Free Republic

(Reuters) - U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the House will introduce and vote on a war powers resolution this week to limit U.S. President Donald Trump’s military actions regarding Iran.

Germany’s foreign minister said Saturday he is hoping for direct talks with Iran, in addition to the country’s European partners and the United Nations, as a way of de-escalating tensions in the Middle East following the US assassination of Qassem Soleimani. Heiko Maas told the German newspaper Bild am Sonntag: “In the coming days, we will do all we can to counteract a further escalation of the situation — in the United Nations, the EU and in dialogue with our partners in the region, including in talks with Iran.” Despite heightened anxiety in the region, Maas said he had no...

Germany is struggling to deport rejected asylum seekers, the country’s top police chief said on Wednesday. Federal police chief Dieter Romann blamed a lack of pre-deportation facilities for deportations not being carried out. Speaking to Germany’s Funke media group, he said, “there are far too few detention centers in the country.” For the 248,000 foreigners required to be deported, there are just 577 deportation centers for them to be held and processed before leaving the country, Romann told Funke. However, 119,000 of those have been granted a stay of deportation as local authorities see a reason why they cannot currently...

The European Commission urged Germany late Monday to accept children from overcrowded migrant camps in Greece. “The Commission is concerned about the difficult situation for unaccompanied minors on the ground in Greece and remains in close contact with the Greek authorities, notably as concerns the situation on the heavily overcrowded islands and the very challenging situation in the hotspots,” a spokesman told DPA news agency. “In particular as regards the more than 5,000 unaccompanied minors, the Commission has repeatedly called upon the member states to continue relocating from Greece on a voluntary basis, with funds provided by the Commission,” the...

Berlin’s first Arabic-language radio station will have the potential to reach more than 100,000 Arabic speakers living in the German capital. The MABB media council for Berlin and the surrounding state of Brandenburg announced the approval of Radio Arabica on Thursday. Radio Arabica’s programming will cover life in Berlin, culture, news, comedy and sport. It will also play a mix of Arabic folk music, pop and modern music. Hansjürgen Rosenbauer, the head of the MABB media council, praised the expansion of “diversity” in the radio landscape. …

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry says it has summoned Norway’s ambassador to convey the deep concern of the government and Pakistani people over the recent burning of Islam’s holy book by a Norwegian man that was caught on video. In Saturday’s statement, the ministry said: “Such actions hurt the sentiments of 1.3 billion Muslims around the world.” The statement demanded action against the person in the city of Kristiansand who desecrated the Quran at an anti-Islam rally last week. …

At times it seems like Malmö has more in common with Baghdad than with other European cities. This year 29 bomb explosions rattled the city of 317,000 as of November 11. Police reported 50 shootings in the Malmö region by the end of October — in a country where guns are hard to come by legally.Formerly an industrial town known for shipbuilding, Malmö has remade itself since the Oresund Bridge, which connects it to the Danish capital, Copenhagen, opened in 2000. Sweden’s third-biggest city has become a knowledge hub, with a new university drawing students from Scandinavia and abroad and...

Pope Eliminates Pork from Banquet out of Respect for Muslims ROME — Pope Francis invited 1,500 mostly poor people to lunch this weekend to celebrate the World Day for the Poor and requested that all pork be removed from the menu so as not to give offense to Muslim guests. This Sunday marked the third annual celebration of the World Day of the Poor, a Catholic commemoration established by Pope Francis in November 2016 to celebrate the end of the Jubilee Year of Mercy.

The government has long struggled with foreign involvement when it comes to the education of imams who lead Muslim communities across Germany. Now, a new educational association, with start-up funding from Germany’s interior ministry, is set to launch on November 21. Even though some Muslim organizations have been training imams for their own communities in Germany, the majority of imams working in the country are affiliated with the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs (DITIB). Among Germany’s nearly 4.5 million Muslims, around 3 million are of Turkish origin. […] DITIB is Germany’s largest Islamic umbrella group, with 900 affiliated mosques. Its...

A woman whose six children all became terrorists – the five still alive have accumulated a total of 19 life sentences – is being praised and honored by Palestinian officials. Palestinian Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh described the mother, Um Nasser Abu Hmeid, as a "school for patience … we learn perseverance and resolve from her," reported Palestinian Media Watch. "There is no doubt Palestinian Authority leaders value terrorists and murderers, and go to great lengths to show their support for them: The PA pays them generous salaries while in Israeli prison and after, ensures them jobs upon their release, and...

Eighteen years after the September 11 jihad attacks that murdered nearly three thousand people, this is where we are: the Bloomfield Hills Baptist Church in Michigan has canceled an event called “9/11 forgotten? Is Michigan surrendering to Islam” under pressure from the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a group with ties to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. And so the answers are clear: yes, 9/11 has been forgotten, and Michigan is indeed surrendering to Islam. The event was to feature an ex-Muslim, Shahram Hadian, speaking on “How the Interfaith Movement is Sabotaging America and the Church” and economist and investigative...

