What we desperately need at this point are inclusive policies to curb the influence of radical interpretations of religion.

The Paris attack seems like a strategic strike aimed to sharpen the existing polarization both in France and Europe in general.

While PEGIDA marches continue, thousands of people have repeatedly gathered for counter-rallies to protest PEGIDA.

This is an analysis that sees the success of the radical right not only as a critical challenge to, but also as a complex problem of, ‘mainstream’ politics and society.

The only way the U.S. can take a constructive role in the Middle East in the aftermath of the Arab uprisings is to follow a foreign policy that is realistic and geared towards restoring justice.

The majority of those who claim that the Arab Spring has become an Arab Winter due to the violence that erupted in reaction to the obscene movie also happen to think that the Arab Spring itself was a motion picture.

The migration and settlement of Turks and Muslims in Europe since the 1960s has irrevocably changed the social, cultural, religious and demographic landscape of European societies by transforming them into more ethnically heterogeneous and diverse political communities.

There is no doubt that the presence of Muslims in many European countries has changed the demographic and religious landscape of the West.

The 20-year rivalry between Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei (above), who is the guardian of the Islamist regime, and Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the chairman of the Assembly of Experts, came to a head in the recent conflict in Iran. The latest developments in Iran following the recent highly disputed presidential elections have created a wishful political atmosphere which has been characterized by hasty conclusions.

A new Pew report has brought alarming news: Anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim attitudes are on the rise in Europe. While the negative view of Muslims is higher than that of Jews, there is an interesting correlation between the two.

According to the US News & World Report (Sept. 27), President Bush uses the words “Islamic terrorist” with a clear agenda: the words “extremism,” “radical” and “Muslim” do not have the same dramatic tone as “Islamist terrorist.” The report says that while Bush has lightened up on using the word “Islamic” before terrorists, the advisers said in the background that the word should always be used because Americans believe that “Islamists” are those who act on terrorist threats. Words to avoid are “Muslim,” “extremist” and “radicals.”

According to Louise Arbour, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, bigotry and prejudice against Muslims is increasing in Europe. Arbour made a call to all governments to take action against racism and discrimination towards Muslim communities. Arbour’s remarks are based on a recent study by Doudou Diene of Senegal.

An important meeting was held in İstanbul last week. The conference, called “Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Youth Work,” was co-organized by the Council of Europe and the Islamic Conference Youth Forum for Dialogue and Cooperation (ICYF-DC), which was started by member nations of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC). As part of the “All Different, All Equal” campaign program, the conference brought together about 200 participants, all young people, from Muslim and European countries.

The picture was clear and symbolic: on the EU’s 50th birthday German Chancellor Angela Merkel presented as a gift to French President Jacques Chirac a cup with a depiction of Napoleon’s invasion of Alexandria in 1798. Never mind that Turkey, as a candidate country, has not been invited to the party. Never mind either the fact that the current EU president, Merkel, has nothing to hide in her opposition to EU’s membership.

1-2 July, 2006 Ceylan Intercontinental Hotel, Istanbul / TURKEY

Current developments and recent social and cultural transformations under the forces of globalization indicate that the prophecy of traditional secularization thesis seems to have failed to capture the ongoing influence of religion. Proponents of secularization thesis established an unavoidable and casual connection between the beginning of modernity and the decline of traditional forms of religious life. Generally speaking theorists of secularization process argued that religion would lose its influence on social and political life once the society absorbs the values and institutions of modernization. For B. Wilson for example “secularization relates to the diminution in the social significance of religion”. L. Shiner on the other hand, argued that the culmination of secularization would be religionless society.