Netherlands: Majority oppose dual nationality

Netherlands: Majority oppose dual nationality

Via Dutch News:
A large majority of Dutch nationals are opposed to dual nationality, but people with an immigrant background are less likely to do so, according to research by the national statistics office CBS.

Some 64% of people think immigrants who become Dutch should give up their original nationality and 73% think government ministers should not have dual nationality.

(...)

Of those of non-western origin, only 28% think people who become Dutch should give up their original passport.

(source)

Dublin: Muslims say they cannot get into schools

Dublin: Muslims say they cannot get into schools

Via the Irish Times:
CHILDREN WHO attend the Muslim primary school in Dublin's Clonskeagh are finding it increasingly difficult to get places at secondary schools in the area, a spokesman for the Islamic Cultural Centre has said. The children were born in Ireland and are Irish citizens.

Ali Selim said yesterday that the centre had received "a great number of complaints" from Muslim parents in south Co Dublin "regarding a limited number of schools that will only accept Catholic children". They are considering asking Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin to intervene, he said.

"I don't think this is right. All of us are taxpayers and preference should not be on the basis of religion or race. This is not a Muslim issue, it affects all non-Catholics."

(source)

Germany: Authorities debate surveillance of Islamophobes

Germany: Authorities debate surveillance of Islamophobes

Via the Spiegel:
Islamophobes in Germany could come under increased surveillance by the country's domestic intelligence agency. There are concerns that the anti-Muslim scene is becoming increasingly dangerous, and some intelligence officials want it to be subject to greater scrutiny, despite stringent German privacy laws.

The subject will be discussed at a meeting on Thursday between the president of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), Heinz Fromm, and the agency's leaders in the 16 German states. Officials in Bavaria are considering putting right-wing populists under observation as a new form of extremism, while Hamburg has declared it is watching an internet discussion forum similar to anti-Islamic website "Politically Incorrect" (PI).

A spokesman from the North Rhine-Westphalia interior ministry told the Frankfurter Rundschau newspaper that PI was not currently under observation by intelligence agents, but that the blog was being read closely and that the opinions and comments published on it were "undemocratic." The xenophobic comments were calculated to "incite young people", the spokesman added.

(source)

EU: Pope Benedict lamented 'slow suicide of Europe' by unassimilable immigrants

EU: Pope Benedict lamented 'slow suicide of Europe' by unassimilable immigrants

Via the Daily Beast:
Buried away on page 48 of the former press proprietor Conrad Black’s superb, soon-to-be-published autobiography, A Matter of Principle, is the answer to a burning question that very many people have been asking for several years: What does the pope really think about Islamic immigration into Europe?

(...)

Lord Black’s authoritative and highly readable new memoir (full disclosure: I’m a dedicatee) reveals that at a small dinner party given at the home of Cardinal Gerald Emmett Carter, the then–cardinal archbishop of Toronto, in 1990, the then-cardinal Joseph Ratzinger—now Pope Benedict—"lamented 'the slow suicide of Europe:' its population was aging and shrinking, and the unborn were being partly replaced by unassimilable immigrants. He thought that Europe would awake from its torpor, but that there were difficult days head." Black concluded that "Like other cardinals of my acquaintance (including our host), he was a far-sighted judge of important secular matters."

(source)

UK: 'Stop lying about immigration'

UK: 'Stop lying about immigration'

Via the Evening Standard:
Mass immigration is here to stay and politicians are "lying" if they claim they will slash it, a senior MP said today.

Labour's Margaret Hodge said all parties should stop "competing on numbers" and instead focus on tackling feelings that the system is unfair.

The Barking MP insisted the Government's vow to cut net immigration to the tens of thousands "will fail" - but said it presented the perfect chance to change the debate.

(source)

“Occidentophobia”: The Elephant in the Room

“Occidentophobia”: The Elephant in the Room

Via Guernica Magazine:
(...)

However, when I discuss the concept of Western culture with Western Muslims, I often find that their perception of Western culture does not include the same desirable standard of openness. “The West” is regularly seen as some combination of loss of moral values, imperialism, drone attacks—a description reminiscent of the Star Trek Borg species that assimilates into and then destroys other cultures. Many struggle with recognizing their own “Western” identity and few seem to associate “the West” with its grand cultural heritage, which reaches far back to Plato’s The Republic but also includes Baroque music, Friedan’s “The Feminine Mystique,” and the environmental movement.

