No God But God

Geneive Abdo is a Correspondent for The Economist and The Guardian in Iran, and author of No God But God: Egypt and the Triumph of Islam.

In response to unmet needs – both sociopolitical and spiritual – Islamic fundamentalism has gained renewed appeal in Egyptian society. This is not the fundamentalism that so terrifies the West. It is, rather, a focus on reforming the basic institutions of society to make them less corrupt and more responsive to the basic needs of grassroots society. Ancient religious law is, in this way, underscoring modern reform. Geneive Abdo describes the phenomenon.