The appeal, entitled "#MockingGod", is aimed at cartoonists and caricaturists from all over the world. The best drawings are to be published in the satirical magazine to mark the tenth anniversary of the terrorist attack.

On 7 January 2015, Islamist terrorists broke into the editorial offices of "Charlie Hebdo" and killed twelve people. The magazine had previously published cartoons of Muhammad.

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A University of Otago, Christchurch study found more than 60 percent of participants from the Christchurch Muslim community suffered from mental health conditions such as PTSD and depression in the wake of the attacks.

At least 250 survivors were present in the mosques, 51 people were killed and another 40 sustained non-fatal gunshot injuries, when a white supremacist gunman opened fire during Friday juma'a (congregational) prayers on March 15, 2019. Read more

Peter Malinauskas has joined forces with NSW Premier Chris Minns to stage a summit in October to debate tighter and higher age restrictions for social media use, including penalties for digital publishers that fail to comply.

The first iteration of the SA plan would impose a blanket ban on all children under the age of 14 who have access to a social media account, and it would require parental consent for children aged 14 and 15.

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Emmanual and another priest injured while trying to defend him were rushed to hospital after the incident.

The 16-year old offender was arrested at the scene.

"I think Bishop Mari will forgive the person who did this and will also expect him to be judged under the law" Syriac Catholic priest Fr Lenard Ina says.

"I know him personally and am convinced he will forgive his attacker, just as Pope John Paul II forgave the man who tried to kill him.

"He would want people to stay calm and let the police and governments do their work.

"I know his personality and I think he will use what has happened to him to show the face of Jesus."

Emergency service workers attacked

The knife attack was only the start of the problem for Sydney's emergency workers.

Police and ambulance staff also became victims as crowds formed after the initial incident.

The scene was described to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, several Cabinet ministers and heads of the Australian Defence Force and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation when they met in Canberra on Tuesday.

They heard an "uncontrolled" crowd surge of between 50 and 500 people formed against "police officers ... doing their job".

Projectiles were thrown at officers, vehicles were damaged and property stolen during the "public order incident".

NSW Ambulance said it attended to 30 patients in the crowd.

However ambulance staff "became directly under threat" and six were forced to retreat to safety in the church for three-and-a-half hours.

Faith leaders unite

NSW Premier Chris Minns says the attack is being investigated as an act of terrorism.

He and the Minister for Multiculturalism convened a meeting of faith leaders representing religious communities across Western Sydney.

They later issued the following statement which all NSW Faith Affairs Council endorsed:

"Places of worship are places of peace and prayer.

"The people who gather there should never feel threatened or unsafe, no matter what religion they follow.

"As faith leaders ... we stand united against all forms of hate and violence.

"Our prayers are with the victims and we call on our communities to extend our message of care and compassion to all.

"We have trust in our police and first responders and full confidence in their work.

"Police should never be attacked for keeping our communities safe.

"The scenes we witnessed after the attack are unacceptable to anyone, and especially to people of faith.

"For people of faith, religion is never a justification for violence.

"It has been a very difficult week but we are a strong community in New South Wales. We call on everyone to act with kindness and respect for each other.

"Now is the time to show that we are a caring and united community."

Source

• Catholic Weekly
• Echo
• ABC News

The Catholic Church in the Muslim-majority nation needs to better protect itself, police say.

Abboattabad parish priest Father Nasir William says: "We are being asked to hire private guards, install closed-circuit television cameras and raise the height of boundary walls of churches."

The fence is already 12 feet [3.6 meters] high, he notes.

Abboattabad is where al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden died in a US raid in 2011.

"All the churches in our diocese [Islamabad-Rawalpindi] have already adopted such security measures. The visits of security officials have become rampant, but the tragedies continue. What more can we do?" William asks.

TheKhyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government helps with security. It provides at least two police officers to escort priests and nuns. The province borders Taliban-ruled Afghanistan.

Country in turmoil

William says the Abboattabad police's July 30 instructions followed a suicide blast at a political rally in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The bomber targeted about 400 Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party members near a Bajaur market. Police say nearly 12 kilograms of explosives killed 54 people including 23 children.

