Riadh Sidaoui (رياض الصيداوي) (born 14 May 1967) is a
Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
- Tunisian writer, journalist and political scientist.
He is the director of the Geneva-based ''Arab Centre for Political and Social Research and Analysis'', and the editor-in-chief of the news website ''Taqadoumiya'' since
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
. He published articles in London-based newspapers such as '' Al-Hayat'' and '' Al-Quds Al-Arabi''.
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
political sciences
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
from the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences of the University of Geneva in 1998.
Thought
Islamists
Sidaoui draws attention to the notion that many fanatical Islamists have degrees in sciences; in fact, the
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...
were committed by men who had completed studies in natural sciences. He explains: "Despite the lack of a comprehensive study on the occupational origin of the leadership of Islamist movements in the Arab world, we can see an almost total domination of scientific careers. It seems that the number of engineers, doctors, physicists, etc., acting on behalf of
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
, is considerable. This thesis is confirmed by the success of Islamists in the elections of scientific advice in the faculties of sciences. This same success is difficult if not impossible in the faculties of Humanities and Social Sciences.".
After the fall of Arab dictators in the Arab Spring, Sidaoui said that the first winners of the revolutions are Islamists in view of their capacity of mobilization and organization. In addition, he noted that the Islamists have the overwhelming support of the Arab countries in the Persian Gulf, the petrodollars, but also the United States, that accept a moderate Islam in the Arab world (as in Turkey).
Saudi Wahhabism
According to Riadh Sidaoui, habitual use of the term Wahhabism is scientifically false, and it should be substituted with the concept of ''Saudi Wahhabism'', an Islamic doctrine which is based on the historical alliance between the political and financial power represented by
Ibn Saud
Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud ( ar, عبد العزيز بن عبد الرحمن آل سعود, ʿAbd al ʿAzīz bin ʿAbd ar Raḥman Āl Suʿūd; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted ...
and the religious authority represented by Abdul Al-Wahhab. The doctrine continues to exist to this day thanks to this alliance, the financing of several religious channels, and the formation of several
sheikh
Sheikh (pronounced or ; ar, شيخ ' , mostly pronounced , plural ' )—also transliterated sheekh, sheyikh, shaykh, shayk, shekh, shaik and Shaikh, shak—is an honorific title in the Arabic language. It commonly designates a chief of a ...
s.
Sidaoui thinks that the political foundations of Islam lie in the republican democratic and non-Wahhabi monarchy mind. For him Saudi Wahhabism is a threat to Islam,
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
s and all humanity.
Publications
In English
* "The Inner Weakness of Arab Media", in Natascha Fioretti et Marcello Foa, ''Islam and the Western World: the Role of the Media'', éd. European Journalism Observatory, Lugano, 2008 ;
* "Islamic Politics and the Military: Algeria 1962–2008", in
*Hiwarat nassiriyya (حوارات ناصرية) éd. Arabesques, Tunis, 1992 (rééd. Centre arabe de recherches et d'analyses, Beyrouth, 2003). ;
*Heikel aw al milaf asirri il dhakira al arabiyya (هيكل أو الملف السري للذاكرة العربية), Tunis, 1993 (rééd. Le Caire, 2000 et Beyrouth, 2003). ;
* Siraat annourab assiyasiyya wal askariyya fil jazair : al hizb, al jaych, al dawla (صراعات النخب السياسية والعسكرية في الجزائر: الحزب،) (الجيش، الدولة, éd. Arab Institute for Research and Publishing, Beyrouth, 2000 ;
* Jean Ziegler yatahadath ila al Arab (جان زجلر يتحدث إلى العرب), éd. Centre arabe de recherches et d'analyses, Beyrouth, 2003 ;
*Maarek Abd Ennacer (معارك عبد الناصر), éd. Centre arabe de recherches et d'analyses, Beyrouth, 2003 ;
In French
* ''L'islamisme en Algérie: une révolution en marche ?'', éd. Université de Genève, Genève, 1998;
* ''FIS, armée, GIA : vainqueurs et vaincus'', éd. Publisud, Paris, 2002;
* ''L'Armée algérienne 1954/1994: Mutations internes'', éd. Centre arabe de recherches et d'analyses, Paris, 2003.