US Secretary of State John Kerry accused Daesh (or ISIS to most) militants of apostasy this week, diving into a hot-tub of Islamic debate that Orthodox theologians and his boss, President Barack Obama, have so far avoided. Kerry defended his word choice saying that Daesh are “people who have hijacked a great religion." Perhaps Kerry should have thought twice before hijacking this particular term given that charging peope with apostasy is is just as frought or clumsy a business. Apostasy describes the act of denouncing one’s former faith . Daesh ...

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland plays his third shot during the first round of the 2016 Dubai Desert Classic at the Emirates Golf Club on February 4, 2016 in Dubai.

First women only Sports Journalist Forum opens at 3rd Arab Women Sports Tournament

Airbnb is profiting from the Israeli occupation. The multi-billion dollar vacation-rental service lists dozens of properties on Jewish settlements in the West Bank , an area that the international community views as illegally occupied under Article IV of the Geneva Conventions. But Israelis with lavish apartments and houses east of the 1967 Green Line don't seem to care. They're renting out their homes in settlements all over the West Bank, advertising "desert views" and "Biblical landscapes." Every time a tourist rents out one of these homes, Airbnb makes a profit ...

The hijab, or headscarf, is arguably the world’s most misunderstood garment. Whether viewed as a personal choice, political statement, or cultural mandate, its simple notice-ability makes it vulnerable to debate. Its message is modesty, but what happens when it's paired with tight clothes and pretty heels? Then the comments really fly. What’s a modern girl to do? The Islamic dress code for women is nuanced; it's a total package that moves beyond dress-sense into behavior. But what does that look like, exactly? And where do you stand in the debate?

Rickie Fowler of the United States celebrates with his trophy after winning in the final of the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship in the capital of the United Arab Emirates on January 24, 2016. Fowler opened up a two-shot lead following a 65 in his third round that was eventually completed in the morning, and then shot a three-under par 69 for a 16-under par total.

Hawala is the main means by which migrants move money, a system that enables users to transfer cash via an ancient compact founded solely on trust. It’s use has expanded with the millions of MidEast migrants moving towards the EU since the start of the Syrian conflict. It’s banking at it’s simplest, devised by medieval tradesmen who needed to outsmart highway robbers on the dangerous Silk and Spice Roads. The same benefits apply today to migrants crossing international borders. While it could serve criminal activity , experts maintain that’s a ...

Al Bawaba wants to know: why play with snow when you can eat and drink it? We rounded up recipes that recycle any windfall of the white stuff into tasty snacks and cocktails. Skip the alcohol for perfect snow-mocktails. A much-hyped blizzard hit Lebanon hard this week, with strong winds dumping drifts on higher elevations. But it fizzles to a drizzle in Palestine, Jordan and Israel where the promised winter wonderland is mostly icy rain. All you people in places passed over by Snowmageddon or discouraged by dodgy snow - ...

In December, the Israeli government banned the award-winning novel Borderlife from school curriculums. The book, by Israeli author Dorit Rabinyan, told the story of a Jewish woman from Tel Aviv falling in love with a young Palestinian artist. Israel’s Ministry Of Education justified the ban by saying Israeli schoolchildren were not concerned enough with the “significance of miscegenation.” But Israel is far from the only country in the Middle East that has officially prohibited “dangerous” novels from besmirching the minds of their noble citizens . Let’s take a look at ...