Mattias Tesfaye – Eye on Islamism

Danish PM seeks to extend religious full-face veil ban to educational institutions Mette Frederiksen said on Thursday she was seeking to extend the 2018 niqab ban to educational institutions and remove prayer rooms, citing concerns about social control and oppression.

June 5, 2025 Lauren Walker

(Euronews) Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has called on Thursday for stricter measures limiting religious symbols and rituals in education, asking for a ban on full-coverage veils worn by some Muslim women to be extended to schools and universities. The country’s overall […]

Denmark deems Syrian province safe for returning refugees, worrying UNHCR

March 17, 2023 Johannes Birkebaek and Nikolaj Skydsgaard

(Reuters) The Danish Refugee Appeals Board on Friday deemed it safe for Syrian refugees to return to Latakia province in the western part of the country, raising concerns at the UN Refugee Agency. When the Danish Immigration Service decides to take away […]

Denmark in talks with Rwanda on transfer of asylum seekers

April 20, 2022 Nikolaj Skydsgaard

(Reuters) Denmark is in talks with Rwanda about setting up a new procedure for transferring asylum seekers to the East African nation, mirroring a similar move by Britain announced last week. A deal with Rwanda would make Denmark the first European Union […]

Muslim Brotherhood’s influence in Europe laid bare Austrian report says taxpayers are unwittingly funding the group, which has close ties to Turkey

October 28, 2021 Tim Stickings

(National-UAE) The Muslim Brotherhood has established vast influence in Europe and public bodies are unwittingly funding its activities, experts believe. Despite having only a few hundred senior figures in Europe, Brotherhood activists have sought to portray themselves as representatives for the entire […]

Denmark to evacuate dual national from Syrian camp in exception to own policy

September 22, 2021 Unlisted Author

(Local) A Danish woman with dual nationality is to be evacuated along with her children from a detention camp in Syria, in an exception to normal government policy. Immigration minister Mattias Tesfaye has defended the government’s decision to evacuate a woman and […]

Denmark strips Islamic State recruiter of citizenship, orders deportation

September 21, 2021 Chris Tomlinson

(Breitbart) A Danish court has sentenced 29-year-old Adam Touhou to six years in prison and to be stripped of his citizenship followed by deportation for recruiting for the Islamic State terror group. Touhou began speaking with Hafed Matoussi on Facebook in 2013 about […]

Danish lawmakers approve plan to locate asylum center abroad

June 3, 2021 Jan M. Olsen

(AP) Danish lawmakers voted Thursday in favor of Denmark establishing a refugee reception center in a third country that is likely to be in Africa, a move that could be a first step toward moving the country’s asylum screening process outside of […]

Denmark firm on returning refugees to war-torn Syria

April 27, 2021 Nikolaj Skydsgaard

(Reuters) Despite mounting pressure from lawmakers and civil society organisations, Denmark is determined to push ahead with efforts to return refugees to war-torn Syria as it claims conditions in parts of the country have improved. On Tuesday, the EU’s top migration official […]

Danish plan to repatriate Syrians sparks controversy

April 12, 2021 Camille Bas-Wohlert

(AFP) Denmark is facing growing criticism for a decision last year to revoke residence permits for Syrian refugees, citing a “safe” situation around Damascus, but the country is sticking to its position. The tough Danish stance is a new sign of the […]

Denmark bans anti-democratic donations In future, individuals, organisations and authorities will end up blacklisted for donations that aim to undermine democracy

March 10, 2021 Christian W

(Copenhagen Post) A broad majority of Parliament has voted in favour of banning donations that seek to undermine democracy in Denmark. The move aims to prevent potentially extremist forces from using donations to erode basic freedom and human rights. “There exists extremist […]

Denmark strips 94 Syrian refugees of residency permits deeming Damascus ‘safe’ (LINK ONLY)

March 1, 2021 EoI News

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Denmark to classify immigrants from Muslim countries separately in crime statistics

December 14, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Local) Denmark’s government is to separately classify people from or with heritage in primarily Muslim countries and regions in official statistics related to topics such as crime and employment. Immigration and integration minister Mattias Tesfaye has signalled his support for the statistical […]

Danish minister’s comment on sex before marriage angers Muslims Mattias Tesfaye has suggested the Muslim community should support the ‘right’ to sex before marriage for Muslim women.

