ʿULAMĀʾ ("the learned"), the religious scholars of Islam, are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of its sciences, doctrines, and laws and the chief guarantors of continuity in the spiritual and intellectual...

Ulema (علماء, transliteration: ‘Ulamā’, singular: عالِم, transliteration: ‘Ālim, "scholar") (The people of Islamic Knowledge) refers to the educated class of Muslim legal scholars engaged in the several fields of Islamic studies. They...

This paper suggests that resilience of ulema groups in adverse environments highly depends upon the levels of their accumulation of three institutional and symbolic capitals; namely doctrinal consensus, institutional autonomy, and leadership charisma. The author uses the examples of Tunisia and Iran to show...

Pro-Taliban militants have transformed a once-bustling community in northwestern Pakistan into a desolate city under siege.After militant raids on government buildings, businesses and a school, Tank's dusty streets and bazaars are largely empty and gunfire rings out at night. A tribal elder and opposition politician...

Five years after riding to power in Pakistan's critical border provinces on a wave of anti-American rage, Islamist parties are divided and in disarray ahead of crucial January elections.Their alliance is on the cusp of a bad-tempered breakup that could cut their influence — and...