James M Dorsey
Commentator
James M Dorsey is an award-winning journalist and commentator on foreign affairs who has covered ethnic and religious conflict and terrorism across the globe for more than three decades.
Opinion | AfPak takes on a new meaning with the rise of the Taliban
AfPak was a term used by the US government to signal that Afghanistan and Pakistan constituted a single theatre of operations in the war on terror
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Opinion | Taliban and Al-Qaeda: Putting a fox in charge of the chicken coop?
Al-Qaeda may have been boosted in recent weeks by multiple prison breaks in which the Taliban freed operatives of Al-Qaeda and other militant groups. It remains unclear however to what degree the…
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What starts in Afghanistan does not stay in Afghanistan: China, India, and Iran grapple with the fallout
The potential fall of the US-backed Afghan government of President Ashraf Ghani will shelve, if not kill Indian support for the Iranian port of Chabahar that was intended to facilitate Indian…
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Opinion: Athletes knock the legs from under global sports governance
The greater assertiveness of athletes and corporations in speaking out for fundamental rights and against racism and discrimination will make it increasingly difficult for sports associations to…
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Opinion- Myanmar: Exploiting lessons learnt in the Middle East
The Middle East and North Africa provide cautionary tales like Egypt that eight years after a coup has become a brutal dictatorship
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Opinion: Turkey signals sweeping regional ambitions
Azerbaijan's defeat of Armenia with Turkey's backing appears to have raised Turkish confidence of its sphere of influence
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Opinion: A Muslim scholar says human rights policy needs to focus on religious scholars
He was speaking at a virtual conference, organized by the Washington-based Arab Center for Law and Research to focus attention on another popular but controversial religious scholar
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Opinion: Separating the wheat from the chaff Saudi moderation put to the test
How the mix plays out will ultimately bring into spotlight the outcome of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s efforts to inject a significant dose of nationalism in a Saudi identity that…
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Islamophobia: A fungible prop for Muslim religious soft power
Rising anti-Muslim sentiment in countries like China and Myanmar as well as the West against the backdrop of increased support for anti-migration and extreme nationalist groups, and far-right…
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Opinion: Iranians move into front line of the Middle East’s quest for religious change
A survey of Iranian attitudes towards religion has revealed a stunning rejection of state-imposed adherence to conservative religious mores as well as the role of religion in public life
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Opinion: When is usury usury? Turkish fatwa casts doubt on Erdogan’s religious soft power drive
In a surprise move, Erdogan appointed a new central bank governor and promised to adhere to more orthodox monetary policies that would include higher interest rates in a bid to stem the slide of…
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Opinion | Looming large: The Middle East braces for fallout of US–China divide
With relations with the United States rapidly deteriorating, China’s primary focus is on what it views as its main battleground: the Asia–Pacific. China is nonetheless realising that remaining…
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Gulf state religious moderation falls by the wayside in Pakistan
The Gulf States’ silence is the latest example of a geopolitics and economics-driven refusal to speak out on repression of or discrimination against Muslims in various parts of the world,…
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Opinion: Erdogan positions powerful Turkish military as backbone of regional strategy
Mr. Erdogan appears to define Turkey’s place in the new world order as Turkish leadership of a broader Muslim world of which lands populated by Turkic ethnicities are a part.
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Opinion: Indonesia potentially set to take on China and claim leadership of ‘moderate’ Islam
Indonesia has to date sought to walk a fine line in escalating tensions between the United States and China, including its refusal to speak out on the plight of the Uighurs. Indonesia has further…
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