Tag: Islamic extremism

Malaysia: Muslim-only laundrette and uproar over Christian book show ‘growing bias’ against minorities

October 6, 2017 Malaysia Islamic extremism, Johor, Malaysia, Najib Razak, Perlis, Selangor

With less than a year to go until Malaysia’s next general election, inter-religious tensions have resurfaced over a “Muslim-only” laundrette and a book written by a Christian parliamentarian. Fifteen Muslim non-governmental organisations (NGOs) filed a complaint with the police on 24 September against Selangor State Assembly speaker Hannah Yeoh for . . . Read More

EU ‘wilfully blind’ to risks of deporting Christian converts back to Afghanistan

October 6, 2017 Afghanistan Afghanistan, Apostasy, Asylum seekers, Converts, Islamic extremism, Kabul, Migrants, Refugees

European countries and the EU are “wilfully blind” to the risks facing Afghans who fail in their asylum claims and are sent home, according to a new report by Amnesty International. “All returnees face a real risk of serious human rights violations,” says Amnesty, but some, such as religious minorities . . . Read More

Coptic girl, 16, rescued 92 days after Islamists kidnapped her

October 5, 2017 Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Copts, Egypt, Islamic extremism, Kidnapping, Minya, Women

A 16-year-old Coptic Christian girl kidnapped on 28 June to be “converted to Islam, then married off or sold”, was released and returned to her family on 30 September after police found her and arrested her kidnappers in a city just outside Cairo. Marilyn was recovered from a city named . . . Read More

Asia Bibi nominated for award as human rights defender

October 5, 2017 Pakistan Asia Bibi, Blasphemy, Europe, Human rights, Islamic extremism, Pakistan, UN

Aasiya Noreen, a Pakistani Christian woman who has been on death row for over seven years for alleged blasphemy, has been nominated for this year’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. The 52-year-old, who has become widely known as Asia Bibi (‘Bibi’ is an affectionate title given to women in . . . Read More

More than 80 countries ‘favour’ one religion over others – Pew Research Center

October 5, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Apostasy, Armenians, Assyrians, Azerbaijan, Bhutan, Cambodia, Central Asia, China, Comoros, Converts, Cuba, India, Iran, Islamic extremism, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Maldives, Mauritania, Middle East, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, North Africa, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Soviet Union, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam

Over 80 countries favour a specific religion, either officially as a state religion or tacitly through special treatment, according to a new report by the US-based Pew Research Center. Islam is the most common state religion – 27 countries have it as their official religion, including 16 of the 20 . . . Read More

Fears of a security breakdown as Mali’s Catholic churches attacked

October 4, 2017 Mali Catholics, Islamic extremism, Kidnapping, Mali

Catholics in Mali have suffered a fresh wave of attacks at the hands of gunmen believed to be jihadists, amid a “dramatic” deterioration in security in the centre of the country. Several churches were attacked last month, according to the news agency AFP. In Dobara, 500 miles (800km) north of . . . Read More

ASEAN nations told to ‘end blasphemy laws that inspire violence’

October 4, 2017 ASEAN, Blasphemy, Borneo, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Islamic extremism, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Religious freedom, Sharia, Singapore, Southeast Asia, Sunni, Thailand, USA, Vietnam

A right for all - USCIRF report on ASEAN nations

On its 50th anniversary, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) should repeal blasphemy laws, release prisoners of conscience and strengthen interfaith relationships, says the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). In a new report, USCIRF highlights regional “arrests, detentions, and imprisonments based on religious belief, practice, or activities, . . . Read More

Egypt: Copts face arrest after Facebook post leads Muslims to riot

September 25, 2017 Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Anba Macarius, Copts, Egypt, Islamic extremism, Minya

Two Coptic Christians in a village in Minya, Upper Egypt are facing charges of inciting sectarian strife and insulting Islamic leaders, after comments from one of the men on social media, shared by the other, caused some Muslims in their village to riot. Bassem Abdel-Malak Fahim, 25, from the village . . . Read More

Bahraini king positions as promoter of interfaith tolerance

September 21, 2017 Bahrain Bahrain, Converts, Islamic extremism, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Religious freedom

The King of Bahrain has sought to promote his country as a global champion of religious tolerance, with a declaration that advocates freedom of religion for all and rejects extremism. In the Bahrain Declaration, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa “unequivocally reject[s] compelled observance”. The one-page pledge, which was co-sponsored . . . Read More

Pakistan Christian sentenced to death for WhatsApp ‘blasphemy’, despite gaps in police case

September 20, 2017 Pakistan Blasphemy, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Islamic extremism, Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Nadeem Masih, Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan, Prophet Muhammad, Punjab

Six days after a Pakistani Christian was sentenced to death for blasphemy, the young man’s lawyer says there was insufficient evidence against his client and that the police failed to investigate the matter properly. Nadeem Masih, 24, from the Yaqoobabad area of the religiously conservative city of Gujrat, in Punjab . . . Read More

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