(Swiss Info) A Swiss mosque, housed in a religious centre that receives state grants, has been accused of playing a role in forcing women into marriages against their will. Swiss public broadcaster SRF uncovered evidence of forced marriages at a mosque in […]
(Swiss Info) The government says it has no plans to ban the Islamist militant Hezbollah group in Switzerland as it posed no major terrorist threat. The Lebanon-based group is not very active in Switzerland and no fundraising or other financial activities are […]
(Swiss Info) The Swiss government wants fines of up to CHF1,000 ($1,000) for people who break a ban on face coverings in public places. This is part of a bill sent to parliament on Wednesday to implement the so-called “burqa ban” proposed […]
(Swiss Info) Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court has ruled that an Iraqi convicted only of association with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State groups will not be imprisoned. The decision came in response to an appeal by the attorney general. In July 2021, the […]
(Swiss Info) A court in the Swiss town of Biel/Bienne on Tuesday convicted Muslim preacher Abu Ramadan of welfare fraud and inciting racial hatred. Ramadan, a Libyan national, was given a 14-month suspended jail sentence and is to be expelled from Switzerland […]
(Swiss Info) The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) has filed an indictment against a Swiss-Turkish man who fatally stabbed a man in the Swiss town of Morges in 2020 in a “jihadist-motivated” attack. The 28-year-old Swiss-Turkish dual national, who […]
(Swiss Info) The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) has filed an indictment against a Swiss woman who attacked two people with a knife in a department store in the Swiss city of Lugano in 2020. The 29-year-old, who lives […]
(Swiss Info) Claims that international Islamist movements exert significant influence over mosques and Muslim communities in Switzerland are exaggerated, a study has found. While international networks and money from places like Saudi Arabia or Qatar help in the setting up of structures […]
(Swiss Info) A district court in Switzerland has acquitted four defendants accused of inciting violence against the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The judge ruled that a controversial banner shown by protesters at a 2017 demonstration in the Swiss capital, Bern, had […]
(Swiss Info) The Swiss foreign ministry says it has “no definite information” on the whereabouts of two terror suspects who had been detained in northern Syria. The two jihadists — originally from Geneva and Lausanne — have been missing since a rescue […]
(Swiss Info) Federal prosecutors have now cleared both Swiss nationals suspected of supporting the November 2020 terror attack which killed four people in Vienna. The pair were arrested in November 2020 on suspicion of having made a “causal contribution to support or […]
(Swiss Info) Switzerland and Austria want to strengthen cooperation on migration and security, they said on Tuesday. This came at a meeting in Vienna between Swiss Justice Minister Karin Keller-Sutter and her new Austrian counterpart Gerhard Karner. Their talks focused on European […]
(Swiss Info) Swiss prosecutors have dropped a case against one of two men suspected of participating in the November 2020 terrorist attack in Vienna. The man, who was 24 years old at the time, visited the attacker in Vienna and stayed a […]
(Swiss Info) The Swiss authorities have negotiated the release of two half-sisters, aged 15 and nine, from a Kurdish-controlled camp in Syria back to Switzerland. They were taken from Geneva to Syria by their mother in 2016 when she joined the Islamic […]
(Swiss Info) Six people have had their convictions upheld for detaining and attacking two other worshippers at a controversial mosque, which has since been shut down. The attack took place in the An’Nur mosque in the northeastern Swiss city of Winterthur in […]
(Swiss Info) The government has decided against introducing state-run training courses for imams as a way of preventing the potential radicalisation of extremist preachers. A religious neutrality clause in the Swiss constitution and an international comparison led the government to its conclusion […]
(Swiss Info) Switzerland has suspended repatriations to Afghanistan “until further notice owing to the changed situation in the country,” according to the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM). No new deportations of rejected asylum-seekers will be ordered, it said on Wednesday. Preparations for […]
(Swiss Info) The Swiss justice authorities have indicted a Muslim preacher accused of racial discrimination and welfare fraud. Abu Ramadan will have to stand trial in a district court, the Bern cantonal prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday. The controversial imam of a […]
(Swiss Info) Voters have endorsed a series of measures allowing police to crack down on militant extremists and apply preventive detention methods, giving Switzerland one of the strictest anti-terrorism legislations in Europe. Final results show the law winning nearly 57% of the […]
(Swiss Info) Despite multiple pleas from international bodies, Switzerland refuses to repatriate adult detainees from Syrian camps, a policy that effectively leaves seven Swiss children stranded in the war-torn country. They were just four and nine years old, when in 2016 their […]
(Swiss Info) Both Swiss nationals who were arrested after the November 2020 attack in Vienna have been released from pre-trial detention. The older of the two — who was 24 when arrested — was released recently. The Attorney General’s Office told the […]
(Swiss Info) On June 13, Swiss voters will decide the fate of a new anti-terrorism law which has sparked controversy both domestically and abroad. For some, the law is a threat to the rights of innocent citizens, while others say it will […]
(Swiss Info) A third of the Swiss population say they feel disturbed by people perceived as “different,” with a fifth mentioning Muslims in particular, according to a government study. The Federal Statistical Office said on Thursday that tolerance had increased slightly but […]
(Swiss Info) Unlike their compatriots in Switzerland, the Swiss abroad rejected the “anti-burka” initiative and the free trade deal with Indonesia by a slim margin. The biggest difference in voting trend was on the electronic ID referendum, which the Swiss abroad wanted […]
(Swiss Info) Supporters of a people’s initiative to ban face coverings in public have carried the vote with a majority of 51.2%. A decade after another national vote that banned the building of minarets, Switzerland will introduce a clause in its constitution […]
