Six Minors on Trial in Paris over Murder of History Teacher Samuel Paty | DW News | November 27, 2023

Nov 27, 2023 | A juvenile court in France is begining the trial of six minors today, for their alleged connections to the murder of a French teacher three years ago. Samuel Paty taught history and geography at a school in a Parisian suburb. He'd used the controversial cartoons of the Islamic prophet Mohammed that apperaed in the Charlie Hebdo magazine to discuss free-speech laws in France. He was killed and then beheaded by a radical Islamist outside his school in October 2020, causing an outpouring of grief in France. The perpetrator, an 18 year-old man of Chechen origin, was shot dead by police. The Paris court is now examining the role of six others.

With tragic stories like this appearing in the news with alarming frequency, is there really any wonder that many people fear Islam and its growth in the West?

Many organizations chide people for being Islamophobic. But we should remember that a phobia is an irrational fear or aversion to something. But what is irrational about fearing, or having an aversion to, a religion whose adherents are sometimes, through fanatical beliefs, given to beheading innocent people? Indeed, it would be irrational NOT to fear such a religion.

If ‘Islamophobia’ is to be successfully combatted, it is up to Muslims living in the West to ensure that their co-religionists refrain from such barbaric behaviour. When Muslims stop beheading innocent people and start behaving in a civilized manner, people will have no reason to be Islamophobic. In short, the solution to this problem lies with Muslims themselves. Furthermore, if Muslims dislike our Western ways and our Western modes of living, it might be better if they returned to their countries of origin. Preferably voluntarily. – © Mark Alexander

Der Islam der Frauen | Doku HD Reupload | ARTE

Jul 15, 2023 | Keine Religion ist mit so vielen Vorurteilen behaftet wie der Islam. Doch begründet er die Benachteiligung der Frau? Regisseurin Nadja Frenz stellt muslimische Frauen vor, die sich das Ziel gesetzt haben, einen eigenen Weg der Emanzipation zu finden. Mit ihnen untersucht sie die Rolle der Frau im Islam und erkundet die Suren des Korans.

Kann Feminismus islamisch sein? Die Rolle der Frau im Islam löst immer wieder Kontroversen aus. Ist das Kopftuch wirklich ein klares Zeichen der Unterdrückung? Erlaubt der Koran den Männern, über Frauen zu bestimmen und sie zu schlagen? Steht ein modernes Frauenbild im Gegensatz zu den Texten des Korans? Muss sich eine Frau also entscheiden, ob sie gläubige Muslimin oder selbstbestimmte Feministin sein will? In der Dokumentation kommen Islamwissenschaftlerinnen zu Wort, für die nicht der Islam oder der Koran frauenverachtend sind, sondern bestimmte Interpretationen und patriarchalische Traditionen. Sie setzen sich für eine geschlechtergerechte Auslegung des Korans ein und versuchen, Religion und Feminismus zu verbinden. Frauenrechtlerinnen wie Zineb El Rhazoui, ehemalige Mitarbeiterin von „Charlie Hebdo“, stehen ihren religiösen Wurzeln dagegen unversöhnlich gegenüber und halten den Islam für nicht reformierbar. Regisseurin Nadja Frenz taucht in diesen Diskurs ein und liefert überraschende Erkenntnisse, abseits gängiger Vorurteile. Der Islam und die Frauen – eine Beziehung, die nach vielen hundert Jahren männlicher Interpretation neu definiert werden muss.

Dokumentation von Nadja Frenz (D 2019, 56 Min)
Video auf Youtube verfügbar bis zum 14/08/2023


Ce documentaire est disponible en français ici.

Iran Warns France over ‘Insulting’ Cartoons Depicting Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei

THE GUARDIAN: Publication by French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo ‘will not go without effective response’, says Tehran foreign minister

Ayatollah Khameni, Iran’s supreme leader, pictured in May 2021. Photograph: Zuma/Rex/Shutterstock
Iran has summoned the French ambassador over publication of caricatures of the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

The weekly magazine published dozens of cartoons ridiculing the highest religious and political figure in the Islamic republic as part of a competition it launched in December in support of the protest movement that began in Iran last September.

Later on Wednesday, Iran’s foreign ministry said it had summoned the French ambassador, Nicolas Roche.

“France has no right to insult the sanctities of other Muslim countries and nations under the pretext of freedom of expression,” said a foreign ministry spokesperson, Nasser Kanani. “Iran is waiting for the French government’s explanation and compensatory action in condemning the unacceptable behaviour of the French publication.”

The foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, tweeted: “The insulting and indecent act of a French publication in publishing cartoons against the religious and political authority will not go without an effective and decisive response.” » | AFP in Paris | Wednesday, January 4, 2023

Lire l'article suivant en français :

L’Iran ferme un institut français après la publication par « Charlie Hebdo » de caricatures : Pour son numéro spécial « 7 janvier », date anniversaire de l’attentat contre « Charlie Hebdo » en 2015, l’hebdomadaire satirique a choisi de soutenir les Iraniennes et les Iraniens et d’infliger une « raclée aux mollahs », selon les termes de la « une ». »

Au Pakistan, Imran Khan fait libérer des centaines d’islamistes antifrançais

Le 22 octobre, à Karachi, des partisans du Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) manifestent pour réclamer la libération de militants emprisonnés et l’expulsion de l’ambassadeur de France (en représailles aux caricatures de Mahomet parues dans Charlie Hebdo en septembre 2020). AKHTAR SOOMRO/REUTERS
LE FIGARO : RÉCIT - Le premier ministre pakistanais a cédé aux pressions du TLP, puissant mouvement soutenu par l’armée.

De New Dehli
C’est ce qui s’appelle l’effet papillon. Les réactions suscitées par la publication de caricatures de Mahomet par Charlie Hebdo en septembre 2020 n’en finissent plus de poser de nombreux problèmes au gouvernement pakistanais. Voilà plus d’un an qu’il essaye de transiger avec un parti islamiste, le Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP). Cette organisation a fait de la défense de l’honneur du Prophète son cheval de bataille depuis sa création, en 2015.

Le TLP a organisé une énième marche entre Lahore et Islamabad du 22 au 31 octobre avec des exigences qu’il pousse depuis l’an dernier: expulsion de l’ambassadeur de France en représailles aux dessins de l’hebdomadaire français et aux propos d’Emmanuel Macron sur la liberté de caricaturer. Mais aussi libération de ses militants emprisonnés depuis le début de la mobilisation. Son chef, Saad Hussain Rizvi, est derrière les barreaux depuis le mois d’avril. » | Par Emmanuel Derville | vendredi 5 novembre 2021

Réservé aux abonnés

Face au terrorisme, le poison de la démagogie

LE MONDE: Le 23 avril, à peine l’attaque contre une fonctionnaire de police de Rambouillet commise, Marine Le Pen, suivie par plusieurs responsables de la droite, a fait un lien entre cet acte terroriste et la politique migratoire française. Instrumentaliser cette question à des fins électorales est un jeu dangereux.

Editorial du « Monde ». Le meurtre d’une fonctionnaire de police, âgée de 49 ans, mère de deux enfants, vendredi 23 avril, dans le sas d’entrée du commissariat de Rambouillet (Yvelines), a soulevé une légitime indignation dans le pays. L’acte, de nature terroriste, est le fait d’un ressortissant tunisien âgé de 36 ans, inconnu des services de police, dont les premiers éléments de l’enquête commencent à reconstituer une dérive récente vers une radicalisation islamiste.

Il souligne la vulnérabilité de la France face aux attaques commises par des individus isolés mais radicalisés qui, brusquement, sèment la terreur dans une démocratie soumise à rude épreuve depuis 2015. Après l’attentat contre Charlie Hebdo et les tueries du Stade France et du Bataclan, qui ont endeuillé le quinquennat de François Hollande, la décapitation de Samuel Paty, un enseignant qui défendait auprès de ses élèves la liberté de pensée, a marqué celui d’Emmanuel Macron. Au cours des quatre dernières années, 14 attentats, perpétrés au nom de l’islamisme radical, ont provoqué la mort de 25 personnes sur le sol français, et 36 autres ont été déjoués, selon le décompte du gouvernement. » | Éditorial, Le Monde | lundi 26 avril 2021

La laïcité face au mur d’incompréhension

LE FIGARO: Editorial. En accordant un entretien à Al-Jazira, M. Macron a voulu faire œuvre de pédagogie. L’effort est méritoire, mais surmonter le ressentiment du monde arabo-musulman et le scepticisme des pays anglophones requiert davantage.