On 31 July, the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) claimed responsibility for the bombing.

That attack was one of several such events recently. Economic and political turmoil has beset Pakistan since former prime minister Imran Khan was removed through a no-confidence motion in April 2022.

People are expected to go to the polls for new national and provincial assemblies within the next few months.

Church leaders respond

"The blast ... made existing tensions really come to the fore," Archbishop Joseph Arshad says.

"We strongly condemn the brutal attack where many innocent people have lost their lives and many got injuries. The people responsible must be brought to justice.

"All political leadership must push for a political solution so that democracy may flourish in our country.

"The Church has volunteers and the local administration is also providing security at churches. We continue to play our part to build peaceful coexistence in society."

James Rehmat, executive director of the Ecumenical Commission for Human Development is also condemning the pre-election violence.

"The deadly bombing at a political rally in the months running up to the general election poses a threat to our already fragile democracy and the ailing economy.

"Daesh [IS-K] is known for targeting vulnerable religious minorities. We call upon the government to bring the perpetrators to justice."

Source

• UCA News

The Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (RMP) have made a statement denouncing the criminal charges filed by the country's Department of Justice.

None of the allegations and charges were based on solid evidence. They "demonise the works of our religious congregation", a statement from the nuns says.

They describe the allegation of terrorist financing as "preposterous".

"All our projects and activities are well-documented, reported and accounted for.

"The accusations have negatively affected our various ministries in sustainable agriculture, education, health, environment protection and defence of humans.

"When our fight for the common good is at stake, especially the interests and rights of the poor and the marginalised, we must speak."

The criminal charges have been filed against 16 individuals including five RMP nuns.

The "non-bailable offence" alleges the nuns were donating and soliciting funds for the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed wing, the New People's Army.

The Justice Department defended pressing the charges. It says they are a result of the sisters failing to refute the allegations and charges against them.

The prosecutor was therefore led to believe there was probable cause to indict them of the charge, the Justice Department says.

The nuns however said their indictment was part of government repression to silence dissenters. It particularly silences critics of two political families accused of massive human rights violations.

It's part of the worsening state of repression against human rights defenders, they say, with the government using all its available resources to shut down the congregation for good.

The nuns are concerned about testimonies from two former members of the New People's Army. They allege their congregation had been helping terrorists in exchange for the release of the informant's mother.

They also noted that the method of extracting information from purported former communist members was a technique of the former Duterte administration against its critics.

The Marcos Jr's government is doing the same thing.

"They're demonising legal democratic organisations such as RMP which provide much-needed services to the people, and by putting its members in direct harm's way" the nuns' statement said.

Retired Bishop Arturo Bastes says by charging the nuns, the state is sending a "chilling warning" to Marcos and Duterte dissenters within the Catholic Church.

"The message is very clear. Those who want to criticise the present (Marcos) administration should think twice or suffer the consequence of facing criminal prosecution" he says.

Source

• Crux
• UCA News

Reports say a BMW driver, identified as Erojol Nako, a 39-year Albanian male, initially drew attention to himself when asked to stop in the Pantheon, a pedestrian area.

Fleeing at high speed through the streets of Rome Nako broke a total of three checkpoints barriers until he reached Via de la Conciliazione, which leads to Saint Peter's Square in the Vatican.

Approaching the Square Nako veered left around the columns flanking St Peters and into Piazza del Sant'Uffizio, where Swiss guards, fearing a terrorist attack, shut the gates leading into the Vatican.

After driving through what The Times describes as "a hail of police gunfire at the Vatican" the police eventually shot out two of the vehicle's tyres.

With his tyres shot out, Nako remained undeterred and escaped into nearby streets.

He was eventually chased down by police and Carabinieri who reportedly used a stun gun to collar him.

Police confirmed that Nako was known to them, that he has a criminal record and during the escapade was reportedly under the influence of drugs.

During the chase, and in an attempt not to be notified, Nako threw his wallet and watch out of the car window.

In a note of irony, Nako is said to believe he is the Archangel Michael. Michael the Archangel is the protector of police officers.

