Bücher der Reihe Durham Modern Middle East and Islamic World Series

Presents an overview of Islamic extremism in Kuwait. This title traces the development of Islamist fundamentalist groups in Kuwait, both Shiite and Sunni, from the beginning of the twentieth century.

This book focuses on Islamic family law as interpreted and applied by judges in Europe, Australia and North America. It uses court transcriptions and observations to discuss how the most contentious marriage-related issues - consent and age of spouses, dower, polygamy, and divorce - are adjudicated. The solutions proposed by different legal systems are reviewed , and some broader questions are addressed: how Islamic principles are harmonized with norms based on gender equality, how parties bargain strategically in and out of court, and how Muslim diasporas align their Islamic worldview with a Western normative narrative.

While there are many books on Islamic family law, the literature on its enforcement is scarce. This book focuses on how Islamic family law is interpreted and applied by judges in a range of Muslim countries ¿ Sunni and Shi'a, as well as Arab and non-Arab. It thereby aids the understanding of shari'a law in practice in a number of different cultural and political settings. It shows how the existence of differing views of what shari'a is, as well as the presence of a vast body of legal material which judges can refer to, make it possible for courts to interpret Islamic law in creative and innovative ways.

This book explores the contradictions in American democracy promotion in the Middle East. It discusses the principles underlying US democracy promotion, and the debates surrounding US policy formation, and examines the application of US democracy promotion in specific cases. It concludes by assessing the likely future patterns of US engagement with democratic reform in the Middle East.

This book considers the significant geopolitical, economic and security links between the Middle East and the wider Asian world - links which are often overlooked when the Middle East is considered in isolation or in terms of its relations with the West, but which are of growing importance.

The work is a fresh interpretation of Israel's foreign policy vis-a-vis the peace process, one that deems domestic political factors as the key to explain the shift within Israel from war to peace.

The Muslim Brotherhood has become the world's largest, most influential Islamist group. This book examines the Brotherhood's active role in Egypt and throughout the Middle East and Arab world, exploring its evolving position on key issues, including gender, religious minorities, and political plurality, and analyzes its attempts at reform.

"Looking at the social, political and legal changes in Oman since 1970, this book challenges the Islamic and tribal traditional cultural norms relating to marriage, divorce and women's rights which guide social and legal practice in the modern Omani state"--

As the economies of East Asia grow ever stronger, their need for energy resources increases, which in turn compels closer relations with the countries of the Middle East. This book examines the developing relations between the countries of East Asia with the countries of the Middle East. It looks at various key bilateral relationships, discusses the impact on the United States¿ hegemony in both regions, considers whether the new relations represent a contribution to, or a threat to, peace and stability, and assesses the implications of the changes for patterns of regional and global international relations systems.

Much attention in the West has focused on Iran as a problem - a potential nuclear threat, seen by George W Bush as part of the 'axis of evil', and by Barack Obama as a top priority for serious diplomatic engagement at the very highest levels. This book discusses how international relations are viewed from inside Iran itself.

After the terrorist attacks of 9/11 in New York, and the Madrid and London bombings, Muslim communities in the West have generated security issues and political concern. This book challenges the authenticity of popular myths about the Islamic world and examines these myths as ideological cover for the "war on terror" and Iraq war.

This book explores this phenomenon drawing on examples from the Middle East and Africa. It considers the different sorts of actors ¿ state and non-state, public and private, national and transnational ¿ which possess power, examines the dynamics of the relationships between central authorities and other actors.

The Oslo secret negotiations from 1992 to 1993 were some of the most astonishing and successful negotiations in the Middle East, leading to the mutual recognition between the PLO and Israel. This book provides an account of the Oslo negotiations, focusing particularly on the issue of non-recognition.

Eight years after the second Palestinian uprising, the Oslo accords signed in 1993 seem to have failed. This book explores one of the major aspects of the bilateral peace process - the composition and behavior of the Palestinian negotiating team, which deeply impacted the outcome of the negotiations between 1991 and 1997.

This book explores many key aspects of the globalisation process, discussing how Muslim countries are coping with the encounter with globalisation, as well as considering how the West is responding to Islam.

Examines the history of international relations in the Gulf since the 1820s, focusing on the struggle for control over the islands of the Gulf.

Provides an assessment of relations between Iran and Europe, identifying the areas of common interest as well as the issues of conflict. This book explores historical episodes, including Iran's support of Germany in the years before the First World War and the impact of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

Examines the currency union of the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) - Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates - which comes into effect in 2010.

This book explores many key aspects of the globalisation process, discussing how Muslim countries are coping with the encounter with globalisation, as well as considering how the West is responding to Islam.

Examining globalization in the Middle East, this book provides an assessment of the impact of globalization in the 'greater' Middle East, including North Africa, in the context of the powerful geopolitical forces at work in shaping the region.

After the terrorist attacks of 9/11 in New York, and the Madrid and London bombings, Muslim communities in the West have generated security issues and political concern. This book challenges the authenticity of popular myths about the Islamic world and examines these myths as ideological cover for the "war on terror" and Iraq war.

Iraq, democracy and Islam are powerful global forces which shape not only many aspects of the lives of Muslims, but the lives of other citizens of the world as well. This book explores many of the challenging questions posed by the interconnections between these three forces, concentrating on issues which have global significance and which have been less studied up until now.

This book explores the activities of the local Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan. It examines how the Brotherhood, working to establish an alternative social, political and moral order through networks of Islamic institutions, made a huge contribution to the transformation of Jordanian society. It reveals, however, that the Brotherhood has also engaged with neo-liberal approaches to the economy, adopting a "hybridisation" of Islamism which is a collection of historically constructed practices, rather than an abstract set of beliefs. The book also illustrates how globalisation is profoundly influencing culture and society in the Arab world, though modified by the adoption of an Islamic framework.