(source)

Paris: "We are going to pick up arms soon"

Paris: "We are going to pick up arms soon"

On the Friday the French government announced its ban on street praying, a group of Forsane Alizza (Knights of Pride) activists showed up to discourage worshipers from using the temporary mosque set up by the city. They used the opportunity to threaten France with violence.

Via the Vlad Tepes Blog (h/t reader):



Full video at Vlad Tepes Blog.

Oslo: Four charged with forcing 16 year old into marriage

Oslo: Four charged with forcing 16 year old into marriage

Via Dagbladet (Norwegian):

Four men have been charged with forcibly marrying a 16 year old girl to a 23 year old man. The marriage was carried out March 2009 in the Oslo suburb of Skedsmo. The girl's family gave their blessings to the marriage.

The case against the men - aged 23, 44, 47 and 49 - is based on the girl's statement. Dagbladet has learned that the four Iraqi defendants denied the charges.

UK: Muslim chaplains connect communities to public bodies

UK: Muslim chaplains connect communities to public bodies

Via the BBC (h/t Islamophobia Watch)
Muslim chaplains in Britain play a key role linking their communities with public organisations, research by Cardiff University has found.

It found a rapidly growing number of Muslims in a sphere of work usually associated with the Christian faith.

Chaplains can be found in prisons, hospitals, airports, courts, higher education and the military, with some people describing them as role models.

(source)

Germany: 46% of kids in major cities are of immigrant origin

Germany: 46% of kids in major cities are of immigrant origin

This does not translate to mean that all those kids are Muslims. See also: Germany: A closer look at the demographics

Via Destatis (German, h/t NRP):

The new 2010 micro-census, shows that 31% of minors in Germany are of immigrant origin. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) further reports that in cities with more than 500,000 inhabitants, almost half (46%) the children are of immigrant origin. In communities with less than 5,000 inhabitants, just under 13% were of immigrant origin.

Finland: Prayer ban in break room not discrimination

Finland: Prayer ban in break room not discrimination

Via YLE:
The National Discrimination Tribunal has ruled that a ban on prayer in employee break rooms is not an act of discrimination.

The ruling followed a complaint filed by an individual claiming to have been subjected to discriminatory practice when he and fellow Muslim employees were banned by their employer from holding prayers on the job or in the employee break room.

According to the Tribunal, the employer did not permit employees of any faith to hold religious ceremonies at work. For this reason, it ruled that the complainant had not suffered discrimination.

(source)

Sweden: 'Not wrong' to move aide after Islam slur

Sweden: 'Not wrong' to move aide after Islam slur

Via the Local:
Sweden's top legal official has given backing to the decision to reassign the integration ministry civil servant who compared Islam to totalitarian ideologies.

”There are no indications that the employee has suffered a drop in pay or any disadvantageous consequences from the move,” read the statement from the Swedish Chancellor of Justice (Justitiekanslern – JK).

Finland: Terrorist combatants have attempted to enter Finland

Finland: Terrorists combatants have attempted to enter Finland

Via YLE:
Terrorist combatants have attempted to enter Finland, reports the newspaper Helsingin Sanomat. The head of the Finnish Security Intelligence Service (Supo) told the national daily that individuals have also left Finland to join armed training and combat.

The risk of a terrorist attack in Finland has, however, not risen, according to Supo head Antti Pelttari.

With a handful of people leaving Finland to engage in fighting or training, the number is far lower than that in other Nordic countries. He also notes that terrorist training is not a crime in Finland as it is in many other European states.

(source)

France: First women fined for wearing Islamic niqab in public

France: First women fined for wearing Islamic niqab in public

Via RFI:
A French court on Thursday imposed fines on two women for wearing the full Islamic face-covering veil, for the first time since a law was passed making it illegal to wear it in public.

32-year-old Hind Ahmas and Najate Naït Ali, who is 36, were ordered to pay fines of 120 euros and 80 euros respectively.

The two women arrived late and were not able to enter court to hear the judge's pronouncement.

(source)

Gothenburg: Vilks was target of planned attack

Gothenburg: Vilks was target of planned attack

Via the Local:
Controversial Swedish artist Lars Vilks was the target of a foiled attack at the Röda Sten art gallery in Gothenburg on September 11th, according to a report in the Metro newspaper.

