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Those sceptical of these sorts of projects – and I count myself among them – might be forgiven for doubting that change can somehow materialize from within the very bowels of moribund autocracies, authoritarian regimes and conservative fiefdoms. A steady stream of earlier initiatives, from condemnations and fatwas against terrorism, to de-radicalization programmes, proved themselves to be almost entirely impotent in the past. Considering how damaging these last 2 factors have been in fomenting sectarianism and nurturing fundamentalism in many Muslim majority countries, the significance of these initiatives should not be underestimated.Īll the more surprising then, that they have been almost universally neglected by the Western press. Days later, the OIC met again in Jeddah in pursuit of the so-called Istanbul Process – the implementation of a UN resolution on religious intolerance and hate speech. All are important counterweights to the appeal of extremism and IS. It should promote tolerance, strengthen civil society, address socio-economic inequalities and target vitriolic hate speech and extremist thought. So on the rare occasions when it manages to speak with a unified voice, we would perhaps be wise to sit up and listen.Īt the 42nd summit of the OIC, which took place in June in Kuwait, assembled foreign ministers collectively committed to a laudable shared vision for the Muslim world. It is the second-largest inter-governmental organization on the planet, with 57 sovereign member states from across the Muslim world. It is of course unfair to speak of the Muslim world in these monolithic terms, but perhaps the only body that might claim to speak as the collective voice of the Muslim world with some modicum of legitimacy is the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

It is safe to state that the Muslim world, through varying degrees of denial, apathy and self-interest, has largely failed to respond to the challenge posed by IS with any sort of coherence. How Islamic is Islamic State? What does a legitimate Caliphate look like in the 21st century? Why are young Muslims from every corner of the globe flocking to its standard? And perhaps the most difficult question: if IS is so reviled, why on earth is it still winning? The staying power of this atavistic throwback to the dark ages, which positively revels in barbaric savagery and violence, all while shrouded in the language and regalia of Islamic caliphs and religious piety, has prompted a great deal of renewed soul searching in the Muslim world.Ī flurry of uncomfortable questions has exposed this existential crisis. But the stubborn persistence of IS has put paid to any such wishful thinking. Airstrikes from above and local disillusionment from below would be its rapid undoing.

Many assumed IS would vanish as quickly as it had appeared.

The omnipresence of the group has precipitated something of an identity crisis in the Muslim world. The wave of recent attacks in Tunisia, Kuwait and Turkey, all apparently linked to Islamic State (IS) in some way, have reinforced the spectre of the unstoppable ‘Daesh death cult’ whose tentacles of terror can reach deep into every corner of the globe. S3ISOR under a Creative Commons Licence Uncomfortable questions in the Muslim world have exposed an existential crisis, argues Akil N Awan. LEGO Lord of the Rings Dol Guldur Battle with Dol Guldur Ambush and Witch King Battle.