(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 […]
(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 […]
(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 […]
(Euractiv) A new far-right list will contest the 2024 European elections in France, led by former MP Marion Maréchal, under the colours of Éric Zemmour’s party, Reconquête!. “We are going to make the European elections on 9 June [2024] a referendum on […]
(National-UAE) French terrorist Salah Abdeslam, 33, told a Belgian court on Monday that his upcoming transfer to France would violate his human rights. “My future is in Belgium. Sending me back to France is like sending me to my death,” said Abdeslam, […]
(Prague Monitor) Sweden’s prospective entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is uncertain due to concerns arising from incidents of Quran burning, as highlighted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during his return from Hungary. Erdogan’s remarks underscore a potential hurdle […]
(Deutsche Welle) Husam El Gomati scrolls through his phone and points at a long post in Arabic. “Mohammad Ahmad Ali, the most typical name, with some funny picture,” he notes. Scrolling through the post, El Gomati confirms what he expected: “Yeah, you’re […]
(Politico) Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen spoke out for the first time on the burning of the Quran in her country, saying that a potential ban on setting fire to the religious text would not limit freedom of expression. “I don’t consider […]
(Euronews) Two men set fire to a copy of the Quran on Monday in front of the Swedish Parliament in Stockholm, in a rally similar to previous events that provoked a diplomatic crisis between Sweden and the Muslim world. Smiling wryly, Salwan […]
(Reuters) Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Sunday urged Sweden to take concrete steps to prevent burnings of the Koran, a Turkish foreign ministry source said. Sweden and Denmark have seen several protests in recent weeks where copies of the Koran have […]
(Reuters) The Swedish migration agency said late on Friday it is re-examining the residency permit of an Iraqi refugee who is behind several Koran desecrations in Stockholm in recent weeks, which have upset Muslims across the world. The man burnt a copy […]
(AFP) Sweden’s government on Thursday ordered 15 government agencies to strengthen the country’s ability to prevent terrorism, in response to a worsened security situation following protests involving desecration of the Koran. Tensions have flared between Sweden and several Middle Eastern nations after […]
(Reuters) Sweden is the target of a disinformation campaign by “Russia-backed actors” intended to hurt the image of the NATO-candidate country by implying it supported recent burnings of the Koran, its minister for civil defence said on Wednesday. Sweden’s bid to join […]
(AFP) A Brussels court on Tuesday convicted French citizen Salah Abdeslam and Belgian-Moroccan Mohamed Abrini for 2016 jihadist bombings in the Belgian capital that killed 32 people, after the country’s largest-ever criminal trial. The high-profile pair — already sentenced to life in […]
(European Conservative) Approximately 200 Muslim protestors gathered outside the European Parliament Wednesday, July 19th, as Islamic groups in Brussels rallied against the controversial burning of the Quran in Sweden. Shouts of “Allahu Akbar” were heard right outside the Parliament as an almost […]
(Reuters) There is limited political will in Sweden to ban Koran burnings that have upset large parts of the Muslim world and it would be complicated to do even if there were backing for such a move, experts and politicians said on […]
(AFP) In less than a month, Sweden-based Iraqi refugee Salwan Momika has twice stoked international outrage by desecrating the Koran at Stockholm protests. Despite his previous low profile, his past has been far from a quiet affair. In late June, the 37-year-old […]
(AFP) Swedish police said Wednesday they had granted a permit for a protest outside the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm, with media reporting the organisers planned to burn the Muslim holy book. The protest, scheduled for Thursday, comes just weeks after a man […]
(Kathimerini) Greek officials said Friday that Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis never discussed issues that concern Greek citizens or the country’s sovereign rights with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The officials were responding to claims by Erdogan that the “problems of Western Thrace” […]
(Kathimerini) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has claimed that the “problems of Western Thrace” was the “main issue” he raised with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at their meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius on Wednesday. “We want to […]
(AP) The U.N. human rights chief used a special debate on Tuesday about burnings of the Quran in Sweden and other European countries to tread a fine line between freedom of expression and respect for religious beliefs, while broadening his call for […]
(Sky News) Rishi Sunak has insisted his plan to stop small boat crossings in the Channel is “working” — despite more than 1,000 people making the journey over the weekend. The prime minister said he has always acknowledged that crossings “will increase […]
(Reuters) Greece should not be burdened with the task of managing migration for the European Union, or be accused of not saving people at sea, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Monday, a month after a deadly shipwreck. The Greek coast guard […]
(Local) A majority of Swedes believe it should be illegal to burn the Quran or the holy books of other religions, like the Bible or Torah, in public, according to a new survey. Over half of Swedes, 53 percent, agreed that burning […]
(AP) A Turkish man was found guilty Thursday of attempted aggravated extortion, weapons possession and attempted terrorist financing, saying he was acting on behalf of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party. The Stockholm District Court sentenced Yahya Güngör to a total of 4.5 […]
(Reuters) The Swedish government is examining whether it could change the law to stop people setting the Koran on fire in public, as recent burnings of the Muslim holy book have damaged Sweden’s security, Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer told Aftonbladet paper on […]
(AP) A Quran burning and a string of requests to approve protests involving the destruction of more holy books have left Sweden torn between its commitment to free speech and its respect for religious minorities. The clash of fundamental principles has complicated […]
