News: Europe – Page 63 – Eye on Islamism

Ofcom fines Islam Channel £40,000 after it broadcasts antisemitic documentary Broadcasting watchdog fines the Islam Channel over broadcast of The Andinia Plan — a one-hour documentary examining a conspiracy theory which originated in a neo-Nazi publication.

September 26, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Jewish News) Ofcom has fined the Islam Channel £40,000 after it broadcast a documentary which was deemed to have amounted to “hate speech against Jewish people.” An investigation by the broadcast watchdog found that Islam Channel Limited (“Islam Channel”) had failed to […]

German police raid locations across the country in connection with smuggling of Syrian migrants

September 26, 2023 Unlisted Author

(AP) Police in Germany said they found more than 100 Syrian citizens inside apartments and other buildings that were searched Tuesday in connection with the suspected smuggling of migrants. More than 350 federal police officers searched locations as part of an investigation, […]

Refugee Dilan Yesilgoz-Zegerius takes hard line on migration in bid to be Dutch PM Minister who migrated from Turkey as a child calls for focus on 'real refugees'

September 25, 2023 Tim Stickings

(National-UAE) A woman who was a child refugee from Turkey has promised to address voter fears over excessive migration if she is elected prime minister of the Netherlands. Dilan Yesilgoz-Zegerius has a realistic shot at power after winning the leadership of departing […]

Paris Olympics 2024: France bans own athletes from wearing veil Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera made the statement amid an ongoing controversy over a ban on abayas in school

September 25, 2023 Nadda Osman

(Middle East Eye) French athletes will not be allowed to wear veils during the Paris Olympic Games set to be held next year, the country’s sports minister announced on Sunday. Appearing as a guest on the show Sunday in Politics, airing on the […]

Call for PM to introduce anti-terror Martyn’s Law ‘without delay’

September 25, 2023 Unlisted Author

(BBC) The mother of a man killed in the 2017 Manchester attack has urged Rishi Sunak to introduce a law to ensure stronger protections against terrorism in public places “without further delay.” Known as Martyn’s Law, the legislation is named after Martyn […]

A trial opens in France over the killing of a police couple in the name of the Islamic State group

September 25, 2023 Nicolas Vaux-Montagny

(AP) It wasn’t the deadliest attack in Europe linked to the Islamic State group, but it was among the most disturbing: One evening in 2016, an assailant killed two police officers in their family home, in front of their 3-year-old son. On […]

France’s top court rejects appeal against ban on Muslim abaya dress in schools Last week, 3 unions filed appeal against ruling of Council of State upholding ban on abaya in schools

September 25, 2023 Burak Bir

(Anadolu) France’s highest court on Monday ruled that the government ban on Muslim dress abaya is legal. The Council of State said it had rejected an appeal by three organizations against the government ban announced last month on abaya — a loose-fitting […]

Italian PM admits she hoped to do ‘better’ on migration

September 24, 2023 Alice Ritchie

(AFP) Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has admitted she had hoped to do “better” on controlling irregular migration, which has surged since her far-right party won historic elections a year ago. “Clearly we hoped for better on immigration, where we worked so […]

Pope Francis insists Europe doesn’t have a migrant emergency and challenges countries to open ports

September 23, 2023 Nicole Winfield, Sylvie Corbet and Trisha Thomas

(AP) Pope Francis challenged French President Emmanuel Macron and other European leaders to open their ports to people fleeing hardship and poverty, insisting Saturday that the continent isn’t facing a migration “emergency” but rather a long-term reality that governments must deal with […]

Leader of Islamophobic group once again tears down Quran in Netherlands PEGIDA's leader tears down copies of Quran outside embassies of Muslim countries

September 23, 2023 Abdullah Asiran

(Anadolu) The leader of PEGIDA, an Islamophobic group, once again tore down a copy of the Muslim holy book, the Quran, in front of the Turkish Embassy in the Netherlands on Saturday. Tearing down more copies of the Quran outside the embassies […]

Cyprus calls on the EU to rethink Syrian safe zones for eventually repatriating Syrian migrants

September 22, 2023 Menelaos Hadjicostis

(AP) Cyprus has formally called on the European Union to re-evaluate which areas of Syria can be declared safe and free from armed conflict so that Syrian migrants can eventually be repatriated there, Cypriot authorities said Friday. Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou was […]

Muslim girl turned away from school in France for wearing hijab files complaint with UN 15-year-old student in Lyon was sent back home on Sept. 5 for wearing Japanese garment kimono

September 22, 2023 Esra Taskin and Feiza Ben Mohamed

(Anadolu) A Muslim student, who had been turned away from school for wearing a kimono, a Japanese garment, in France, has filed a complaint with the UN over being “discriminated against” due to her religious affiliation. The controversy over the French government’s […]

Oxford woman admits distributing terrorist publications

September 22, 2023 Charlotte Andrews

(BBC) A 23-year-old woman has been sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison for terrorism offences. Roma Iqbal, from Oxford, pleaded guilty to distributing Islamist extremist content on 10 December 2021. Winchester Crown Court heard the 23-year-old had helped set up a website […]

French police reject Muslim man’s application because of prayer mark on forehead Karim’s boyhood dream of serving in the French police force has been shattered because of his visible devotion to his faith.

