Spanish girl booted from exam for wearing headscarf

A 14-year-old Muslim girl in Spain was kicked out of an exam in her Madrid secondary school after she refused to take off her headscarf, local Spanish newspaper 20 Minutos reported on Tuesday night.

Eivan Khemins Eibar, the girl’s lawyer and a specialist on discrimination cases, sent a report to the school manager saying the student did not do anything wrong in wearing the higab.

It comes as Europe continues to clampdown on the headscarf, which is often worn by Muslim women. Already, France and Belgium have banned the full-face veil, or niqab, and dished out fines on women who refuse to remove the veil in public. [Bikya Masr] Read more

A council is spending ratepayers' money to make Muslims feel more at home

Darebin Council in Melbourne's north is doing the hiring …. (t)he successful applicant will be paid $66,000 a year.

As a ratepayer Vicki Janson says the community was never consulted, and as the Deputy President of the Q Society - a group concerned with the Islamification of Australia - she's outraged. “We're for integration not segregation, and really for upholding what we would call Australian values,” Janson said.

The Attorney General sees the plan as a way of building a strong and cohesive society, and resilience in the community against extremism.

The job description states that the officer’s role will be to "Strengthen the Islamic Society of Victoria and (find) how they can be more effective in the community". Also to implement strategies that assist the Islamic Society to dispel myths and misconceptions about Muslims and Islam. [Yahoo!7] Read more [via Islamophobia Watch]

Algerian Islamists call for bars to close, saying drinking perverts youth

Two former ranking members of a banned Islamist party called on Algerians on Wednesday to demand that all bars and stores where alcoholic beverages are sold be shut down.

The two, Hachemi Sahnouni, who helped found the Islamic Salvation Front, and Abderazak Zeraoui Hamadache, said that alcohol is "perverting our youth and destroying our religious morals."

Their bid to end the sale of alcohol is significant because this Muslim North African country is in the process of defeating Islamist insurgents waging war since 1992. The call to close all bars recalls the period referred to as the "black decade" in the 1990s when extremists imposed their will on many villages and cities. [AP] Read more

Ohio's response to Muslim lawsuit over prison meal preparation riles state pork industry

A decision by Ohio officials to remove all pork products from prison menus in response to a lawsuit by Muslim inmates is not sitting well with the state's pork producers and processors.

Both promise action of their own, including a possible counter lawsuit, to address what they consider an unfair and illogical decision. "We really think it's not in the best interest, frankly, of the whole prison system," said Dick Isler, executive director of the Ohio Pork Producers Council.

"It seems like we're letting a small group make the rules when it really isn't in the best interest of the rest of prisoners." Pork is inexpensive and nutritious and compares well to other lean meats, he said. [AP] Read more [via Jihad Watch]

Europe’s Far Right – Fuelled By Islamophobia?

Europe’s increasingly vocal and powerful Far Right parties have swapped a racist agenda for an Islamophobic one, moving them closer to the mainstream, where anti-Muslim views are commonplace among conservative commentators and politicians.

The problem is that the vast majority of Muslims in Europe are born and raised there. By excluding them discursively, but also increasingly in government policies, such as putting limitations on building mosques, which you don’t have on churches and synagogues, or by banning the burqa, you marginalise and exclude a large part of the population which is growing.”

Mudde argues that Islamophobic ideas have become acceptable because a near majority of European citizens now consider Muslims to be alien to Western culture: [EconomyWatch] Read more [via Islamophobia Watch]

Backlash for Pakistan judge who convicted assassin

The judge who sentenced to death the killer of liberal Pakistani politician Salman Taseer on Tuesday failed to show up at work and may be transferred after his courtroom was ransacked, lawyers said.

Judge Pervez Ali Shah on Saturday convicted police bodyguard Malik Mumtaz Hussain Qadri over the January 4 assassination that exposed huge faultlines in Pakistan.

Qadri said he killed Taseer over the politician’s opposition to blasphemy laws which sentence to death those convicted of defaming the Prophet Mohammed. Qadri’s actions made him a hero in the eyes of religious extremists.

On Monday, dozens of furious Islamist lawyers ransacked Shah’s courtroom, smashing windows to protest against the judgement. [AFP] Read more

Political correctness stifles debate on multiculturalism

.... I was a little taken aback, not so much because there was a complaint but because it warranted an investigation that would unnecessarily use up taxpayers' money.

This was also a concern from the perspective of the important right to freedom of speech. We were here, after all, talking about matters spoken during an election campaign, which ought not in a democracy, be subject to censure.

What had come out in the by-election was my statement that Islam was 'morally flawed and degenerate in its treatment of women’.

This was supported by the following statement of facts: that Sharia courts now operate in the UK where a woman’s evidence is worth significantly less than a man's and where women are not afforded the right to speak in divorce proceedings. [MailOnline] Read more

In Aceh, Enforced Sharia Law Has Outsized Impact

In Aceh Province on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, Sharia police break up a game of dominos. Despite the players' protests that they are not gambling, the police confiscate the game and leave them this time with a warning.

