Yearly Archives: 2014

Thatcham says ‘there’s no place for EDL here’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Newbury Weekly News EDL protest reportA demonstration in Thatcham town centre by English Defence League members and supporters has been condemned as “vigilantism”.

Newbury MP Richard Benyon condemned the incident at the weekend, saying: “In this country we don’t operate by the rule of the mob”. Meanwhile, shopkeepers and civic leaders told the far right organisation to “stay away from our town”.

For weeks, EDL members are said to have been leafleting and fly-posting in Thatcham. Matters came to a head last Friday evening when a group of EDL members and supporters, some claiming to hail from Bournemouth and Southampton, descended on Thatcham town centre.

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Right-wing extremism: Germany’s new Islamophobia boom

Posted on by Bob Pitt

German anti-mosque placardAcross Germany, right-wing organizations are using anti-Islam rhetoric to further their ideas – and finding a receptive audience. Now legal experts are debating whether it’s time for a new kind of hate-crime legislation.

Der Spiegel reports that the rise of right-wing Islamophobic organisations like Die Freiheit, Pro Deutschland, Pax Europa, Nürnberg 2.0 and Politically Incorrect has been accompanied by arson and other attacks on mosques.

Via Loonwatch

Call for ‘solidarity’ after Stevenage mosque attack

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A member of a mosque which was targeted in a suspected arson attack has called for “solidarity”. Salman Lone, from the Stevenage Muslim Community Centre, spoke at a meeting with the police on Friday – three days after a flammable liquid was poured inside the mosque in Vardon Road and set alight.

A toilet extractor fan was smashed before the liquid was poured in at some point between the evening of Tuesday, February 25, and the following morning. The toilets had a tiled floor and walls, preventing the fire from spreading. However the smoke caused extensive damage throughout the building.

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Six arrested after firework thrown at Whitley Bay Islamic Centre

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Whitley Bay Islamic CentreA firework has been thrown at an Islamic centre in Tyneside.

Around eight people were inside the Whitley Bay Islamic Cultural Centre, on Hillheads Road, and were praying at the time of the attack just before 2.30pm on Wednesday afternoon.

Six men have been arrested for criminal damage. No one was injured.

Abdul Hannan, leader of the centre, said: “We were praying at the time of the incident and got such a shock as it sounded like a bomb had gone off. We could see smoke and fire at the window. We would never expect anything like this to happen and we don’t think that we were deliberately targeted as people in the area are very friendly and we get on well in the community. I think it’s just one of these things that could happen anywhere at any time.”

Police have arrested two men aged 29, and four other men aged 27, 25, 23 and 19, who are now helping police with their enquiries.

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Tory MP condemns ritual slaughter as un-British

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Andrew Rosindell and dogAn MP and animal welfare campaigner yesterday supported the leader of Britain’s vets by demanding an end to the religious slaughter of animals. Andrew Rosindell, secretary of Parliament’s animal welfare group, demanded that Muslims and Jews stop killing more than half a million creatures a week by cutting their throats in accordance with holy texts.

“If you asked the average British citizen whether they agreed with this, they would say ‘No’. An animal has to be killed for food, but it needs to be done in a humane way,” Mr Rosindell said. “Why should we allow that kind of thing to go on in this country when it goes against everything that we really stand for as a people?”

He spoke out after John Blackwell, president-elect of the British Veterinary Association (BVA), urged religious leaders to end unstunned slaughter voluntarily or face a ban as in Denmark.

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Legoland Windsor closes resort hotel after further threats

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Legoland is to temporarily shut its hotel amid safety and security fears. It comes after a private fun day organised by an Islamic group, due to be held on Sunday, was cancelled due to threats from far-right groups. Legoland said it received further threats and decided to close its hotel this weekend, saying the safety of guests and staff was its priority.

The theme park in Windsor, Berkshire, was already closed for the season. It reopens on 14 March.

Thames Valley Police said it is investigating offensive messages sent in connection with the event organised by the Muslim Research and Development Foundation. Legoland was forced to shut down its Facebook page due to a number of abusive posts. It also received threats through phone calls and emails.

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Michael Piggin terrorism trial: Jury discharged

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Michael Piggin bedroomThe trial of a Leicestershire teenager charged with terrorism offences has been halted due to problems with the jury.

Michael Piggin (18) of of Beaumont Road, Loughborough, went on trial at the Old Bailey earlier this week. He faces a number of terrorism charges and is accused of plotting a “new Columbine” at his former school in Loughborough.

But Recorder of London, Judge Brian Barker, discharged the jury trying the teenager today after two jurors were forced to drop out because of “personal problems”.

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Muslim group calls for cancellation of controversial speaker at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Posted on by Bob Pitt

CAIR Embry-Riddle press conference (2)Muslim Students and community leaders are protesting a controversial speaker at Embry-Riddle University. Activists organized a news conference Wednesday to highlight their concerns.

UCF Professor Jonathan Matusitz has previously controversially said, “coexistence with Islam is not possible.” That got the Council on American Islamic Relations, or CAIR, involved in an effort to cancel his appearance during a speaker series event this week.

Standing outside The Embry-Riddle Welcome Center, CAIR Florida Director Hassan Shibly says he has no problem with Matusitz, but doesn’t think he should speak at a school where Muslim students may experience backlash. “He certainly has the freedom to promote fear and hatred, but we must recognize that his promotion against American Muslims is not cost free,” Shibly says.

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Boris Johnson’s radicalisation myth-making

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“Boris Johnson’s suggestion this week that children of Islamic extremists be taken into care to prevent their being radicalised illustrates perfectly our collective failure to understand the problem of terrorism.”

Arun Kundnani, author of the new study The Muslims Are Coming! Islamophobia, Extremism, and the Domestic War on Terror, responds to the Mayor of London’s proposal in his recent Telegraph column.

Huffington Post, 4 March 2014