Taliban

Sun 12 Muharram 1445AH 30-7-2023AD
Afghanistan, Afghanistan Internet, Education, Gender, Human Rights, Taliban

Thu 2 Muharram 1445AH 20-7-2023AD
Afghanistan, Afghanistan Internet, Taliban

Ellwood Video

UK MP Tobias Ellwood’s video on Afghanistan was not well-received in the UK (but was reposted by the Taliban). Here’s a summary: Roh Yakobi, KabulNow, Opinion: Normalising the Taliban...

Mon 2 Dhul Qidah 1444AH 22-5-2023AD
Afghanistan, Films, Gender, Taliban

BBC News, Jennifer Lawrence Bread and Roses documentary gives Afghan women a voice “”This documentary was born out of emotion and necessity,” says (Jennifer) Lawrence, who describes feeling helpless...

Fri 29 Shawwal 1444AH 19-5-2023AD
'Islamic State', ISIS-K, Taliban

Taliban and ISIS-K Concerns

Eliza Mackintosh, Ehsan Popalzai, Antonio Jarne and Lou Robinson, CNN, ‘No one feels safe’: The Taliban promised to provide security to Afghans. New data shows threat from ISIS is growing “In the nearly...

Tue 6 Ramadan 1444AH 28-3-2023AD
Afghanistan, Afghanistan Internet, Education, Islamic Education, Taliban

Matiullah Wesa

AFP/Guardian, Founder of Afghan girls’ school project arrested in Kabul, 28 March 2023 “Matiullah Wesa, head of Pen Path, beaten and arrested outside a mosque after prayers.” This has...

Wed 24 Rajab 1444AH 15-2-2023AD
Afghanistan Internet, Taliban

Taliban Working 9-5 Online

Matthew Gault, Motherboard, Vice, Taliban Bureaucrats Hate Working Online All Day, ‘Miss the Days of Jihad’ ““I sometimes miss the jihad life for all the good things it had,”...

Mon 15 Rajab 1444AH 6-2-2023AD
Afghanistan Internet, Facebook, Meta, Taliban

TikTok Taliban

Ali M. Latifi, Wired, The Taliban Can’t Stop TikTok “TikTok’s rise in Afghanistan is a recent phenomenon in a marketplace that has mainly been dominated by Facebook, which has...

Fri 13 Safar 1444AH 9-9-2022AD
Afghanistan Internet, Taliban, TikTok

TikTok Taliban Ban

Akhtar Makoii, Mail Online, Taliban say they want to ban TikTok ‘because it promotes violence’… despite their own fighters using the app to share videos of their executions “The...

Wed 4 Safar 1444AH 31-8-2022AD
Afghanistan Internet, Taliban

4G Taliban

ByJamie Tarabay and Eltaf Najafizada, Bloomberg, Taliban Continues Censorship, Web Blocks As It Promises 4G “The Taliban, which previously blocked web access to thwart what it called immorality and...

Sun 13 Dhul Qidah 1443AH 12-6-2022AD
Afghanistan, Afghanistan Internet, Taliban

Taliban net

Video from Amnesty International about the Taliban’s approach towards some social media content providers: Afghanistan: Since assuming power, the #Taliban have been using intimidation, harassment, and violence on anyone...

Islamic Algorithms – book cover

Gary R. Bunt, Islamic Algorithms: Online Influence in the Muslim Metaverse (London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2024)

Explore the book

Paperback, hardback and ebook editions are available now.

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Prof. Gary R. Bunt, 2026

Comments

“Gary Bunt’s Islamic Algorithms explores the dynamic relationship between technology shifts and the evolving engagement of Muslims online. Bunt emphasises the unchanging core of Islam, adapting its expression to developing technology. A testament to Bunt’s brilliance in the ever-changing Cyber Islamic Environments, this is a must-read for those interested in Islamic studies, digital Islam and Muslim metaverses.” ―Eva Nisa, Senior Lecturer of Anthropology, The Australian National University, Australia

“A timely and insightful exploration, the book offers a concise yet comprehensive glimpse into the evolving landscape of Cyber Islamic Environments. From the serene halls of Jakarta’s Istiqlal Mosque to the potential realms of Muslim metaverses, this book takes readers on a journey to unveil the dynamic relationship between Islam and technology. In a world where smartphones guide prayers and iPads connect elders in study groups, Bunt shares a compelling and timely perspective on the evolving relationship between Islam, technology and the digital age.” ―Umar Ryad, Professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Leuven, Belgium

Bibliography and Glossary

Review by Michael Dhanoya (University of Leicester) in LSE Blogs

“Islamic Algorithms is a great contribution to the topic of Digital Religion …”

Review in The Muslim World‘ by Dr Akif Tahiiev of Goethe-Universitat Frankfurt am Main

‘Gary R. Bunts Islamic Algorithms liefert detaillierte Einblicke in die digitalen Räume von AkteurInnen, die sich auf unterschiedliche Weise auf den Islam “

“Gary R. Bunt’s Islamic Algorithms provides detailed insights into the digital spaces of actors who relate to Islam in various ways.*

* Google Translation

Margareta Wetchy, Gary R. Bunts Islamic Algorithms unter der Lupe, Machine Against the Rage

“Overall, Islamic Algorithms: Online Influence in the Muslim Metaverse is crucial to contemporary Islamic studies. The book is highly recommended for researchers, academics, and practitioners interested in the interaction between
technology and religion.” Reza Adeputra Tohis and Zulkifli Mansyur, Religion & Theology, 32 (2025): Issue 1-2 (Jun 2025) [PDF]

” … Bunt’s volume is an important step forward in understanding the importance of digital discourse to contemporary Islamic traditions and Muslim communities.” James Riggan, Reading Religion (American Academy of Religion)

“Islamic Algorithms provides a timely and thoughtful examination of how Islam, algorithms, and digital culture intersect. It is a valuable resource for scholars and researchers interested in digital presence of Islam, and digital culture both in theory and practice.” Mohamed Taher, Middle Eastern Librarians Association

Book cover: Dijital Dünyada Müslüman Olmak: Mecra, Kimlik ve Otorite‘

Gary R. Bunt’s chapter ‘Şeyh Google’dan Yapay Zekâ İmama Mı?: Müslüman Dijital Mecralarda İslami Etki ve Otoritenin Dönüşümü‘?‘ (trans. Necmiye Durmuş) is available in ‘Dijital Dünyada Müslüman Olmak: Mecra, Kimlik ve Otorite‘ edited by Mehmet Ali Başak (Eskiyeni). The original version was in

Scharia im Wandel edited by Mahmud El-Wereny and Alexander-Kenneth Nagel. (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2024).

Available from:

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Indonesia Online Gambling Thu 27 Rabi Al Thani 1448AH 8-10-2026AD

Scharia im Wandel book cover. Showing figures reading, a stack of books, and the background of a minaret and mosque dome.

My chapter, “From Sheikh Google to ImamAI? Evolving Islamic Influence and Authority in Muslim Digital Worlds,” is published in “Scharia im Wandel. Beiträge zur Transformation islamischer Autorität im Spannungsfeld von Kodifikation, Migration und Digitalisierung,” edited by Mahmud El-Wereny and Alexander-Kenneth Nagel. (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2024). Studies on Islamic Cultural and Intellectual History, Noorhaidi Hasan et al.

The book is the result of a 2022 conference at Georg-August-Universität Göttingen.

A Turkish version of the chapter is in preparation for publication in 2026.

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