Editorial du « Monde ». Six ans, bientôt, après la tuerie de Charlie Hebdo, deux semaines après l’assassinat du professeur d’histoire Samuel Paty, décapité pour avoir montré des caricatures de Mahomet à ses élèves, et quelques jours après le massacre de trois fidèles à la basilique Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption à Nice, il est clair que la conception française de la laïcité se heurte à un mur d’incompréhension dans le monde arabo-musulman et dans les pays de culture anglophone. Loin de dissiper ces doutes, le discours d’Emmanuel Macron sur le séparatisme, prononcé aux Mureaux le 2 octobre, puis ses propos lors de la cérémonie d’hommage national à Samuel Paty, les ont encore accrus. » | ÉDITORIAL | lundi 2 novembre 2020

Muslims’ Rage at Macron Threatens to Escalate Tensions across Europe

THE GUARDIAN: In his defence of freedom after the Charlie Hebdo attacks, the French president outraged both radical and moderate Muslims

Maybe he knew what he was doing. Maybe he didn’t. Either way, Emmanuel Macron set France and Europe on a new collision course with the Islamic world last month – all in the name of freedom. Last week’s spate of lethal terror attacks suggests the French president may have started something he cannot finish.

Macron’s impassioned speech on 2 October, vowing to fight “radical Islamism”, eradicate “separatism” and uphold secular values at all costs, foreshadowed this latest crisis. It was seen at the time as a mainly domestic political exercise, intended to spike the guns of France’s far right before his 2022 election campaign.

But Muslim leaders were enraged by Macron’s description of Islam as a faith “in crisis all over the world” that had, in effect, been hijacked by extremists. Then, two weeks later, after the murder of a Paris schoolteacher, Samuel Paty, by a foreign-born Islamist, an undaunted Macron doubled down. His defence of the notorious, recently republished Charlie Hebdo caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad, which Paty had shown to pupils, and a national crackdown on mosques, imams and Islamic groups added fuel to the fire. France itself was “under attack”, Macron dramatically declared, a phrase he repeated on Thursday.

Political and religious leaders from Bangladesh to Jordan and anti-French demonstrators publicly vented their fury, accusing him of doing “Satan’s work”. Much of what he said was misunderstood or purposefully distorted. Truth was a casualty, too. » | Simon Tisdall | Sunday, Novermber 1, 2020

Macron Criticises Turkey's 'Imperial Inclinations' as Row between Countries Escalates

THE GUARDIAN: In an interview with al-Jazeera, the French president also tried to calm tensions with the Muslims world over caricatures of the prophet Muhammad

The French president Emmanuel Macron has accused Turkey of adopting a “bellicose” stance towards its NATO allies, saying tensions could ease if his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoğan showed respect and did not tell lies.

In an interview with al-Jazeera broadcast on Saturday, Macron condemned Turkey’s behaviour in Syria, Libya and the Mediterranean and said: “Turkey has a bellicose attitude towards its NATO allies.”

He also sought to calm flaring tensions with Muslims around the world after increasingly heated rhetoric following the murder of French school teacher, Samuel Paty, who showed caricatures of the prophet Muhammad alongside other cartoons as part of a discussion on free speech.

Macron said that France’s wish was that things “calm down” but for this to happen, it was essential that the “Turkish president respects France, respects the European Union, respects its values, does not tell lies and does not utter insults”.

He noted that France had offered its condolences to Turkey following the deadly earthquake in the Aegean and had also offered to send help to the scene. » | Agence France-Presse | Sunday, November 1, 2020

Turkey threatens legal action over Charlie Hebdo's caricature of president »

Kommentar zum Terror gegen Frankreich: Angriff der Totalitären

TAGES ANZEIGER: Frankreich ist kein Provokateur, es wird von fanatischen Mördern ins Visier genommen. Dass viele wegsehen, ist irritierend.

Der Horror verdichtet sich: Am 25. September wurden zwei junge Mitarbeiter einer Fernsehproduktionsfirma in Paris auf der Strasse mit einem Metzgerbeil angegriffen. Sie machten eine Pause vor dem Gebäude, in dem früher die Redaktion der Satirezeitschrift «Charlie Hebdo» gearbeitet hatte. Am 16. Oktober wurde dem Geschichtslehrer Samuel Paty in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine auf offener Strasse der Kopf abgetrennt. Paty hatte im Unterricht über Meinungsfreiheit gesprochen und Mohammed-Karikaturen aus «Charlie Hebdo» gezeigt.

An diesem Donnerstag nun wurden in einer Kirche in Nizza drei Menschen mit einem Messer getötet, sechs weitere verletzt. Eine Frau betete, als der Täter ihr die Waffe an den Hals setzte. Diese Morde sind nicht isolierte Taten einzelner Irrer. Sie sind Teil des islamistischen Angriffs auf Frankreich.

