Mustafa Akyol is a columnist for Turkey's oldest English-language daily, Hurriyet Daily News.

Why you should listen

Mustafa Akyol is a Turkish political commentator and author based in Istanbul. He thinks and writes on issues relating to Islam and modernity, and dissects Turkish politics as a columnist for the English-language Hurriyet Daily News and the website Al-Monitor: The Pulse of the Middle East. He also writes a monthly opinion piece for The International New York Times.

Akyol's book, Islam Without Extremes, was published in July 2011 and calls for "an interpretation of Islam that synthesizes liberal ideas and respect for the Islamic tradition."

What others say

“Only by accepting a secular state, [Akyol] powerfully asserts, can Islamic societies thrive. Persuasive and inspiring, Islam without Extremes offers a desperately needed intellectual basis for the reconcilability of Islam and religious, political, economic, and social freedoms.” — Islam without Extremes jacket cover

Mustafa Akyol’s TED talk