September 21, 2023 Safaa Kasraoui

(Morocco World News) The Paris police prefecture rejected a Muslim’s man application to join the police academy because of a prayer mark on his forehead, French news outlet MediaPart reported last week. Karim, the 24-year-old Muslim man whose application was rejected, spoke […]

Prisoner Daniel Khalife pleads not guilty to escaping from Wandsworth prison The former soldier, 21, was allegedly arrested four days later after an extensive manhunt.

September 21, 2023 Henry Vaughan

(Sky News) Terror suspect Daniel Khalife has denied escaping from Wandsworth prison. The former soldier, 21, is accused of breaking out of the Category B jail on the morning of 6 September. He is said to have been working in the prison […]

Dutch jihadis held in Kurdish jail want to come home

September 21, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Dutch News) At least two Dutchmen who travelled to Syria to fight for Islamic State are hoping to return to the Netherlands, the Telegraaf said on Thursday, quoting a television documentary to be broadcast on Thursday evening. Lawyers are now taking steps to bring back the […]

Case on Dutchman’s terrorism arrest in Spain postponed; not urgent, court allegedly said

September 20, 2023 Unlisted Author

(NL Times) The summary proceedings between the Dutch state and a 35-year-old Dutch-Moroccan man from Tilburg who was arrested in Spain on terrorism suspicions for unclear reasons will not happen on Wednesday. Muslim Rights Watch (MRW), who filed the case on the […]

Slovakia struggles with surge in illegal migrants as election looms

September 20, 2023 Krisztina Than

(Reuters) Residents of Chlaba say large groups of illegal migrants have been traipsing through their tiny border village in southern Slovakia every day in the past few weeks after fording a local river or crossing a railway bridge from neighbouring Hungary. The […]

Pope goes to Marseille to talk migration, but will Europe listen as it scrambles to stem an influx?

September 20, 2023 Nicole Winfield, Trisha Thomas and Sylvie Corbet

(AP) Ten years after Pope Francis made a landmark visit to the Italian island of Lampedusa to show solidarity with migrants, he is joining Catholic bishops from the Mediterranean this weekend in France to make the call more united. The question is […]

Dutch mosques secretly investigated by another government ministry

September 20, 2023 Unlisted Author

(NL Times) In addition to Dutch municipalities, the Ministry of Social Affairs also commissioned secret investigations into mosques in the Netherlands, Minister Karien van Gennip of Social Affairs admitted in a letter to parliament this week, NRC reports. Social Affairs quietly investigated […]

Swedish court upholds prison sentence for Turkish man linked to outlawed militant party

September 20, 2023 Unlisted Author

(AP) A Swedish appeals court on Wednesday upheld a 4 1/2-year prison sentence for a Turkish man who was found guilty of attempted extortion, weapons possession and attempted terrorist financing, saying he was acting on behalf of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party. […]

Burka wearers in Switzerland to be fined up to CHF1,000

September 20, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Swiss Info) It will be illegal to conceal one’s face in public in Switzerland. Parliament has accepted the government’s bill implementing the so-called anti-burka initiative at [the] federal level, including a fine of up to CHF1,000 ($1,115) for those who flout the […]

Spain releases Tilburg man wrongly held for two months

September 20, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Dutch News) Spain has released a 35-year-old Tilburg man from jail without charge after arresting him on suspicions of involvement in terrorism almost two months ago. The man, who has Moroccan roots, was taken from his hotel in Spain at the end […]

Islamic leaders bash West at UN over Koran burnings

September 19, 2023 Unlisted Author

(AFP) Muslim leaders addressing the United Nations on Tuesday berated the West over burnings of the Koran, denouncing the acts protected as free speech as discriminatory. Sweden has seen a series of burnings of the Islamic holy book, with the government voicing […]

Brussels terror attack victims plan to meet culprits

September 19, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Brussels Times) Victims of the jihadist attacks that left 35 dead and hundreds injured in Brussels on 22 March 2016 want to meet the convicted culprits to get answers to questions left pending at the end of their trial. “Around ten victims […]

Latvia to shut one of two Belarus border crossings to stop illegal migrants

September 19, 2023 Andrius Sytas and Janis Laizans

(Reuters) Latvia’s government decided on Tuesday to close one of its two border crossing points with Belarus as the prime minister accused Minsk of again using illegal migrants as a “hybrid threat” to undermine the Baltic state’s security. In 2021, Latvia, Poland […]

Mayor: Helsinki to fine group over unauthorised mosque A resident living above the space filed a noise complaint with the city last autumn.

