Clothing
Derbyshire councillor no longer suspended following ‘racist’ comments (LINK ONLY)
Eye on Islamism is no longer printing excerpts from articles published by certain news sources. To read the original article, click here.
Mosques
Holidays
During COVID-19, the Islamic call to prayer suddenly blares
(Toronto Sun) Almost two years ago, Toronto’s Danforth Ave. made headlines across the world when one Faisal Hussain killed two people and wounded 13 others before committing suicide. Well, Danforth Ave. is back in the news. This time it’s the blaring of […]
Crime
Halifax mosques to broadcast Islamic call to prayer as a show of unity, solidarity
(Global News) Many Nova Scotians have paid tribute to the 22 people who were killed in the April 18-19 shooting rampage through music or vigils. Now, the Muslim community in Halifax is also showing its solidarity by broadcasting the adhan. This special […]
Holidays
Minneapolis mosque publicly broadcasts historic call to prayer during Ramadan
(KMSP) Thursday night marked the first publicly broadcast call to prayer, or “Adhan,” in Minnesota. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey approved a permit for Dar [Al-Hijrah] mosque in Minneapolis to play the call to prayer publicly five times a day during the month […]
Government & Politics
German Muslim leader demands government mosque bailout
(Breitbart) Aiman Mazyek, chairman of the Central Council of Muslims, has called on the German government to give aid to mosques struggling financially due to the Chinese coronavirus pandemic. Mr Mazyek said that many mosques in Germany were facing financial difficulties due […]
Academics & Education
Education Department told to apologise to Muslim family over school’s prayers bungle
(ABC-Australia) South Australia’s Department for Education has been ordered to apologise to a Muslim family over an Adelaide public school’s handling of their attendance of Friday prayers during teaching hours. State ombudsman Wayne Lines has released the findings of an investigation into […]
Government & Politics
Call to prayer to be broadcast in Cedar-Riverside during Ramadan in Minneapolis
(KMSP) To allow Minneapolis residents to pray together during Ramadan while maintaining social distance during the coronavirus pandemic, Adhan — the call to prayer — will be played over a loudspeaker in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood five times per day for the duration […]
Christians
‘Divisive’: Rights groups accuse Trump of stoking Islamophobia ahead of Ramadan US president suggests Muslims could get preferential treatment during the Muslim holy month, echoing a theme circulating on right-wing Twitter circles
(Middle East Eye) Muslim rights groups have accused US President Donald Trump of stoking Islamophobia after he said there “could be a difference” in how local authorities and politicians enforce coronavirus lockdown measures during the month of Ramadan. During his daily coronavirus news conference on Saturday, Trump referred […]
Christians
Social distancing rules should be same for Ramadan, Easter: Trump
(AFP) President Donald Trump said Saturday he hopes US Muslims will be held to the same social distancing standards during Ramadan as Christians at Easter, when a number of faithful chafed against coronavirus-related restrictions on large gatherings. The US president made the […]
Legal
Terrorists lose their appeals against convictions over mosque blaze
(Age) Two convicted terrorists who firebombed a mosque, amid planning an Islamic State-inspired attack on Melbourne landmarks, are to spend at least 28 years in prison after losing appeals against their convictions. Ahmed Mohamed and Abdullah Chaarani were last year found guilty […]
Clerics & Preachers
Top Muslim leaders launch grant initiative to protect imams from layoffs
(Religion News) With mosques’ biggest fundraisers of the year in jeopardy, a new crowdfunding initiative led by four prominent Muslim American leaders aims to protect the livelihoods of imams and other mosque staff around the country. The initiative has raised about $155,000 […]
Books
Florida mosque promotes books calling for violence against Jews Welcome to a Taliban imam's web library — filled with anti-Semitic, anti-Christian vitriol.
(FrontPage) Masjid Jamaat Al-Mu’mineen (MJAM) is a radical mosque, located in Margate, Florida, infamous for having an imam that was charged by the FBI with helping to finance the Taliban. Surfing the mosque’s website, one is able to access a web library […]
Cemeteries & Funerals
CFCM: France should provide burial spaces for Muslim COVID-19 victims 'Let’s not add to the pain of the families suffering from the inability to honor their deceased.'