Begonnen hat die aktuelle Mordserie mit dem «Charlie Hebdo»-Prozess. Wie in einer grausamen zweiten Auflage wird wiederholt, was schon 2015 passierte. Die Zeichner und alle, die im weitesten Sinn als ihre Unterstützer ausgemacht werden, sollen in der Logik der Fanatiker dafür zahlen, dass sie Witze über den Propheten Mohammed machen. Und die Reaktion nicht weniger Leute besteht darin, darauf hinzuweisen, die Karikaturen seien geschmacklos und verletzend. Ob die Franzosen es nicht ein bisschen weit trieben mit ihrem Recht auf Gotteslästerung, wird gefragt. » | Nadia Pantel aus Paris | Donnerstag, 29. Oktober 2020

Two People Are Beheaded and Several Others Wounded in Terrorist Knife Rampage at a Church in Nice before Attacker Is Shot and Arrested

MAIL ONLINE: Three killed - two of them beheaded - and several more stabbed in a terror attack at a cathedral in Nice / Attack began around 9am before police swarmed the area, where they shot and arrested the attacker / Mass had just begun inside cathedral - largest Roman Catholic church in France - when attack started / Comes fortnight after teacher was beheaded near Paris; a month after stabbings near Charlie Hebdo offices

At least three people have been killed - two of them beheaded - and several others stabbed in a terrorist knife attack at a cathedral in Nice.

The attack began around 9am, according to local reports, before police swarmed the area where they shot and arrested the attacker.

The city's mayor, Christian Estrosi, tweeted: 'I am on site with the [police] who arrested the perpetrator of the attack.

'I confirm that everything suggests a terrorist attack in the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Nice.' » | Chris Pleasance for Mail Online and Peter Allen in Paris for Mail Online | Thursday, October 29, 2020

Erdogan-Karikatur: Türkischer Präsident tobt über Charlie Hebdo

Im Streit zwischen der Türkei und Frankreich um Meinungsfreiheit und den Islam streut „Charlie Hebdo“ Salz in die Wunden: Das französische Satireblatt druckt auf der Titelseite eine Karikatur von Recep Tayyip Erdogan ab. Der türkische Präsident schäumt. © AFP, DPA

We French Love Our History Teachers – Samuel Paty Made Us Remember Why

THE GUARDIAN: Religion struck another blow against freedom of thought with the vicious murder of a man whose mission was to civilise

Since that fateful morning of 7 January 2015, and the Charlie Hebdo massacre, it sometimes feels as if we French are living our lives between terrorist assaults, each as vile as the previous but each more poignant in its viciousness and symbolism. When we think this can’t get any worse, a new attack proves us wrong.

In the past five years, Islamists in France have targeted and murdered journalists, cartoonists, policemen and women, soldiers, Jews, young people at a concert, football fans, families at a Bastille Day fireworks show, an 86-year-old priest celebrating mass in his little Normandy church, tourists at a Christmas market... the list goes on.

Last week, a history teacher was beheaded while walking back home from his school, in the quiet town of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, halfway between Paris and Giverny. The speed with which we learned the facts sharpened the blow, deepened our emotions and focused our minds. » | Agnès Poirier * | Sunday, October 25, 2020

• Agnès Poirier is a Paris-based political commentator, writer and critic

The Role of Women in Islam | DW Documentary

Is there room for feminism in the Muslim world? The role of women in Islam is a frequent subject of controversy. Few other religions are so tainted with bias. But does Islam have any justification for its discrimination against women?

In this film, director Nadja Frenz introduces Muslim women who have set out to find their own path to emancipation. Together they investigate the role of women in Islam and study the Surah, the chapters of the Quran. Can the western concepts of gender equality be transferred directly to the Islamic world? Is wearing a headscarf a clear gesture of submission? Does the Quran really permit men to control women and beat them? Is the image of modern woman anti-Islamic? Must a woman choose between being a faithful Muslim or an independent feminist?

This documentary also consults women who are Islamic scholars. They say it is not Islam or the Quran that vilifies women, but rather certain interpretations of it and patriarchal traditions. They are campaigning for a more gender-neutral interpretation of the Quran and are trying to bring religion and feminism together. In contrast, women's rights advocates such as Zineb El Rhazoui, a former employee of the French satirical magazine "Charlie Hebdo", refuse to reconcile themselves with their religious roots, saying that Islam cannot be reformed.