…. In 1999, Indonesia first allowed the conservative province to partially implement Sharia law, and now Aceh is under enforcement of some of the strictest morality regulations in the country.

Although the laws apply to Muslims only, Sharia courts and police have grown increasingly powerful since the 2005 peace agreement that ended a 30-year war for independence, and some human rights groups say their methods involve harassment and abuse, particularly against women. [VOANews] Read more [via Jihad Watch]

Muslim leaders distance themselves from call to change ‘offensive’ Swiss flag

A SUGGESTION that the Swiss flag, with its prominent cross, should be replaced with one less likely to offend non-Christians has been dismissed as “wrong and counterproductive” by an Islamic group in that country.

The proposal, which is said here to have caused unwelcome tensions between the Swiss majority and the country’s five percent Muslim minority, was made by Christian multi-culturalist, Ivica Petrusic, Vice President of an immigrant association Secondos Plus. We reported the original story here. [The Freethinker] Read more

Saudi women should not drive

.... The vast majority of women do not drive in the kingdom and there remains much opposition to female drivers. A 25-year-old Saudi man, Nawwaf, told BBC Radio 4's World at One programme why he does not want to see women driving in Saudi Arabia.

"I think women driving is the key to a lot of things. In Western countries, 100 years ago women's clothes were different but now you can see they are a little bit naked.

"If you start now to let women drive, let them go wherever they want, let them do whatever they want, we will be in the same position some day. Then Saudi Arabia will be like New York. [BBC] Read more

UNHCR: Multiculturalism inevitable

UN refugee agency chief Antonio Guterres on Monday called on states not to succumb to rising xenophobic pressure and turn refugees away, saying that multiculturalism is not only good, but inevitable.

"In my view, multicultural, multi-ethnic, and multi-religious societies are not only a good thing, they are inevitable," said Guterres.

[A COMMENT] Mixing people with different cultures - where has this worked before? People who have different values do not cooperate, therefore do not form a society.

[A COMMENT] UN refugee agency chief Antonio Guterres clearly lives in a neighborhood where no multicultural so called added value is to be seen as Antonio ignored the fact that even Angela Merkel from Germany said multiculturalism has 'utterly failed'? [News24] Read more [via Islam in Europe]

Muslim woman had head veil ripped from her face

WOMAN admitted ripping the head veil off a devout Muslim woman in Halifax. Jacqueline Zaro, of East Street, Sowerby Bridge, pleaded guilty on the first day of her trial to intent to cause religiously-aggravated harassment, alarm or distress in the incident on June 11 at King Cross Road, Halifax.

James Weekes, prosecuting, told Calderdale Magistrates’ Court the victim had moved to this country six years ago and was a devout Muslim who wore the veil to cover her face.

He said the victim said she has head sleepless nights since and now feels vulnerable and too afraid to go out shopping on her own. [Halifax Courier] Read more [via Islamophobia Watch]

Pakistan's blasphemy laws – even judges live in fear

So he's going to swing – perhaps. On Saturday a Pakistani judge sentenced Mumtaz Qadri, the police bodyguard who assassinated the Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer, to death by hanging. The young policeman smiled and thanked God. "My dream has come true," he reportedly said.

.... Meanwhile the clerics engineering the protests – old men with soft palms and tinder-dry beards – issued po-faced statements decrying the sentence. Qadri was a good Muslim, they insisted, and Taseer got what he deserved.

The governor had offended them by advocating reforms to Pakistan's antiquated blasphemy laws. In particularly they hated him for defending Aasia Bibi, a Christian mother-of-five sentenced to death under those laws last November. He deserved to die, they said. [Guardian Cif] Read more

Iran Threatens To Kill Evangelical Christians Unless They “Repent”

Militants with suspected ties to Iranian security forces have threatened to kill nearly a dozen evangelical Christians who fled Iran unless they "repent" and return to Islam, well-informed sources told BosNewsLife early Sunday, October 2.

At least 11 Iranian Christians received electronic mail messages from ‘The Unknown Soldiers Of The Hidden Imam’ calling on them to either repent or face extra-judicial execution, said an Iranian church group and religious rights organization Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW). [BosNewsLife] Read more

Unhappy clerics: Saudi sheikhs backlash at king's women's rights move

Sheikh Saleh al-Lohaidan, one of Saudi Arabia's most senior clerics, said he was not consulted about King Abdullah's decision to grant women more political rights, one of the first signs of discontent from powerful conservatives since the reform was announced. [Middle East Online] Read more

Shia-Sunni split will halt democracy in its tracks

A war of extraordinary brutality is being waged across the Muslim world which is largely ignored by the media.

.... Since the start of the Arab uprisings this year, Shia-Sunni hostility has deepened again wherever the two communities seek to live side by side. Rulers have appealed to the Sunni and Shia loyalties of their people to stay in power.

