The course introduces students to the complexity of the relationship between politics, political systems and the role of religion in the Middle East and North Africa. The course focuses in particular on the complex nature of political Islam in the region and explores in detail the different ways in which religious precepts are understood and employed in the political arena. In this perspective, we will study both ideologues and movements in specific contexts often marked by violence. The course will conclude with an analysis of the role of religion in the region’s many conflicts