CENTRE for RELIGIOUS PLURALISM in the MIDDLE EAST

A bipartisan U.S. federal government commission that monitors the universal right to freedom of religion abroad.

Secretary-General's message to International Conference on Religious and Cultural Pluralism and Peaceful Co-existence in the Middle East [Delivered by Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria Staffan de Mistura]

Athens, Greece, 18 October 2015

Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ has ordered an Alevi council to be established within the ministry to consult with Alevi opinion leaders to find solutions to the cemevi problem of the Alevi community in Turkey.

The Future of Religious Pluralism in the Middle East

Abstract

Andrew Doran, special advisor at In Defense of Christians, Faith McDonnell, director of the religious liberty program at the Institute on Religion and Democracy, and David Saperstein, ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom at the U.S. Department of State, join National Public Radio's Thomas Gjelten to discuss the state of religious pluralism in the Middle East. The

The rise of ISIS and other Muslim extremist groups in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia has brought horrific persecution of non-Muslims — Christians, Jews and other religious minorities. Now, a group of Islamic scholars, Muslim leaders and government ministers from Muslim-majority countries has promised to work together to protect those minorities, saying Islam forbids religious persecution.

The government is preparing a reform package that will expand freedoms and end restrictions on identity-related issues, sources from the Prime Ministry have said. Accordingly, the new reform package to be introduced by the end of February will address issues related to cultural rights of the Kurdish population, minorities and some religious groups.

Istanbul's Neve Şalom synagogue hosted a historic wedding ceremony on Sunday night. For the first time, it was the scene of a Jewish wedding ceremony officiated by a local official. A large crowd of guests and prominent names in the Turkish Jewish community attended the ceremony at the synagogue in the city's Beyoğlu district. Murat Hazinedar, mayor of Beşiktaş, officiated the wedding of Selin Saporta and Vedat Peranva after chief rabbi İsak Haleva married the couple in a religious

In 1924, a year after founding the Turkish Republic on the ruins of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the country’s new leader, abolished the Ottoman Caliphate, which had been the last remaining Sunni Islamic Caliphate since 1517. Having introduced a secular constitution and a Western-style civil and criminal legal code, Atatürk shut down the dervish lodges and religious schools, abolished polygamy, and introduced civil marriage and a national beauty contest. He granted women the

In 1924, a year after founding the Turkish Republic on the ruins of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the country’s new leader, abolished the Ottoman Caliphate, which had been the last remaining Sunni Islamic Caliphate since 1517. Having introduced a secular constitution and a Western-style civil and criminal legal code, Atatürk shut down the dervish lodges and religious schools, abolished polygamy, and introduced civil marriage and a national beauty contest. He granted women the

See below for the WCA's appeal to the Members of the European Parliament, requesting them to vote tomorrow, 4 February 2016, in favor of the Motion for the European Parliament resolution on the systematic mass murder of religious minorities by ISIS. When ISIS emptied the Aramean people from the Nineveh plains in north Iraq, on 6/7 August 2014, the

MEPs urge the international community to take urgent action to counter the systematic mass murder of religious minorities by the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or Daesh, in a resolution voted on Thursday.

There is a rising tide of religious persecution emerging worldwide and it disproportionately threatens religious minority groups.

The Association of Protestant Churches has published reports since 2007 which explain the situation of Protestant churches in Turkey. The Association of Protestant Churches gives importance to the freedom of religion and belief for all people everywhere, and makes an effort to ensure this becomes reality. In order to serve this purpose, the Association desires to prepare and distribute this annual monitoring report which describes the Protestant community’s situation. In particular, we

More than 90 mosques across the UK have opened their doors to visitors to allow Muslims to "explain their faith beyond the hostile headlines".

Rising religious freedom abuses represent a challenge beyond the capabilities of any one government or organisation. But recent collective action efforts give cause for hope, writes Knox Thames.