Vilks has meanwhile decided to cancel his participation in a debate on Friday at the Gothenburg Book Fair due to the security risks involved.

"The debate will be held but the security situation dictates that it wouldn't have been were I to be present," Vilks said.

(source)

Lampedusa: Tunisians set fire to refugee center, protest deportations

Lampedusa: Tunisians set fire to refugee center, protest deportations

Via La Repubblica (Italian):

Tunisians set fire to the refugee center in Lampedusa yesterday to protest their upcoming deportation. There are about a thousand Tunisians still on the island.

This morning dozens of the local inhabitants started threw stones at the Tunisians, who threw stones back. The locals also attacked a TV crew, and accused them of spreading a distorted image of the island. Meanwhile, 300 Tunisians marched through the streets shouting 'Freedom, Freedom'.

Local officials and police say they are unable to deal with the situation, and expect the government to speed up the deportations.

Netherlands: Figures 'irrelevant' in immigration debate, says minister

Netherlands: Figures 'irrelevant' in immigration debate, says minister

Via DutchNews:
There is no point in calculating the effect of government efforts to cut immigration on the actual number of non-westerners arriving in the Netherlands, immigration minister Gerd Leers told a television show on Monday night.

Definitive figures are irrelevant because immigration is always affected by outside events, the minister said.

(source)

Germany: Turkish president critical of language tests

Germany: Turkish president critical of language tests

Via Deutsche Welle:
In addition to expressing his desire to pick up the pace on stalled talks with the EU regarding membership, Gül called for visa restrictions for Turkish business travelers to be loosened to facilitate better economic relationships. Wulff lent his support to this idea and recommended that the government review these policies.

However, Wulff held his ground in the face of Gül's criticism of Germany's policy regarding a language test for people in Turkey who move to be with a spouse in Germany. Since 2007, anyone coming to Germany following marriage must pass a language test in order to be allowed to come. Gül said this clause was a violation of human rights.

France: Woman wins right to change her children's names

France: Woman wins right to change her children's names

Via RTL (French):

A woman in France turned to the courts to change her children's names from Fatima and Mohammed to more French-sounding names. The kids, about ten, were named by their father at birth against their mother's wishes. Aicha did not want North-African names so as to allow her children to integrate more easily. The court in Aix-en-Provence allowed her to change her children's names. Mohammed changed his name to Kevin, per his wishes, and Fatima is now called Nadia.

Brussels: Muslim youth 're-Islamizing'

Brussels: Muslim youth 're-Islamizing'

Via nieuwsblad (Dutch):

Young Muslims in Brussels don't go to the Turkish or Moroccan mosque like their grandparents. Rather, they choose their preacher for themselves, ULB sociologist Leïla El Bachiri says in her doctoral thesis, about which she was interviewed in Le Soir.

The Muslim youth of Brussels therefore re-Islamize to strict neo-Salafists, intellectual Muslim brothers or Muslim feminists.

France: Racist slogans found on Muslim graves in military cemetery

France: Racist slogans found on Muslim graves in military cemetery

Via RFI:
About 30 Muslim graves have been desecrated in Carcassone, south-west France. A legal inquiry has been launched to find the perpetrators and punish them.

The caretaker of the military cemetery of Saint-Michel de la ville discovered racist and Nazi slogans daubed on the gravestones when he closed up on Saturday.

The graves belonged to Muslims killed fighting for France during World War I and were immediately repainted and restored.

(source)

Birmingham: Seven arrested in counter-terror raids

Birmingham: Seven arrested in counter-terror raids

Via AFP:
West Midlands Police said on Monday they had arrested six men and a woman in Birmingham as part of a major pre-planned counter-terrorism operation targeting Islamic extremists.

The men, aged between 25 and 32, were detained by unarmed officers on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism in Britain, the police said in a statement.

(...)

Police said the suspects, who were all British passport holders, were being held for questioning in the Birmingham area.

(source)

Sweden: Asylum agreement to reunite thousands

Sweden: Asylum agreement to reunite thousands

via the Local:

Thousands of fragmented Somali families may be reunited in Sweden as early as July 2012 following the first step forward in the development of a common migration policy between the government and the Green Party (MP).

Reunification has been hampered since spring 2010 when Sweden tightened its family immigration law, taking stringent measures toward those that did not have recognized identity documents.

