Government & Politics

Government & Politics

Judge: Italy illegally expels asylum seekers An Italian judge ordered the Interior Ministry to assess a gay Pakistani man’s claim for asylum after he was forcefully and immediately expelled from Italy last summer.

January 22, 2021   

(Courthouse News) Italy is illegally sending asylum seekers who cross its borders back into the Balkans, where they are routinely beaten and mistreated by police, according to an Italian judge. In a ruling this week, Judge Silvia Albano with the Court of […]

Government & Politics

Regulator satisfied with Islamic Relief’s response to antisemitic comments by former leaders The Charity Commission opened a case into the charity after offensive comments by former senior figures came to light

January 21, 2021   

(Third Sector) The Charity Commission has declared itself satisfied with the response of Islamic Relief Worldwide to antisemitic comments made by former senior leaders. It comes as the charity said it had requested a meeting with President Biden’s new administration after the outgoing Trump […]

Government & Politics

Biden reversing travel ban for Muslim countries ‘very disappointing’: Chad Wolf The former acting DHS secretary argues 'it's going to make the American people less safe'

January 20, 2021   

(Fox) Former Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf argued on Wednesday that President Biden’s intention to revoke Donald Trump’s travel bans for majority-Muslim countries is “going to make the American people less safe.” Speaking on “America Reports” shortly after Biden took the oath of office […]

Academics & Education

France: Proposal to ban Islamic veil sparks criticism Macron’s controversial draft of ‘separatism’ bill causes heated debate, with amendments suggesting ban on Islamic veil

January 20, 2021   

(Anadolu) An ongoing debate on the controversial draft of a “separatism” bill has sparked criticism, [and] resulted in a diversion, dividing the house on the question of [the] veil, whether to include amendments to ban veiled students at the university and accompanying […]

Government & Politics

French mayor criticizes decision to shut down mosque Denouncing incompetence of gov't to close mosque in Montmagny, mayor says it has nothing to do with 'radicalism'

January 19, 2021   

(Anadolu) A French city’s mayor has lashed out against the government’s “Islamist separatism” campaign after a mosque in his jurisdiction was accused and shut down to combat radicalism. Patrick Floquet, the mayor of the Montmagny town in northern France, “denounced the incompetence […]

Government & Politics

France cracks down on ‘Islamist separatism,’ shuts down 9 mosques The closing of mosques is part of France’s massive surveillance operation targeting its Muslim minority.

January 17, 2021   

(Morocco World News) French authorities have shut down 9 mosques since the month of December. “Among the 18 places of worship that were particularly monitored at my request, 9 were closed down,” the French minister of interior [Gerald] Darmanin tweeted on January […]

Discrimination & “Islamophobia”

Canada’s new transport minister calls Bloc Québécois attack over his religious views ‘dangerous’

January 14, 2021   

(Toronto Star) Federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra is rebuffing an attack from the Bloc Québécois that was condemned Thursday as racist and Islamophobic, stating the party’s questions about his religious views and political background represent “dangerous rhetoric” based on “unsubstantiated innuendo.” Earlier […]

Demonstrations

Rights group calls on US Muslims to be ‘extra vigilant’ in wake of Capitol riot Council on American-Islamic Relations says threat posed by far-right white supremacist violence is high and Muslims may be targets

January 13, 2021   

(Middle East Eye) A leading Muslim-American civil rights and advocacy group urged Muslims to remain “extra vigilant” until the end of President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration amid a threat of white supremacist violence. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said on Wednesday that the […]

Government & Politics

EU watchdog opens investigation into border agency Frontex Organization faces allegations of harassment, misconduct and migrant pushbacks.

January 11, 2021   

(Politico) The EU’s anti-fraud watchdog, OLAF, has opened an investigation into Frontex, the bloc’s border agency, over allegations of harassment, misconduct and migrant pushbacks, according to four EU officials. OLAF investigators have been interviewing members of the Warsaw-based agency “since the start […]

Government & Politics

Morocco slams Belgian minister for accusations of mosque infiltration Morocco’s representative in Belgium calls on the Belgian minister to avoid 'baseless' accusations that can lead to needless tensions with a strategic ally.

January 10, 2021   

(Morocco World News) Morocco has responded to the Belgian Minister of Justice Vincent Van [Quickenborne] after he accused Moroccan intelligence of mosque infiltration. Van Quickenborne, who claimed that Morocco had infiltrated the mosque in Cinquantenaire park in Brussels, described the mosque’s director […]

Children & Teens

Trump signs anti-female genital mutilation law that increases punishment of perpetrators The new law says female genital mutilation is 'a form of child abuse, gender discrimination and violence'

January 6, 2021   

(Fox) A new law that its backers called a pivotal step in protecting vulnerable young women and girls across the United States from the “barbaric and medically unnecessary procedure” of female genital mutilation was signed into law by President Trump on [Tuesday]. […]

Clerics & Preachers

Austria calls for European register of Muslim imams Austria has already adopted an obligatory imam registry among other measures aimed at reducing terrorism after a November terror attack in Vienna.

January 2, 2021   

(Deutsche Welle) Since the start of 2021, Austria has required the registration of all imams in the country. The mandate was one of several new measures Chancellor Sebastian Kurz’s government adopted after a November 2 terror attack in Vienna. Four civilians were […]