Extremism

Driver who targeted London mosque was angered by Islamist attacks, TV show-prosecutor
January 22, 2018 By Faith Matters

Driver who targeted London mosque was angered by Islamist attacks, TV show-prosecutor

A man who drove a van into Muslim worshippers outside a mosque last June was motivated by deadly Islamist attacks in Britain and an obsession with a television account of Muslim men who targeted white girls, a London court heard on Monday. Darren Osborne, 48, also lambasted politicians, calling London Mayor Sadiq Khan a disgrace […]

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Germany to Step Up Efforts to Combat Anti-Semitism
January 21, 2018 By Faith Matters

Germany to Step Up Efforts to Combat Anti-Semitism

Germany’s lower house of parliament on Thursday voted to step up efforts to combat anti-Semitism and called for the creation of a new government post to oversee the issue, backed by an independent panel of experts. The proposal was jointly introduced and backed by Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives, the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), the pro-business […]

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Extremism is Consolidated Without Due Diligence by UK Groups and Individuals
January 18, 2018 By Faith Matters

Extremism is Consolidated Without Due Diligence by UK Groups and Individuals

We are increasingly concerned about the lack of due diligence by some faith leaders in the UK in meeting with preachers coming from Pakistan. In particular, there is a growing Islamist movement in Pakistan which supports violent extremism against ‘blasphemers’, Ahmadi Muslims, Shias, Christians and other minorities. These groups are not just the ones involved […]

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Attacks on Christians – Be They in Pakistan or Cairo is an Affront to Humanity
December 29, 2017 By Faith Matters

Attacks on Christians – Be They in Pakistan or Cairo is an Affront to Humanity

We have been highlighting the attacks and incitement against minority communities form some time. Just within the last 2 months, we highlighted Islamist extremism targeting members of Ahmaddiya communities in Pakistan. A few days ago, the small Christian community in Quetta, who were celebrating mass in the coming days to Christmas, were attacked and 9 […]

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For Iraq’s Christians, a bittersweet first Christmas home after Islamic State
December 26, 2017 By Faith Matters

For Iraq’s Christians, a bittersweet first Christmas home after Islamic State

Christians in the Iraqi town of Teleskof celebrated their Christmas traditions for the first time in three years, since Islamic State militants overran their town and forcibly displaced their community of 12,000. A hymn not heard in three years echoed throughout the Church of Saint George in Telesqaf, Iraq, on Monday… as Christians returned home […]

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CCTV footage shows gunmen attacking Pakistan church
December 18, 2017 By Faith Matters

CCTV footage shows gunmen attacking Pakistan church

Two suicide bombers attacked a packed Christian church in Quetta, capital of Baluchistan province, in south-western Pakistan on Sunday (December 17), killing at least nine people and wounding up to 56, officials said. CCTV footage released by the police showed the attackers, both carrying guns, at the church gates. One climbed over the gate and […]

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Polish President Denounces Anti-Semitism, Xenophobia and Racism Following Far-Right March
November 20, 2017 By Faith Matters

Polish President Denounces Anti-Semitism, Xenophobia and Racism Following Far-Right March

Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Monday there was no place in Poland for xenophobia, anti-Semitism and “sick nationalism”, denouncing hate speech at a nationalist march in Warsaw in comments later echoed by ruling party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski.   Jewish groups have called on the Polish authorities to condemn the message of banners with slogans […]

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German groups mobilise against rise of anti-Muslim Far Right party
November 20, 2017 By Faith Matters

German groups mobilise against rise of anti-Muslim Far Right party

German civil rights groups are mobilising against the newly elected far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and other more hardline groups, vowing to avert the even stronger rightward lurch seen in neighbouring countries. Thousands of protesters are expected in the eastern city of Dresden on Saturday when the anti-Islam PEGIDA movement  celebrates its third anniversary. […]

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Thousands of children referred to UK’s counter-terrorism scheme, figures show
November 17, 2017 By Faith Matters

Thousands of children referred to UK’s counter-terrorism scheme, figures show

Thousands of children and teenagers, including large numbers of girls, were referred to Britain’s often-criticised counter-terrorism programme Prevent, new official figures showed on Thursday. Prevent is a key strand of Britain’s security strategy which was launched in 2003 to combat extremism after the Sept 11 attacks on the United States. It has grown in prominence […]

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How A Boarding School in Indonesia Generated a Global Jihad
November 12, 2017 By Faith Matters

How A Boarding School in Indonesia Generated a Global Jihad

We know that specific institutions have on many occasions been the generator for producing radicalised individuals who go onto commit terrorists attacks. Another such institution based in Indonesia which has generated militants from Indonesia to Syria, has been the Ibnu Mas’ud boarding school where Muslim students are provided with boarding facilities, food and religious education.  […]

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