Niko has already appeared in court but has been transferred to hospital.

Media also report two police officers were injured as the driver attempted to ram them with the vehicle. They have been treated and discharged.

What prompted Nako to rush to the Vatican remains somewhat of a mystery.

Police and the Carabinieri found no weapons or offensive objects in his car and looking at his social media there is no hint he was intending to perform a reckless act.

Italian newspaper Corrie reports the driver's actions sowed panic in and around via della Concilliazione and the surrounds of the colonnade of St Peter's Square.

At the time of what was thought a possible terror event, St Peter's Square was reportedly packed full of faithful and tourists waiting for Pope Francis to deliver his Sunday Angelus message.

While police do not suspect terrorism, there is an open investigation to clarify if there was a terrorist motive.

According to Il Messaggero, Nako's former partner is upset.

"For five years I have been fighting for his dangerousness and mental imbalance to be recognised and the court to take away the custody of our two children - she explains - but no one listened to me".

Sources

• The Times
• The Sun
• Newsnet (AP)
• Il Messaggero
• Corriere Della Sera
• Hoy

Beyond fast-tracking changes to terrorism suppression laws, there are still other areas of law and policy in New Zealand we need to urgently review.

Legislative change was already underway as part of an omnibus bill on terrorism. Following Friday's attack, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will push parliament to pass those changes to terrorism suppression laws by no later than the end of this month, enabling stronger action against people who are considered a terrorist threat.

The perpetrator of Friday's terrorist attack at an Auckland supermarket was under 24-hour surveillance and had recently been in prison for other terrorism-related offences. But as the judge noted, he could not be detained because the planning of a terror attack is not an offence under current laws.

The public has already made submissions on the new rules, and Ardern said a select committee is now considering changes that could prevent a similar attack.

While this will be very useful in the future, it is unclear how much value it would have had in yesterday's attack.

Apart from the fact that law would have had to exist before the attacker's original convictions — it could not be retrospective — the elements of the crime (intent and ability to carry out the threat) would still have to be proven.

Two key legal areas needing action

There are two other areas of law and policy that should be reviewed now. The possession or threat of violence with knives in public places is unlawful in New Zealand, but we may now need to consider rules around their sale and accessibility.

Another set of laws needing to be re-examined relate to how a Sri Lankan national who was a known high-level security risk-managed to reside in New Zealand. As a principle, any non-citizen who represents a threat to national security should be deported.

This includes refugees. If compelling reasons of national security can be shown in a court of law with all appropriate safeguards, they too should be expelled. In exceptional circumstances, even if someone is a citizen of New Zealand but has citizenship elsewhere, and they act against the interests of the country, there are options to expel them.

This may be the biggest gap in our defences, this time. But when the review is done, we must have zero tolerance for extremists, of any flavour, who represent a serious threat to national security.

The threat of ISIS

The attack was classified as an act of terrorism because it was done with the purpose of advancing an ideological, political, or religious cause that intended to cause terror in the country or force the government to change its position.

The fact it was ISIS-inspired is significant.

The world has watched the influence of ISIS in Afghanistan. It had taken seven years to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria, and at the height of that conflict, there were an estimated 30 to 40 extremists under watch in New Zealand.

Those figures were vague, and we can assume they were lower during the years ISIS lost influence and the war on terror faded from view. As ISIS efforts in the Middle East collapsed, New Zealand's concern turned more to those attempting to return from the war zones.

The focus was primarily on New Zealand ISIS operatives overseas, but the influence in New Zealand was not invisible.

In 2016, a man was prosecuted for possession of objectionable material after he walked into the US embassy in Auckland, wearing an ISIS shirt, and asked if the embassy was "bomb proof".

In another instance, a man with prior convictions for intimidating behaviour, threatening to kill, and assault with a weapon, was found guilty of possessing 62 items of objectionable material and making and distributing material from Islamic State, which the government had classified as a terrorist organisation. He was sentenced to three years and nine months in jail.

Lessons learnt from past attacks

The laws around terrorism tend to evolve quickly after, not before, major attacks. For New Zealand, this meant our current foundation law, the Terrorism Suppression Act 2002 followed the attacks in the United States on September 11 2001.

