Taliban claims attack on Dutch chief’s son is retaliation for ‘Fitna’

Lieutenant Dennis van Uhm he son of the Netherlands’ new military chief was one of two Dutch NATO soldiers killed in a bomb explosion in Afghanistan on Friday. Taliban militants claimed responsibility for the attack, and said that the attack was in retaliation for the anti-Islam film _Fitna’ released by a Dutch MP. “We knew

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Stereotyping in Flanders schoolbooks

The Center of Diversity and Learning from Ghent University recently investigated twelve schoolbooks for stereotyping. Among the assumptions include one textbook that uses all Flemish names, except for one story about an unruly student named _Hassan.’ In another instance, a book about fundamentalism brings up articles about the French headscarf ban as an illustration. According

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Democratic Party out of touch, says former MP

Former MP Khaled Fouad Allam is expressing his dissatisfaction with Italy’s recent parliamentary elections, citing the loss of representation by Italy’s centre-left Democratic party due to a philosophical breakdown within the party. Allam accused the centre-left of “eulogizing (US Democratic presidential hopeful) Barack Obama and calling his candidacy epoch-making, while failing to field a single

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Interview with Islam Expert Dietrich Reetz: ‘Muslims Have a Right to Be Different’

Islam expert Dietrich Reetz of Berlin’s Center for Modern Oriental Studies (ZMO) speaks to SPIEGEL about Muslims in Germany, social tensions and the prospects for dialogue between the communities. SPIEGEL: Mr. Reetz, recently the debate about the propensity to violence, among young Muslim men in particular, has heated up in Germany. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung co-editor

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National forced marriage helpline launched

A new national helpline for victims of forced marriage and honour-based violence, part-funded by the Forced Marriage Unit, was launched this week by Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker. The _Honour Network’, run by the charity Karma Nirvana is a dedicated forced marriage and honour-based violence helpline, staffed by survivors offering emotional and practical support. Home

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