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Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi
Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi (born 1961) is an Iranian writer, film producer and human rights activist. Life Zand-Bonazzi was born in Tehran to journalist parents. She attended the American University of Paris as well as at the IDHEC, the Institute for the Advanced Cinematographic Studies. In 1982, she went to the United States and continued studies at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She studied film and art history as well as linguistics and semiotics. In 1993, Banafsheh returned to the world of TV production, as a freelance line producer of documentary films. In 2001, her father, Siamak Pourzand, became a political prisoner in Iran. He committed suicide in 2011, in what Zand said was a protest against the government. Banafsheh regularly writes for ''National Review'', Defense & Foreign Affairs and ''FrontPage Magazine''. She is a regular commentator on Iranian politics on the John Batchelor Show and has appeared on C-SPAN's ''Washington Journal'' and Voice of America T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Human Rights Activists In Iran
Human Rights Activists in Iran (; also known as HRAI, HRA and HRANA) is a non-political non-governmental organization composed of advocates who defend human rights in Iran. HRAI was founded in 2006. History HRAI was founded in 2006 by a small group of Iranian activists who gathered to organize their protests against Iranian human rights violations. Beginning with a focus on defending political prisoners, and with no resources other than those freely available within Iranian society, the group grew and attracted more members and financial support. By 2009, they had grown large enough to attract the attention of the government, which began arresting organizers and members. Later, during a period of relaxed government attitudes toward activism, the organization was able to officially register as a legal entity. The group coalesced into a defined structure with committees with specific responsibilities and specializations. During this time, HRAI achieved their most ambitious goals: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fox TV
Fox Broadcasting Company, LLC (commonly known as Fox; stylized in all caps) is an American commercial broadcast television network serving as the flagship property of Fox Corporation and operated through Fox Entertainment. Fox is based at Fox Corporation's corporate headquarters at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, and it hosts additional offices at the Fox Network Center in Los Angeles and at the Fox Media Center in Tempe, Arizona. The channel was launched by News Corporation on October 9, 1986 as a competitor to the Big Three television networks, which are the American Broadcasting Company (ABC), the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), and the National Broadcasting Company (NBC). Fox went on to become the most successful attempt at a fourth television network; it was also the highest- rated free-to-air network in the 18–49 demographic from 2004 to 2012 and 2020 to 2021 and was the most-watched American television network in total viewership d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haaretz
''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew language, Hebrew and English language, English in the Berliner (format), Berliner format, and is also available online. In North America, it is published as a weekly newspaper, combining articles from the Friday edition with a roundup from the rest of the week. ''Haaretz'' is Israel's newspaper of record. It is known for its Left-wing politics, left-wing and Liberalism in Israel, liberal stances on domestic and foreign issues. ''Haaretz'' has the third-largest Print circulation, circulation in Israel. It is widely read by international observers, especially in its English edition, and discussed in the international press. According to the Center for Research Libraries, among Israel's daily newspapers, "''Haaretz'' is considered the most infl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mackenzie Institute
The Mackenzie Institute for the Study of Terrorism, Revolution and Propaganda is an independent and non-partisan think tank in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1984 and focuses on geopolitical security matters. The institute has been a registered charity with the Canada Revenue Agency since 1992. In 2019, it was ranked as the 36th best think tank in Canada and Mexico by the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania. Founding It was founded in 1984 by Brigadier Dr. Maurice Tugwell, an academic and former career British Army officer. Tugwell served in the Army from 1943 to 1978, and was awarded the rank of Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1973. After retiring from the Army, he earned a doctorate in war studies from the University of London and emigrated to Canada where he became a professor at the University of New Brunswick (UNB). Before founding the Mackenzie Institute in 1984, he founded the Centre for Conflict Studie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Universal Declaration Of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the Human rights, rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN Drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, committee chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt, it was accepted by the General Assembly as United Nations General Assembly Resolution 217, Resolution 217 during Third session of the United Nations General Assembly, its third session on 10 December 1948 at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France. Of the 58 members of the United Nations at the time, 48 voted in favour, none against, eight abstentions, abstained, and two did not vote. A foundational text in the History of human rights, history of human and civil rights, the Declaration consists of 30 articles detailing an individual's "basic rights and fundamental freedoms" and affirming their universal character as inherent, inalienable, and applicable to all human beings ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apostasy
Apostasy (; ) is the formal religious disaffiliation, disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that is contrary to one's previous religious beliefs. One who undertakes apostasy is known as an apostate. Undertaking apostasy is called apostatizing (or apostasizing – also spelled apostacizing). The term ''apostasy'' is used by sociology, sociologists to mean the renunciation ''and'' criticism of, or opposition to, a person's former religion, in a technical sense, with no pejorative connotation. Occasionally, the term is also used metaphorically to refer to the renunciation of a non-religious belief or cause, such as a political party, social movement, or sports team. Apostasy is generally not a self-definition: few former believers call themselves apostates due to the term's negative connotation. Many religious groups and some states punish apostates; this may be the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blasphemy
