Government & Politics

Europe turning blind eye to Hamas and Hezbollah networks in its territory, experts say Analysts say terror groups operate largely unchecked, running charities, lobbying public opinion and recruiting supporters — and the legal means to stop them are scant

(Times of Israel) A stash of weapons was found hidden under a pine tree in southern Bulgaria last week. The arms were linked to four suspected Hamas members arrested in Germany and the Netherlands in December on suspicion of preparing an attack […]

Clerics & Preachers

Over 400 UK imams reject new extremism definition targeting Muslim groups Religious scholars accuse government of 'divisive tactics' and attempting to crack down on groups opposed to Israeli actions against Palestinians

(Middle East Eye) Over 400 British imams and religious scholars have signed a letter rejecting a new UK government definition of extremism that targeted several British Muslim organisations. Last week, Communities Secretary Michael Gove announced a contentious new definition of extremism, though the […]

Government & Politics

Michael Gove names far-right and Islamist groups which could fall under fresh extremism definition The communities secretary insisted the government has no intention of restricting 'freedom of expression, religion or belief,' as critics warned the new definition could have a 'chilling effect' on free speech.

(Sky News) Michael Gove has named five groups that will be re-assessed as a result of the government’s new definition of extremism. Speaking in the Commons, the communities secretary said two far-right organisations — the British National Socialist Movement and the Patriotic […]

Government & Politics

Benzema’s defamation suit against top French minister is dismissed The French football star had filed a complaint against France’s Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin after the politician said Benzema was linked to the Muslim Brotherhood.

(Politico) Karim Benzema’s defamation lawsuit against French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, who claimed the French football star was “notoriously linked” to the Muslim Brotherhood, has been dismissed. Benzema filed the complaint last month, following multiple remarks by Darmanin linking the striker to […]

Government & Politics

‘Hamas is operating in Belgium, but we can’t do anything about it’ — interview ‘It’s something that I’ve never heard before, and it’s a disgrace’ — opposition MP Michael Freilich.

(Jerusalem Post) MP Michael Freilich from the opposition New Flemish Alliance party recounted his astonishment at the response of Justice Minister Paul Van Tigchelt, who openly admitted as a response to his inquiry that there indeed are groups who operate in Belgium […]

Academics & Education

Austria orders edits to school textbook that called Hamas a ‘resistance movement’ Officials step in over 'one-sided' and 'highly problematic' wording in geography book

(National-UAE) An Austrian school textbook that described Hamas as a “resistance movement” has been rewritten under official orders. The geography book for secondary school pupils is being modified in light of the war in Gaza triggered by Hamas’s October 7 attack on […]

Government & Politics

Alleged Qatar spy operation said to have targeted GOP lawmakers opposed to Muslim Brotherhood 'An attack on Hamas is an attack on Qatar. An attack on the Muslim Brotherhood is an attack on Qatar,' document states

(Fox) The oil-rich Gulf state of Qatar hired a former CIA agent’s company to discredit Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tex., and other lawmakers who oppose Hamas and its parent organization, the Muslim Brotherhood, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital. The documents reveal […]

Academics & Education

Penalizing satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo for defamation is ‘historic’: Muslim association Court fined magazine's editor-in-chief, another journalist $3,330 each for linking school to Muslim Brotherhood

(Anadolu) Penalizing the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo for defamation is a “historical decision,” a Muslim association said. The controversial magazine was fined on Dec. 22 for defaming the Muslim school “Valeurs et Reussite” in France’s southeastern town of Valence. The school […]

Government & Politics

Congressman probes White House communications with anti-Israel group Rep. Issa seeks info on Biden admin's partnership with Council on American-Islamic Relations

(Free Beacon) A Republican in Congress is probing the Biden administration’s communications with an anti-Israel group that is known to promulgate anti-Semitic propaganda and whose leader celebrated Hamas’s Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel, the Washington Free Beacon has learned. Rep. Darrell […]

Clerics & Preachers

German mosque suspends imam for joking about Hamas attack in online post Mohamed Ibrahim's remark was blamed for contributing to collapse of interfaith peace event in Munich

(National-UAE) An imam who responded to Hamas’s attack on Israel by joking that “everyone has their own way of celebrating October” has been suspended in Germany. The Islamic Centre Munich distanced itself from the post by Mohamed Ibrahim, saying it had felt […]

Citizenship

French senator demands footballer Karim Benzema lose citizenship over Muslim Brotherhood claim Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said the star was ‘linked’ with the Muslim party. Benzema’s lawyer said that’s not true.