France: New law needed as firms increasingly facing religious demands from employees

France: New law needed as firms increasingly facing religious demands from employees

Via Reuters:
French companies are increasingly facing religious demands from their employees and need a change in the labour code to be able to reject requests they find unreasonable, an official report said on Thursday.

Most cases concern Muslims seeking time off for prayers or halal food in company cafeterias, but demands have also come from other faith groups as well as workers resentful of colleagues who get special treatment, officials said.

Netherlands: Asylum policy to become 'more restrictive'

Netherlands: Asylum policy to become 'more restrictive'

Via AFP:
The Netherlands' asylum policy will become "more selective and more restrictive", the leader of the centre-right government that rules with the backing of a far-right party said Friday.

The country which long cultivated an image of multi-cultural tolerance, now wants to "address the criminality of foreigners, harmonise and simplify the asylum criteria and fight against illegality," an interior ministry statement said.

(source)

Finland: Two arrested in terror financing probe

Finland: Two arrested in terror financing probe

Via Reuters:
A man and a woman with foreign backgrounds have been detained in Finland on suspicion of financing terrorism and recruiting people for terror attacks on another country, police said on Saturday.

"There is a reason to believe these actions are related to such an organisation which is suspected of terrorism actions," Detective Inspector Kaj Bjorkqvist from the National Bureau of Investigation said.

(...)

Finnish newspapers said the two had Somali backgrounds but Bjorkqvist declined to comment on their nationality or name any organisations or countries the investigation was linked to.

(source)

Norway: Suspect arrested in Muhammad cartoonist murder plot

Norway: Suspect arrested in Muhammad cartoonist murder plot

The suspect is a well-known criminal (NO). The man was previously linked with what the Norwegian Secret Service thinks are organized crime gangs with close contacts to Islamic extremists.

Via News24:
Norwegian police have arrested a suspect who was preparing a deadly attack against a Danish cartoonist behind a controversial caricature of the Prophet Mohammed, a Norwegian newspaper reported on Saturday.

The suspect, who is in his 30s, was detained on Tuesday after Norwegian intelligence discovered Kurt Westergaard was the target of an assassination plot involving automatic weapons and explosives, according to the Dagbladet daily.

(source)

Netherlands: Burqa ban maximum fine to be 380 euros

Netherlands: Burqa ban maximum fine to be 380 euros

Via Expatica:
Women wearing the Islamic burqa full body cloak or niqab face veil in public will soon be subject to a maximum fine of 380 euros. The planned measure is to be discussed by the Dutch cabinet on Friday.

A ‘burqa ban’ formed part of the minority Dutch government’s programme agreed with the populist Freedom Party PVV on whose parliamentary support the cabinet relies.

(source)

EU: Islam prejudice rampant in school books

EU: Islam prejudice rampant in school books

Via AFP:
European school books present a distorted image of Islam and Muslims, using stereotypes that breed mistrust of the faith and its people, a five-country study published Thursday showed.

This slanted view reflects "cultural racism," concluded Germany's Georg Eckert Institute for textbook research, which analysed 27 volumes used in classrooms in Britain, France, Austria, Spain and Germany.

(source)

Netherlands: Doctors' union wants debate on boys' circumcision

Netherlands: Doctors' union wants debate on boys' circumcision

Via RNW:
The circumcision of girls is already banned in the Netherlands, but the circumcision of boys should now be the subject of public debate, says the KNMG federation of doctors.

The KNMG is calling on human rights groups and the children’s ombudsman to make explicit statements on the issue.

Muslim and Jewish organisations are not pleased with the move. “Circumcision is a precept of our faith, which we want to continue observing,” Driss El Boujoufi from the umbrella organisation, the union of Moroccan mosques, explains to Trouw newspaper.

The Jewish point of view also couldn’t be clearer. “No appreciable change can be made to the practice of circumcision,” says Rabbi Raphael Evers of the NIK Orthodox Jewish umbrella organisation.

(source)
See also: Netherlands: Doctors would like to ban circumcision

UK: Bangladeshis, Pakistanis have children for benefits, says Asian peer

UK: Bangladeshis, Pakistanis have children for benefits, says Asian peer

Via the BBC:
The UK's first female Asian peer has used a debate in the Lords to criticise Pakistani and Bangladeshi families for having too many children.

(...)

