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Harlem scoffs at Trump’s minority outreach
August 26, 2016 By Faith Matters

Harlem scoffs at Trump’s minority outreach

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump met with minority Republicans in New York on Thursday (August 25), a day after calling his rival Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton as a “bigot”. Trump says his campaign is connecting with African Americans and Hispanics, although few in New York City’s Harlem community suggested the feeling was mutual. “Since he […]

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French PM defends burkini ban but some in cabinet wary
August 26, 2016 By Faith Matters

French PM defends burkini ban but some in cabinet wary

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls defended a ban on burkinis in more than a dozen coastal towns on Thursday, saying France was locked in a “battle of cultures” and that the full-body swimsuit symbolised the enslavement of women. Photographs of armed police ordering a Muslim woman on a beach in the Mediterranean city of Nice […]

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Merkel under fire after call for Turks in Germany to show ‘loyalty’
August 25, 2016 By Faith Matters

Merkel under fire after call for Turks in Germany to show ‘loyalty’

German politicians on Wednesday criticised Chancellor Angela Merkel for saying that people with a Turkish background who live in Germany should show “loyalty to our country”, calling her comment unnecessarily divisive at a particularly difficult time. Adding to mounting strains on relations between Germany and Turkey, a major partner in regional attempts to stem mass […]

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France deploys reserve force, ramps anti-terror drills in new school year
August 24, 2016 By Faith Matters

France deploys reserve force, ramps anti-terror drills in new school year

France will deploy about 3,000 reserve troops, train school authorities and ramp up school anti-terror drills in case of attacks, its education and security ministers announced on Wednesday, a week before the start of a new academic year. The French government has heightened security across the country following a series on Islamist militant attacks since […]

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Sarkozy Courts National Front Voters & Promises Hijab Ban in Universities
August 23, 2016 By Faith Matters

Sarkozy Courts National Front Voters & Promises Hijab Ban in Universities

When Nicolas Sarkozy went fishing for votes in the electoral waters of France’s far right for a second presidential term in 2012 it ended in defeat, as voters alienated by his rhetoric and disappointed by a moribund economy deserted him. Fast forward four years and the conservative is banking on a change in mood. Islamist […]

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World’s largest cemetery grows bigger as Shi’ite militias bury their dead
August 23, 2016 By Faith Matters

World’s largest cemetery grows bigger as Shi’ite militias bury their dead

The world’s largest cemetery, in Iraq’s Shi’ite holy city of Najaf, is expanding at double its usual rate as the nation’s death rate increased with the war on Islamic State. The Wadi al-Salam cemetery, Arabic for “Peace Valley,” has a special place in the hearts of Shi’ite Muslims as it surrounds  the Mausoleum of their […]

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Europeans turn to weapons in growing numbers after attacks
August 23, 2016 By Faith Matters

Europeans turn to weapons in growing numbers after attacks

Europeans in a number of countries are seeking to arm themselves with guns and self-defence devices in growing numbers following a series of attacks by militants and the mentally ill. Some weapons sellers also link their increased business to the arrival of huge numbers of migrants in Europe, although a German police report stated that […]

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Islamist rebel apologises for wrecking Timbuktu shrines in landmark trial
August 22, 2016 By Faith Matters

Islamist rebel apologises for wrecking Timbuktu shrines in landmark trial

A former Islamist rebel admitted wrecking holy shrines during Mali’s 2012 conflict and apologised at the start of his trial at the International Criminal Court on Monday – its first case to focus on cultural destruction as a war crime. Mahdi asked for forgiveness and said he had been swept up in an “evil wave” […]

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Turkey asks Germany for help with Gulen crackdown
August 20, 2016 By Faith Matters

Turkey asks Germany for help with Gulen crackdown

Turkey’s government has sent German authorities requests for 40 searches and three extraditions linked to supporters of Fethullah Gulen, the U.S-based Muslim cleric it blames for last month’s attempted coup, magazine Der Spiegel reported on Saturday. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan accuses a network of schools, charities and businesses led by Gulen, and built up in […]

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Migrants rescued off Libyan coast
August 19, 2016 By Faith Matters

Migrants rescued off Libyan coast

Dozens of migrants bound for Italy are rescued off the Libyan coast by a Spanish volunteer rescue ship, including one boat that is in the middle of sinking. A dramatic rescue at sea. Migrants bound for Italy plucked out of the sea after their dingy sank off the Libyan coast. Later they sit safely aboard […]

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