Germany

Academics & Education

Germany: Bavarian court upholds headscarf ban for judges, prosecutors Bavaria's constitutional court has confirmed the legitimacy of the southern German state's ban on judges and prosecutors wearing headscarves. It said the presence of crosses in courtrooms was another matter altogether.

March 18, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) The Bavarian constitutional court on Monday rejected an appeal by an Islamic religious community to overturn a ban on judges and prosecutors wearing headscarves, saying that justice officials in particular were obliged to be neutral in questions of religion and ideology. The […]

Crime

Chemnitz murder trial begins amid questions of impartiality Daniel H.'s stabbing death led to weeks of unrest and the sacking of Germany's domestic intel chief. Now, the murder trial has begun despite major evidence 'gaps' and concern about lay judges' conflicts of interest.

March 18, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) The trial of Alaa S. began in Dresden on Monday morning in the middle of a media scrum and fears of far-right protests, following the killing last year of Daniel H. in Chemnitz — an incident that led to a week […]

Government & Politics

Berlin passes first-ever state plan to combat anti-Semitism The German capital has put together a comprehensive approach to fight anti-Semitic hatred. So why is this initiative happening at a local and not a federal level? The reasons, DW found out, are complex.

March 13, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) There have been many reports about anti-Semitism in Berlin over the past year or so, ranging from the story of a Jewish youth bullied out of his high school to accounts of an Israeli symbol being burned at a Palestinian […]

Government & Politics

A Muslim as German chancellor? CDU leader slammed for saying ‘why not’ The party of Chancellor Angela Merkel has been roiled by a debate about whether a Muslim could lead the CDU and one day become chancellor. One lawmaker couldn't believe anyone would even suggest such a thing.

March 7, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) The parliamentary group leader of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) has sparked a divisive debate after he said a Muslim could be a future CDU leader and chancellor of Germany. Asked by media outlet Idea if a Muslim could lead […]

Citizenship

Germany to strip ‘Islamic State’ fighters’ citizenship — report Germany's Interior Ministry and Justice Ministry have reportedly agreed on a proposal to expatriate IS fighters. Interior Minister Horst Seehofer had tried to link the legislation with broader citizenship reform.

March 4, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) Germany’s governing coalition has agreed to strip fighters of the “Islamic State” (IS) militant group of their citizenship, according to German outlets Süddeutsche Zeitung, NDR and WDR. The new law would apply only to jihadis who are of age, have a second […]

Government & Politics

German interior minister defends deportation of Berlin terrorist associate A friend of the Berlin Christmas market attacker is at the center of a probe into security shortcomings and a botched investigation. Bilel Ben Ammar was quickly deported following the 2016 truck attack.

March 1, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) Germany’s interior minister on Thursday defended the hasty deportation of an Islamic extremist who had dinner with Anis Amri the night before he killed 12 people in a 2016 truck attack on a Berlin Christmas market. Bilel Ben Ammar, a […]

Government & Politics

‘Terrorist accomplice’ in Anis Amri Berlin attack deported, according to report Germany deported a key suspect in the 2016 Berlin Christmas market attack before he was questioned, according to leaked documents. But authorities denied reports that Bilel Ben Ammar worked for Moroccan intelligence.

February 22, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) German authorities deported a Moroccan secret agent to hide his involvement in the December 2016 Christmas market attack in Berlin, according to an internal document leaked to the German magazine Focus. However, sources within German security forces have since told public […]

Legal

Newcastle man appears in court charged with inciting an atrocity in Germany Fatah Mohammed Abdullah was charged with inciting two people to commit a terror attack in Germany

February 20, 2019   

(Newcastle Chronicle) A Newcastle man accused of plotting a terrorist bomb attack in the UK has appeared in court charged with inciting an atrocity in Germany. Fatah Mohammed Abdullah, 33, was arrested in December last year after he allegedly bought “explosive pre-cursors” […]

Government & Politics

Germany: Horst Seehofer sets terms for repatriating ‘Islamic State’ foreign fighters Some 40 foreign fighters who fought for 'Islamic State' and are in detention in Syria reportedly have German passports. Germany's conservative interior minister has said they can only return under strict conditions.

February 19, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) Germany will only take back “Islamic State” foreign fighters and their families if they can prove their identities and they do not pose a serious security threat, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has said. “In the interest of the security of […]

Academics & Education

Kiel University bans full-face veil in classrooms A spokesman said the move was not exceptional, citing similar decisions by other institutions of higher education. But some politicians have called the decision 'untenable,' saying it undermines religious freedom.

February 13, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) Kiel University on Wednesday announced that it has banned full-face coverings in classrooms, citing the need for open communication that includes facial expressions and gestures. However, the university in the capital of the German state Schleswig-Holstein clarified that its action did […]

Academics & Education

Germany closes Muslim kindergarten over Islamist links The youth welfare office for the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate has revoked the operating license of a Muslim kindergarten. The day nursery was accused of promoting Salafist ideology.

