Islamic fundamentalism promoted on websites at some Muslim schools in the UK

A study by the conservative London think tank Civitas has revealed fundamentalist views on websites of some Muslim schools in the UK. Examining the content of these sites but also pages they were actively linked to, author Denis MacEoin, current editor of the Middle East Quarterly, finds clear rejections of western values and life styles. For example, an Islamic girl’s school in London said on its website that “Our children are exposed to a culture that is in opposition with almost everything Islam stands for”. The sentence has been removed shortly thereafter.

Other schools’ websites are or were linked to pages or chatrooms that prohibit nearly any leisure activity such as playing Monopoly, chess or cricket or reading Harry Potter, or that allegedly advocate jihad. The linked site of ‘Ask Imam’ even holds raped women “jointly responsible” if they leave the house not fully covered and advises female circumcision.

In general, the report found a clear separation of British and Islamic values. It also stresses, however, that this concerns only a fraction of the 166 Muslim schools and about 700 part-time madrasas in the UK. The Association of Muslim Schools UK has condemned the study as misleading, intolerant and dismissive.

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