September 19, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Yle) Helsinki Mayor Juhana Vartiainen (NCP) has said municipal [authorities] will try to close an unauthorised mosque operating in a Helsinki apartment building. Vartiainen told Yle on Monday that the city was looking to shut down the mosque and that those running […]

EU must close borders in face of ‘migrant surge,’ says Poland’s ruling PiS party

September 19, 2023 Pawel Florkiewicz

(Reuters) The European Union should deal with a surge in migrants by sealing its borders and rejecting any idea of relocating them within the bloc, Poland’s ruling party said on Tuesday as it takes a tough stance on migration before an election. […]

Birmingham to unveil sculpture celebrating women who wear hijab The 5-metre-tall sculpture will be installed in the Smethwick area of the English city

September 18, 2023 Soraya Ebrahimi

(National-UAE) A new sculpture celebrating women who wear hijab will be unveiled in Birmingham next month. Renowned sculptor Luke Perry designed The Strength of the Hijab and it will be installed in the Smethwick area in October. The sculpture is believed to […]

Italy approves new migrant detention as talk turns to naval blockade to prevent launching of boats

September 18, 2023 Nicole Winfield, Lorne Cook and Angela Charlton

(AP) The Italian government approved new measures to crack down on migration Monday, after the southern island of Lampedusa was again overwhelmed by a wave of arrivals setting off from Tunisia and the migration issue returned to center stage in Europe with […]

Brussels Neptunium pool allows burkini swimsuits, sparking controversy

September 18, 2023 Maïthé Chini

(Brussels Times) The Neptunium swimming pool, which reopened this weekend after six years of major renovation works, will permit people to swim in a burkini (a swimsuit typically worn by Muslim women, covering their entire body) so everyone can enjoy the facilities. […]

EU pledges crackdown on ‘brutal’ migrant smuggling during visit to overwhelmed Italian island

September 17, 2023 Colleen Barry

(AP) EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pledged the swift return of “irregular” migrants to their home countries and a crackdown on the “brutal business” of migrant smuggling Sunday during a visit with Italy’s premier to a tiny fishing island overwhelmed […]

Moroccan charity faces account termination due to ING money laundering rules

September 17, 2023 Unlisted Author

(NL Times) ING wants to close the bank account of the Najiba Foundation, which raises money for earthquake victims in Morocco. On Friday, the Islamic charity said it had collected more than 900,000 euros in donations. Now this venture is on the […]

Islam belongs to German[y]: president 'Islam, the Muslim religion, Muslim life, Muslim culture have taken root in our country,' Frank-Walte[r] Steinmeier says

September 17, 2023 Oliver Towfigh Nia

(Anadolu) German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Saturday that Islam belongs to Germany amid growing racism and Islamophobia fueled by propaganda of far-right groups and parties that have exploited the refugee crisis and attempted to stoke fear of immigrants. “Islam, the Muslim religion, […]

Not a single violation of St Gallen’s burqa ban

September 17, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Swiss Info) Canton St Gallen’s burqa ban has never been implemented since it was introduced five years ago. The public prosecutor’s office has not yet received any complaint, [it] told the Keystone-SDA news agency. In the last five years, no one has […]

EU chief to visit Italy’s Lampedusa amid protests over migrant numbers

September 16, 2023 Yara Nardi

(Reuters) European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will travel to Lampedusa on Sunday, an official said, as dozens of the Italian island’s citizens protested over a recent surge in migrant arrivals. Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called on Friday for the […]

Geert Wilders wants to join the government again after years of opposition

September 16, 2023 Unlisted Author

(NL Times) PVV party leader Geert Wilders wants to form a majority government again after years in opposition, he said in an interview with De Telegraaf. “It’s a nice thing for me to be involved in limiting the influx of asylum. It’s […]

Cyprus asks EU to review whether Syria unsafe for repatriations

September 15, 2023 Unlisted Author

(AFP) European Union member Cyprus said Friday it has asked the bloc to review whether Syria remains an unsafe country to which member states should be barred from repatriating asylum-seekers. The move follows a flurry of racially-motivated attacks on foreigners in recent […]

