Nationality Turkish Role Writer Occupation writer, journalist Parents Taha Akyol | Website www.mustafaakyol.org Education Bogazici University Name Mustafa Akyol | |
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Born 1972 (age 42–43) Books Islam Without Extremes: A Muslim Case for Liberty Similar People Taha Akyol, Ahmet Kekec, Fehmi Koru, Nazli Ilicak, Hasan Celal Guzel | ||
Does islam need reformation debate at soas mustafa akyol vs abdullah al andalusi
Mustafa Akyol (born 1972) is a Turkish writer and journalist. Akyol has said he would describe himself as a "Ottomanist". He is the author of Islam without Extremes: A Muslim Case for Liberty, long-listed in 2012 for the Lionel Gelber Prize, a literary award for the world's best non-fiction book in English. He became a contributing opinion writer for the International New York Times in 2013.
Contents
- Does islam need reformation debate at soas mustafa akyol vs abdullah al andalusi
- Interview with mustafa akyol
- Early life and education
- Career
- Intelligent Design
- Works
- References
Interview with mustafa akyol
Early life and education
Akyol was born to journalist Taha Akyol and received his early education in Ankara. He later graduated from the Istanbul Nişantaşı Anadolu Lisesi and the International Relations Department of Boğaziçi University. He earned his masters in the History Department of the same university with a thesis on Turkey's Kurdish question, which he later extended to a popular book titled Kürt Sorununu Yeniden Düşünmek: Yanlış Giden Neydi, Bundan Sonra Nereye? (Rethinking the Kurdish Issue: What Went Wrong, What Next?)
Career
Akyol writes regular columns for both the online news site Al-Monitor and the Turkish daily Hürriyet Daily News. He has criticized both Islamic extremism and Turkish secularism, which he likens to Jacobinism and fundamentalism. Over the years, he has given seminars at different platforms, in numerous universities or think-tanks around the world on issues of Islam, politics, and Turkish affairs. He also spoke at TED, giving a lecture on Faith versus Tradition in Islam.
Akyol's articles on Islamic issues, in which he mostly argues against Islamic extremism and terrorism from a Muslim point of view and defends the Islamic faith, have appeared in publications such as Foreign Affairs, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, The Forward, First Things, Huffington Post, The Weekly Standard, The Washington Times, The American Enterprise, National Review, FrontPage Magazine, Newsweek and Islam Online.
Akyol authored the English-language book, Islam Without Extremes: A Muslim Case For Liberty, which, according to its publisher, is "a desperately needed intellectual basis for the reconciliability of Islam and religious, political, economic, and social freedoms". Stephen Suleyman Schwartz critiques the author's lack of full disclosure regarding his own family's Turkish history and involvement in politics. He also faults the author for not carefully laying out the facts surrounding Turkish democracy and rushing to conclusions about the country’s AKP political party that are not fully supported by the evidence.
Akyol is listed as a past speaker on the website of the Property and Freedom Society, a Turkey-based paleolibertarian think tank that promotes racialism.
Intelligent Design
Akyol was formerly an outspoken promoter of intelligent design and was identified as a former spokesman for Science Research Foundation (Bilim Araştırma Vakfı), an Islamic creationist group, started by Adnan Oktar. Akyol later noted that he had ended all his "cooperation with [Bilim Araştırma Vakfı]... due to some serious disagreements on issues other than intelligent design." He was also affiliated with the Discovery Institute. He has testified in the Kansas evolution hearings in favor of introducing Intelligent Design and arranged a government-sponsored Intelligent Design conference in Istanbul.