November 26, 2020 Urooba Jamal

(Al-Jazeera) A Danish minister has caused outrage among the Muslim minority for suggesting imams and community leaders should publicly support the “right” to have sex before marriage for women. Mattias Tesfaye, foreign affairs and integration minister, said in a Facebook post last […]

Denmark to criminalise foreign funding for mosques in effort to ‘counter extremism’

October 27, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Middle East Monitor) Denmark is set to present a new bill that would criminalise funding for mosques sent by foreign countries and entities, in new efforts to counter religious extremism. The bill was announced in a Facebook post by Danish Integration Minister […]

Government wants jail time for Sharia imams Islamic leaders who propagate the controversial contracts in Muslim marriages could face up to three years behind bars

October 7, 2020 Christian W

(Copenhagen Post) Late last month, an imam in Odense hit the front pages after being reported to the police for producing a Sharia law divorce contract dictating that a woman would lose her parental rights if she didn’t fulfill a list of […]

Danish minister hails ‘lovely numbers’ as refugees leave

May 5, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Local) Denmark’s integration minister has celebrated statistics showing more people with refugee backgrounds leaving the country than arriving as “lovely numbers.” According to the analysis by the Ministry of Immigration and Integration, the number of people granted asylum in Denmark who had […]

Raids without warrants: Denmark unveils tough new anti-jihadist proposals

January 16, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Local) The government is to work for tough new laws on citizens convicted of foreign militant activity, but is likely to be challenged by parties to its left. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, along with Minister of Justice Nick Hækkerup and Minister for […]

Danish government to announce additional anti-jihadist laws

January 16, 2020 Unlisted Author

(Local) The government is to announce new policies clamping down on individuals who have connections to foreign militant groups. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, along with Minister of Justice Nick Hækkerup and Minister for Immigration and Integration Mattias Tesfaye, will on Thursday present […]

Foreign fighter stripped of Danish citizenship sues immigration minister Lawyer claims that Mattias Tesfaye’s decision violates the Danish Constitution

December 20, 2019 Christian W

(Copenhagen Post) A 25-year-old dual citizen who was one of three foreign fighters stripped of their Danish citizenship last month has decided to sue immigration minister Mattias Tesfaye. The man’s lawyer confirmed the lawsuit, contending that Tesfaye’s decision violates article 3 of […]

Denmark strips third Islamic State member of passport

December 4, 2019 Chris Tomlinson

(Breitbart) Denmark has announced that another Islamic State member will have their passport and citizenship revoked in what has become the third case in just over a week. The first case involved a 25-year-old Kurdish man who had joined Islamic State as […]

Denmark strips citizenship from man under new anti-jihadist law

November 26, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Local) The Danish government has withdrawn the citizenship of a man who is wanted for suspected terrorism, applying a hotly-debated new law. The man’s lawyer, Mette Grith Stage, confirmed to newspaper Berlingske that his citizenship had been revoked. A 25-year-old Danish-Turkish citizen […]

Denmark passes law enabling withdrawal of jihadists’ citizenship

October 24, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Local) An expedited bill, enabling the immigration minister to revoke the passports of Danes who join foreign militant groups, was passed by parliament on Thursday. The law is aimed primarily at individuals who have fought for the Islamic State (Isis) terror group […]

Should Danish parliament have power to revoke passports?

October 21, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Local) Denmark’s Minister for Immigration and Integration Mattias Tesfaye has said he does not want to hand the power to revoke passports to parliament. A number of political parties have called for parliament to be given the power to withdraw passports, rather […]

Immigrants want to ban criticism of religion in Denmark Descendants of immigrants are more eager to protect religion than their parents

October 16, 2019 Christian W

(Copenhagen Post) According to a new report from the Immigration and Integration Ministry, half of the descendants of non-western immigrants in Denmark want to do away with the freedom to criticise religion. Interestingly, the report (here in Danish) found that descendants of […]

Denmark ends plan for ‘deserted island’ deportation facility

September 20, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Local) Plans to accommodate “unwanted” migrants on Lindholm, an uninhabited Danish island, have been officially scrapped by the Social Democratic government. Minister for Immigration and Integration [Mattias] Tesfaye gave on Thursday official confirmation that the facility, plans for which were put in […]

Danish mayors call for scrapping of citizenship handshake law

September 12, 2019 Unlisted Author

(Local) A law requiring newly-nationalized Danes to shake hands with a representative at their citizenship ceremonies should be scrapped, say a number of Social Democratic mayors prior to the party’s upcoming national congress. As part of new rules on citizenship which came […]

EU court rules against Denmark in remarriage immigration case

July 10, 2019 Nikolaj Skydsgaard and Andreas Mortensen

(Reuters) Denmark was wrong not to allow a Turkish woman to be reunited with her husband and children in the country, the EU’s top court ruled on Wednesday. The case, which could set a precedent for similar cases, poses a considerable challenge […]

With election looming, is Denmark’s opposition irreversibly split over immigration?

April 2, 2019 Michael Barrett

(Local) With Danes set to vote in general elections no later than June 17th, opposition parties that normally form an allied bloc in parliament could be irreconcilably split over immigration. On Monday, Morten Østergaard, the leader of the Social Liberal (Radikale Venstre) […]