(Morocco World News) The French Council for Muslim Faith (CFCM) has asked the country’s authorities to make [available] burial spaces for Muslims who died from COVID-19 in France. “The number of victims of the coronavirus pandemic continues to increase, leaving many families […]
Health & Medicine
COVID-19: Call to prayer gesture in heart of Europe Adhan or call to prayer chanted from loudspeakers at mosques in Germany, the Netherlands
(Anadolu) Nearly 100 mosques in Germany and the Netherlands on Friday rang out with the sound of the call to prayer, as a gesture of support for Muslims amid the coronavirus pandemic. The call to prayer (adhan) was chanted from mosques belonging […]
Health & Medicine
Police statement on worshippers gathering at Small Heath mosque ‘during lockdown’ (LINK ONLY)
Eye on Islamism is no longer printing excerpts from articles published by certain news sources. To read the original article, click here.
Clerics & Preachers
Some Toronto-area mosques remain open despite dire warnings about COVID-19 Group of imams disappointed worshippers are still gathering, despite calls for people to stay home
(CBC) A group of Ontario imams and Islamic scholars is fighting an uphill battle to convince management at a handful of Toronto-area mosques to completely shutter their doors. They say that while a majority of mosques are closed — some a whole week […]
Government & Politics
After divisive public hearing, Paterson passes law allowing Islamic call to prayer
(Paterson Times) After a lengthy and divisive public hearing, the City Council passed an ordinance allowing the broadcast of the adhan or the Islamic call to prayer. Council members voted 5-4 to adopt the ordinance following a more than two-hour-long public hearing. […]
Interfaith
Dutch-Muslim community leader accused of writing that Hitler was Jewish in pro-Hamas email
(JTA) An email from 2014 bearing the signature of an influential leader of Dutch Muslims expressed support for Hamas and said that Adolf Hitler was Jewish. The email carrying the signature of Yahia Bouyafa, chairman of the Association of Moroccan Mosques in […]
Government & Politics
Muslim group denounces Bloomberg’s ‘lies’ over NYC surveillance programme police were forced to stop (LINK ONLY)
Eye on Islamism is no longer printing excerpts from articles published by certain news sources. To read the original article, click here.
Government & Politics
Paterson grants preliminary approval to measure allowing Islamic call to prayer
(Paterson Times) An ordinance allowing mosques to broadcast the adhan or Islamic call to prayer received preliminary approval from the City Council on Tuesday night. Council members voted 7-0-2 to approve a revised noise ordinance presented by councilman Shahin Khalique. The ordinance […]
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 […]
Government & Politics
Muslim group urges Paterson to pass measure allowing Islamic call to prayer
(Paterson Times) The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the largest Muslim civil liberties organization in the U.S., on Tuesday afternoon urged members of the City Council to pass the proposed ordinance allowing mosques to broadcast the adhan […]
Discrimination & “Islamophobia”
Muslim advocates demand Bloomberg apologize for NYPD spying program
(Religion News) Calls are growing for Mayor Mike Bloomberg to apologize for his role in the New York Police Department’s long-running warrantless surveillance of area Muslims, which has seen renewed scrutiny since Bloomberg announced his candidacy for Democratic presidential nominee. A coalition […]
Clerics & Preachers
Muslim branded a ‘terrorist’ in Exeter wins defamation case (LINK ONLY)
Eye on Islamism is no longer printing excerpts from articles published by certain news sources. To read the original article, click here.
