Spanish town ordered to end ban on religious festivals mainly impacting Muslims

Spanish town ordered to end ban on religious festivals mainly impacting Muslims

The Spanish government ordered the town of Jumilla to drop its ban on religious gatherings in public sports centers on Monday, asserting that the measure disproportionately affects the town’s Muslim community, which has long used the facilities to celebrate Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. The government gave the town’s council one month to formally respond to its request. Failure to do so could lead to additional legal challenges under Article 16 o…

Spanish town Jumilla forced to drop "shamful" Muslim festival ban

The Spanish government has ordered the town of Jumilla to scrap a ban on religious gatherings in sports centres, a measure widely viewed as aimed at curbing Muslim religious freedom. It said the measure was discriminatory and violated the right to worship. Ángel Víctor Torres, minister for territorial policy, said on social media that “there can be no half-measures when it comes to intolerance”. Rightwing parties, he warned, could not choose “wh…

Head of Spanish political party criticizes Catholic Church's defense of Muslim community - Catholic Review

The Spanish bishops’ conference was criticized by the head of Spain’s far-right VOX party after the church expressed religious concerns following a local council’s measure that would effectively ban Muslims from holding religious events in certain areas. The country’s bishops issued a statement Aug. 7 denouncing the decision by the City Council of Jumilla, located in the southern region of Murcia, to prohibit religious gatherings in sports cente…