Burger King in South Africa is dropping the word “ham” from its menu, after adding bacon at some of its stores, in order to be respectful of Muslim customers. On Friday, the chain confirmed it has changed the names of three of its products. What was previously known as a “Double Spicy Hamburger” will now just be a “Double Spicy Burger”; the “Triple Hamburger with Cheese” becomes the “Triple Burger with Cheese”, and a “Hamburger King Jr.” on the kids’ menu will now be just a “Kids Burger”. The names are being changed “to be more respectful of” its halaal...

Archbishop of Canterbury Hosts Muslim Gabfest as Peers Push Abortion on Northern Ireland Truant archbishop marks World Emoji Day as babies are slaughtered LONDON (ChurchMilitant.com) - The archbishop of Canterbury and his fellow bishops in the Church of England are being slammed for skipping the critical House of Lords vote that resulted in the imposition of abortion on Northern Ireland. None of the 26 bishops who serve as voting members of Parliament were present or voted during the debate on July 17 and 18

Plans to no longer serve children pork or gelatin-containing products like gummy bears at two day care centers in the eastern German city of Leipzig prompted a wave of criticism online and made headlines across the country on Tuesday. The mass-circulation Bild newspaper first reported about the day care centers’ proposal, saying the decision to make the changes came from consideration for two Muslim children. “Out of respect for a changing world, only pork-free meals and snacks will be ordered and served starting from July 15,” read a letter sent to parents, according to Bild. Responses to the plans grew...

The European Union formally condemned the demolition of illegal Arab apartment buildings near Israel’s security barrier separating Jerusalem from Palestinian Authority-controlled areas, and demanded Israel halt its enforcement of demolition orders. In a statement issued Monday afternoon, the European Union’s foreign affairs department said the demolitions undermine the “viability of the two-state solution”. “Israeli authorities have proceeded with the demolition of 10 Palestinian buildings, containing some 70 apartments, in Wadi al Hummus, part of Sur Baher neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem. The majority of the buildings are located in Area A and B of the West Bank where, according to...

Prosecutors in France did not include the aggravated element of a hate crime in indictments of three men who allegedly singled out a Jewish family for a burglary at their home, JTA reported on Tuesday. In the 2017 incident, the suspects are accused of breaking into the Paris-area home of Roger Pinto, the president of Siona, a group that represents Sephardic Jews. The attackers, two of whom were wearing masks, beat Pinto’s son and wife in the home in the northeastern suburb of Livry Gargan. One of the burglars said “You Jews have money,” according to the family members. French...

The German parliament on Thursday passed three revisions to the Nationality Act governing citizenship laws. Germans with dual nationality who join foreign terrorist militias can lose their citizenship in the future. The changes to the citizenship law apply only to adults who have a second nationality and will not be applied retroactively. Minors are unaffected. […] Polygamy is against the law in Germany. The revisions to the Nationality Act will prevent those in polygamous marriages from being naturalized as German citizens. […] According to police estimates, less than a third of asylum-seekers could submit a passport in 2015 during the...

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has called for protests against right-wing extremism, claiming in an op-ed published in the Saturday edition of Bild newspaper that Germany “has a terrorism problem.” In the editorial, Maas responded to the recent murder of a German district president, Walter Lübcke, as well as death threats directed towards pro-migrant politicians Henriette Reker and Andreas Hollstein, the mayors of western German cities Cologne and Altena respectively. ”Eighty years after the beginning of World War II, politicians have again become victims of right-wing terrorists. Because of their beliefs. Because of their commitment to our country,” Maas wrote....

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas arrived Saturday in Iraq to hold talks with Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi and President Barham Salih over the increasing tensions between Iran and the US. Maas’s Iraq trip was previously not announced due to security reasons.“There is a clear danger of miscalculations, misunderstandings, provocations leading to unforeseeable consequences in this highly tense region,” Maas said as he arrived in Baghdad. “The latest escalation requires us as European neighbors to intervene in favor of de-escalation and peaceful coexistence,” Maas said. “We cannot just seek dialogue; we must lead it, precisely where the differences seem insurmountable...

The honesty was refreshing albeit highly disturbing: A Muslim Al Quds Day protester in Toronto on June 1 advocates that Canada should be ruled by Sharia law. And that would mean, of course, executing gays. Apparently, he didn’t get Trudeau’s “diversity is our strength” memo. This interview took place during Al Quds Day in Toronto, while is a yearly rally held around the world pushing the belief that Jerusalem belongs to Islam, not the Israelis. And with that belief comes people like our Muslim friend here advocating for replacing Canada’s legal system as well as violent antisemitism. He also confessed...