Government & Politics
Paterson ordinance will let mosques broadcast Muslim call to prayer
(Paterson Times) A proposed ordinance before the City Council will allow mosques in Paterson to broadcast the Adhan or the Muslim call to prayer. Under the ordinance, mosques will be allowed to use loudspeakers to announce the call to prayer during a […]
Academics & Education
Wary of ‘separatism,’ Macron unveils curbs on foreign imams, teachers
(Reuters) French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday he would curb the practice of foreign countries sending imams and teachers to France to crack down on what he called the risk of “separatism.” Macron has so far stayed away from issues related […]
Academics & Education
NJ Muslims on presidential candidate Bloomberg: ‘He doesn’t know the hurt he caused’
(Bergen Record) Even before he arrived at his job at Fort Dix one recent morning, Army Sgt. Syed Farhaj Hassan had already been bombarded by a Michael Bloomberg ad about gun control on television, and a radio piece about Bloomberg’s tenure as […]
Government & Politics
Small group of orthodox Muslims causing problems in mosques, council [of] mosques says
(NL Times) A small group of younger, orthodox Muslims are causing problems in mosques by pressuring other believers to follow a … “strict” course, Said Bouharrou, vice-president of the Council of Moroccan Mosques in the Netherlands, said to the parliamentary committee investigating […]
Government & Politics
French govt closed two radical mosques, put 63 more under surveillance
(Breitbart) French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner has announced that in 2019 the French government closed down two radical mosques and placed another 63 under surveillance. The two radical mosques closed last year were done so under the powers granted to the Interior […]
Government & Politics
Witness threatened after speaking in foreign influence on mosques investigation
(NL Times) Hajer Harzi, a board member of the Al Houda mosque in Geleen, received serious threats after she spoke to a parliamentary committee investigating the possible influence of extremist ideology from abroad on Dutch mosques. “You wouldn’t wish that on anyone,” […]
Clerics & Preachers
CBP questions Detroit-area imam who mourned Soleimani
(IPT) Weeks after criticizing a U.S. drone strike that killed Iran’s top terror mastermind, U.S. Customs officials questioned a Detroit-area imam about his support for the Iranian regime. [Mohammad] Ali Elahi described the Feb. 6 encounter, which took place as he got […]
Academics & Education
MPs begin hearings into foreign funding of Dutch mosques
(Dutch News) A parliamentary commission set up to investigate the foreign funding of mosques and Islamic schools in the Netherlands will begin hearings on Monday. “MPs have been debating about the issues for years but much remains unclear,” CDA parliamentarian and commission […]
Government & Politics
Mosques ask MPs to investigate all religions for unwanted influencing from abroad
(NL Times) A parliamentary investigation into unwanted influence from abroad must not only focus on Islam and mosques, but should also look into foreign money flows to political parties, churches and synagogues, four Islamic organizations asked in a letter to Tweede Kamer […]
Government & Politics
US election 2020: At one Iowa mosque, almost all caucus votes went to Bernie Sanders Muslim-Americans came out overwhelmingly in support of Sanders at mosque in Des Moines
(Middle East Eye) “Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar.” The Muslim call for prayer, known as adhan, echoed through the Muslim Community Organization in Iowa as voters stood in a registration line outside the prayer hall, waiting to attend the Democratic Party’s caucuses at […]
Government & Politics
US election 2020: The Arab and Muslim vote may be decisive in Iowa In a tight presidential race, Iowa's Arab- and Muslim-American community could have major say on results
(Middle East Eye) Iowa. It’s known as America’s breadbasket. The nation’s heartland. A state of farmers, wheat and cornfields. The rural Midwest. It’s also so much more than that. A sparsely populated state of just 3.1 million people, Iowa is home to […]
Government & Politics
US election 2020: Some Muslims in Iowa will caucus in their own mosques Muslim Americans say caucusing at mosques will increase political engagement in the community
(Middle East Eye) As soon as communal prayers ended at a mosque in Des Moines on Friday, Imam Jaaphar Abdul Hamed turned to worshippers to remind them that the state’s caucuses to pick the Democratic presidential nominee [are] on Monday. Such announcements […]
Government & Politics
Ilhan Omar takes Bernie Sanders’ message to Iowa mosque 'It's not about somebody else. This election cycle is about us,' US congresswoman tells Muslim Americans
