Trials of former IS fighters in Germany: Opportunities and pitfalls

German prosecutors are getting creative in their attempts to bring the crimes of the Syrian civil war to court. This includes bringing charges against former security officials of Bashar al-Asad’s regime for war crimes and crimes against humanity. And it involves attempting to bring the fighters of the so-called ‘Islamic State’ (IS) to justice. Charges…

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Ramadan in times of Covid-19 in Germany: new social initiatives, old political fault-lines

Like Christian Easter and Jewish Passover celebrations a few weeks ago, in Germany the Muslim holy month of Ramadan is taking place this year in the shadow of Covid-19. This means that much of the regular festive programme is falling flat: mosques have been closed since mid-March, meaning that believers cannot pray or socialise at…

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German TV debate between Merkel and Schulz focuses on migration and Islam, catering to populists

German voters will choose a new chancellor on September 24 in an electoral contest pitting incumbent Christian Democrat Angela Merkel against Social Democrat Martin Schulz. After a brief surge in the polls earlier this year, Schulz’ SPD now looks set to lose the election to Merkel, trailing her CDU by about 15 percentage points in…

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Road Rage Cited in Killing of Muslim Girl in Virginia

The Fairfax County Police Department are blaming “road rage” as the mostly likely reason, instead of a hate crime, in the killing of a Muslim teenager in Virginia whose body was found in a pond later. Nabra Hassanen, 17, was killed on Sunday after she and a group of nearly 15 friends encountered a driver,…

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Terror attack at Orly airport

A “radicalized Muslim” known to security services has been shot dead after attempting to steal a soldier’s gun at Paris Orly Airport. The 39-year-old French citizen, identified as Ziyed Ben Belgacem, shot at police officers manning a checkpoint in northern Paris with an “air pistol” before launching the airport attack, the French interior minister said….

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