This law has been amended multiple times over the following years, as the nature of the threat, and the need to better confront it, changed. Our most recent changes followed when terrorism hit New Zealand on March 15 2019.

The Christchurch mosque attacks were not fuelled by religious extremism but right-wing extremism. Other mass shootings around the same time period may have been narrowly avoided.

The government responded with a Royal Commission, legal change prohibiting firearms used in the attack and initiatives such as the Christchurch Call.

Agencies at the forefront of counter-terrorism reviewed their settings, splitting their counter-terrorism effort between violent extremism motivated by white identity and that motivated by religious faith.

As a result, New Zealand was better prepared for a terror attack. At the time of the Christchurch mosque attacks, the terrorism threat level was deemed low.

Yesterday, it was at medium, meaning an attack was "feasible and could well occur". That proved to be right. New Zealand authorities were better prepared than last time, but gaps still allowed the attack to succeed. There is much more work to be done. Such incidents must not be allowed to repeat.

• Alexander Gillespie is Professor of Law, University of Waikato
• First published in The Conversation. Republished with permission.

"If the objective of the terrorists is to divide us, we all together - the countries of the European Union but also Christians, atheists, agnostics, Muslims, Jews - must say no," he told the Italian news agency SIR.

"Europe shows the world that fanaticism makes no sense," he said. Terrorists "cannot bear that this [European] project, based on common values, is possible."

Cardinal Hollerich said radical Islamists may have struck now because of the pandemic crisis. "People in Europe are in anguish. They're locked down, they're afraid … the disease continues to circulate," he said. "We know that anguish can turn into aggression."

Read More

Police are delivering safety tips and going through emergency plans with religious organisations to ensure people are - and feel - safe when they pray.

Last week anti-Muslim leaflets were placed on cars while people attended church services in Palmerston North.

All Saints Church and the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit both had leaflets left on cars during their services on Sunday.

The leaflet made claims Muslims had been deceived and included hateful remarks about Allah and the prophet Muhammad.

Andy Hickman, a minister at All Saints thought the leaflets might be connected to the churches holding services in solidarity with the Muslim community the weekend of the Christchurch Mosque shootings.

Police visited on Friday, to let them know that the person responsible had been caught and spoken to.

At Wellington's Kilbirnie mosque, police have also provided guidance.

"Police will still provide us with some security once the month of Ramadan will start, while also we discussed how we can have our own systems ready as well," says Tahir Nawaz, from the International Muslim Association of New Zealand.

This focus on safety is being viewed positively by an expert in the field of religion and security.

"That's a really healthy thing for New Zealand police to do," says Dr Wil Hoverd of Massey University.

"I think there are broader community concerns about what happened in Christchurch - and being able to reassure other religious communities of how they can be safe is really important."

The news item about this topic on TVNZ's Facebook page provoked a large number and a great variety of comments.

Source

• tvnz.co.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• Image: screenshot tvnz.co.nz

Last week there was a heavy police presence around churches, at the bishop's palace and Sunday Masses.

Both uniformed and plain-clothed officers armed with machine guns were in evidence

"I got an order from my commander in relation to a terrorist threat, so I went to Dili's Cathedral and some other churches in Dili to observe the situation surrounding Bishop Dili's residence," Dili's deputy police commander Euclides Belo said.

"I have told the security members to inform the National Police immediately if they see strange people near the bishop's residence," he said.

The concern about a terrorist attack emerged ahead of the dismissal by the country's top court of a petition by Fretilin, the political party which lost power in the May 12 general election, to have the votes in four districts recounted.

This has paved the way for the court to officially declare the result that saw the Alliance of Change and Progress (AMP), led by the revolutionary hero, Xanana Gusmão, win a majority with 34 seats in the 65 seat legislature allowing it to govern in its own right.

The election result remains unofficial until it is published in the country's national gazette, the Jornal da República and, once it is, parliament has 15 days to have its first sitting.

National TV network TVTL has announced that the sitting will take place on 12 June.

Gusmão is a former president and prime minister of Timor Lesté .