(AP) The European Union should put a priority on stopping illegal migration instead of trying to persuade the 27 member nations to share responsibility for people who arrive without authorization, the prime ministers of Italy and Poland said Wednesday. Italy’s right-wing leader, […]
(AP) Turkey’s foreign minister said Tuesday that Swedish authorities’ failure to prevent Quran-burning protests in their country is raising security concerns and questions about Sweden’s credentials for possible NATO membership. But Hakan Fidan said Turkey would still approve Sweden’s membership in the […]
(AFP) A Dutch man will appear in court on insult charges after tearing up a Koran outside parliament and likening Islam’s holy book to Hitler’s “Mein Kampf,” prosecutors said Tuesday. Edwin Wagensveld, 54, who heads the Netherlands’s chapter of the German anti-Islam […]
(AFP) Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Friday distanced himself from this week’s protest at which a Koran was burned outside a Stockholm mosque, which sparked outrage in parts of the Muslim world. “It is difficult to say what the consequences will […]
(AP) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday condemned a Quran-burning protest in Sweden, signaling that this would pose another obstacle to the country’s bid for NATO membership. Speaking to members of his Justice and Development Party, Erdogan equated “those who permitted […]
(AFP) The man who burned pages of the Koran outside a Stockholm mosque, sparking protests and a wave of condemnations, told Swedish media Thursday that he intended to burn another Koran within 10 days. After being granted a permit to protest by […]
(AFP) A man set fire to pages of the Koran outside Stockholm’s main mosque Wednesday, drawing a swift condemnation from Turkey which is holding up Sweden’s bid to join NATO days ahead of a summit. Swedish police had granted a permit for […]
(Al-Arabiya) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told NATO’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg that Sweden had to stop protests by supporters of the Ankara-criminalized Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Stockholm if it wanted Turkey to approve its NATO membership. “Turkey maintains its constructive […]
(National-UAE) The lawyer of one of the 10 defendants in the trial of an ISIS-claimed double suicide bombing in Brussels in 2016 has made the case that his client is complicit in war crimes. Nicolas Cohen, representing Bilal El [Makhoukhi], argued that […]
(AFP) A Turkish citizen appeared in a Swedish court on Tuesday accused of “attempted terrorist financing” of the pro-Kurdish PKK, a first in the Scandinavian country seeking Ankara’s approval to join NATO. Turkey has accused Sweden of being a haven for “terrorists,” […]
(AP) Albanian authorities on Tuesday raided a camp for members of the exiled Iranian opposition group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq to seize 150 computer devices allegedly linked to prohibited political activities, and several people were injured. Albanian Interior Minister Bledi Cuci and the head of […]
(AFP) A Swedish appeals court on Monday said police had no legal grounds to block two gatherings where protesters had planned to burn the Koran earlier this year. The burning of Islam’s holy book outside Turkey’s embassy in Stockholm in January sparked […]
(Local) A prosecutor in Sweden has charged a Turkish citizen for attempting to raise money for the Kurdish PKK terror group in a landmark case which could help Sweden win Turkish approval for its Nato membership. Hans Ihrman, deputy chief prosecutor for […]
(AP) Greek officials have launched a series of high-level contacts with the newly elected government in Turkey in an effort to counter a surge in attempted crossings by migrants over a river that divides the two countries. Defense Minister Alkiviades Stephanis spoke […]
(AFP) Hundreds of people protested in Stockholm on Sunday against new anti-terror legislation that was passed to address Turkey’s opposition to Sweden joining NATO. The demonstration was organised by groups close to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), outlawed by Turkey, which this […]
(AP) Belarus is introducing a visa-free travel arrangement with dozens of countries for a month, raising fears that neighboring Poland and Lithuania might see a sudden increase in unauthorized migration. The authoritarian president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, signed a decree allowing citizens […]
(AFP) A Stockholm demonstration against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Sweden’s planned NATO membership has been given the go-ahead for this weekend despite Ankara’s objections, Swedish police told AFP on Friday. “We are going to ensure that all those present on […]
(Local) Turkish officials are demanding that Sweden’s new terror law be applied to an anti-Nato demonstration this coming weekend. What does the law cover, and can it be used to stop a protest? Turkey wants Sweden to stop the demonstration on June […]
(Breitbart) German politicians have been left fearing the consequences of diversity after migrant parades [celebrating] the re-election of Turkey’s Islamist president took place in the country. Numerous elected officials within Germany have expressed concern at the parades, which celebrated the victory of […]
(Courthouse News) A former professional European soccer player convicted in Belgium 20 years ago of planning a suicide bombing attack on Americans in Europe appeared in U.S. federal court on Monday to begin his jury trial. Opening arguments began with the prosecution […]
(AFP) Sweden’s parliament on Wednesday passed new legislation to ban activities linked to extremist groups, as it beefs up its terror laws, a key demand from Turkey to approve Stockholm’s NATO membership bid. With 268 votes in favour, the law — which […]
(Local) The parliamentary Justice Committee has recommended that parliament approves a law which would make it illegal to take part in terror organisations, according to a press statement. If the law is approved, it would be illegal to “promote, strengthen or support” […]
(AFP) Swedish police said Thursday they had appealed a court ruling which overturned a police decision to block two gatherings where protesters had planned to burn the Koran. “The Police Authority believes that the principles of the issue are important and it […]
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