ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS
- “The recent codification of the Personal Status Law (PSL) in Saudi Arabia marks a significant development in the country’s legal framework, particularly concerning women’s rights in child custody disputes. The PSL, officially enacted in March 2022, represents the Saudi government’s formal endorsement of laws that prioritise mother’s custody rights, seen as a significant step towards gender equality under Islamic law.”
- “The Taliban said . . . it was absurd to accuse them of gender discrimination and other human rights violations, as four countries vow to hold Afghanistan’s rulers accountable under international law for their treatment of women and girls. Specifically, “[t]he governments of Australia, Canada, Germany, and The Netherlands have stated their intention to take Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government to the International Court of Justice for policies they say show the Islamic Emirate’s “contempt” for the rights of women and girls.” For more content and context on the recent developments in Afghanistan, consult our Editor-in-Chief, Professor Intisar Rabb’s “Resource Roundup: Afghanistan, the Taliban, and Islamic Law.” For the text of the recently enacted “Law on Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice,” stirring international debate, see here.
- “Assistant Religious Officer from the Islamic Da’wah Centre Muhammad Syahirul Syafiq bin Rashid during a lecture touched on the importance of Maqasid Syariah (Objectives of Islamic Law) which emphasises on the preservation of intellect in accordance with sunnah and therefore is a gift from Allah the Almighty that must be maintained in instilling noble values and knowledge as commanded.”
- “The deaths of two men [for alleged blasphemy] have reverberated across Pakistan, where the charge of insulting Islam has long been a sensitive issue.”
- “Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, has announced the launch of its Islamic Account, making it the first global cryptocurrency exchange to offer such a service to Muslim traders worldwide.”
- “After reviewing many excellent submissions, the Selection Committee has chosen Afiya Rahman ’24 (Social Studies and South Asian Studies) as the winner of the 2024 Alwaleed Bin Talal Undergraduate Thesis Prize in Islamic Studies for her thesis entitled, ‘We Are Children of Genocide: Charting Transnational Solidarity and Racial Politics in the Bangladeshi Diaspora.’ . . . The Committee also named Asmer Safi ’24 (Social Studies and Ethnicity, Migration and Rights) as honorable mention for his excellent thesis, ‘Sing to the Rattling of Your Chains’: The Revolutionary Political Thought of Abdul Rahim Popalzai.'”
CASES AND FATWĀS
- The Permanent Committee for Fatwa in Saudi Arabia recently issued a fatwā “reject[ing] the unity of religions.”
UPCOMING EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
PIL & Harvard Calendar:
- Seminar: “Islam and Citizenship in Indonesia: Nahdlatul Ulama and the Quest for an Inclusive Public Ethics” by Robert Hefner, Harvard University, October 7, 2024.
- Memorial Service: In Memoriam: Professor Roy Parviz Mottahedeh, October 25, 2024.
- Conference: Islamic Finance Conference (IFC), Harvard University, October 25-26, 2024.
- Seminar: “Travel Writing and the Production of a Global Imagination in Muslim South Asia” by Daniel Majchrowicz, Harvard University, November 6, 2024.
- Call for Submissions: Journal of Islamic Law Special Issue, January 13, 2025.
Calendar:
- Call for Proposals: Hot Topics Program, 2025 Association of American Law Schools Meeting, October 14, 2024.
- Conference: 2024 American Society of Comparative Law Annual Meeting, Texas A&M University School of Law, October 17-19, 2024 (Call for Submissions: October 15, 2024).
- Fellowship: Thomas C. Grey Fellowship, Stanford Law School, 2025-2026, October 15, 2024.
- Talk: “Unsettlements: History of Land Reclamation in British Mandate of Palestine” with Nurfadzilah Yahaya, Stanford University, October 28, 2024.
- Discussion: Comparison and Scalar Reading: Niqula al-Haddad’s Translation of Ignatious Donnelly’s Caesar’s Column, a Tale of the 20th Century, Europe in the Middle East, October 30, 2024.
- Conference: Law, colonialism and gender in the Muslim world, December 19-20, 2024.
- Conference: Eleventh Conference of the School of Mamluk Studies, Queen Mary University, UK, May 8-10, 2025 (Paper proposals: October 31, 2024; Panel proposals: November 30, 2024).
- Conference: Law and Society Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, May 22-25, 2025 (Registration: January 3, 2025).
- Conference: MESA 2025, Westin Downtown, Washington DC, November 22-25, 2025.
- Search for Editor: International Journal of Middle East Studies, until an appointment is made.
- Internship opportunity: The Executive Office of the President, White House, various deadlines.
- Position opening: Academic mentor and field researcher in Iraq, Cordoba Peace Institute-Geneva (CPI) & ETH Zurich, rolling basis.
- Position opening: Academic mentor for researcher in Mogadishu, Cordoba Peace Institute-Geneva (CPI) & ETH Zurich.
- Call for Papers: Special Section – Lifewriting Annual and Islam.
- Call for Manuscripts: Advances in the Study of Islam, Edinburgh University Press.