General News
Analysis: Islamist terror back in Europe
Islamist terrorism is back in Europe after Spain arrested a group of terror suspects and Germany warned its Jewish community of concrete attack plans. Spanish authorities over the weekend arrested 14 terror suspects and searched several buildings in Barcelona, Spain’s second-largest city. Police said the group, which included 12 Pakistanis, an Indian and a Bangladeshi,…
Muslims, West see divisions deepening
Most people in Muslim and Western countries believe divisions between them are worsening and each side believes the other disrespects their culture, according to a poll released. The Gallup poll, published in a report on Muslim-Western relations for the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos this week, reflects “an alarmingly low level of optimism regarding…
Europe: Over 400 groups sign European Muslim ‘charter of values’
More than 400 Muslim groups gathered in Brussels to sign a ‘charter of values’ at the European Parliament, pledging tolerance and respect for the laws of the countries in which they live. “The charter amounts to a code of good conduct for Muslims in Europe which commits them to taking part in building a united…
Minarets in Paris: a tolerance too far?
A cluster of far-right groups allied under the name Stop the Islamisation of Europe holds rallies in London, Copenhagen and Marseilles to demand an end to what they call “the overt and covert expansion of Islam in Europe”. Although the events attract only a handful of protesters, their message resonates widely. In October, the rightwing…
Cultural tolerance ‘is not enough,’ says EU culture commissioner
Jan Figel, the EU’s Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture, and Youth asserted that tolerance of different cultures is no longer enough, and that Europeans should create an inter-cultural society for interaction across cultural boundaries as a new norm. Figel said: “We want to go beyond multi-cultural societies, where cultures and cultural groups simply coexist side…