Baroness Flather, speaking during a debate on the government's welfare changes, said: "The minority communities in this country, particularly the Pakistanis and the Bangladeshis have a very large number of children and the attraction is the large number of benefits that follow the child.

Sweden: Refugee jobs reform 'not working'

Sweden: Refugee jobs reform 'not working'

Via the Local:
The government’s much touted integration policy reform has failed to ensure that refugees arriving in Sweden start the process of finding work before receiving welfare benefits from local authorities, a new study has shown.

Billed as the “most radical change to Swedish integration policy in 25 years” when it was announced in December 2010, the government's reform package gave Sweden’s Public Employment Service (Arbetsförmedlingen) the main responsibility for coordinating the establishment of new arrivals in Sweden, rather than municipality social service offices.

Norway: Directorate of Immigration to make film explaining freedom of religion

Norway: Directorate of Immigration to make film explaining freedom of religion

Via Aftenposten (Norwegian):

The Directorate of Immigration (UDI) is considering making its own informational film about freedom of religion, following several cases in which asylum seekers were subjected to violence and harassment due to their religion.

UDI previously made films on the rights of gays in Norway. The point is to emphasize people have a right to freely exerciser their religion. The film might e included in the informational packet for adult asylum seekers, reports Vårt Land.

US: French Muslim leaders call on Hamas to release Gilad Shalit

US: French Muslim leaders call on Hamas to release Gilad Shalit

Via Haaretz:
Prominent French Muslim leaders met with Noam Shalit on Tuesday to support the call on Hamas to release Gilad Shalit, who is in his 1,906th day of captivity since his abduction in 2006.

This meeting comes on the heels of last week's meeting in New York, where Noam Shalit thanked the 11 American Muslim leaders led by US Congressmen Keith Ellison and Andre Carson who sent a letter to Hamas leaders calling for the release of his son.

(source)

Norway: Police fear terrorism, cancel Danish Mohammad cartoonist's visit

Norway: Police fear terrorism, cancel Danish Mohammad cartoonist's visit

Via AFP:
A Danish cartoonist targetted by Islamists for his 2005 caricature of the Prophet Mohammed cut short a visit to Norway after police caught wind of a possible attack against him, he said Tuesday.

Netherlands: Jews and Muslim join forces to defend ritual slaughter

Netherlands: Jews and Muslim join forces to defend ritual slaughter

Via RNW:
Dutch Jews and Muslims have joined forces in their fight against a bill banning ritual slaughter.

The Lower House of parliament has already approved the bill, which will be debated in the Senate on Tuesday.

The initiative for the Jewish-Muslim platform was taken by Ibrahim Wijbinga, chair of the umbrella organisation of Islamic undertakers, and Rabbi Lody van der Kamp.

The Jewish-Islamic platform wants to defend shared religious values and promote dialogue between Judaism and Islam.

(source)

Sweden: Imam calls to kill converts on Radio Sweden

Sweden: Imam calls to kill converts on Radio Sweden

Via Dagen (Swedish):

"It is the duty of every Muslim to kill those who leave Islam." This statement was made on Radio Sweden recently when an Imam from Rinkeby (Stockholm) was allowed to speak about how people should act against Somalis who convert to Christianity.

The program with the death threats against converts was broadcast by the Somali department of Radio Sweden and was a follow-up on a previous segment about a group of Christian Somalis who came to Rinkeby Square to evangelize. They also got to talk about it in the radio report.

Denmark: "Denmark, as we know it, can be destroyed in 10-15 years"

Denmark: "Denmark, as we know it, can be destroyed in 10-15 years"

Via Ekstra Bladet (Danish, h/t Mitt Sverige)

"Sharia law already operates in several neighborhoods. In Nørrebro there are some places where you have a parallel society, where religious dogmas run things next to the Danish," integration consultant and anti-terrorism expert Mohammad Rafiq tells Ekstra Bladet.

"This way we'll have many neighborhoods where you as a Dane and democrat won't have any chance to object," says Rafiq, who has visited many of the countries extremist neighborhoods.

Gothenburg: Suspects linked to al-Shabaab, Swedish Mohammad cartoonist probable target

Gothenburg: Suspects linked to al-Shabaab, Swedish Mohammad cartoonist probable target

Via the Local:
The four terrorist suspects held in Gothenburg on Sunday have ties to the Somali Islamist movement al-Shabaab and were plotting an attack using bombs and firearms, according to a Swedish media report.

