Disney-Pixar's newest film, Lightyear, scheduled to be released on June 16th in the United Arab Emirates, was banned "due to its violation of the country's media content standards."
While the government body didn't specify the part of the movie that caused the violation, Executive Director Rashid Khalfan Al Nuaimi said it was banned due to the inclusion of homosexual characters.
A leading atheist and human rights activist from the Maldives, Mohamed Rushtum Mujuthaba, fears imprisonment on charges of blasphemy at an upcoming court hearing on June 23rd, 2022. Mujuthaba was accused of making posts on social media that were critical of Islam.
Believers of Islam were infuriated by the remarks of some politicians of India's ruling party, the BJP, claiming that Islam and the prophet had been insulted. Nidhal Siam, a Palestinian Islamic scholar, recently held an anti-Indian rally at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem in protest.
Muslims have protested across India over the remarks by one of the ruling party’s top members. As of the second week of June, two people have died related to the protests in Jharkhand, a state in eastern India, while hundreds were arrested.
In Uttar Pradesh, around 230 protesters were arrested. In West Bengal, 70 people were arrested and charged with rioting and disturbing public order.
Directed by Eli King and written by Shia cleric Sheikh Yasser al-Habib, The Lady of Heaven has become a topic of controversy. Released on June 3rd, the movie sparked numerous protests across the United Kingdom as many from the Muslim communities deemed it to be "blasphemous" and "spreading false information about Islam."
A Muslim mob burned a 30-year-old Nigerian man to death in the capital of Abuja on June 4.
The murder of Ahman Usman, a security officer in The Vigilante Group of Nigeria in Abuja's Lugbe area, was allegedly accused of blasphemy. This sensitive issue recently resulted in violent incidents in the country. The Vigilante Group assists the local police in community matters.
Ajmal Haqiqi, an Afghan model and YouTuber, found himself in a difficult situation with the Taliban. Haqiqi and his colleagues had allegedly insulted Islam in one of their recent videos that resulted in their arrests.
Anti-Muslim songs filled with hateful lyrics and a suggestive message are rising in India. Fueled by the increasingly bold Hindutva organizations, these songs are becoming a centerpiece of nationalist rallies and meetings.
Earlier this year, a Hindu priest paraded near a mosque in Uttar Pradesh. He was calling for the assault of Muslim women while blasting anti-Muslim songs from a speaker.
A talk on casteism at Google’s HQ was canceled in light of pressure from employees who claimed their lives were at risk if Thenmozhi Soundararajan was permitted to speak. Thenmozhi is the founder and executive director of Equality Labs, a nonprofit advocating for lower caste individuals, and former president of Ambedkarites Association of North America (AANA).
On June 5, 2022, BJP national spokesperson Nupur Sharma and BJP Delhi media head Naveen Kumar were suspended from the party’s membership due to offensive comments to many Muslims in India.