AMP, a coalition made up of three parties, has yet to reveal who will lead the country once the court signs off on the result, but sources close to three party group have indicated that Gusmao will serve a third term as prime minister.

Source

• ucanews.com
• sea-globe.com
• Source: José Fernando Real

Francis spoke of this and many other topics in an interview with the director of the Echo of Bergamo newspaper. Read more

The world is carrying in its heart "the pain of these terrorist attacks," Francis told the crowd in St Peter's Square on Sunday, before leading them in prayer for the victims.

Nineteen people have died so far as a result of a terrorist attack in Burkina Faso on 13 August. Two gunmen killed nine locals and nine foreigners as they dined on the terrace of the restaurant, and a policeman has subsequently died.

No group has claimed responsibility but Burkina Faso has witnessed a string of such attacks attributed to Islamist extremists, including Al-Qaeda

On 17 August, two terrorist attacks in Barcelona and the seaside resort of Cambrils killed 14 people and injured 130.

ISIS is claiming responsibility for these attacks, which Spanish security forces believe were conducted by a jihadist cell of at least 12 people.

A third attack happened last Friday August when a man armed with a knife killed two women and injured eight people from at least Finland. This was the first terrorist attack of this sort in Finland.

The Finnish police shot and arrested the attacker, an 18-year-old Moroccan.

Source

• Firstpost
• America Magazine
• Image: Daily Express
  

It is not a war between "different faiths, different sects, or different civilizations," he said in a speech to leaders from Arab and Muslim-majority nations. Read more

He is defending his refusal to speak about "Islamic terrorism".

He wants us to "make sure that we do not lump these murderers into the billion Muslims that exist around the world who are peaceful ... responsible ... fellow troops and police officers and fire fighters and teachers and neighbors and friends."

He compared the term "Islamic terrorism" with the idea of "Christian" crimes.

"If you had an organization ... killing and blowing people up and said, 'We're on the vanguard of Christianity.'

"As a Christian, I'm not going to let them claim my religion and say, 'You're killing for Christ.' I would say that's ridiculous."

Obama made these remarks when a bereaved mother asked him if would use the term "Islamic terrorism" to describe the attack that killed her son.

"My son gave his life for acts of terrorism," she said.

"Do you still believe that the acts of terrorism are done for the self-proclaimed Islamic religious motive?

"And if you do, why do you still refuse to use the term ... Islamic terrorist?"

Besides explaining the reasons he refuses to accuse Muslims in general with terrorist behaviour he added "there's no religious rationale that would justify in any way any of the things that they [the terrorists] do."

Source

• Israel Hayom
• Image: thepeak.tv

They must also promote more inclusive and peaceful societies.

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin wants protection for the victims of atrocities.

He also urged both religious leaders and national authorities to step up preventive measures.

He says this is a grave responsibility for nation States and the international community.

"It seems entirely appropriate, therefore, to reflect on the responsibility of religious leaders."

In an ever more interconnected world, religious leaders have a grave responibility.

They must help counter the spread of hatred and violence in the name of religion.

"They should promote more inclusive and peaceful societies."

Parolin was a keynote speaker at the "Upholding the Responsibility to Protect: The Role of Religious Leaders in Preventing Atrocities" event.

The Holy See and United Nations sponsored the event.

Parolin also spoke of the popularization of extremism in religion.

He said some religions have been manipulated.

They are becoming champions for violence, genocide, war crimes and ethnic cleansing.

He agreed freedom of religion is an "inalienable fundamental human right."

He also said the international sphere must reject restrictive religious interpretations that condone violence.

At the same time religion has its place in the public square.

He argued that religion is not the root of atrocities.

Atrocities stem "from a quest for power" he said.

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image:newwaysministryblog.wordpress.com

New guidelines warn of growing evidence of hate crimes against Christians and say clergy and church staff must take steps to protect themselves and their congregations against terrorists armed with guns or knives.

The guidelines warn of an "escalating problem" in the wake of July's attack on the Catholic church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray near Rouen in France and the murder of its priest Father Jacques Hamel.