Neither Sweden's Security Service (Säpo) nor the police have confirmed the report, and have released few details about the arrests.

"Police suspect the men were about to carry out a terrorist attack with firearms and bombs," Gothenburg regional daily GT said in its online edition.

"Police sources have told GT the suspects are linked to the terror network al-Shabaab," the paper said, without disclosing its sources.

(source)

Admin: Bye Bye Facebook

A while back I opened a Facebook page to enable my readers to access my blog directly through their Facebook account.

However, Facebook recently disabled my account for violating their no-pseudonym policy, and my Facebook blog page was disabled with it.

Facebookers are welcome to visit my site and read my articles there.

Antwerp: Shariah4Belgium opens Shariah court

Antwerp: Shariah4Belgium opens Shariah court

Via HLN (Dutch):

A court has been opened in Antwerp which handles marriage disputes and inheritance issues according to Islamic law. It's an initiative of the radical Muslim group Shariah4Belgium, reports Het Laatste Nieuws. Monica De Coninck, Alderman for Diversity (sp.a.), says that in itself it's good that religious instances mediate in their communities, though it would have been better if it weren't done by fundamentalists.

Gothenburg: Four arrested for planning terror attack against art gallery

Gothenburg: Four arrested for planning terror attack against art gallery

Via the Local:
Police in Gothenburg, on the west coast of Sweden, arrested four people during the early hours of Sunday on probable cause suspected of preparing terrorist crime, confirmed Sara Kvarnström, press officer of the Swedish Security Services (Säpo), to news agency TT.
Link
(...)

The arrest occurred during the night between Saturday and Sunday, near Röda Stens Konsthall, an art gallery by the Älvsborg Bridge.

Gothenburg's International Biennial for Contemporary Art's opening party was ongoing at the gallery, when the police arrived on the scene.

(source)

Slovakia: 'Multiculturalism doesn't work'

Slovakia: 'Multiculturalism doesn't work'

Via the Slovak Spectator:

SLOVAKIA should have an approach to legal migration with regard to the demographic development of the country, said Interior Minister Daniel Lipšic.

(...)

“The concept that two totally different civilisations can live next to each other without any conflicts and problems has failed in Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, France, and simply everywhere they tried to put it into practice several dozens of years ago in good faith,” Lipšic said, as quoted by TASR. “That’s why I believe it’s good for legal migration to prefer persons that come from the same culture and civilisation.”

(more)

Germany: 'The problem is with the Muslims'

Germany: 'The problem is with the Muslims'

Interview with Karl Albrecht Schachtschneider, Professor of Law at Erlangen-Nurnberg University:

Via RT (h/t Vlad Tepes Blog):

RT: Multiculturalism has failed, say European leaders. But what are the actual consequences of that failure?

KAS: If by multiculturalism you mean people from southern Europe, Germany, northern Europe, Hungary, Poland, Russia, all European nations, living together, then no, it has not failed. There is no problem at all.

Athens: Parliament approves mosque plans

Athens: Parliament approves mosque plans

(An extreme rightwing party poster, which reads ‘Mosque in Athens: Nowhere and Never,’
in front of Muslims attending outdoor prayers at Attiki square in Athens)


Switzerland: Female Turkish migrants three times more likely to commit suicide

Switzerland: Female Turkish migrants three times more likely to commit suicide

60% suffered from problems in their relationships, and 20% suffered from problem with their parents.

Via WRS:
Studying the reasons why people try and take their own lives is an important part of tackling suicide prevention. Research released on Tuesday uncovered some worrying trends in migrant communities. A group from the University Psychiatric Clinic in Basel carried out in-depth interviews with Turkish migrants who had attempted to take their own lives.

(source)

Audio report here.

Denmark: Guards prevent Muslims from voting

Denmark: Guards prevent Muslims from voting

Via Ekstrabladet (Danish, h/t Tundra Tabloids)

Several neighborhoods with a large concentration of Muslims have Muslims guards at the polling stations.

Their task is to deter and prevent Muslims who wish to participate in democracy by voting.

