Islam in Media Roundup 1-7 July

Just 22 mosques given funding for hate crime security last year

Just 22 mosques given funding for hate crime security last year

The Guardian

Widespread distrust of the Home Office’s counter-extremism strategy by British Muslims has been cited as one of the obstacles to mosques using a government scheme to protect places of worship from hate crime, after figures showed just 22 received funding last year.
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Mohammed bin Salman Is Making Muslims Boycott Mecca

Mohammed bin Salman Is Making Muslims Boycott Mecca

Foreign Policy

The Saudi crown prince’s regional aggression and disdain for human rights have prompted religious scholars and pious pilgrims to refuse to go on the hajj. 
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Saudi scholar Alaoudh: 'MBS is not Saudi Arabia'

Saudi scholar Alaoudh: 'MBS is not Saudi Arabia'

Al Jazeera

The son of jailed Muslim cleric Salman al-Awdah talks to Al Jazeera on Khashoggi’s murder and the erosion of rights and liberties under crown prince Mohammad bin Salman.
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Women discuss what it’s like to wear a hijab

Women discuss what it’s like to wear a hijab

The Detroit News

Five American women share their feelings and experiences on wearing the hijab. “Hijab is part of me, a part of who I am, something I can call basically home,” said Saeda Sulieman, a college student. “If I don’t wear the hijab, I feel less secure, less powerful.”
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Daughter of Islamic scholar al-Qaradawi remanded in Egypt again

Daughter of Islamic scholar al-Qaradawi remanded in Egypt again

Al Jazeera

Ola al-Qaradawi was arrested hours after her release in a previous case and now faces charges of ‘joining a terrorist group’.
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Halal holidays: Sun, sea and seclusion appeal to women

Halal holidays: Sun, sea and seclusion appeal to women

Middle East Eye

Islamic resorts have proven popular, promising high-end comfort, seclusion and destinations where Muslims are unlikely to face racism and discrimination. Resorts are expected to adhere to Islamic values, including prayer facilities and alcohol-free zones.
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Malaysian children in practice run for Muslim hajj

Malaysian children in practice run for Muslim hajj

France 24

Thousands of Malaysian children took part in a practice run Thursday of the Muslim hajj pilgrimage, marching around a model of the holy Kaaba, Islam’s most sacred site.
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Tunisia bans face veils in public institutions after bombing

Tunisia bans face veils in public institutions after bombing

Al Jazeera

Tunisian Prime Minister Youssef Chahed has banned the wearing of the niqab – a full-face veil – in public institutions with immediate effect, citing security reasons.
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Wahhabism confronted: Sri Lanka curbs Saudi influence after bombings

Wahhabism confronted: Sri Lanka curbs Saudi influence after bombings

Reuters

Sri Lanka is moving to curtail Saudi Arabian influence, after some politicians and Buddhist monks blamed the spread of the kingdom’s ultra-conservative Wahhabi school of Islam for planting the seeds of militancy that culminated in deadly Easter bomb attacks.
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Muslims in Sri Lankan highlands to down shutters as hardline Buddhists meet

Muslims in Sri Lankan highlands to down shutters as hardline Buddhists meet

Reuters

Shops owned by Muslim traders in the Sri Lankan central highlands district of Kandy will remain closed on Sunday as thousands of hardline Buddhist monks gather to decide who to back in the country’s upcoming presidential elections.
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After Sri Lankan attacks, Muslims face boycotts and violence

After Sri Lankan attacks, Muslims face boycotts and violence

The Washington Post

Sri Lankan Muslims are a religious minority in a predominantly Buddhist country. In the wake of the devastating April attacks — carried out by local Islamist extremists — the entire community has braced itself for retaliation.
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Netflix and the Middle East: How Jinn became a nightmare

Netflix and the Middle East: How Jinn became a nightmare

Middle East Eye

Jinn, a Jordanian production, has been greeted with near-unanimous negative reviews and widespread censure from public institutions and Islamic groups in the kingdom since its release in June, chiefly for a tame kiss and overt foul language which many believe presents an unrepresentative view of society.
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Rami Malek: Bond terrorist 'not driven by religion'

Rami Malek: Bond terrorist 'not driven by religion'

BBC News

Egyptian-American actor Rami Malek has revealed he only agreed to play a James Bond villain after he was assured the character would have no religious or ideological affiliations
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Man Is Charged in Twitter Threat to Lynch Muslim Lawyer

Man Is Charged in Twitter Threat to Lynch Muslim Lawyer

The New York Times

Qasim Rashid, who is running for a seat in Virginia’s State Senate, said, “As a person of color, as an immigrant and as a Muslim, to speak publicly about your faith and to receive death threats is not uncommon.”
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Gay, Muslim, Thai: artist caught in tug of war

