Two LGBTQ rights activists were sentenced to death in Iran for allegedly promoting homosexuality. Activists Zahra Sedighi-Hamadani and Elham Chobdar were charged with “Corruption on Earth,” a vague yet lethal charge.
The Urmia Revolutionary Court handed the ruling in Urmia City, western Iran, close to its borders with Turkey.
A new study found that American Muslims are more Islamophobic than most religious groups. The American Muslim Poll 2022: A Politics and Pandemic Status Report by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) said Muslims in America ranked 3rd among religious groups.
On August 15, Saudi actor Abdullah Al-Sadhan posted a video on Twitter of a woman wearing a full-face veil singing and conveyed his unwavering support for her performance. The video of a Niqab-clad woman singing went viral on social media platforms which caused massive outrage in Saudi Arabia.
A self-proclaimed member of the Islamic State has been arrested in Russia for planning a terrorist attack in India. The Russian Federal Security Service released information regarding the would-be attacker’s plan to kill a leader of India's ruling government in a suicide bombing. The attack was planned as retaliation for the insults aimed at the Prophet by the now ex-BJP spokesperson, Nupur Sharma.
A member of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was arrested on August 23rd. Police arrested the politician under the Preventive Detention Act and charged him with "habitually delivering provocative and inflammatory speeches."
Continuing the crackdown on women, Iran’s Headquarters for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has released a 119-page document outlining new rules women must now observe.
IranWire called the new order, titled Hijab and Chastity Project, unhinged, calling out its most important goal: "cleansing society of the pollution caused by nonconformance with Islamic dress codes."
On August 17, a Nigerian federal appeals court ruled that Islamic Sharia (law) does not violate the country’s secular constitution in a two-to-one decision. It was also decided that Sharia courts have jurisdiction over blasphemy cases.
Islamic extremists attacked a man from Maumo village in the Luuka District of Uganda on July 26.
Forty-two-year-old Musa John Kasadah, a father of six, converted to Christianity in an outdoor service on June 17. His wife and children also converted in the ceremony, and the family began attending church.