Asan in the News

2015SEP25

[Arirang Radio] “The Deadly Tragedy to Strike The Annual Hajj Pilgrimage/ Palestinian flag to fly at UN headquarter after 119 nations vote ‘yes’ on September 11.”

[Arirang Radio] 2015-9-25

“The Deadly Tragedy to Strike The Annual Hajj Pilgrimage/ Palestinian flag to fly at UN headquarter after 119 nations vote ‘yes’ on September 11.”

As we covered in the headlines and on our News Feed, the nation of Saudi Arabia and Muslims all over the world are mourning, after the deadliest tragedy to strike the annual hajj pilgrimage in more than two decades. For a little more coverage on exactly what this pilgrimage is about, I have on the line Doctor 장지향, Director of the Middle East and North Africa Center at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies.

1. The fact that so many people are squeezed into too small a space for this event… weren’t there safety concerns about this before this pilgrimage took place? is this how the hajj pilgrimage takes place every year?

2. Do you think this event will change the way the mass event is held in the future now?

UN General Assembly has passed a Palestinian resolution to allow its flag fly in front of the United Nations headquarters in New York, angering Israel and giving hope to Palestinians seeking to gain full UN membership.

3. What was the voting result regarding the resolution stating that flags of non-member observer states like Palestine “shall be raised at Headquarters”?

4. What does this mean to Palestine and international community?

5. What other activities or campaigns do Palestinians implement to achieve their statehood and/ or their recognition?

6. Any implications of this international dispute to Korea, then?

 

About Experts

Jang Ji-Hyang
Jang Ji-Hyang

Center for Regional Studies

Dr. JANG Ji-Hyang is a senior fellow and director of the Center for Middle East and North Africa at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies. Dr. Jang served as a policy advisor on Middle East issues to South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2012-2018). Previously, Dr. Jang taught comparative and Middle East politics at Seoul National University, Yonsei University, Ewha Woman’s University, and the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. Her research interests include political economy of the Middle East and North Africa, political Islam, comparative democratization, terrorism, and state-building. Dr. Jang is the author of numerous books and articles, including The Essential Guide to the Middle East (Sigongsa 2023 in Korean), The Arab Spring: Will It Lead to Democratic Transitions?(with Clement M. Henry (eds.), Palgrave Macmillan 2013), “Disaggregated ISIS and the New Normal of Terrorism” (Asan Issue Brief 2016), “Islamic Fundamentalism” (International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences 2008) and a Korean translation of Fawaz Gerges’ Journey of the Jihadist: Inside Muslim Militancy (Asan Institute 2011). Dr. Jang received a B.A. in Turkish studies and M.A. in political science from the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and her Ph.D. in political science from the University of Texas at Austin.