Air France is found guilty of discrimination and debarring a pro-Palestinian activist from the flight because she was not of Jewish origin.

The airline was ordered by the court to shred a sum of € 13,000  as fines for causing damages to the reputation of the appellant, a 30 year old nursing student.

This incident took place when Horia Ankour was going to join with other hooligans gathering for the “flytilla” campaign at Tel Aviv taking place in April. A number of pro-Palestinian campaigners were landing in Israel to accumulate at the West Bank for protests.

However Air France has made an excuse “she was on the objectionable person’s list handed by Israel that is why we assisted to debar her from the airplane”. Flytilla campaign in Israel at the west bank made the Israel government release such list to stop the entry of activists to their land. Israel is the only way to reach the West Bank because of the unavailability of the airport for the Palestinian people.

In late April, she was taking the Air France flight to make up to the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv for the ongoing Israeli campaign, that was organised by various organizations of civil society, for the issues concerned with the cross border policies and the foreign occupation permits. The Palestinian people all over the world were welcomed for this camaraderie revolt furnished by locals.

After the flight boarded, Ms Ankour was interrogated by an employee of Air France. He asked about her passport if it is of Israel or Jewish. The lady nodded for the two questions. After that, she was accompanied to get off the plane.

The verdict given by the French judiciaries included the charges of racism. In defence, Air France officials presented the point that at the last moment, they come to know that Ms Ankour is on the Israel Blacklist. They further added that they were abiding international rule of refusing their transport services for passengers who are suspected to get entry at the entrance point by the airlines.

After the verdict, this was cleared by the Air France officials that they will look further for higher judicial authorities. The reports from BBC reporter Hugh Schofield have revealed that the French associates were going through the law, but the inspection about the native origin proved as the fault in the proceedings. It became strong point for Ms Ankour and made her win the case with ease. The debarring of a passenger from the flight was wrong after questioning about their race resulted in such blame on the Air France Company.

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As the new Government-backed anti-Muslim hatred body, 'Tell MAMA' has just reported a rising level of anti-Muslim hatred and sentiment is creeping into British life. We appear to have passed the point where Baroness Warsi referred to Islamophobia 'passing the dinner party test'.
Muhammad Abdul Bari

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A new study warns that Islamophobia in Germany is becoming culturally acceptable, as bigotry leaves the confines of ethnicity and moves towards religious bias against Muslims.

"It's no longer 'the Turks' but 'the Muslims'," Wilhelm Heitmeyer, head of the institute for research of interdisciplinary conflict and violence at Bielefeld University told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung on Monday. Research has led him to be concerned general xenophobia had given way to a growing rejection of Islam in Germany.

His theory is not new – a study from Münster university found that in 2010, 66 percent of western Germans and 74 percent of eastern Germans had a negative attitude towards Muslims.

And a more recent study from the Allensbach Institute suggested that this had not changed over the past two years, as only 22 percent of Germans asked said they agreed with Germany's ex-President Christian Wulff's statement that Islam, like Christianity, was a part of Germany.

Heitmeyer also found that Islamophobia seemed to exist not only in the far-right, but was also present in more left-leaning and centrist circles. The sentiment was identifiable throughout the country, from the highest echelons of society to the lowest.

Neo-Nazi expert from Düsseldorf's technical university Alexander Häusler told the newspaper that while discriminating against an entire ethnicity was a taboo, religion-based racism was generally considered to be exercising freedom of opinion. 

"Criticism of Islam or Muslims appear acceptable, because it is not seen as classically racist," said Häusler.

German Muslims have also voiced concern about growing anti-Islamic sentiment. Head of the Central Council for Muslims in Germany Aiman Mazyek told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung that police and intelligence officials still refused to rank violent attacks towards Muslims independently, but grouped it within the broad category of xenophobia.

"By doing this, hostility against Islam is being blurred out," said Mazyek. He said the government should publish a yearly racism report.

The Local, 7 January 2013

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"The above ads are appearing at Metro-North stations in New York. A continuation of Islamophobic activists Robert Spencer and Pamela Geller's AFDI/SIOA racist and anti-Muslim/Islam advertisement campaign. In light of recent hate attacks, 8 over a period of 11 days, and another possible attack yesterday, the attempted firebombing of a Muslim family's home in Panama City, Florida, can we not consider such advertisements to be an incitement to violence?"

Loonwatch poses the question.

Update:  See "Islamophobic billboard at Metro-North station causes outrage one month after pro-Palestinian billboard", Huffington Post, 17 August 2012

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The Arab American News has an extensive report on Pamela Geller's so-called "human rights" conference in Dearborn – which barred Muslim women and Arab Americans from attending – and on the counter-conference "Rejecting Islamophobia: A Community Stand Against Hate".

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