering ‘how were religious arguments concerning the status of Jerusalem in the Arab - Israeli war brought forward during several rounds of peace negotiations, and to what extent and why have these arguments changed over time?’.Show less
After the death of a local fish seller in November 2016, the Rif area in Morocco has witnessed the proliferation of a social movement, using Berber (Amazigh) ethno-political discourse to demand...Show moreAfter the death of a local fish seller in November 2016, the Rif area in Morocco has witnessed the proliferation of a social movement, using Berber (Amazigh) ethno-political discourse to demand social justice and socio-economic improvement for the Riffian people. As a result of that, Riffian (second generation) migrants in the Netherlands have mobilised and organised themselves in action committees, to express their solidarity with the social movement in their home country. This research explores how their mobilisation, collective action framing and organisation relate to their elaborate use of new/social media. Facebook has provided Riffians a platform to articulate a shared Amazigh identity, as well as to share their personal commitment to the social movement in the Rif. This has led to mobilisation beyond preexisting (Amazigh) migrant organisations. At the same time, de-centralised and nonhierarchal organisational structures remain important for the co-ordination of transnational political activism, especially in the case of transnational collective action.Show less
In the thesis I have looked to the imam training debate in the Netherlands and if the Netherlands is willing to re-introduce a new imam training in the future. In addition, I have researched if the...Show moreIn the thesis I have looked to the imam training debate in the Netherlands and if the Netherlands is willing to re-introduce a new imam training in the future. In addition, I have researched if the Netherlands could cooperate with Morocco in the training of imams. An important aspect in this matter is the separation of church and state. To what extent is the Dutch state allowed to interfere in the training of clergymen and is it possible to work together with another country?Show less
Humanity has been courting the world’s destruction for centuries. Especially within the monotheistic religions the return of a messiah is expected to liberate the true believers from the wicked...Show moreHumanity has been courting the world’s destruction for centuries. Especially within the monotheistic religions the return of a messiah is expected to liberate the true believers from the wicked world they live in. However, since the Enlightenment, the division between church and state, and the increasingly influential scientific voice within the Western world has driven these eschatological depictions to the outskirts of the civilised world as antiquated and ignorant religious theories. However in other parts of the world this did not happen. In the last couple of years Daesh is not only using propaganda based on religious texts declaring their right to establish a caliphate, but also using these texts to describe something called ‘the end of ages’. However the big difference when it comes to Western politics is that these ideas are kept out of politics due to the division between church and state. Or so it may seem to many viewers. In the United States of America the Christian Right has been influencing its government tremendously in regard to both domestic as foreing issues. Especially in foreign affairs concerning the Middle East the main focus of the USA was laid on issues as Israel and Iraq. However, one of the most significant reasons has been highly neglected for decades and is sometimes still moving under the political and sociological radar, namely the religious aspect. Within the Christian Right the theology or theory of dispensationalism is widespread. Dispensationalism is, in short, the belief that at the end of times nations will rebel against God, attacking His people (Israel), which will result in complete annihilation of those armies, the return of Jesus Christ and the Last Judgement. In this thesis, this relationship between evangelical thinking and US politics will be further researched within a period an Evangelical president lead the country. This will be done by investigating the following question:, “Did dispensationalism influence the George W. Bush Administration in their policy towards the Middle East, and if so, how?”Show less
Research master thesis | Middle Eastern Studies (research) (MA)
open access
Recent studies on social media have begun to unravel how these sites pave the way for a new type of surveillance: social media surveillance (Trottier 2012). Compared to conventional understandings...Show moreRecent studies on social media have begun to unravel how these sites pave the way for a new type of surveillance: social media surveillance (Trottier 2012). Compared to conventional understandings of surveillance as top-down and hierarchical, social media surveillance is mutual: users watch and are watched. Most studies on the practice of watching and being watched on social media are based on the experiences of ‘white’ North-American students and tend to overlook the experiences of a more diverse global population. This qualitative study aims to contribute to a broader understanding of social media surveillance, by examining the experiences of fifteen female Dutch-Moroccan students in higher education. Findings from the interviews suggest how the students engage with social media surveillance in ways that represent their personal, cultural and religious values of modesty. This study argues that the students’ emphasis on online modesty can be explained in two-fold: (1) as a general effect of institutionalized disciplinary techniques on social media, and (2), as online pious micro-practices, conceptualized in this study as ‘virtual piety’. In doing so, this study not only contributes to a broader understanding of social media surveillance, but also contributes to studies investigating the way everyday practices are part of the process of becoming a pious Muslim subject (Jouili 2009).Show less