L'hommage de la Nation au policier Xavier Jugelé

LE FIGARO: Le chef de l'État a rendu un hommage national au policier assassiné jeudi soir sur les Champs-Élysées. Il a appelé son sucesseur à donner «les ressources budgétaires nécessaires pour recruter les personnels indispensables à la protection de nos concitoyens».

À 11 heures ce mardi matin, la République avait rendez-vous dans la cour d'honneur du 19 août de la Préfecture de police de Paris, au coeur de l'île de la Cité, à quelques pas du palais de justice, pour rendre hommage à Xavier Jugelé, le policier tué jeudi sur les Champs-Élysées. Le lieu est symbolique: son nom rend hommage au soulèvement de la préfecture, aux gardiens de la paix qui ont combattu pour la libération de Paris lors de la Seconde Guerre mondiale pendant laquelle 177 policiers avaient trouvé la mort. Symbolique aussi car c'est dans cette même cour qu'avait eu lieu l'hommage des trois policiers - Clarissa Jean-Philippe, Franck Brinsolaro et Ahmed Merabet - tombés le 7 janvier 2015 sous les balles des frères Coulibaly, ceux-là même qui avaient perpétré le carnage à Charlie Hebdo. » | Par Anne Jouan | mardi 23 avril 2017

Charlie Hebdo Attack: Aftermath of Mocking Religion (Flemming Rose Pt. 3)

Flemming Rose (Danish journalist & author) joins Dave Rubin to discuss the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo attack, mocking religion, how social movements have benefitted from free speech, and more.

Tyranny of Silence »

Part 2 »

Charlie Hebdo & the Repentent Jihadi?

Charlie Hebdo Attack Anniversary: "What's Been Missing Is an Increase in the Number of Analysts"

'Those That Think Terrorism Has Nothing to Do with Islam Are Ignorant'

Former Charlie Hebdo journalist Zineb El Rhazoui, who was out of the country in January 2015 when Islamic militants stormed the offices of the satirical magazine in Paris and fatally shot 9 people. El Rhazoui, described as the 'most protected woman' in France, visited the New York City office of Women in the World and spoke with Emma-Kate Symons about her experiences and her incendiary new book titled 'Destroy Islamic Fascism.'Former Charlie Hebdo journalist Zineb El Rhazoui, who was out of the country in January 2015 when Islamic militants stormed the offices of the satirical magazine in Paris and fatally shot 12 of her colleagues. El Rhazoui, described as the 'most protected woman' in France, visited the New York City office of Women in the World and spoke with Emma-Kate Symons about her experiences and her incendiary new book titled 'Destroy Islamic Fascism.'Former Charlie Hebdo journalist Zineb El Rhazoui, who was out of the country in January 2015 when Islamic militants stormed the offices of the satirical magazine in Paris and fatally shot 12 of her colleagues. El Rhazoui, described as the 'most protected woman' in France, visited the New York City office of Women in the World and spoke with Emma-Kate Symons about her experiences and her incendiary new book titled 'Destroy Islamic Fascism.'

Paris Police Station Attacker Lived in German Refugee Shelter

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Revelation raises futher questions about country's liberal stance on refugees

A man who attacked a Paris police station last week had lived in a centre for asylum-seekers in Germany, German investigators say, a finding likely to fuel criticism of Chancellor Angela Merkel's liberal stance towards war refugees.

The individual was shot dead by French police on Thursday after he tried to storm a police station in northern Paris, brandishing a meat cleaver and wearing a fake suicide vest.

The assault took place exactly one year since the start of a series of jihadist attacks in France, marked by the killing of 12 people at the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine on January 7 2015.

On Saturday, German investigators assisting the probe into the police-station attack raided an apartment at a shelter for asylum-seekers in Recklinghausen, in the west of the country.

Their statement gave no other details except to say no indications were found that other attacks had been planned.

A source close to the matter told AFP that the suspect had been registered as an asylum-seeker. » | AFP | Sunday, January 10, 2016

Anti-Semitism Today in Europe

This past year, worldwide outrage followed the events at Charlie Hebdo and the kosher market in Paris. As #JeSuisCharlie flooded the twitter-sphere, the supermarket attack brought European anti-Semitism into sharp focus. It is a critical time to look at the challenges facing world Jewry. Is anti-Semitism on the rise? What can be done about it? And, perhaps most hauntingly, are the Jews of Europe still safe?