Broken Bangles: Life, Stories, Thoughts

Abu Mohammed al-Julani is a former Al Qaida leader with USD 10 million designated as a reward by the US for information on him. He is the leader of the organisation, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Organisation for the Liberation of the Levant, which works for freedom for the entire Levant. He has been declared a terrorist by the US, the UN, and many countries.  If we look closer, we will realise that his personality as a Middle Eastern leader has been transforming as he has walked a path of fire his entire life as a foot soldier of Islam and the Middle East’s self-determination. Despite checking all the boxes for being a terrorist as defined by the West, his life reflects the complex socio-political situation that every citizen of a Middle Eastern country faces. Hence, it demands better understanding from those who believe in freedom and democracy.  In so many words, he has often claimed to have changed himself from an extremist to a moderate in his journey through the tumult...

  The new rebel coalition, HTS, after taking over the control of Syria and ousting the dictator, Bashar al-Assad, has claimed that women’s rights will be protected in the country. The HTS and its leader Abu Mohammed al-Julani are true followers of Sharia law. How will they reconcile women’s rights and a conventional interpretation of Sharia law? Will the HTS include women in the new government? People responded to the journalists’ questions expressing hope that the new regime would not oppress women, they would let the girls study and not meddle with what women want to wear. Many women expressed fear about how things would unfold. Women activists have demanded that women get due representation and a significant role in nation-building.  Syria can surprise you with its great cultural diversity and the different ways women live, presenting a wide spectrum of lifestyles from ultra-orthodox to ultra-modern. Very few people remember that Syria had an all-women private militia that ...