China's Uyghurs -- A Minority In Their Own Land? 

The Uyghurs of western China are an ethnic Turkic people who are by tradition Muslim, and who feel more kinship with the peoples of Central Asia than with the Han Chinese -- the communist state's dominant population. After decades of Han immigration into their region, the Uyghurs are close to being a minority in their own land. More

More At Stake In Kyrgyz Vote Than Would Appear 

Today is the first day candidates in Kyrgyzstan can campaign for the early presidential election scheduled for July 23. President Kurmanbek Bakiev's job may not be at risk -- no incumbent president in Central Asia has ever lost an election -- but Kyrgyzstan's image as the region's most progressive and democratic country could be. More

'Beast Of The East' Appears To Have Lost Its Teeth 

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization has sought to promote itself as a "rising beast in the East" and an Asian counter to NATO. But for all the experience under its belt, the SCO -- which formally gathers Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan -- is looking less formidable than usual. More

Taliban Threat -- Real Or Useful Fear Mongering? 

As Central Asian leaders have increasingly sounded the alarm of the security threat posed by foreign militants, a familiar name has entered the argument -- the Taliban. Is the threat of the Taliban real, or merely fear mongering? More

Israel And Islam 

As U.S. President Barack Obama delivered his much-awaited speech to the Muslim world, many were listening keenly to hear his thoughts on resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Is that conflict so central to U.S.-Muslim relations and peace in the Muslim world? More