Mereja.Forum

[Mesob]

'Sword and Scimitar' by Raymond Ibrahim

‘The West and Islam – the sword and scimitar – have clashed since the mid-seventh century, when, according to Muslim tradition, the Roman emperor rejected prophet Muhammad’s order to abandon Christianity and convert to Islam, unleashing a centuries-long jihad on Christendom.
‘Sword and Scimitar’ chronicles the decisive battles that arose from this ages-old Islamic jihad, beginning with the first major Islamic attack on Christian territory in 636, through the Muslim occupation of nearly three-quarters of Christendom, which prompted the Crusades, followed by renewed Muslim conquests by Turks and Tatars, to the European colonisation of the Muslim world in the 1800s, when Islam largely went on the retreat – until its reemergence in recent times.
Using original sources in Arabic, Greek, and other languages, preeminent historian Raymond Ibrahim vividly describes the decisive battles from this ages-old jihad and explains how they reflect the cultural fault lines between Islam and the West.
The majority of these landmark encounters – including the battles of Yarmuk, Tours, Manzikert, the sieges at Constantinople and Vienna, and the crusades in Syria and Spain – are now forgotten or considered inconsequential. Yet today, as the West faces a resurgence of this enduring Islamic jihad, ‘Sword and Scimitar’ provides the needed historical context to understand the current relationship between the West and the Islamic world – and why the Islamic State is merely the latest chapter of an old history.’

I’d never heard of Raymond Ibrahim until late last year when one of his videos about the Crusades popped up on my YouTube.

I watched it because, for some time now, much of the history of the Crusades I’ve come across is nothing like the history of the Crusades I learnt about in my younger years; to put things in perspective, I’m 61 and grew up in Malaysia.

To be honest, I was sceptical at first, but it didn’t take long before I was genuinely surprised because what Mr Ibrahim was saying lined up with what I’d learned.

So, I looked more into his background, and this is what I found (taken from his website: raymondibrahim.com):
‘Ibrahim’s dual-background – born and raised in the US by Egyptian parents born and raised in the Middle East – has provided him with unique advantages, from equal fluency in English and Arabic, to an equal understanding of the Western and Middle Eastern mindsets… His interest in Islamic civilization was first piqued when he began visiting the Middle East as a child in the 1970s. Interacting… with the locals throughout the decades has provided him with an intimate appreciation for that part of the world, complementing his academic training.
Ibrahim’s resumé included serving as an Arabic language and regional specialist at the Near East Section of the Library of Congress, where he was often contacted by and provided information to defence and intelligence personnel involved in the fields of counterterrorism and area studies …’

After watching a few more videos, including longer interview-style ones with him on other channels, I decided to get his book, ‘Sword and Scimitar’.

I was already aware – sometimes, more aware than I want to be because of the incessant violence – of Islamic jihad through Robert Spencer’s outstanding ‘jihadwatch.org’ and his YouTube channel, so I had an idea what to expect with this book.

What I wasn’t expecting was the grip the book had on my attention as it’s far from being dry and academic, and I couldn’t read it fast enough.

https://www.joyvspicer.com/joy-blog/202 ... nd-ibrahim

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[Dama]

Working hard to incite religious conflicts in Ethiopia, you SOB has succeeded. Tigrey Grade 12 Muslim girls were barred from attending school. Many dead and properties destroyed in Gurage. Dilla University security denied entry to campus to Muslim university student girls who wore hijab.
You are succeeding against innocent Muslim school and college girls of Ethiopia. Mind you your success is only in schools, not in companies, in markets, in gov offices. Your success of islamophobia is only against Muslim school girls.
SOB!!