Report: left-wing think tank urges days off for Muslim and Jewish holidays

The French left-wing think tank Terra Nova recently published a report in which it urges a “less centralized Islam” in France, as well as additional days off for Muslim and Jewish holidays. The study, entitled “the Emancipation of French Islam,” notes the limits to the French Council of the Muslim Faith’s ability to represent the country’s Muslim population. The

Share Button
Read More

Amidst political controversy, German DITIB association vows greater emancipation from Turkish state

  DITIB: a pawn of the Turkish government? Recent weeks and months have witnessed growing pressure on Germany’s largest Islamic association, DITIB. As a subsidiary of the Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), DITIB has been charged with being a pawn of the Turkish government and with seeking to render German Turks loyal to President

Share Button
Read More

Muslim Campaigners for Gay Rights Join Minister for Amsterdam Parade

30 July 2013   Campaigners for gay rights within Muslim groups will join Amsterdam’s Emancipation Minister in the city’s Gay Parade. Invited passengers on Bussemaker’s boat include representatives of Turkish, Moroccan, Surinamese, Antillean and Hindustani consultative bodies and partnerships and support points for homosexual immigrant youths. Additionally, the Turkish Dutch homosexual activist Done Fil will

Share Button
Read More

New book – Islam in the West: Iraqi Shi’i Communities in Transition and Dialogue

*Islam in the West: Iraqi Shi’i Communities in Transition and Dialogue* By Kieran Flynn Oxford: Peter Lang 259 pp. | ISBN 978-3-0343-0905-9 | £40.00 This book studies the historical, religious and political concerns of the Iraqi Shi‘i community as interpreted by the members of that community who now live in the United Kingdom and Ireland,

Share Button
Read More

German military draws on expertise from female Muslim soldiers

Since the German armed forces, the Bundeswehr, opened its doors to women in 2001, their ranks have grown to a modest, yet proud seven percent. But of the 13,000-strong female force, very few are Muslims. Staff Sergeant Narima H. speaks five languages, wears a uniform, takes part in dangerous foreign missions and believes in Allah.

Share Button
Read More