The Thinking Muslim

Syria has witnessed a remarkable victory in recent weeks, with a brutal dictator falling against all odds. What is the Islamic significance of this? How should we understand the concepts of victory and seeking Allah’s help? To delve deeper into this topic, we welcome Dr Shadee al-Masri back on the show to enlighten us about these crucial ideas of victory and seeking Allah’s assistance. How much do Allah’s help and victory rely on our actions, iman, and preparation? What are the religious implications of surrendering the struggle or feeling disheartened?Let me remind all viewers that to help us continue to engage critical thought at this time, Please consider becoming a Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimYou can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/DonateListen to the audio version of the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636aApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.comPurchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merchFind us on:Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimTwitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslimFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslimBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/thinkingmuslim.bsky.socialHost: https://twitter.com/jalalaynWebsite Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.comTimestamps:0:00 – Introduction2:09 – Allah’s victory?4:11 – Realists in Ummah13:54 – Leaders in Ummah17:40 – Competing obligations 28:28 – Allah’s intervention 35:45 – Wait for victory?39:39 – Gaza’s victory45:36 – Hypocrisy 49:54 – Believer’s mindset56:36 – Importance of Dua1:00:18 – Value of Tahhajud1:02:39 – Battle of prophet1:10:47 – Giving up

This year we have seen two Muslim countries move away from bitter dictatorships, Bangladesh and Syria. Yet the horrific scenes in Gaza remain. Any joy that comes from Syria is always muted as we endure the horrific genocide perpetrated by the west and its colonial enterprise. Gaza exposes the hollowness of an international order.The civil war in Sudan remains active, Pakistan’s generals have consolidated power, and the Egyptian pharaoh seems comfortable aiding Israel in its blood-shedding and the Saudis are looking forward to selling Palestine for a US security deal.We have the pleasure of inviting Sami Hamdi back on the show to look at the year gone and the year ahead. Please as always remember to subscribe to this podcast on your preferred platform, this helps us grow our audience. Alhamamdulillah we are now the 2nd most listened to Muslim podcast on Apple. If you want to support the show, please think about becoming a patron. For a small monthly donation, you will be helping to expand our reach and our content.Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive monthly calls: https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimLet me remind all viewers that to help us continue to engage critical thought at this time, Please consider becoming a Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimYou can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/DonateListen to the audio version of the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636aApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.comPurchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merchFind us on:Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimTwitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslimFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslimBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/thinkingmuslim.bsky.socialHost: https://twitter.com/jalalaynWebsite Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.comTimestamps:0:00 – Introduction2:22 – Saudi Ceasefire agreement 10:51- Hezbollah peace deal20:28 – Netanyahu’s aims34:45 – Metaphysical and Politics55:07 – Sisi1:01:44 – Sisi Palestine betrayal1:06:59 – Syria and Egypt1:10:17 –2025 Looking ahead

Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive monthly calls: https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimAs part of Muhammad Jalal’s conversations with young Muslims from around the world, he speaks with Mosaab and Watfae about the Trump presidency and what this will mean for young Muslims.Let me remind all viewers that to help us continue to engage critical thought at this time, Please consider becoming a Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimYou can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/DonateListen to the audio version of the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636aApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.comPurchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merchFind us on:Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimTwitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslimFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslimBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/thinkingmuslim.bsky.socialHost: https://twitter.com/jalalaynWebsite Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.comTimestamps:0:00 – Introduction1:20 – Dread for Trump?4:06 – Writing on Ballot?5:00 – Feeling on ground8:15 – Tactical voting12:45 – Muslims in politics16:48 – Public figures 20:57 – Hijrah27:47 – American Muslims progressive?33:12 – Sami Hamdi

Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive monthly calls: https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimThe Syrian revolution began in 2011 as a grassroots civil society uprising against one of the most tyrannical rulers in the Muslim World. Bashar al-Assad, like his father before him, presided over a state of terror, with mass disappearances, secret police repression and a brutal, corrupt state machinery that governed through fear. Assad had four secret service agencies (mukhabarat) that worked independently. If you got onto a list, your life would become a never-ending Kafkaesque tragedy. All four had to pardon you before you could be absolved of any guilt. Ordinary Syrians talked in hushed tones in case stray criticism of the state would be misconstrued as insurrection. Assad was a ‘god’ who had to be adored by his people.What has happened over these past two weeks is truly spectacular. But how did we get here? And how do we understand the past 13 years?Let me remind all viewers that to help us continue to engage critical thought at this time, Please consider becoming a Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimYou can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/DonateListen to the audio version of the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636aApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.comPurchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merchFind us on:Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimTwitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslimFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslimBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/thinkingmuslim.bsky.socialHost: https://twitter.com/jalalaynIG: https://www.instagram.com/jalalayns?igsh=MWIxbXBkOWswbTg5OA==Website Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com

Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive monthly calls: https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimIs the European Union a model for Muslim unity? Can the often fractious and politically weak Muslim world improve its regional strength and international standing by pooling economic and even political sovereignty and creating a zone of prosperity that harnesses talents and halts a brain drain to the West? Until 1924, the Muslim world came under a caliphate; many calling for a modern unity cite the EU as a model.But is the EU really something to aspire to? What binds the EU states is their unity, which is fracturing under the weight of what my guest today calls Euro Whiteness. Today, many Muslims are being marginalised not just by EU nation states but in a larger sense by an EU that observes itself to be a paradise, protecting its borders from Eastern barbarians – the jungle, as Joseph Borel referred to the world outside.To help us understand the EU, what it is, and what its failings are, I have the pleasure of speaking today to Mehreen Khan. Mehreen is the economics editor of the Times and she  spent five years with the Financial Times as their Brussels Correspondent.Let me remind all viewers that to help us continue to engage critical thought at this time, Please consider becoming a Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimYou can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/DonateListen to the audio version of the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636aApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.comPurchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merchFind us on:Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimTwitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslimFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslimBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/thinkingmuslim.bsky.socialHost: https://twitter.com/jalalaynWebsite Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.comTimestamps:0:00 – Introduction2:24 – Euro whiteness8:42 – Neutrality and Hijab ban18:29 – European Islam?20:35 – Secularism – France’s religion 23:38 – What is EU?27:16 - EU Ideology 31:17 – The Left34:44 – EU Success38:05 – Binding structures44:48 – Europeanness vs Muslimness 47:40 – EU on Gaza50:03 – Media on Gaza54:32 – Islamophobia and Optimism

This live event was held on Youtube to show solidarity with the Syrian revolution. Here’s a list of speakers and their respective timestampsTimestamps:0:00- Introduction 9:00 - Omar Suleiman - Justice24:10 – Tox – On ground feeling32:44 – Dilly Hussain – Freedom 37:47 – Azzam Tamimi – The Left46:02 – Ali Hammuda – Quranic view59:45 – Shadee Elmasry – Propaganda 1:05:35 – Imam Tom – America1:13:50 – Saifullah – Filmmaker experience 1:17:36 – Razzan Saffour – Syrians experience 1:28:03 – Moazzam Begg – Assad1:36:40 – Robin Yassin – Prisons1:47:37 – Maryam Abdulrahman – Faith 1:54:55 – Ismail Patel – Palestine 2:02:30 – Taji Mustafa – Ummatic thinking 2:10:20 – Abdul Wahid – Islam vilification 2:22:23 – Arslan Hidayat – Uyghurs view2:29:30 – Mohammad Abdulrahman – Martyrdom 2:40:38 – Sikander Iqbal – Victory 2:48:31- Mufti Mangera – Al-Sham2:51:00 – Imran Muneer – Muslim activism 2:57:48 – Mufti Mangera - Al-Sham3:06:41 – Bilal Abdulkareem – Revolution Subverting 3:11:40 - Abdullah Jabbar – Aid3:15:35 – Haitham Al-Haddad – Advice3:34:17 – Yasir Qadhi – Final words

Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive monthly calls: https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimSyria is now free. But what does the future hold for a revolution that we believed had all but been decimated? The most recent spectacular offensive has given the rebel groups control over the country's major cities. There now is an appetite for change and unity. I have been struck by the jubilation felt by most Syrians as the tyrant fell. Many who escaped his brutality are returning. The optimism has to be maintained, and the positivity it expresses should not be replaced with the pessimism shown by some partial commentators who are wishing for Syria to fail.But challenges remain. How do we navigate these? And what of the people who are now at the centre of the new government? I have the pleasure of having Bilal Abdul Kareem on the show to help us understand the complexities of the road ahead and analyse the current players.Bilal Abdul Kareem is a video journalist who has been covering the conflict in Syria since 2012. He has produced reports for CNN, Channel 4, BBC, and Sky News and runs his own news channel, On The Ground News.Let me remind all viewers that to help us continue to engage critical thought at this time, Please consider becoming a Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimYou can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/DonateListen to the audio version of the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636aApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.comPurchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merchFind us on:Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimTwitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslimFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslimBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/thinkingmuslim.bsky.socialHost: https://twitter.com/jalalaynWebsite Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.comTimestamps:0:00 – Introduction 2:30 – HTS ideology 5:55 – Justice – Islamic call8:41 – Jolani – positive?11:50 – Bilal too pessimistic?14:34 – New Syria 16:31 – Toleration of Journalists 17:49 – Capability to govern20:11 – Israel 23:30 – How far is Israel in Syria26:00 – Assad central to resisting Israel?28:06 - Where Islam fits?33:28 – New government and the West35:54 – Syrian Prisons39:38 – SDF43:35 – Iran and Hezbollah46:25 – Iran’s role in Syria49:18 – Anti-Imperialist left52:18 – Syrian Mindset

Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive monthly calls: https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimSyria has finally been liberated after 13 years of struggle. We mourn the lives of all that have fallen and celebrate with Syrians. But the horrors of Assad’s gulags are coming to light for the world to see. The scenes from Seydnaya, the slaughterhouse, have shocked many of us. Reflecting on the horrors and looking at some of the challenges, I am honoured today to have a Syrian who has been at the heart of this struggle.Robin Yassin-Kassab is the author of the novel The Road from Damascus. He is co-author with Leila al-Shami of the Rathbone-Folio prize-shortlisted book Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War. And he is the chief English editor of the ISIS prisons museum – which may soon become the Syria Prisons MuseumLet me remind all viewers that to help us continue to engage critical thought at this time, Please consider becoming a Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimYou can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/DonateListen to the audio version of the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636aApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.comPurchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merchFind us on:Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimTwitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslimFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslimBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/thinkingmuslim.bsky.socialHost: https://twitter.com/jalalaynWebsite Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.comTimestamps:0:00- Introduction2:16 – Reflections8:13 – Syria another Libya?15:20 – Prisons – Torture state22:57 – Information accessing25:13 – HTS discipline31:48 – Syrians re-migrating35:02 – Israelis in Syria41:47 – International community crippling revolution

Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive monthly calls: https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimThis episode was filmed on Saturday, before Damascus fell.The Syrian revolution began in 2011 as a grassroots, civil society uprising against one of the most tyrannical rulers in the Muslim World. Bashar al-Assad like his father before him, presided over a state of terror, with disappearances, secret police repression and a punitive state machinery that governed through fear. Assad styled himself as an anti-imperialist when in reality he had colluded with the West in past conflicts and after 9/11 Syria became a favourite place for the Americans to render suspects for horrific torture.Today we have Moazzam Begg who is the senior director of CAGE and author of enemy combatant – a book about his time as a detainee first in Bagram and then in Guantanamo. He also spent time in Syria during the revolution, as part of his investigation into the Assad regimes complicity in the CIA torture programme.Let me remind all viewers that to help us continue to engage critical thought at this time, Please consider becoming a Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimYou can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/DonateListen to the audio version of the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vXiAjVFnhNI3T9Gkw636aApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-thinking-muslim/id1471798762Sign up to Muhammad Jalal's newsletter: https://jalalayn.substack.comPurchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merchFind us on:Patron. https://www.patreon.com/TheThinkingMuslimTwitter: https://twitter.com/thinking_muslimFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Thinking-Muslim-Podcast-105790781361490Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkingmuslimpodcast/Telegram: https://t.me/thinkingmuslimHost: https://twitter.com/jalalaynWebsite Archive: https://www.thinkingmuslim.comTimestamps:0:00 - Introduction1:41 – Assad anti-imperialist?7:07 – Syria’s torture campaign12:42 – The Left on Syria16:24 – Why dismiss Syrians?19:05 – Russia 22:48 – The opposition27:33 – ISIS vs Opposition 31:59 – Post-Assad Syria34:36 – Minorities 36:40 – Assad against Israel?39:17 – Palestinian resistance on Syria42:48 – Islamic activism 45:26 – Will we be able to visit Syria