In Syria and Bahrain the democratic movement against authoritarian rule, the Arab Awakening, has been thwarted by officially sponsored sectarianism. In Syria, President Bashar al-Assad has been clinging to power by playing the sectarian card for all it is worth. [independent.co.uk] Read more

Canadian Muslim author speaks out – Islam needs modernizing

Irshad Manji has a message for her fellow Muslims that some might not like: shed the victim mentality and pour your passion into modernizing Islam. "If we really want non-Muslims to believe that Islam is peace, we've got to start bloody well acting as if that's true," Manji told Mindelle Jacobs of the Edmonton Sun before speaking in Edmonton about her new book, Allah, Liberty and Love.

Many Muslims are offended when questioned about violence perpetrated around the world in the name of Islam, but offence is the price of diversity, says Manji, who rocketed to fame - and became the target of death threats - after the publication of her first book, The Trouble With Islam Today. [Cobourg Atheist] Read more [via National Secular Society]

Islamists behind Yemen uprising

A campaigner for women's rights in Yemen has claimed that key figures in the anti-government protest movement are abusing human rights and have been responsible for some of the worst atrocities during the unrest.

"To those who talk of a pro-democracy Arab spring in my country," she told the Observer in London, where she is seeking asylum, "I would say that it was not President Saleh who threatened my life or made me too frightened to carry on with my work or stay in Yemen, it was the opposition." [guardian.co.uk] Read more

Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani now accused of rape, extortion, and being a Zionist

It is quite incredible, as the world looks on, that Iran would attempt this sort of outrage. The British Government has unequivocally denounced Iran, as has Lambeth Palace and the White House

There is, as yet, still nothing from the Holy See. It is not known if the Pope's silence is due to bureaucratic incompetence or the need for covert diplomacy. If ever it was the latter, there is clearly now an urgent need to speak out loud and very clearly.

…. The Iranian authorities are manifestly attempting to force him to renounce that faith, which violates the religious values they claim to defend, crosses all bounds of decency and breaches Iran's own international obligations. [Archbishop Cranmer] Read more

Muslim Mob Torches Coptic Church in Egypt

After Friday prayers today, a mob of several thousand Muslims from the village of Elmarinab in Edfu, Aswan province, demolished and torched St. George's church, which was being renovated.

…. In an interview on Coptic TV channel, Father Salib of St. George's Church said "the Imam of one of the village mosques called on the people to take matter in their own hands, he added. Other witnesses named the Imam as Sheikh Sabry.

According to eyewitnesses the Muslims also torched a large depot of electrical goods owned by a Copt, a supermarket and four Coptic homes. Muslims prevented the fire brigade from entering the village. Security forces, which were present, "stood there watching," said Mr.Michael Ramzy, a social worker at the church. [AINA] Read more [via Jihad Watch]

When Muhammad's words are not Islamic

This sounds great, right? A Muslim writing about the Yusef Nadarkhani case says that there is no Islamic justification for the death penalty for apostates.

The only problem is that he doesn't even mention the fact that some Muslim authorities, contrary to his claims, do root the death penalty for apostasy in the Qur'an.

Nor does he mention Muhammad's words about death to apostates. Does he not know about this material? Or is he just being dishonest? [Jihad Watch] Read more

Iranian pastor faces death for rape, not apostasy

.... the deputy governor of Gilan province, where Nadarkhani was tried and convicted, accused Western media of twisting the real story, referring to him as a "rapist." A previous report from the news agency claimed he had committed several violent crimes, including repeated rape and extortion.

"His crime is not, as some claim, converting others to Christianity," Rezvani told Fars. "He is guilty of security-related crimes." [CNN] Read more [via Mick Hartley]

Thousands say no to mosque

A PETITION with 3,000 signatures has been handed over to council bosses as residents stepped up their protest against an “illegal” mosque.

Business owners on Waterloo Road, South Shore, believe the Noor A Madina Mosque is operating illegally as it was opened before planning permission was granted. Owners of the site, which was formally a takeaway, have since applied for retrospective planning permission to change the use of the site.

But local people think the mosque will cause huge problems with parking around the area. [The Gazette] Read more [via The Iconoclast]

Muslim group disapproves of polygamy trend in the UK

Sharia councils in Britain are reporting an unexpected and "dramatic" rise in the number of Muslim men taking second or third wives.

A prominent Muslim legal expert warned that, because polygamy is illegal in the UK, second and any subsequent wives and their children could be left destitute and without recourse to the courts should these marriages break down.

Official government figures estimate the number of polygamous marriages in Britain at about 1,000. However, Muslim social workers believe the actual total could be 20 times greater. [The National] Read more [via National Secular Society]

Worldwide Caliphate Rising?

Bat Ye’or, an exiled Egyptian Jew, gave up a budding career as a novelist to engage full time in chronicling the all too human experience of non-Muslims who lived as subjugated persons or dhimmi (protected persons) in lands conquered by Islamic jihad.

She personally knew the perils of dhimmitude. Both she and her parents were ejected from Egypt in the wake of the Suez Crisis of 1956 becoming stateless persons until their arrival in the UK.

She and her parents were among the more than 900,000 Jews expelled from Arab lands following the founding of the Jewish State of Israel in 1948. That experience compelled her to scour historical records documenting the experiences of Jews and Christians under the shari’a system of depredation that she coined, dhimmitude. [New English Review] Read more