Netherlands: 'West threat to Islam'

Netherlands: 'West threat to Islam'

Via DutchNews:

Frits Bolkestein does it again. In a speech called De goede vreemdeling (The good stranger) the often contrary former VVD leader followed in the wake of historians Leo and Jan Lucassen allowing the facts to debunk some persistent immigration myths, and introduced an interesting angle to the immigration debate: ‘It is the West that poses a threat to Islam’. What the papers say.

Mallorca: Town Bans Burqa in Public

Mallorca: Town Bans Burqa in Public

Via AP:
A small town on the Spanish resort island of Mallorca has banned women from wearing burqas or face-covering Islamic veils in public places, even though only two women living there are known to do so.

Mayor Biel Serra of the town of Sa Pobla said Monday night's vote was not about cultural or religious discrimination but rather an issue of public safety and having people show their faces so they can be identified.

(source)

Finland: Shortage of funds threatens language instruction for immigrants

Finland: Shortage of funds threatens language instruction for immigrants

Via YLE:
There are wide variations to be found in the teaching Finnish as a second language in public schools. With many local governments suffering a shortage of funds, non-required subjects, including separate language instruction for children of immigrant background, have been targets for savings.

Berlin: Symbolic election gives foreigners a voice

Berlin: Symbolic election gives foreigners a voice

Via Deutsche Welle:
The organization Citizens for Europe last week staged a ballot for Berlin's foreign residents ahead of the German capital's mayoral election. The SPD and Greens were the big winners of the "symbolic election."

Earlier this summer, a meeting of American Voices Abroad (AVA) was graced by a special guest. He came to address the Berlin-based organization for US expats on a theme they knew from home, and which spoke to many of their hearts - no taxation without representation. He also came to mobilize these non-native Berliners, many of whom have lived and worked in the city for decades, to do something about it.

(source)

Germany: 1,000 potential terrorists

Germany: 1,000 potential terrorists

Via the Local:
Around 1,000 potential Islamist terrorists live in Germany, 128 of whom could be classed as capable of carrying out attacks, Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich said Monday.

"We have almost 1,000 people who could be described as possible Islamist terrorists," he told the Bild daily, adding that 128 could be considered 'dangerous" and capable of committing attacks.

He said that around 20 of those had received training in camps associated with terror groups and that these individuals were under surveillance by the country's security services.

(source)

Netherlands: Concert crasher used to crash church services

Netherlands: Concert crasher used to crash church services

A Muslim gets up on stage in the middle of a concert and starts preaching Islam. And yet, Dutch broadcaster RNW decided to run the story with the most unhelpful headline:

Broadcaster Omroep West reports that the man had previously crashed at least three church services in the Hague, calling on those present to convert to Islam.

Stockholm: European Kurds meet to push Assad's ouster

Stockholm: European Kurds meet to push Assad's ouster

Via AFP:
Around 50 expatriated Syrian Kurds gathered here Saturday for a two-day conference on how to strengthen Kurds inside Syria and get them more involved in efforts to overthrow Bashar al-Assad's regime.

"We want to push the Kurdish people inside Syria to support the revolution more... Kurdish people both inside and outside Syria need to work harder to change this regime," said Massoud Akko, a Kurdish writer living in Norway who helped organise the conference.

Antwerp: Judges attack Belgium's migration policy

Antwerp: Judges attack Belgium's migration policy

Via VRT:
The Justice Minister in Belgium’s caretaker federal government Stefaan De Clerck (Flemish Christian democrat, photo) has responded with displeasure to speeches made by a number of Antwerp’s top judges at a ceremony to mark the start of the new judicial year on Thursday. The judges called Belgium’s current asylum and migration policy “a danger for democracy”.

Russia: Folk healer shot dead in North Caucasus

Russia: Folk healer shot dead in North Caucasus

Via AFP:
A folk healer has been shot dead in Russia's Ingushetia region, part of the North Caucasus where militants seek to root out "un-Islamic" practices and establish an independent state, officials said.

The Moscow-based investigators said the bullet-riddled body of Movladi Buzurtanov, 69, was found Saturday near his home in the village of Nesterovskaya.

(source)

Norway: Christian Democratic candidate wants a mosque to increase immigration

Norway: Christian Democratic candidate wants a mosque to increase immigration

Via Utrop (Norwegian):

Trude Brosvik, head of Christian Democratic KrF party in the Sogn og Fjordane county, thinks a mosque will contribute positively to the county. "Like it is important for Christians to have a Church, it's also important for Muslims to have a mosque here in the county. A mosque will be an advantage if we're to take in immigrants," Brosvik told the Firda newspaper.

