Caliphate

27 Aug

Understanding the Caliphate: Between Romanticism and Cynicism

Islam21CCaliphate, Dilly Hussain, history, Islam, Islam21c, Khilafah, Muslims

It is an undeniable fact that the institution of the Caliphate played a central role throughout Islamic history from the death of the Prophet Muhammad (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) in 632CE to the abolishment of the Ottoman Empire on 3rd March 1924CE. This history which consists of 1,300 years of vast territorial expansion, economic prosperity […]

11 Nov

Dilly Hussain: "The Jamans' are like my own family"

5Pillars, Dilly's Desk, Features5 Pillars UK, 5Pillarsuk, Caliphate, Ifthekar Jaman, IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islam, Jaman, Jihad, Khilafah, Muslims, Mustakim Jaman, Portsmouth, Syria, Tuhin Shahensha

Dilly Hussain reflects on his personal relationship with the Jaman family from Portsmouth. One of the Jaman brothers, Ifthekar, died fighting with ISIS in Syria while two others await trial on terrorism charges. Ifthekar Jaman is arguably the most high-profile British jihadist to have died in Syria fighting with ISIS. I only became aware of his story weeks before his death […]

24 Sep

Exclusive Q & A with a British ISIS fighter

5Pillars, Dilly's Desk, Features5 Pillars UK, 5Pillarsuk, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, Alan Henning, Britain, Caliphate, Dilly Hussain, foreign policy, Hamza al Britani, Iraq, IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islam, Jihad, Khilafah, Muslims, Syria, UK

Meet 20-year-old Hamza al-Britani (not his real name) who left the UK for Syria in June last year. The British Pakistani told me via Skype how he caught a plane to Turkey and simply “jogged” over the border to “the land of jihad.” In this exclusive interview, Dilly Hussain goes deep into the mind of […]

17 Sep

Barack Obama Assembles The Avengers To Defeat ISIS

5Pillars, Dilly's Desk5 Pillars UK, 5Pillarsuk, Barack Obama, Caliphate, Dilly Hussain, GCC, IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islam, Islamic state, Jeddah Communique, Khilafah, Muslims, us

Dilly Hussain explains why the US-led coalition to fight the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham reminds him of Marvel’s Avengers Assemble. Speaking from the State Floor in the White House on Wednesday 10th September, President Barack Obama addressed America on the situation in Iraq. During the 14 minute speech, Obama stated that the US […]

21 Aug

The Muslim Blame Game – ‘Not In My Name’

5Pillars, Dilly's Desk, Huffington Post UK, Opinion5 Pillars UK, 5Pillarsuk, 7/7, 9/11, British government, Caliphate, Dilly Hussain, extremism, Huffington Post, IS, ISIS, Islam, James Foley, media, Muslims, terrorism, The West, us

For over a decade, Muslims have been conditioned to condemn and apologise for crimes committed as a result of western foreign policy, writes Dilly Hussain. Since 9/11 and the subsequent terrorist attacks which have taken place in the West, Muslims have been entrapped in a vicious circus show called “Not in my name”. This circus […]

17 Jul

Part 2: Bilal Abdul Kareem – Foreign fighters, rebel disunity and ISIS

5Pillars, Dilly's Desk, Features5 Pillars UK, 5Pillarsuk, Bashar al Assad, Bilal Abdul Kareem, Caliphate, Dilly Hussain, FSA, Iraq, ISIS, Islam, islamic front, Jabhat al Nusra, jihadists, Khilafah, Muslims, sectarianism, Syria, Syrian rebels, Syrian revolution

In part 2 of this exclusive interview with journalist Bilal Abdul Kareem who spent two years in war-torn Syria, Dilly Hussain finds out how ordinary Syrians responded to foreign fighters, the role of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) in the rebel infighting, and the future of Syria and the Arab world. DH: […]

16 Jul

EXCLUSIVE: Bilal Abdul Kareem – Life with the Syrian rebels

5Pillars, Dilly's Desk, Features5 Pillars UK, 5Pillarsuk, al qaeda, Bashar al Assad, Bilal Abdul Kareem, Caliphate, Dilly Hussain, FSA, Iran, ISIS, Islam, Jabhat al Nusra, Jihad, jihadist, Khilafah, Muslims, Russia, sectarianism, Syria, Syrian rebels, Syrian revolution, The West

Film-maker Bilal Abdul Kareem lived with the Syrian rebels for two years, documenting their political and military developments as they fought to topple Bashar al Assad. In this exclusive two-part interview with Dilly Hussain, the American journalist explains what led him to Syria and his observations on the Islamic sentiment of the revolution. DH: Bilal […]

13 Jul

Facebook banned me for posting an Islamic flag

5Pillars, Dilly's Desk, Opinion5 Pillars UK, 5Pillarsuk, Caliphate, democracy, Dilly Hussain, Facebook, GCHQ, Islam, Muslims, NSA, war on terror, Woolwich murder, WROU

After praying Dhuhr today, I logged into my Facebook and a message appeared stating: “You have been blocked from posting and sharing for 24 hours because you posted material that violated Facebook’s terms and conditions,” writes Dilly Hussain. Facebook were kind enough to tell me exactly what the material was – it was a video and […]

24 Jun

Book review: The Inevitable Caliphate by Dr Reza Pankhurst

5Pillars, Dilly's Desk, ReviewsAl Qaida, Arab Spring, Caliphate, Dr Reza Pankhurst, Hizb ut Tahrir, Khilafah, Liberal democracy, Muslim Brotherhood, Ottoman Empire

The caliphate or “khilafah” is an Islamic political structure that has been central to Muslim history for 1300 years, writes Dilly Hussain. Many British Muslims have viewed it as something of an “abstract idea” or “an unattainable dream” but since the Arab Spring the issue of khilafah has been on the lips and minds of […]