Category Archives: UK

EDL planning march against Islamic school in Portsmouth

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A March through Portsmouth has been prompted by the proposed opening of a Muslim school. The English Defence League (EDL) will be marching from Fratton to the Madani Academy, in Buckland, to show their disapproval of such a school being built in Portsmouth. The Muslim-only school is expected to open later this year.

Mickey Bayliss, the EDL’s regional organiser for the South West said that the school will cause Muslim children to be segregated from the community.

The 46-year-old said: “We have decided to hold a protest because of the new school opening in Portsmouth. We do not agree with having a school just for Muslims. The parents have chosen to bring their children to England or have them brought up here and they shouldn’t be left segregated to a one-faith school. We will have Sikhs and black people at the protest so we are not about being racist.”

The EDL will not be the only group protesting on Saturday. The Unite Against Fascism group will also be holding a march in the city centre from midday.

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Counter the EDL/SDL across the country this Saturday

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The EDL has called a number of regional demonstrations across the country this weekend, with the obvious hope of building for a big turnout in Tower Hamlets next month. They plan to march in Edinburgh, Hull, and Portsmouth this Saturday, 17th August. Local UAF groups are mobilising with broad forces to ensure that there is an anti-fascist/anti-racist presence in these areas on the day.

In Edinburgh we are urging activists from across Scotland to stop the SDL from marching upon the annual Edinburgh Festival. This is a clear affront to the multicultural and diverse nature of the festival and must be resisted!

Below are assembly details for each protest:

Edinburgh:
Oppose the SDL march through the heart of Edinburgh during the festival.
Saturday 17 August
Assemble 12pm
Chambers Street, Edinburgh city centre. Scotland-wide mobilisation.

Hull:
Saturday 17 August
Assemble 11am
Pearson Park Mosque, (corner of Park Road & Pearson Park). Supported by Hull TUC.

Portsmouth:
Saturday 17 August
Assemble 12pm
Meet at the Fountain, Commercial Road, Portsmouth.

UAF news report, 13 August 2013

David Cameron says high-level taskforce to tackle violence against Muslims

Posted on by Bob Pitt

David Cameron at Jamia Mosque

A high-level taskforce set up by David Cameron to tackle extremism will focus on violence against Muslims at its next meeting, the Prime Minister has said. The move comes after a wave of attacks on mosques and Islamic centres following the murder of soldier Lee Rigby in Woolwich in May.

Mr Cameron said the next meeting of the tackling extremism and radicalisation taskforce would be “looking at the problem of violence against Muslim communities”. He told The Muslim News: “I condemn these attacks absolutely, but more important than condemnation is action. I think we can say that this Government has taken action. The police have acted very robustly in response to these attacks.”

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Police investigate criminal damage at a Neath mosque

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Tonna Mosque vandalismFour windows have been smashed overnight at a mosque in a village near Neath, leaving broken glass along a busy walkway. The religious building, at St Anne’s Terrace, Tonna, was damaged in the early hours of this morning.

Police have been on the scene in the village throughout the morning, questioning neighbours and passers by. A spokesman for South Wales Police confirmed officers were investigating a criminal damage incident at the site, which occurred at 1.10am. “Enquires are ongoing at this time,” said a spokesman.

Anyone with any information regarding the incident is asked to contact South Wales Police on 101 quoting incident number 103 of 10 August 2013.

South Wales Evening Post, 10 August 2013

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Richard Dawkins criticised for Twitter comment about Muslims

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Dawkins Nobels Prizes tweets

The outspoken atheist Richard Dawkins was involved in an online Twitter row on Thursday after tweeting: “All the world’s Muslims have fewer Nobel Prizes than Trinity College, Cambridge. They did great things in the Middle Ages, though.”

As users piled in to criticise him, the scientist continued: “Why mention Muslim Nobels rather than any other group? Because we so often hear boasts about (a) their total numbers and (b) their science.”

His other posts included: “You can attack someone for his opinion. But for simply stating an intriguing fact? Who would guess that a single Cambridge College” and “Muslims aren’t a race. What they have in common is a religion. Rather than Trinity, would you prefer the comparison with Jews? Google it.”

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Huntingdon mosque attacker jailed for four weeks

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A plasterer who smashed a window at a mosque in Huntingdon with a chair has been jailed. Gary Abbott, of no fixed abode, was arrested near Huntingdon Islamic Education and Prayer Centre in Coneygear Road on Thursday, May 30.

The 45-year-old was charged with racial or religiously aggravated criminal damage and was released on bail, only to return to the mosque on Sunday, June 2, when he was heard to shout obscenities. He was re-arrested and charged with religiously aggravated harassment.

Abbott admitted causing criminal damage but initially denied the harassment charge. He appeared at Huntingdon Magistrates’ Court on Friday, July 26 and was sentenced to two weeks in prison for each offence, to be served consecutively.

Hunts Post, 7 August 2013

‘This is a Muslim area and we don’t want to see that’: Mob pelts brothers-in-law wearing mankinis on sponsored walk with stones and accuses them of being paedophiles

Posted on by Bob Pitt

That’s the headline to another Muslim-bashing article in the Daily Mail. Over at Zelo Street Tim Fenton expresses scepticism about the whole story, noting that the Mail has overlooked the far-right links of the individuals involved.

‘Gammongate’ fraud exposed

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The right-wing press spent several days last week whipping up indignation over the sacking of school dinner lady Alison Waldock, allegedly because she accidentally served pork to a 7-year-old Muslim pupil.

Having initially been broken by the Sun, the story was then taken up by the Express and the Mail. Never one to miss an opportunity for a spot of self-promotion and engage in a bit of immigrant-bashing, Nigel Farage of the UK Independence Party spelled out the message that the press coverage was intended to convey: “The reason that Alison’s been sacked is that we’re so terrified in this country of causing offence to anybody, particularly the Muslim religion.”

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