Although there is no evidence that a terror attack on a church is imminent, the guidelines note that attacks in churches during services are, in fact, surprisingly common.

There have been cases of congregation members attacked with axes and even firearms.

The guidelines have been produced by Nick Tolson, a leading expert in church security and director of National Churchwatch

Tolson, who is the Christian representative on a Home Office counter-extremism panel for places of worship, told Christian Today: "There is definitely a rise in the risk to churches.

"The murder of Father Jacques Hamel was the first time a church has been directly targeted by terrorists in northern Europe.

"We know that when there has been one attack, there are copycat attacks. So the risk has risen.

"We just need to talk about it and get people thinking about it."

He has posted the new guidelines on the National Churchwatch Facebook page.

There are two sets. One is how to deal with anti-Christian hate crime and the other suggests counter-terrorism measures that churches can take.

In the last 10 years in the UK, eight members of the clergy have been murdered, all with knives.

In 2009 a man brandishing a firearm on the steps of Guildford Cathedral before an Advent carol service was shot and killed by police.

Source

• Christian Today
• Image: www.bbc.com

The religious voices included Christian figures such as Pope Francis and prominent Muslims including the Grand Mufti of Egypt, Shawqi Allam.

A truck drove through crowds celebrating Bastille Day (July 14) in Nice.

Pope Francis expressed revulsion over the attack.

"We condemn in the strongest way every demonstration of senseless violence, of hatred, terrorism and any attack against peace," said a statement issued from the Vatican.

"On behalf of Pope Francis, we join in solidarity with the suffering of the victims and of the entire French people this day that should have been a great holiday."

Continue reading

The arrests were made in Lombardy and Piedmont late last month.

They came as the result of a joint operation co-ordinated by Milan's district attorney and the Italian anti-terror agency.

Authorities monitored a series of conversations between the suspects via WhatsApp.

One of the messages sent to a suspect stated: "Dear brother Abderrahim, I send you . . . the bomb poem . . . listen to the sheik and strike," ANSA reported.

This message was received by Abderrahim Moutaharrik, one of those arrested.

Milan prosecutor Maurizio Romanelli told reporters that authorities believe the word "sheik" is a reference to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

He also said the messages, intercepted in February and March, mentioned a strike against the Israeli embassy as well as against pilgrims in Rome for the Year of Mercy.

Mr Romanelli told ANSA: "This is a new profile, because it was not a generic indication, but an indication given to a specific person who was invited to act within the territory of the Italian state."

"I swear I will be the first to attack them in this Italy of crusaders, I swear I'll attack it, in the Vatican God willing," a message from one of the arrested suspects stated, according to ANSA.

Vatican spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi, SJ, expressed his confidence in the current security measures in place for the Holy Year.

Several of those arrested had Moroccan links.

In all, four suspects were arrested, with warrants issued for two more.

Sources

• Catholic News Service
• JP Updates
• Image: Catholic Herald

"All too often, these brothers and sisters of ours meet along the way with death or, in any event, rejection by those who could offer them welcome and assistance," said the pontiff on Easter Sunday.

Pope Francis urge people to offer "welcome and assistance" to those fleeing war and poverty, as Europe struggles with its worst migration crisis since World War II.

The European Union and Turkey struck a deal earlier in March to send new migrants arriving on the Greek islands to Turkey.

On Good Friday, the pope decried what he called as Europe's "indifferent and anaesthetized conscience" over migrants.

"The Easter message of the risen Christ... invites us not to forget those men and women seeking a better future, an ever more numerous throng of migrants and refugees... fleeing from war, hunger, poverty and social injustice," the pope said.

Human rights groups have condemned the EU-Turkey deal as unethical and possibly illegal.

In his Easter address, the pontiff also called on people to remember the victims of terrorism, which he called "blind and brutal violence" that continues to shed innocent blood in Belgium, Turkey, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, the Ivory Coast and Iraq.

"Before the spiritual and moral abysses of mankind, before the chasms that open up in hearts and provoke hatred and death, only an infinite mercy can bring us salvation," said Pope Francis.

Sources

AFP/Yahoo News
The Telegraph
BBC
Image: The Telegraph