Religious Extremism

Pakistan's Blasphemy Law Provokes Murder of Human Rights Lawyer

July 14, 2014

A prominent human rights attorney on the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan ("HRCP") was shot dead by a gunman who claimed that he was being punished for defending an individual charged with blasphemy.
German Education Report Warns of Rising Influence of Radical Islamism in Schools

July 14, 2014

A controversial new report by an official training institute for Germany's public school teachers finds schools in the city of Hamburg are being subjected to pressures by growing numbers of parents to impose curricular, dress and gender restrictions according to hardline Islamist interpretations.
Boko Haram Kidnapping Reveals War on Education as Key to Sharia State

July 14, 2014

The abduction of over 200 Nigerian schoolgirls by the Boko Haram Islamist extremist group is an important case that shows how militant Islamist groups are using a strategy of targeted violence against education toward the goal of building sharia states.
Moderate Islamic Parties Key Players in Indonesia Elections

July 14, 2014

Moderate Islamist parties declaring their commitment to religious freedom and non-sectarian politics are emerging as a key player in Indonesia's presidential election race, declaring their support for the candidate of the front-running opposition party to the presidential incumbent.
Nigeria's Islamist Extremism Threatens Human Rights and Economic Development

July 14, 2014

The abduction and sale of Nigerian schoolgirls by Islamist militant group Boko Haram is both a human rights calamity and, according to global finance experts, a "catastrophe" for the Nigeria's economic development.
Pakistan's Blasphemy Politics Emboldens Religious Extremism

July 14, 2014

Pakistan's draconian religious blasphemy laws have been used to charge 68 lawyers whose protests against police brutality were met with accusations by a Sunni extremist leader of blasphemy against a 7th-century Sunni leader in Islam.
Islamist Extremists Declare Global Jihad with New Caliphate in Iraq and Syria

July 11, 2014

The Islamist extremist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria ("ISIS") has declared the restoration of the 7th-century caliphate in Iraq and Syria, stating that the establishment of the transnational "Islamic State" marks the inauguration of "a new era of international jihad."
New Caliph Calls for Muslims Worldwide to Join Jihad

July 11, 2014

The self-declared caliph of the new Islamic State (covering territories in Iraq and Syria) has called on Muslims worldwide to come to the caliphate and use it as a launching ground for global jihad.
Islamists Use Ramadan to Press Restrictions on Lebanese Society

July 11, 2014

Lebanese media report a spike in pressures from Islamist groups and conservative Muslim religious leaders using threats and violence to impose sharia requirements on all religious groups in Lebanese society during the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.
Al-Shabaab Ratchets up Terror Attacks During Ramadan

July 11, 2014

The radical Islamist group Al-Shabaab dedicated to imposing sharia law throughout Africa has staged a string of terror attacks in Somalia since the start of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, including assaults over the last few days against the presidential palace and parliamentary buildings.