The head of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales risked a new clash with Muslims yesterday by questioning whether Turkey should be admitted to the European Union. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor echoed Pope Benedict XVI in saying that the predominantly Muslim state was not culturally part of Europe.
Germany’s mosques are run by imams from Turkey, Bosnia, or Iran. No one controls them – for fundamentalists this is the chance for unmitigated agitation. On Sunday, April 23rd of this year, Islam seemed to arrive in Germany anew. The debate over Muslims and their beliefs had already taken place many times, but an Islamic…
By Simon Tisdall Nicolas Sarkozy’s flat rejection of Turkey’s EU membership bid does not mean the game is up for Ankara. France’s ambitious interior minister believes he is a natural successor to Jacques Chirac. But he has not been elected president yet – and will not be if the centre-left’s likely candidate, S_gol_ne Royal, has…
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan said protests over cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad that resulted in violent demonstrations by Muslims around the world are being fuelled by extremism. “Those who shout loudest or act in the most provocative ways, are not necessarily typical of the group on whose behalf they claim to speak,” Annan…
The cartoon crisis has once again reminded Europe of Turkey’s importance. The European Union (EU) Term President Austria emphasized Turkey’s vital importance in maintaining dialogue with Muslim countries, and the union expects Ankara to play a pivotal role in the solution to the crisis. The insulting caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed created a troublesome situation…
