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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In Australia, Lawmakers in the country have voted overwhelmingly to ban headscarves in schools for girls under the age of 14, despite concerns the legislation will deepen societal divisions and marginalize Muslims, meanwhile in India, attacks on Bengali-speaking Muslim migrant workers have been on the rise in different parts of the country since April this year, with thousands arbitrarily picked up by police for “being suspected Bangladeshis”, and lastly, U.S. President Donald Trump has further escalated his attacks against the Somalian community in his targeting of progressive Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-Minn), claiming among other things that Somalia is “barely a country” and that Somalian refugees “contribute nothing” to our society. Our recommended read of the day is by Ashifa Kassam and Deborah Cole for The Guardian on how over a dozen European states have announced plans to suspend asylum applications from Syrians, in a show of how western states are increasingly treating refugees as transients. This and more below:
International
‘It’s a breach of trust’: fear and frustration over countries’ push to return Syrians home | Recommended Read
“It’s alarming and disappointing,” said Alshater, who heads the Free Syrian Community of Austria, a group that supports Syrian newcomers and helps them build bridges with Austrian officials and the wider society. “And it’s a breach of trust, especially for those who have already built a life here.” Austria became the first country in the EU to temporarily suspend family reunification for refugees, a decision that disproportionately affected Syrians. In July this year it became the first to seize on the fall of Assad to return a Syrian with a criminal conviction to his birth country. Alshater said the government’s actions had caused “significant fear” among the nearly 100,000 Syrians in Austria, leaving some grappling with depression and anxiety. In neighbouring Germany, home to Europe’s largest Syrian diaspora, the chancellor, Friedrich Merz, has said he expects many of the nearly 1 million Syrians living in Germany to voluntarily return home. read the complete article
United Kingdom
UK: Millions of British Muslims could lose citizenship, warns new report
Research published by the Runnymede Trust and Reprieve found that nine million people in the UK – approximately 13 per cent of the population – could be legally stripped of their citizenship at the home secretary’s discretion. The powers, campaigners warn, disproportionately impact and endanger citizens with heritage linked to South Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Both organisations warn that the "deprivation regime" now represents a systematic threat to Muslim communities, echoing the state’s discrimination against British nationals with familial links to the Caribbean in the Windrush scandal. Under current law, British citizens can lose their nationality if the government believes they are eligible for another citizenship, even if they have never lived in that country or do not identify with it. read the complete article
Racist former soldier who ranted about 'bowing down to Muslims' found guilty of murdering his Moroccan-born neighbour
A racist former soldier who ranted about 'bowing down to Muslims' has been found guilty of the murder of his Moroccan-born neighbour. Abdulkadar Chadli, 48, was found dead with a single stab wound to the chest at a property in Norwich, Norfolk, in November 2024. Elvis Vickers - who spent three-and-a-half years in the Army with tours of Northern Ireland in 1997 and 1998, which included the Omagh bombing - had been on trial over the killing. read the complete article
United States
‘From Hell’: Trump’s Somali Remarks Ignite Outrage, Faith Leaders Push Back
Specifically referring to Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar, a Somalian congresswoman from Minnesota, Trump further escalated his claims by describing“Somalia in the Horn of Africa as ‘barely a country’ and accused refugees in the Twin Cities of having ‘ripped off that state for billions of dollars, every year,” further citing that they “contribute nothing.” The President, who has a long history of targeting the North Star State’s Somali population and the representative with derogatory language, added, “We don’t want them in our country. Their country stinks … When they come from Hell, they complain, they do nothing but [expletive], and we don’t want them in our country. Let them go back to their country and fix it.” In response, Representative Omar penned an opinion essay in The New York Times the next day, and said that his remarks reach for “the same playbook of racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia and division again and again.” read the complete article
US congressman says 'mainstream Muslims' should be 'destroyed,’ drawing condemnation
Republican Congressman Randy Fine said this week that “mainstream Muslims” should be “destroyed,” drawing condemnation from a prominent US Muslim civil rights organization. Fine — who has a history of making Islamophobic and anti-Palestinian statements — made the remarks during a congressional hearing Tuesday while discussing Israeli policies in the occupied West Bank. He claimed that Palestinians “invented a new name” rather than calling themselves “Jordanians” to create “a third state” and cited an alleged sign in the occupied West Bank warning Israelis not to enter certain areas. He went on to argue that critics “are afraid of being called Islamophobic” before adding: “I’m not afraid of that.” Fine then said he does not know “how you make peace with those who seek your destruction,” concluding: “I think you destroy them first.” read the complete article
India
Bengali Muslim migrant workers continue to face targeting in Odisha
Attacks on Bengali-speaking Muslim migrant workers have been on the rise in different parts of the country since April this year. Thousands have been arbitrarily picked up by the police for being suspected Bangladeshis, and many have even been pushed into Bangladesh. The Calcutta High Court in July this year observed that it could not remain a “silent spectator” as Indian citizens were being targeted on the suspicion of being foreigners. The court posed several questions to the Odisha government over the hundreds of migrant workers detained in the State. read the complete article
Austria
Austria votes to ban headscarves in schools for girls under 14
Lawmakers in Austria have voted overwhelmingly to ban headscarves in schools for girls under the age of 14, despite concerns the legislation will deepen societal divisions and marginalise Muslims. The law could also be struck down by the country’s constitutional court. The ban was proposed earlier this year by Austria’s conservative-led government, which took office in March after a far-right party came first in the elections but failed to form a government. The ban is expected to take effect at the start of the new school year in September, with families facing fines of up to €800 (£700) for repeated non-compliance. A soft launch of the legislation will begin in February as the new rules are explained to educators, parents and children. read the complete article