Latest news with #CoordinationofMuslimAssociationsofParis
Ya Biladi
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
Representatives of Muslim groups received by Macron following Islamophobic attack
Representatives of Muslim institutions in France were received on Tuesday, April 29, by President Emmanuel Macron, following the Islamophobic attack in La Grand-Combe. After the murder of Aboubakar Cissé in a mosque, the organizations denounced the «prevailing Islamophobic climate», often «amplified without restraint by certain media and political figures». According to a statement from the presidential entourage to AFP, the Head of State met with the rector of the Grand Mosque of Paris and the president of the Coordination of Muslim Associations of Paris to «express the Nation's support». During the meeting, Macron declared that «racism and hatred based on religion will never have a place in France», and reaffirmed that the Republic «guarantees freedom of conscience and the free exercise of worship», according to the same source. In a joint communiqué, the two Muslim institutions confirmed that the president had reiterated the «inviolability» of freedom of worship and announced upcoming measures «to strengthen the protection of places of worship». Chems-eddine Hafiz, rector of the Grand Mosque of Paris, and Najat Benali, president of the Coordination of Muslim Associations of Paris and rector of the Javel Mosque, said they had conveyed «the growing sense of anger and fear felt by many Muslims» across the country. In their written statement, the two representatives emphasized that the authorities' «failure to classify» the murder of 22-year-old Malian national Aboubakar Cissé as a terrorist act reinforces «a sense of unequal treatment and a troubling double standard». Meanwhile, the Forum of Islam in France (FORIF) has requested a meeting with Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau for a «discussion session» that had already been scheduled «since mid-April». On Tuesday, a minute of silence was observed in the National Assembly in memory of Aboubakar Cissé.
Morocco World
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
Macron Defends Religious Freedom Amid Rising Normalization of Islamophobia
Rabat – President Emmanuel Macron has denounced the killing of a Muslim man in a mosque in France, claiming that racism and religious hatred 'will never have a place in France.' Macron's office told AFP that the French President wanted to meet with Muslim representatives, including the rector of the Grand Mosque of Paris and the president of the Coordination of Muslim Associations of Paris, to 'engage in dialogue and express the nation's support.' This came just a week after the heinous murder of Aboubaker Cisse, a Malian man who was stabbed 40 to 50 times by an Islamophobic individual who fled the scene to Italy before he turned himself in to Italian police on Sunday last week. He killed Cisse in cold blood in a mosque and filmed the murder, promising to kill more. During the meeting held on Tuesday, Macron reportedly reaffirmed France's commitment to guarantee freedom of conscience and religious practice for all its citizens and residents. The grand mosque and the Muslim association said Macron emphasized the 'inviolable nature of religious freedom,' announcing that measures will be taken to strengthen the protection of places of worship. They also conveyed Muslims' frustration and concern following the heinous murder and the widespread climate of Islamophobia, which is also backed by certain media and political figures. They further criticized the authorities' decision not to classify the perpetrator involved in the killing of Cisse as an act of terrorism. Islamophobia continues to strike a nerve and frustrate Muslims across Europe, particularly France, where officials frequently also make anti-Muslim remarks and restrictions. France's senate decided to ban the weakening of the hijab at sports events, sparking controversy and uproar among Muslims and commentators from around the world in 2022. Several similar controversies emerged as French MPs have long shown hostility toward people wearing the hijab in the parliament. In 2020, MPs left a parliament meeting over a student wearing a hijab. In 2019, some MPs provoked a similar outrage for asking a Muslim woman to remove her veil while taking part in a plenary meeting of the Regional Council of Burgundy-Franche-Comté. The French law on secularity and conspicuous religious symbols in schools also bans wearing religious symbols in French public primary and secondary schools. Islamophobic attacks are not limited to Cisse's heinous murder. On Monday, a 26-year-old woman filed a complaint after she was attacked in Poissy in the Ile-de-France region in north central France. An unidentified perpetrator assaulted her, tearing off her hijab. According to the news website Le Parisien, a total of 79 anti-Muslim acts were recorded between January and March this year. The number represents a 72% increase compared to the same period in 2024. Hundreds of other cases, if not thousands, could be unaccounted for, in the case of the absence of official complaints. Tags: France islamophobiaIslamophebia