(Politico) A French senator on Wednesday called for Karim Benzema to be stripped of his French citizenship after Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin suggested the football star was linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, a Sunni Islamist party considered to be a terrorist group […]

Government & Politics

Biden tapped this group to fight anti-Semitism. It’s defending Hamas’s attack on Israel Council on American-Islamic Relations executive director Nihad Awad called on the White House to condemn Israel

(Free Beacon) The Biden administration earlier this year tapped the Council on American-Islamic Relations for an initiative to curb anti-Semitism. This week, the anti-Semitic group and its leaders defended Hamas attacks that have killed more than 1,000 Jews. The White House announced […]

Discrimination & “Islamophobia”

Muslims ‘unjustly placed on blacklists’ across Europe, rights groups warn Muslim leaders urge European governments to take action against Islamophobia in Europe at security and human rights conference in Poland

(Middle East Eye) Muslim civil society groups from Europe warned of the growing level of Islamophobia spreading across the continent at a major security and human rights conference in Poland. On Thursday, seven Muslim groups from Austria, France, Sweden, Spain, and the […]

Clerics & Preachers

Antisemitic Egyptian sheikh was to be hosted by Ottawa-funded Muslim group Nashaat Ahmed was pulled from the speaker list of the Muslim Association of Canada's annual convention after inquiries from the Post

(National Post) Another year, another conference, another tableau of speakers associated with antisemitism, homophobia, misogyny and hatred. The convening organization is not the grotesque Goyim Defense League, a Hitler-admiring American neo-fascist groupuscule linked to a spate of graffiti, leaflets and posters the […]

Government & Politics

For Ilhan Omar, not all foreign influence spending is bad New financial disclosure reveals Qatar paid for the outspoken Minnesota congresswoman’s trip to watch the World Cup

(Jewish Insider) During her time in Congress, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) has frequently voiced concern over the influence of foreign interests on American politics — most controversially with regard to the pro-Israel community in the U.S. But when she visited Qatar last […]

Government & Politics

Belgium summons UAE ambassador over ‘Muslim Brotherhood smear campaign’ Emirati intelligence paid millions to Swiss company to create files on over 1,000 people in Europe, according to data leak

(Middle East Eye) Belgium summoned the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ambassador in Brussels on Friday, following reports of the Gulf state’s alleged involvement in a smear campaign that sought to link at least 1,000 individuals in Europe to the Muslim Brotherhood. The […]

Interfaith

Conference in Baltimore features Islamist speakers with antisemitic histories Hatem Bazian, who was on a panel at the three-day event, said at a 2004 San Francisco rally: 'It’s about time that we have an intifada in this country.'

(JNS) The Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) and the Muslim American Society (MAS) concluded their three-day annual conference late last month at the Baltimore Convention Center. A number of activists and clerics with histories of antisemitism and anti-Israel statements were listed […]

Discrimination & “Islamophobia”

Muslim reform groups praise Rep. Ilhan Omar’s ouster 'Ilhan Omar has no business whatsoever being on the House Foreign Affairs Committee,' co-founder of the Muslim Reform Movement M. Zuhdi Jasser told JNS.

(JNS) Accusations of Islamophobia came almost immediately after the U.S. House of Representatives voted earlier this month to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) from its Foreign Affairs Committee. The vote followed repeated promises from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to remove the […]

Discrimination & “Islamophobia”

Ron DeSantis: Republican rising star alarms Muslim, Palestinian communities As the Florida governor positions himself for a possible presidential bid, activists and organisers say DeSantis reminds them of bigoted rhetoric birthed in US-led 'war on terror'

(Middle East Eye) In 2006, then-Navy officer Ron DeSantis was an appointed attorney supporting the US military’s mission at Guantanamo Bay. Not much is officially known about his months-long stint at the prison, which at its peak held nearly 800 Muslim men […]