Tory councillor rejoins party after apologising for ‘Zionist murderers’ posts Shakeel Hussain, a councillor in Stockton, had been suspended while the party investigated inflammatory social media posts

September 15, 2023 Lee Harpin

(Jewish News) A Conservative councillor suspended earlier this year over social media posts, including one condemning “Zionist murderers,” has been allowed back into the party after apologising and insisting: “I am not antisemitic. I want to make amends.’” Shakeel Hussain has been […]

Italy’s Meloni seeks EU mission to block migrant arrivals

September 15, 2023 Yara Nardi

(Reuters) Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called on Friday for the European Union to act jointly “with a naval mission if necessary” to prevent migrants crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa. Meloni posted a video message on social media promising tough action […]

Belgian court sentences 8 over Brussels terror attack

September 15, 2023 Matthieu Demeestere

(AFP) A Belgian court on Friday handed out sentences ranging up to life in prison to eight men for the 2016 jihadist bombings in Brussels, ending the country’s largest-ever criminal trial. The suicide bombings on March 22, 2016, at Brussels’ main airport […]

German prosecutor files murder charges against Syrian citizen accused of ‘Islamist-motivated’ attack

September 14, 2023 Unlisted Author

(AP) Germany’s federal prosecutor’s office said Thursday it had brought charges of murder, attempted murder and grievous bodily harm against a Syrian citizen in connection with two “Islamist-motivated” knife attacks. The suspect is accused of stabbing a man to death in the […]

Muslim org. sues Dutch state over Tilburg man in Spanish custody for terrorism

September 14, 2023 Unlisted Author

(NL Times) Muslim Rights Watch Nederland is suing the Dutch state over a Tilburg man who has been in custody in Spain for over six weeks on terrorism accusations. According to the organization, the state has taken no action to get the […]

A flotilla of migrant boats from Tunisia overwhelms an Italian island and tests Meloni’s policy

September 13, 2023 Frances D'Emilio

(AP) A flotilla of flimsy boats, crowded with migrants and launched from Tunisia, overwhelmed a tiny southern Italian island on Wednesday, taxing the coast guard’s capability to intercept the smugglers’ vessels and testing Premier Giorgia Meloni’s pledge to thwart irregular migration. Compounding […]

Belgium rejects ISIS bomber’s plea not to be extradited to France Salah Abdeslam argued that his extradition would violate his human rights

September 13, 2023 Sunniva Rose

(National-UAE) A Belgian court on Wednesday rejected French terrorist Salah Abdeslam’s request not to be extradited to France, saying that his claim that it would be a breach of his human rights was not “sufficiently substantiated.” Abdeslam, 33, was transferred to Belgium […]

Italy’s Lampedusa island hit with record migrant arrivals

September 12, 2023 Tony Colapinto

(Reuters) The Italian island of Lampedusa is struggling with a record number of landings from boat migrants, local officials said on Tuesday, describing the situation as “dramatic.” Lampedusa, Italy’s southernmost point and a first port of call for people crossing from North […]

Police round up migrants in Serbia and report finding weapons in raid of a border area with Hungary

September 12, 2023 Unlisted Author

(AP) Police in Serbia said they rounded up hundreds of migrants and found automatic weapons during a raid Tuesday along the border with Hungary, the location of frequently reported clashes between groups of smugglers exploiting the hardship of people trying to reach […]

Cyprus migrants face wave of attacks as hostility brews

September 12, 2023 Joana Saba and Yasmine Mosimann

(AFP) Hours before the masked men came, brandishing Cypriot flags and Molotov cocktails, hushed whispers of the imminent rampage travelled down the Limassol seafront strip home to many migrant-owned businesses. Egyptian restaurant owners rushed to bring their water pipes indoors, and a […]

Iraq asks Sweden to extradite Koran burner

September 12, 2023 Unlisted Author

(AFP) Baghdad has asked Sweden to extradite Iraqi refugee Salwan Momika, who stoked international outrage by desecrating the Koran, he and his lawyer told AFP on Tuesday. “Iraq wants him extradited because he burnt a Koran outside the mosque (in Stockholm) in […]

Latvia grows worried over a surge of migrants attempting to cross from Belarus

September 12, 2023 Jari Tanner

(AP) Latvia is growing worried over the increasing number of migrants attempting to cross over into the Baltic nation through the border with Belarus and has called up the military to assist border guards. Latvia’s State Border Guard said on Tuesday that […]