Academics & Education

‘Disturbing, Islamophobic’ tweet about call to prayer prompts firing of Peel school council chair Ravi Hooda says his tweet was 'misinterpreted'; has now also been fired from Remax Canada

(CBC) A “disturbing, [Islamophobic] tweet” on the city of Brampton’s decision to allow mosques to broadcast the call to prayer has prompted the Peel District School Board to remove one of its school council chairs and launch an investigation into comments it […]

Children & Teens

Germany open to resettling children from Greek refugee camps Germany's government is seeking a 'coalition of the willing' to take in the children across Europe. The EU wants to avoid a repeat [of] the 2015 refugee crisis as thousands of refugees and migrants gather at Greece's border.

(Deutsche Welle) Germany is prepared to take in “an appropriate share” of the neediest refugee children housed in overcrowded Greek migrant camps, German officials said on Monday. The country is set [to] take children in as part of “a coalition of the willing” […]

Children & Teens

Germany: Alleged IS terrorist goes on trial The German convert is accused of taking her three children to Syria without the knowledge or consent of their father. The eldest son, trained as a child soldier aged 7, is thought to have died in a 2018 rocket attack.

(Deutsche Welle) A court in the western city of Düsseldorf … was scheduled Friday to hear a set of charges filed by federal prosecutors against a 32-year-old mother, accused of joining the Islamic State (“IS”) terrorist group. The woman, originally from Oberhausen […]

Academics & Education

‘Insulting’ Facebook comments about Islam and other religions earn B.C. teacher a reprimand John Yetman responded to invitation for Open Mosque Day with 'discourteous and disrespectful' language

(CBC) A Vancouver high school teacher has been disciplined for writing “intemperate and insulting comments” about religion on a Facebook post advertising open houses at B.C. mosques. John William Yetman has agreed to a formal reprimand after acknowledging he committed professional misconduct […]

Children & Teens

Germany indicts Iraqi man over death of Yazidi slave girl The man has been accused of letting the 5-year-old die of thirst after keeping her as a slave in Iraq. The suspect and his wife, German national Jennifer W., allegedly left the girl chained up before she perished.

(Deutsche Welle) German prosecutors said on Friday they had indicted an Iraqi man for allegedly leaving a Yazidi girl to die of thirst. He and his wife kept the 5-year-old as a slave in Iraq and his spouse, a German convert to Islam, is already […]

Academics & Education

German authorities, politicians divided on niqab, burqa ban Politicians across party lines agree that the niqab and the burqa are out of place at schools and universities. Some, however, fear that a ban could hamper integration into German society.

(Deutsche Welle) There are very few women and girls in Germany wearing a full-face veil such as the niqab or the burqa — most likely a mere two-digit number. A recent verdict handed down by a Hamburg court, however, has sparked a […]

Children & Teens

Priti Patel orders officials to explain status of grooming gang review Frustrated home secretary 'being given the run around by officials' on long-awaited probe into gang ethnicity.

(HuffPost) Home secretary Priti Patel has ordered officials to explain what has happened to a long-awaited review into the ethnicity of grooming gangs, HuffPost UK has learnt. A frustrated Patel has been met with “obfuscation” from Home Office officials when asking about […]

Academics & Education

EMSB says it won’t accept federally backed funding to fight pair of Quebec laws Even though the Court Challenges Program is independent, Quebec's premier called on Ottawa to intervene

(CBC) The English Montreal School Board says it will not take the $250,000 it was offered by the federally backed Court Challenges Program to fight two Quebec laws that the board contends go against the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In […]

Children & Teens

Female genital mutilation feels ‘like living in a dead body’ More than 70,000 women in Germany have undergone female genital mutilation, and a rising number of young girls are considered at risk — even though it's illegal. It's prompted Berlin to set up a national anti-FGM office.

(Deutsche Welle) After Shadia Abdelmoneim’s third child was born, while she was still under anesthetic, her midwife performed female genital mutilation (FGM) on her without her consent. It led to a lengthy period of shock thereafter where she found it difficult to […]

Academics & Education

Legault government up in arms after EMSB awarded federal funds to fight pair of Quebec laws Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says funding is allocated by program independent of federal government

(CBC) The Quebec government says Ottawa has some explaining to do after it was revealed that the English Montreal School Board is funding two separate legal challenges of provincial laws with federal tax dollars. “We need an explanation from the federal government,” […]