Netherlands: Call to prayer at inter-religious service

Netherlands: Call to prayer at inter-religious service

Via De Gelderlander 1, 2 (Dutch):

On Sunday September 4th the town of Doetinchem will hold a festival, followed by a joint inter-religious service. The city found Muslim, Catholic and Protestant leaders who agreed to participate in the service.

Before the service the town will ring the church bells and sound the Muslim call to prayer. Originally there were reports this will be done from a temporary minaret, but those reports turned out to be erroneous.

"It's a statement from all participants," explains organizer Joop Sars. Sars said that in these times of hardening attitudes, they want to show that Doetinchem is a tolerant city where diverse nationalities live side by side and can confirm their faith together in the town's festival.

Switzerland: Thousands of asylum applications neglected

Switzerland: Thousands of asylum applications neglected

Via the Local:
Swiss justice minister Simonetta Sommaruga opened an enquiry on Wednesday to find out why thousands of Iraqi asylum requests were ignored by the country's migration authorities.

The minister also announced the dismissal of the head of the Federal Migration Office (BFM), Alard du Bois-Reymond.

No reasons were given by the BFM for Du Bois-Reymond’s termination, and Sommaruga would neither confirm nor deny that it was linked to the Iraqi asylum enquiry.

The external enquiry will investigate why between 7,000 and 10,000 asylum requests submitted by Iraqis to the Swiss embassies in Syria and Eygpt were overlooked by the BFM for several years.

(source)

Norway: Children's Ombudsman proposes minimum age for circumcision

Norway: Children's Ombudsman proposes minimum age for circumcision

Via Dagbladet (Norwegian):

Children's Ombudsman Reidar Hjermann says there should be a minimum age for circumcisions for boys. That age should be either 15, when Norwegian children can make decisions regarding religion, or 16, when they can make health-related decisions.

Hjermann says he's received negative responses from religious leaders. He said he also spoke with youth. "We've had a meeting with four circumcised boys from the Middle East and Africa, and three of them think a minimum age is proper. At the same time, they said that the parents' generation will be opposed to a minimum age. They thought the procedure didn't have to do so much with culture but mostly with religion."

Norwegian Jews responded very negatively to the Ombudsman's attitude. "A minimum age is in practice a ban on us, who circumcise our children on the 8th day. Circumcision is an existential questions, and therefore the Children's Ombudsman's proposal is dramatic and serious for us," said Ervin Kohn, head of the Jewish Community in Norway.

Germany: Islamic arbitration 'very prevalent'

Germany: Islamic arbitration 'very prevalent'

Link"Judges without law: Islamic parallel justice endangers our constitutional state"

Norway: "You can't oppose capital punishment and be Muslim"

Norway: "You can't oppose capital punishment and be Muslim"

Fahad Qureshi and Islam Net make the news every so often with radical statements and preachers. This article gave Norwegian Muslims an opportunity to voice their disagreement. See also: Oslo: "They've taken my religion and are using it in a way that scares me"

Via VG (Norwegian):

Norwegian news site VG NETT reports that Fahad Qureshi, head of the Islamic mission organization Islam Net, supports capital punishment.

Kristian Meisingset, cultural editor of the conservative magazine Minderva, found an online discussion on Islamnet.no, where Qureshi writes that a Muslim can't oppose capital punishment.

Brno: Muslims celebrate end of Ramadan in hotel

Brno: Muslims celebrate end of Ramadan in hotel

Via the Prague Monitor:
About 400 Muslims based in the Czech Republic Tuesday celebrated the end of the holy month of Ramadan in the conference hall of the International Hotel because their mosque was too small for them, Munib Hasan, head of the Islamic Foundation in Brno, said Tuesday.

Last year, the Muslims had to rent a basketball hall in Brno for their prayers.

Hasan said a new mosque is needed in Brno.

(source)

Copenhagen: Three charged in mosque killing

Copenhagen: Three charged in mosque killing 

Via the Copenhagen Post:
Three men have been charged in connection with the shooting death of a 24-year-old man outside a mosque in the Vesterbro district.

Police hoped to formally charge all three today, but said that one of the suspects, a 26-year-old man they say fired the fatal shots, remains in serious condition at a hospital in Malmö, Sweden, with bullet wounds.