Religion and geopolitics: A reality Muslims must understand

Fire erupting at an oil depot in Iran's capital Tehran. The United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Feb 28, sparking swift retaliation by the Islamic republic which responded with missile attacks across the region. — UGC video grab/AFP

MANY ordinary people assume that countries sharing the same religion will naturally stand together in global affairs. Among Muslims, this belief often appears as an expectation that Muslim-majority nations should act as a unified political bloc.

Reality, however, is far more complex.