Religion

RIGHTS-US: Some Guantanamo Prisoners Fight Release

By IPS Correspondents
As 13 prisoners held at the U.S. naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba appeared set to finally win their freedom, others are asking their release to be deferred.

MEXICO: Priests Targeted in Drug-Related and Other Violence

By Emilio Godoy
The priesthood has joined journalism as one of the most dangerous occupations in Mexico, according to a report by the Roman Catholic Bishops' Conference.

EGYPT: Christians Split Over Presidential Scion

By Adam Morrow
Leaders of Egypt's Coptic Christian Church have voiced support for Gamal Mubarak, son of President Hosni Mubarak, as preferred candidate for president. Concurrently, however, some Coptic activists are calling for demonstrations against what they see as official state bias against Christians.

HEALTH: Swine Flu Hits Ramadan Gatherings

By Cam McGrath
Muslims marked the start of the fasting month of Ramadan Saturday, but the global H1N1 pandemic has put a damper on religious festivities throughout the Middle East.

U.S.: ‘Civility Project’, Style Over Substance?

By Bill Berkowitz
Every year during August recess, many members of the U.S. Congress go back to their districts and hold town hall meetings to get a sense of what their constituents are thinking about, and to apprise them of upcoming legislation.

FILM-COLOMBIA: A Priest’s Passion for Justice

By Helda Martínez
The latest film out of Colombia is based on the true story of a priest in a rural town whose passions include a search for justice in an area that, like so many in this civil war-torn country, is hemmed in by armed groups, whether far-right paramilitaries, leftist guerrillas or state security forces.

POLITICS-US: Court Reins in Terror Finance Policy

By IPS Correspondents
A federal court this week ruled for the first time that the U.S. government cannot freeze an organisation's assets under a terror financing law without a warrant based upon probable cause and without telling the organisation the basis for its action and a meaningful opportunity to defend itself.

GERMANY: Terror Plot Emerges as Secret Service Game

By Julio Godoy
It was announced as a terror plot busted. German police had captured three young Muslim men in the small village Medebach-Oberschledor, some 450 km southwest of Berlin Sep. 4 in 2007. The police declared they had seized 730 kilograms of hydrogen peroxide, enough to make 550 kg of explosives.

POPULATION: UNFPA Partners With Faith-Based Groups

By IPS Correspondents
The United Nations has realised that if it wants to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, it will have to partner with like-minded faith-based organisations (FBOs).
Condoms on banners at ICAAP. Credit: Johanna Son/IPS

HEALTH-ASIA: Where Are the Religious Leaders?

By Lynette Lee Corporal
"Thank God for condoms!" Donald Messer of the U.S.-based Centre of Church and Global AIDS declared during one of the many sessions at an AIDS conference for the Asia-Pacific, which ended here Thursday.

MOROCCO: The Berber Dance Is Over

By Daan Bauwens
The satellite receiver has speeded up the process of wiping out the cultural heritage of Morocco's Berbers. Old traditions are now dying out under the influence of television imams.

IRAQ: Chance of a Breakthrough With the Kurds?

By Mohammed A. Salih
A recent meeting between Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Kurdish President Massoud Barzani appears to be a crucial step in lowering tensions in the country, but it has also prompted questions as to whether the two leaders can put an end to their differences.
AIDS campaigner Correa Mint Sidi has been publicly condemned in her community for her work. Credit: Ebrima Sillah/IPS

HEALTH: Fighting AIDS in Conservative Mauritania

By Ebrima Sillah
Campaigners against HIV/AIDS in Mauritania face an uphill task to put their messages across, especially those that deal with safer sex and condom use. Campaigners have to cut corners in order to avoid angering the country's powerful religious clerics.

MIDEAST: ‘Lay Not Thine Hand Upon the Boy’

By IPS Correspondents
"And He said, Lay not thine hand upon the boy, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God" (Genesis 22:12). Not so much in fear of God as in fear of their own conscience, Israeli leaders have given temporary relief to hundreds of children of foreign workers who were facing deportation with their parents.

RELIGION-NIGERIA: Poverty, Frustration Fuel Sectarian Violence

By Toye Olori
The sectarian violence which broke out in several parts of northern Nigeria at the end of July has more to do with popular anger and frustration with prevailing economic conditions than religion, say religious experts and Muslim groups. Concerns have also been raised about the reaction of security forces.

MIDEAST: Obama Maneuvres Between Jewish Israelis, Jewish Americans

By Helena Cobban
Pres. Barack Obama has repeatedly declared himself a close friend of Israel. But many Israelis inside and outside their country's government have now expressed concern about the lack of closeness, or even just of attention, with which they feel Obama is treating them.

MOROCCO: New Law, But the Same Old Men

By Daan Bauwens
The new Moroccan family law was designed to give women equal rights in the family. But five years after its introduction, Moroccan women leaders say opposition to the law from politicians and within the judicial system persists, and the new law has not been able to change Moroccan mentality.

EGYPT: Christian-Muslim Tensions Rise

By Adam Morrow
A handful of recent clashes between Muslims and Christians has again raised the spectre of sectarian discord in Egypt. The incidents, though relatively minor, highlight longstanding tensions between the country's Muslim majority and its Christian minority.

BOSNIA: Not at Peace With Itself

By Zoltán Dujisin
Apart from sporadic civil society initiatives, Bosnia has attempted little by way of inter-ethnic reconciliation.

US-IRAQ: Kurds Caught Up in Biden’s Diplomatic Offensive

By Mohammed A. Salih
The indefinite postponement of a referendum on Iraqi Kurdistan's controversial draft constitution just days after a visit by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has given rise to speculation that Washington may have played a role in the delay.

FILM: Graphically Condemning a “Barbaric and Horrific Punishment”

By IPS Correspondents
Director Cyrus Nowrasteh's latest feature film "The Stoning of Soraya M." begins with a car radio blaring the successes of Iran's 1979 Revolution.
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