(Swiss Info) Two Swiss men suspected of conspiring in a deadly terror attack in Vienna last year have been denied bail, according to media reports. The duo were aged 18 and 24 when they were arrested in the Swiss city of Winterthur in […]
(Swiss Info) Support for a proposed ban on facial coverings, including burkas, in Switzerland appears to be on the wane according to a new opinion poll. A law on a licensed electronic ID scheme looks set to fail, while a controversial free […]
(Swiss Info) More than ten years after a ballot on banning minarets, Swiss voters have the final say on a proposal to outlaw face coverings in public. Often referred to as “the burka ban,” the initiative by right-wing groups also includes a […]
(Swiss Info) Supporters of a proposed face-cover ban in Switzerland have a clear lead over opponents ahead of a nationwide ballot to be held in March, according to a new opinion poll, published on Friday. Attempts to challenge a government-licensed digital identification […]
(Swiss Info) A French court has sentenced a Swiss man to 15 years in prison for terror-related charges after finding him guilty of recruiting a group of men online to prepare terror attacks in France and Switzerland. The 31-year-old from Yverdon, canton […]
(Swiss Info) Opponents of new Swiss laws to combat terrorism have gathered enough signatures to challenge the controversial legislation by referendum. They argue that the law violates civil liberties, particularly those of children. The “No to Preventative Punishment” committee handed in 142,800 […]
(Swiss Info) The government says there are sufficient measures in place to combat terrorism and violent extremism in Switzerland. However, it pledged to implement recommendations to boost cooperation between national and cantonal units and to improve communication. The government also plans to draft […]
(Swiss Info) Next week the federal prosecutor’s office will assume responsibility for criminal proceedings of two men arrested in Switzerland over alleged ties to the Vienna terrorist attacker. The transfer of the case from Canton Zurich to the federal level was confirmed […]
(Swiss Info) Two men being held in connection with a recent terror attack in Vienna were already under criminal investigation in Switzerland, it has emerged. The duo, aged 18 and 24, were arrested in the Swiss city of Winterthur on Tuesday — […]
(Swiss Info) The Zurich cantonal police have arrested two men over suspected ties to the deadly attacks in Vienna that took place on Monday evening. The arrests came after both federal and cantonal authorities announced they were investigating possible Swiss ties to […]
(Swiss Info) A Swiss court has handed down fines and suspended prison sentences to two board members of the Islamic Central Council of Switzerland (ICCS) for jihadist propaganda following a retrial. The Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona gave Islamic council president Nicolas […]
(Swiss Info) Terrorist attacks inspired by the Islamic State group remain likely in Europe, with Switzerland not invulnerable to such threats, says the Federal Intelligence Service. “In Switzerland, the terrorist threat is heightened, but while it is among the countries viewed as […]
(Swiss Info) An Iraqi citizen who has been living in Switzerland on and off for 22 years has been found guilty of setting up a network of terror sympathisers and inciting his wife to commit a suicide attack in Lebanon. The Federal […]
(Swiss Info) A referendum attempt has been launched against legislation recently approved by parliament to prevent extremist violence. Those behind the launch of the referendum on Wednesday include the youth wings of the leftwing Greens, Liberal Greens and Social Democrats, as well […]
(Swiss Info) Three men and one woman have been arrested in canton Fribourg as part of two criminal investigations into terrorism activities, Switzerland’s Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has announced. “The two criminal investigations relate to suspicions of the violation of […]
(Swiss Info) The Swiss parliament has tightened measures aimed at preventing extremist violence and organised crime as part of increased international cooperation. The Senate on Wednesday followed the House of Representatives in approving a legal reform, which includes a ban on the […]
(Swiss Info) A man suspected of fatally stabbing a random man in western Switzerland on Saturday has confessed, saying that he acted in the name of jihadism, according to Swiss public radio, RTS. He had been released from prison in July, having […]
(Swiss Info) The Swiss government’s draft anti-terrorism law, which is being discussed in parliament, violates international human rights standards, and would set a dangerous precedent for the suppression of political dissent worldwide, UN human rights experts have warned. On Friday, Swiss United […]
(Swiss Info) The Swiss authorities have been asked to take action against social media commentary that Turkey perceives as defamatory or sympathetic to terrorist groups. Examples of objectionable content could include a critical article about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan or an […]
(Swiss Info) A trial is underway at the Federal Criminal Court of two Islamists suspected of membership in a criminal organisation and recruiting followers to travel to conflict regions in Syria. One of the defendants is accused of fighting for a militant […]
(Swiss Info) The Swiss justice authorities have filed an indictment against two suspects for terror offences. The charges include travelling to a Middle East conflict zone controlled by the Islamic State organisation, which is banned in Switzerland. The two suspects, a Swiss […]
(Swiss Info) The Federal Criminal Court has reduced a sentence for a man who spread propaganda from the banned Islamic State (IS) group from a suspended prison sentence to a CHF2,500 ($2,635) fine. The 35-year-old had originally been handed a 180-day suspended […]
(Swiss Info) The House of Representatives has approved new anti-terrorism legislation aimed at preventing extremist violence. But it didn’t approve preventive detention of potential terror offenders. The Swiss government has proposed new legislation aimed at preventing extremist violence and forcing people deemed […]
(Swiss Info) Parliament has recommended that voters reject a popular initiative calling for a nationwide ban on face-covering headgear. Both chambers agree that it should be left to cantons to decide on the matter. On Wednesday the House of Representatives voted to […]
(Swiss Info) The justice authorities have dropped a legal inquiry against an imam in central Switzerland suspected of making controversial statements about wife-beating. The cantonal prosecutor’s office in Lucerne announced that it could not find evidence supporting allegations raised by the SonntagsZeitung […]
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