Gay, Muslim, Thai: artist caught in tug of war

Reuters

“Being queer is part of my identity; being Muslim is also part of my identity.” Artist Samak Kosem says, “But many Muslim LGBT+ people feel conflicted because of their religion, family, and society’s expectations of what it means to be Muslim.”
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Indonesian women who brought dog into mosque faces blasphemy case

Indonesian women who brought dog into mosque faces blasphemy case

The New Arab

An Indonesian women who brought a dog into a mosque is being accused of blasphemy, a criminal offence in Indonesia with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
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Under Modi, Hindus Find Hope for a Temple on Disputed Speck of Land

Under Modi, Hindus Find Hope for a Temple on Disputed Speck of Land

The New York Times

In 1992, Hindu activists demolished a 16th-century mosque, the Babri Masjid, a reminder of India’s history under Mughal rule. They were spurred by the belief that Ram, a widely revered deity, was born thousands of years ago on the same spot.
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Hindutva Ignores the Impact Dharma and Islam Had on Each Other in India

Hindutva Ignores the Impact Dharma and Islam Had on Each Other in India

The Wire

Prem Shankar Jha points out the selective memory of Hindu nationalist movements. Their followers harp endlessly about the damage the Muslim invaders did to the Hindu polity and society, but they choose to ignore the fact that the same Muslim dynasties saved India from the greatest scourge of the Middle Ages – the Mongol invasions that ravaged Europe.
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Indian actress draws fire for quitting over Islamic faith

Indian actress draws fire for quitting over Islamic faith

Reuters

Muslim Bollywood actress Zaira Wasim, 18, who is best known for her role as a wrestler in the 2016 film Dangal, announced her “disassociation” from acting on Sunday.
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Zaira Wasim's decision to quit Bollywood 'for faith' stirs debate

Zaira Wasim's decision to quit Bollywood 'for faith' stirs debate

Al Jazeera

The Kashmiri teenager’s decision to stop acting in films since it clashes with her Islamic faith has sparked a massive debate on social media.
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What the Zaira Wasim controversy reveals about contemporary India

What the Zaira Wasim controversy reveals about contemporary India

Al Jazeera

The teenage Muslim actress’s decision to quit Bollywood for her faith reasons brought India’s Islamophobia to the fore.
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In Turkey, demography is a brake on Islamisation

In Turkey, demography is a brake on Islamisation

The Economist

Turkey’s government has made no secret of its desire to encourage more piety, especially among young people, but why have the efforts to build a more devout society failed?
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Turkey's President Erdogan claims Muslim Uighur minority 'live happily' in China, despite abuse reports

Turkey's President Erdogan claims Muslim Uighur minority 'live happily' in China, despite abuse reports

The New Arab

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his Chinese counterpart President Xi Jinping that ethnic minorities live happily in Xinjiang, in what would be a stark reversal of Ankara’s past criticism of Beijing’s crackdown in the region.
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China accused of rapid campaign to take Muslim children from their families

China accused of rapid campaign to take Muslim children from their families

The Guardian

China is reportedly separating Muslim children from their families, religion and language, and is engaged in a rapid, large-scale campaign to build boarding schools for them.
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China denies Muslim separation campaign in Xinjiang

China denies Muslim separation campaign in Xinjiang

BBC News

A BBC report found that hundreds of children from the Uighur minority ethnic group had had both parents detained, either in camps or in prison. But China’s ambassador to the UK has denied that Muslim children in western Xinjiang are being systematically separated from their parents.
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Reporter on China's treatment of Uighur Muslims: 'This is absolute Orwellian style surveillance'

Reporter on China's treatment of Uighur Muslims: 'This is absolute Orwellian style surveillance'

CBS News

A new documentary by VICE News correspondent Isobel Yeung sheds light on this draconian policy instituted by the Chinese government. Yeung talked to CBS News on Wednesday about her experience in China.
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China locks down Xinjiang a decade after deadly ethnic riots

China locks down Xinjiang a decade after deadly ethnic riots

AP

A decade after deadly riots tore through his hometown, Kamilane Abudushalamu still vividly recalls the violence that left him an exile.
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Prevent is stopping free speech on campus and demonizing Muslims

Prevent is stopping free speech on campus and demonizing Muslims

The Guardian

Many staff and students at universities across Britain have welcomed condemnation of the chilling effect the government’s counter-terrorism strategy is having on free speech on campuses.
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Conservative Party is in complete denial about its Islamophobia problem – just look at Boris Johnson if you need proof

Conservative Party is in complete denial about its Islamophobia problem – just look at Boris Johnson if you need proof

The Conversation

As Rashida Bibi explains, Boris Johnson, the frontrunner to become the UK’s next Prime Minister, has downgraded his promise to hold an independent inquiry into Islamophobia in the Tory party if elected as leader. This will now be just a “general investigation”. Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised.
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Maydan editors selected some of the most thought-provoking news items on issues around Islam, religion and public-life for you. Let us know what you have been reading. Drop us a line at mediaroundups@themaydan.com!