Central Council of Muslims (Germany)

Germany’s CDU redefines stance on Islam in new manifesto Under Friedrich Merz, Germany's Christian Democratic Union is revising its manifesto, sparking controversy with its new stance on Islam and migration. The party's new direction marks a departure from the Merkel era.

December 12, 2023 William Noah Glucroft

(Deutsche Welle) The new color scheme a few months back was only a cosmetic step. Now, Germany’s center-right Christian Democrats are going under the hood. For the first time since 2007, the party that ruled Germany for most of the republic’s young […]

Germany: Faeser seeks Hamas condemnation at Islam conference Germany's interior minister has said she will seek clear positions on Hamas from faith groups at the government's annual Islam conference. Nancy Faeser said they should assume 'their responsibility in society.'

November 21, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Deutsche Welle) The ongoing conflict in Gaza in the aftermath of Hamas’ October 7 terror attacks against Israel looked sure to overshadow the German government’s annual Islam conference in Berlin on Tuesday. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said ahead of the event on […]

Germany’s first cohort of locally trained imams graduates Germany set up its own training school for imams due to the large number of foreign-trained Islamic religious leaders. The issue now is the lack of jobs for the graduates.

September 30, 2023 Unlisted Author

(Deutsche Welle) Twenty-four Muslims from across Germany formally passed their imam training at the country’s new Islamkolleg Deutschland in the northwestern city of Osnabrück on Saturday. The graduates, who included men and women, received their first certificate of completion after attending a two-year part-time course. […]

German court categorizes Islamic center as ‘extremist Islamic organization’

July 1, 2023 Unlisted Author

(VOA) Germany’s Federal Administrative Court has upheld a determination that activities conducted by the Islamic Center in the city of Hamburg, known as the Blue Mosque, are those of an “extremist Islamic organization.” Acting on an objection and complaint lodged by the […]

Iranian regime’s influence outlets in Europe come under pressure

May 10, 2023 Maryam Sinaee

(Iran International) A Muslim group in Germany, Secular Islam Association, has urged authorities to immediately ban Iran’s Islamic Center of Hamburg and shut down its Imam Ali Mosque. In a letter to Germany’s Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser last week seen by […]

Germany’s Central Muslims Council strips Muslim Brotherhood figure Ibrahim Zayat of posts: reports

September 19, 2022 Unlisted Author

(Egypt Today) The Central Council of Muslims in Germany (ZMD) stripped on Sunday renowned global Muslim Brotherhood figure Ibrahim El-Zayat, brother-in-law of the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood group in Turkey, of his posts in the center, according to media reports. This […]

Germany: Conservatives seek to isolate Islamist groups Germany's governing conservative bloc is planning to cut all government ties with groups suspected of supporting political Islamism, according to a report in Die Welt. Large Muslim umbrella organizations may be affected.

April 13, 2021 Alex Berry

(Deutsche Welle) The parliamentary group of Germany’s ruling conservative bloc has called for an end to cooperation with groups suspected of supporting political Islamism, the newspaper Die Welt reported on Tuesday. The bloc, made up of Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) and […]

Germany’s imams seen as key in combating radicalization Imam training is in the spotlight of this year's German Islam Conference. In light of recent terror attacks, Germany's interior minister said a new training program for German-speaking imams was 'money well-spent.'

November 10, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Deutsche Welle) The latest spate of terror attacks in France and Austria will not hamper the cooperation between the government and Germany’s Muslim community, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said on Tuesday. “We won’t let terrorism and extremism derail us,” Seehofer said at […]

German Foreign Ministry hires Islamist who defends Israel’s destruction 'So she can promote more antisemitic al-Quds marches and justify hatred of the Jewish state.'

July 23, 2020 Benjamin Weinthal

(Jerusalem Post) German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Foreign Ministry has been plunged into a devastating new antisemitism scandal for the hiring of a radical Islamist who defends the annual Iranian regime-sponsored rally al-Quds Day calling for the obliteration of Israel. Andreas Görgen, the […]

German Muslim leader demands government mosque bailout

April 23, 2020 Chris Tomlinson

(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 […]

Germany set to take charge of imam education locally In a bid to reduce foreign influence on Islamic religious leaders, Germany will support a new pilot project that educates imams locally. Experts say it is a positive step, but a more comprehensive approach is needed.

November 15, 2019 Seda Serdar

(Deutsche Welle) The government has long struggled with foreign involvement when it comes to the education of imams who lead Muslim communities across Germany. Now, a new educational association, with start-up funding from Germany’s interior ministry, is set to launch on November 21. Even though some […]

Electoral gains by far-right Alternative for Germany party worry Jews and Muslims

October 28, 2019 Toby Axelrod

(JTA) Electoral gains by Germany’s strongest far-right party has Jews and Muslims here worried. Winning 23.4 percent of the vote in Sunday’s parliamentary election, the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany, or AfD party — propelled by male voters and those under the age […]

Germany’s Muslims call for an Islamophobia commissioner More than 20 mosques received bomb threats in July, amid growing anti-Muslim propaganda

August 7, 2019 Ayhan Simsek

(Anadolu) Germany’s Muslim community has called on the government to create a new government post to counter growing Islamophobia in the country. Aiman Mazyek, president of the Central Council of Muslims in Germany, proposed on Wednesday appointment of an Islamophobia commissioner. “We […]

Germans support democracy, but are concerned about Islam A study by the Bertelsmann Foundation found 89% of respondents, across all religions, consider democracy to be a good form of government. But half of respondents expressed concern over Islam.

July 11, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Deutsche Welle) The latest edition of the Bertelsmann Foundation’s bi-annual “Religion Monitor” interview survey published on Thursday found religious tolerance in Germany to be sustained but Islam to be having a hard time, perceived by many to be negative. As a result […]

Muslim Brotherhood dangerous for social peace — German intelligence

July 4, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Ahval) Germany’s domestic intelligence agency 2018 report for the North Rhine-Westphalia state said the Muslim Brotherhood was being closely monitored by Germany due to dangers the report said legal, non-violent Islamist groups posed to the country’s democracy, German state-run Deutsche Welle Turkish […]

Germany’s imam quandary: Educate, don’t import Ending foreign influence on Muslim religious leaders' education is a long-term goal for the German government. A new study might lead the way for training local imams, if all parties involved are willing to participate.

June 18, 2019 Seda Serdar

(Deutsche Welle) A new report published Tuesday proposes a concrete solution to Germany’s ongoing dilemma about how to educate Islamic religious leaders. The goal is to create a seminar that would offer graduates of Islamic theology institutes in Germany the possibility to […]

Muslim Council demands apology for Cologne police ‘racial profiling’ Cologne police have denied that brief detentions of Ramadan revelers at the city's rail hub amounted to 'racial profiling.' Germany's Central Council of Muslims says officers need coaching in cultural sensitivity.

June 5, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Deutsche Welle) Calls of “Allahu Akbar” [“God is great”] by young Muslims wearing long gowns and vests outside Cologne’s main rail station culminated on Wednesday in counter-accusations between city police and the Central Council of Muslims in Germany (ZMD). Police chief Uwe […]

Islam on beer mats angers Muslims in Germany Using coasters in pubs to improve understanding of the teachings of Islam in Germany is not going down well with some Muslim groups. They believe the connection between alcohol and the religion is unwise.

May 17, 2019 John Silk and Nicole Goebel

(Deutsche Welle) The distribution of Islam-related questions on beer mats in the towns of Maintal and Offenbach near Frankfurt has been harshly criticized. The mats show questions on Islam written in the local Hesse dialect. On the back, a QR code can […]