(Middle East Eye) If Muslim-Americans want to become “visible” and elevate their issues on the decision-making table, they must participate in the upcoming presidential elections. That was Congresswoman Ilhan Omar’s message to worshippers at the Muslim Community Organization in Des Moines, Iowa. […]
Arts & Entertainment
A suburban filmmaker sued to find out why the FBI was watching her Muslim community ‘It’s weird to read how they wrote about us’
(Chicago Tribune) Since 2016, documentary filmmaker Assia Boundaoui has been waiting for answers from the FBI to one question: Which parts of her Arab American community in Bridgeview were surveilled after 9/11? After a court hearing last week, she learned she will […]
Government & Politics
Belgium Muslim Executive wants official recognition for Great Mosque of Brussels
(Brussels Times) The Executive of the Muslims of Belgium (EMB) has submitted a request for the recognition of the Great Mosque of Brussels, according to the department of Brussels Minister-President Rudi Vervoort. Currently, there are 21 recognised mosques in the Brussels Region, […]
Clerics & Preachers
Lexington Islamic leader pleads guilty to money laundering, conspiracy to kidnapping
(Lexington Herald Leader) A Lexington Islamic leader who was accused last year in connection with an alleged murder-for-hire plot pleaded guilty Monday to some of the charges against him. Mahmoud Shaker Shalash pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiring with at least […]
Clerics & Preachers
Antwerp mosque should lose official recognition, says Flemish minister
(Brussels Times) The Flemish minister for integration and interior, Bart Somers (Open Vld), wants to withdraw official recognition of the Noor-ul-Haram mosque in Antwerp because of internal disagreements that have been going on there for over three years. Somers wants to pull […]
Mosques
Geneva mosque to be run by Swiss management
(Swiss Info) Switzerland’s largest mosque, which has been embroiled in various controversies, is to come under Swiss management. “It is time to hand over the mosque in Geneva to a Swiss executive board, which is representative, with an elected president board: a […]
Mosques
Kurds file criminal complaint against Iran mosque in Germany for terrorism The popular German news and commentary website Tichys Einblick first published the complaint, which was filed with the local prosecutor’s office.
(Jerusalem Post) Ali Ertan Toprak, the chairman of the Kurdish community in Germany, on Tuesday lodged a formal criminal complaint against the Iranian regime-controlled Islamic Center of Hamburg, the owner of the Imam Ali Mosque, for its support of terrorism. According to […]
Clerics & Preachers
Iranian regime-linked cleric protests Soleimani killing with CAIR and NIAC
(IPT) A Detroit-area Shiite imam with direct ties to Iran’s leadership used a press conference last week to push disinformation and propaganda about the U.S. killing of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) Quds Force Gen. Qasem Soleimani. Soleimani ran the IRGC and […]
Demonstrations
Uproar as Soleimani commemoration to be held in Copenhagen It’s like honouring Osama bin Laden, contends politician
(Copenhagen Post) Just over a week following his death in a US drone strike in Iraq, the Iranian general Qassem Soleimani is to be commemorated at City Hall Square today at 18:00. According to a Facebook page, a small group of people […]
Cemeteries & Funerals
Inquiry into charity Islamic Centre of England that called Iran’s Soleimani a martyr (LINK ONLY)
Eye on Islamism is no longer printing excerpts from articles published by certain news sources. To read the original article, click here.
Children & Teens
Islamic religious leader arrested for alleged sex crimes against children
(Houston Chronicle) The Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office has arrested an Islamic religious leader for alleged sex crimes against children. Mohamed Omar Ali, age 59, was charged with one count of sexual assault of a child and three counts of sexual indecency […]
Legal
Trial opens in Paris over ‘jihadist network’ linked to Charlie Hebdo attacks
(Radio France) On the eve of the fifth anniversary of the Charlie Hebdo attacks, the trial of 24 suspected jihadists linked to the massacre that killed 12 people at the satirical weekly has opened in Paris. Only five of the suspects are […]
Clerics & Preachers
Oklahoma Muslims tell their own story with new guide book
(Oklahoman) Adam Soltani remembers the anti-Muslim rhetoric that seemed heightened during the 2016 presidential election. Soltani, executive director of the Oklahoma chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said his agency has created a new guidebook that was purposely timed, in part, […]
Academics & Education
First imam training course starts in February
(Brussels Times) The University of Leuven (KULeuven) will begin a new course for the training of imams in February. The course lasts six years. The training of imams was a point raised in the report of the parliamentary committee which looked into […]