Germany’s new Interior Minister reopens old debates on Islam, catering to the far-right

Germany’s new Interior Minister has entered his office with a bang. Speaking to Germany’s leading tabloid, Bild, Horst Seehofer from the Christian Social Union (CSU) party triumphantly announced that Islam was “not part of Germany” or “did not belong to Germany” (Der Islam gehört nicht zu Deutschland), depending on the translation chosen.1 This quote made…

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New figures: Jews, Muslims face rising levels of religious hate crime in Germany

2017 marked the first year that the German Interior Ministry officially registers Islamophobic (islamfeindliche) hate crimes. The authorities have now released preliminary figures on anti-Muslim criminal activity for the past year.1 950 Islamophobic criminal incidents in 2017 According to these statistics, Muslim individuals or institutions were targeted in 950 separate instances in 2017. This includes…

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California imam apologizes for sermon seen as inciting to Jews, condemns anti-Semitism

A Northern California imam, Ammar Shahin’s sermon about Jews in disputed Jerusalem set off controversy and fear of violence apologized at a Friday news conference, saying his words were hurtful and “unacceptable.” “To the Jewish community, here in Davis and beyond, I say this: I am deeply sorry for the pain that I have caused. The…

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California Islamic Center Under Fire for Imam’s Sermon Calling for Annihilation of Jews

Mosque says comments taken ‘out of context’ An Islamic Center in Davis, Calif. is under fire after an English translation of a sermon that the mosque’s imam delivered on Friday was posted online and showed him calling for the annihilation of Jews. The Middle East Media Research Institute, or MEMRI, translated a mostly Arabic sermon from…

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Insults and attacks: Muslim students from Berlin experience Islamophobia on Holocaust memorial trip

Anti-Semitic prejudice amongst Muslim youth has become an issue of growing concern in Germany. Schools, while at times being the site of anti-Semitic hatred,1 have reacted by expanding educational opportunities aiming to combat the hostility to Jews exhibited by some of their students. Grass-roots project combating anti-Semitism The Theodor-Heuss comprehensive in Berlin has mounted one…

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