February 11, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) Officials in the city of Mainz on Monday withdrew the license of the only Muslim kindergarten in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate amid allegations that the facility was promoting Salafism. The president of the state’s youth office, Detlef Placzek, said the […]

Immigration

ISIS smuggler: Sleeper cells and ‘undead’ suicide bombers have infiltrated Europe Jailed jihadis are being released, others are returning to Europe to face prison time, and still others have never been known to police and wait to be mobilized.

February 5, 2019 and   

(Daily Beast) Europe is bracing for a new wave of jihadist attacks by terrorists affiliated with the so-called Islamic State, what “you might call ISIS 2.0,” as Interpol chief Jürgen Stock recently told reporters. Some previously imprisoned jihadists are being released from […]

Clerics & Preachers

Muslims say Germany should provide Bundeswehr with imams The Bundeswehr provides Catholic and Protestant clergy for soldiers, but no spiritual counsel for Muslims. According to the government, key questions must be answered before the Bundeswehr's religious ranks are expanded.

February 5, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) Nariman Reinke, a naval petty officer, is one of about 1,500 Muslim soldiers who serve in the Bundeswehr. Born to [Moroccan] parents in 1979, Reinke has been in the military since 2005 and has twice deployed to Afghanistan. But being a Muslim […]

Children & Teens

Germany’s thousands of ‘missing’ refugee minors Authorities lose track of thousands of unaccompanied child refugees each year. Often they are safe, but experts say alarmingly little is known about their situations, and the government must do more to protect them.

January 28, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) The increased influx of refugees to Europe in recent years has also brought tens of thousands of refugee minors to Germany, as well as other countries. Many of them vanished from the authorities’ radar after arrival, either immediately or at […]

News: Europe

Second German deported from Egypt over suspected ‘IS’ links Isa El Sabbagh has arrived in Frankfurt after disappearing in Egypt in December. Egyptian authorities held him for weeks without telling his family.

January 14, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) The Egyptian government announced on Monday that it had deported another man back to Germany, the second suspect deported from Cairo after being detained for terrorist sympathies. Isa El Sabbagh, 18, was allegedly found with several maps of Egypt’s North […]

News: Europe

One German arrested in Egypt deported, another remains in custody Twenty-three-year-old Mahmoud Abdel Aziz has returned to Germany after weeks in Egyptian custody. Eighteen-year-old Isa El Sabbagh remains in detention.

January 11, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) A 23-year-old German-Egyptian citizen detained by Egyptian authorities at Cairo airport on December 27 has arrived back home in the central German city of Göttingen. Germany’s Foreign Ministry confirmed the man’s return on Friday. Egypt’s state-run Al-Ahram newspaper said that […]

Crime

Afghanistan sends deported asylum-seeker back to Germany The government of Afghanistan has denied entry to a failed asylum-seeker deported by Germany. The Afghans say the man was turned back at the border as per agreement with the German government because he's mentally ill.

January 10, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) In an article designed to raise the hackles of those worried about foreigners and crime, German daily Bild reported on Thursday that Afghanistan had turned away an Afghan deportee with a long criminal record at its border and sent him back […]

News: Europe

Germany introduces extremism counseling service The 'emel' service will mainly target Turkish- and Arabic-speaking families. Germany has seen a dramatic rise in young people becoming radicalized online in recent years.

January 9, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) A new prototype project was launched in Germany on Wednesday, aimed at counseling parents who are concerned their children may be flirting with extremism. The Turkish Community in Germany (TGD) non-profit established the service primarily for Turkish- and Arabic-speaking parents, […]

Crime

Police refute claims of far-right patrols after migrant attacks Four asylum-seekers reportedly assaulted a dozen people in the Bavarian town of Amberg over the weekend, renewing debate over migration. The mayor rejected fears of vigilantism by the far-right NPD.

January 3, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) A German far-right group claims to have carried out street patrols in the Bavarian town of Amberg where four asylum-seekers allegedly attacked a dozen passers-by over the weekend. The Nuremberg branch of the far-right National Democratic Party (NPD) posted pictures […]

Children & Teens

German interior minister renews call for stricter deportation laws in wake of Amberg attacks An attack by a group of asylum-seekers on passers-by in a Bavarian town has prompted Germany's interior minister to renew his longstanding call for stricter deportation laws. Amberg's mayor has called for caution.

January 2, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) Germany’s Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said asylum-seekers who commit violent crimes must leave the country, after a group of apparently drunken teenagers attacked a dozen people in the Bavarian town of Amberg. “If existing laws are not sufficient, they must be changed,” Seehofer told […]