Blasphemy refers to an insult that shows contempt, disrespect or lack of Reverence (emotion), reverence concerning a deity, an object considered sacred, or something considered Sanctity of life, inviolable. Some religions, especially Abrahamic ones, regard blasphemy as a crime, including insulting the Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, speaking the Names of God in Judaism, sacred name in Judaism, and blasphemy of God's Holy Spirit in Christianity, Holy Spirit is an eternal sin in Christianity. It was also a crime under English law, English common law, and it is still a crime under Italian law (Art. 724 del Codice Penale). In the early history of the Church, blasphemy "was considered to show active disrespect to God and to involve the use of profane cursing or mockery of his powers". In the medieval world, those who committed blasphemy were seen as needing discipline. By the 17th century, several historically Christianity, Christian countries had Blasphemy laws, legislation agains ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fatwa
A fatwa (; ; ; ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (sharia) given by a qualified Islamic jurist ('' faqih'') in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist issuing fatwas is called a ''mufti'', and the act of issuing fatwas is called ''ifta. Fatwas have played an important role throughout Islamic history, taking on new forms in the modern era. Resembling ''jus respondendi'' in Roman law and rabbinic ''responsa'', privately issued fatwas historically served to inform Muslim populations about Islam, advise courts on difficult points of Islamic law, and elaborate substantive law. In later times, public and political fatwas were issued to take a stand on doctrinal controversies, legitimize government policies or articulate grievances of the population. During the era of mass European/Christian invasions, fatwas played a part in mobilizing resistance against foreign aggressors. Muftis acted as independent scholars in the classical ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sharia
Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on Islamic holy books, scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran, Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' refers to immutable, intangible divine law; contrary to ''fiqh'', which refers to its interpretations by Ulama, Islamic scholars. Sharia, or fiqh as traditionally known, has always been used alongside urf, customary law from the very beginning in Islamic history; has been elaborated and developed over the centuries by fatwa, legal opinions issued by mufti, qualified jurists – reflecting the tendencies of Schools of Fiqh, different schools – and integrated and with various economic, penal and administrative laws issued by Muslims, Muslim rulers; and implemented for centuries by Qadi, judges in the courts until recent times, when secularism was widely adopted in Islamic societies. Traditional Principles of Islamic jurisprudence, theory o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
St Petersburg Declaration (Florida)
The Secular Islam Summit was an international forum for secularists of Islamic societies, held 4–5 March 2007 in St. Petersburg, Florida. It was largely organized and funded by the Amherst, NY-based Center for Inquiry, a secular humanist educational organization, along with secular Muslims such as Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi and in partnership with the International Intelligence Summit, a forum on terrorism. Overview The common ground of the participants was the belief that Islam and secular democracy should be compatible. They agreed that Islam must be either a religion or a political philosophy, not both. According to Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi, one of the organizers, one of the summit's goals was to be a "sanctuary" for victims of Islamism and a forum for the embrace of secular values. Participants Speakers ranged from former believers to devout reformers, including Ibn Warraq (the pen name of an ex-Muslim author known for criticism of Islam), Tawfik Hamid (an ex-jihadist, now in hidin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Irshad Manji
Irshad Manji (born 1968) is a Ugandan-born Canadian educator. She is the author of '' The Trouble with Islam Today'' (2004) and ''Allah, Liberty and Love'' (2011), both of which have been banned in several Muslim countries. She also produced a PBS documentary in the '' America at a Crossroads'' series, titled ''Faith Without Fear'', which was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2008. A former journalist and television presenter, Manji is an advocate of a reformist interpretation of Islam and a critic of literalist interpretations of the Qur'an. Her latest book, ''Don't Label Me'' (2019), proposes methods on how to heal political, racial, and cultural divides. The ideas in the book are related to the Moral Courage Project, which Manji founded at New York University in 2008 and expanded to the University of Southern California (USC) in 2016, when she was a senior fellow at the Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership & Policy. After leaving USC, she founded Moral Courage College ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wafa Sultan
Wafa Sultan (; born June 14, 1958) is a Syrian-American medical doctor, writer, and critic of Islam. In 2006, ''Time'' magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Early life Sultan was born into a modest middle class Alawite family in Baniyas, Syria. Although Sultan wanted to be a writer, and would have preferred to study Arabic literature, she studied at the medical faculty at the University of Aleppo due to pressure from her family.Wendt, Jana, ''A Matter of Principle: New Meetings with the Good, the Great and the Formidable'', Melbourne University Publishing, 2008, p.46 She says that she was shocked into secularism by the 1979 atrocities committed by Islamic extremists of the Muslim Brotherhood against innocent Syrians. She states that while she was a medical student, she witnessed the machine-gun assassination of her professor, Yusef al Yusef, an ophthalmologist from the university who was renowned outside Syria. "They shot hundreds of bull ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
