RELIGION:    Headscarves Now on German Minds
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BERLIN, Aug 5  (IPS) - After a period of what many felt was collective  suspicion, Germany's Muslims are  searching new ways of  recovering identity.
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A growing religious movement sees potential to shift a blue state's hue.
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A German-language mouthpiece for al  Qaeda has re-emerged on the Internet, vowing to defy the  authorities despite this month&#39;s arrest of suspects linked to  it in Austria and Canada.
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BERLIN, Sep 28 (IPS) - German politicians met Muslim leaders this week for  an unprecedented Islam Conference -- a debate that the government  hopes will pave the way for smoother integration of the  country's Muslims, even though community representatives  warn that more needs to be done.
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The German state of Bavaria is the latest federal states to ban Muslim school teachers from wearing headscarves.
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For nearly 60 years, the weekly newsmagazine Der Spiegel has tweaked the powers that be in Germany, with aggressive investigative reporting and a prickly, iconoclastic style that has made it the most feared and ...
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The relations of French officialdom have been uneasy of late. First there was the matter of the headscarf, which has been followed by a row over whether or not to ban broadcasts by the Al-Manar (The Beacon
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The veil that cloaks the head of Zafran Mukanwali is a modest symbol of a potentially dramatic shift in religious affiliation in Africa.
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The kaffiyeh, traditional Arab headgear, becomes a style statement.
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ANKARA, Feb 11 (IPS) - Thanks to an alliance between the ruling Justice  and Development (AK) and Nationalist Action (MH) parties, the  Turkish Grand National Assembly has approved legislation to lift  the ban on wearing the Muslim headscarf for female students at  universities.
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Pope Benedict may have prayed with a  mufti in Istanbul's Blue Mosque, but that doesn't mean that  Catholic children in his native Germany can follow his example  when they gather for pre-Christmas festivities at their  schools.
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ROME (Der Spiegel) - Echoes of an old culture war have been rippling through Europe, as a bishop in Germany calls for Catholics to keep their kids away from a sex-education musical and the Vatican condemns a new gay-rights campaign in Italy. A children's musical about sex and babies, organized by the German government, has been touring the country since 2003 without noticeable friction. But now it's arrived in the city of Fulda, near Frankfurt, and the local bishop has called for a boycott. The Fairytale of Nose, Belly and Butt should be avoided by right-thinking Catholic families, according to Heinz Josef Algermissen, because in the Church's view, "explanations about sexuality belong in the home," and "can't be left to a theater troupe." The show's Web site begs to differ, saying the theory behind the project is that humans are "sexual beings from birth onward," and that children experience "smooching and touching genitals as no less fun or significant than tickling their big toe." Uproar in Italy, too This notion of human sexuality is no doubt as offensive to the Church as the idea that humans might be wired from birth to be straight or gay - which is the assumption behind an Italian ad campaign protested recently by the Vatican. The regional government of Tuscany has planned to use a photo of a newborn child wearing a hospital bracelet with the word "homosexual" as part of a publicity push to combat homophobia. "Sexual orientation," reads the tag line, which will appear on billboards throughout Tuscany, "is not a choice."  Italy's political right, along with some Catholic groups, want the campaign to be withdrawn. The Church's declared position is that homosexuality is a psychological disorder, not exactly a sin - although indulging in gay sex is a sin.
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BERLIN - A German cardinal has sparked outrage by warning that modern culture is at risk of descending into "degeneracy," a term that is strongly connected with the persecution of artists by the Nazis.
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PARIS, Aug 30  - The French government said on Monday it planned to go ahead with the introduction this week of a ban on Islamic headscarves and other religious insignia in schools, despite an ultimatum from extremists holding two French journalists
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KIGALI/NAIROBI  - The veil that cloaks the head of  Zafran Mukanwali is a modest symbol of a potentially dramatic  shift in religious affiliation in Africa.
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The German press reacts with shock to the arrest of suspected Islamists allegedly involved in a major bomb plot.
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Germany, fearful of being the next major target for Islamic terrorists, is edging away from its deep aversion to intrusive and harsh enforcement tactics.