Shia clerics and movements in Iraq tend to use four main instruments in acquiring legitimacy from the Shia population. These are the provision of security, the provision of basic needs, the...Show moreShia clerics and movements in Iraq tend to use four main instruments in acquiring legitimacy from the Shia population. These are the provision of security, the provision of basic needs, the establishment of religious networks, and the establishment of legal networks. By focusing on the two dominant current Shia Iraqi leaders Muqtada al-Sadr and Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani from 2003 to 2008, it becomes clear how they have been using those instruments successfully. The main reason for their success can be ascribed by their ability to replace the tasks of the Iraqi state. The Iraqi state failed to provide its citizens the needs they hardly needed, mainly regarding to the basic security and social needs.Show less
This research aims to answer the following question about the International Divinity Program (Uluslararasi Ilahiyat Programi) of Diyanet (Presidency of Religious Affairs): What is the role of the...Show moreThis research aims to answer the following question about the International Divinity Program (Uluslararasi Ilahiyat Programi) of Diyanet (Presidency of Religious Affairs): What is the role of the International Divinity Program in forming diaspora relations between Turkey and the Netherlands? The following sub-questions will serve as support for answering the research question: - What is the history of imam education in Turkey? - What is the content of the program of the UIP? - What are the motivations according to the stakeholders to start the International Divinity Program? - What are the motivation of the students to study, to what extent are the students satisfied with the program and what are their expectations about their role after their graduation?Show less
The thesis investigates in what ways cultural institutions in the West provide a platform for the representation of Muslim identities and how this can be significant for the accommodation of Muslim...Show moreThe thesis investigates in what ways cultural institutions in the West provide a platform for the representation of Muslim identities and how this can be significant for the accommodation of Muslim communities within the Netherlands at large. It does so by re-evaluating existing political and aesthetic theories and by analysing four case studies on different art and culture instances within the Netherlands.Show less
This thesis examines the reasons behind the appeal of Hizb ut-Tahrir in the UK between 1990 and 2000. Hizb ut-Tahrir is an transnational Islamic political party which seeks to establish an Islamic...Show moreThis thesis examines the reasons behind the appeal of Hizb ut-Tahrir in the UK between 1990 and 2000. Hizb ut-Tahrir is an transnational Islamic political party which seeks to establish an Islamic state. It also compares Hizb ut-Tahrir’s ideology with the ideology of key movements within political Islam: the Muslim Brotherhood and Jamaat-e-Islami. This research also touches upon the question why (young) Muslims born in a Western society are attracted to organisations with a radical goal. The main development that contributed to the popularity of Hizb ut-Tahrir is a combination of the following factors: the large-scale expulsion of Hizb ut-Tahir members in the Middle East; the liberty of association and freedom of speech included in a liberal democracy; racism towards British-born Muslims in the UK which led to segregation; the identity void among second generation Muslims in the UK and the efficient recruitment strategy of Hizb ut-Tahrir on campuses and universities.Show less
Israel's existence in a near constant state of conflict has had many side effects for the lives of people living there. One such cost felt by the majority is that of national service to which the...Show moreIsrael's existence in a near constant state of conflict has had many side effects for the lives of people living there. One such cost felt by the majority is that of national service to which the majority of Israel are subject to. National service sees Israel's Jewish youth and other minorities living there forced to take part in military activity. This comes with the notable exception of the Haredim otherwise known as the Ultra-Orthodox. The draft exemption enjoyed by the Haredim has a valid historical context however such legitimacy is no longer applicable to contemporary Israel. Addressing why the Haredim living in israel are not subject to the draft will explore the institutions that have facilitated and protected the draft exemption. And identify those areas that bring benefits to the modern state and this qualify the continuation of the draft exemption to arrive aShow less
