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Germany Bans Muslim Groups
BERLIN, Dec.12 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - German Interior Minister Otto Schily Wednesday banned the Islamic Caliph State organization, news agencies reported.
The ministry said the group's Servants of Islam foundation, as well as 19 sub-organizations, were also outlawed in Germany, Expatica news online reported.
The ban came as police raided about 200 premises in seven German states early Wednesday in a crackdown on the organization.
Premises were raided in states including North Rhine-Westphalia, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bavaria, Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse, Berlin and Lower Saxony, BBC's online news service reported.
A Turkish national and Muslim theologian, Metin Kaplan, who styles himself the "Caliph of Cologne", heads the organization.
Offices, and a mosque linked to him and his group, were among the premises raided, the BBC added. Reports said hundreds of German police officers were involved in the Cologne raids.
Hussein Amer, an Egyptian who runs a kebab shop in Berlin said, "We're really scared," Expatica reported. An estimated 300,000 Muslims live in Berlin, a city of more than three million.
Many Muslims fear they might become targets of people's anger, fear or revenge.
"People look at you differently on the street now," Amer explains.
This is a sentiment expressed by many in the Arab community in Berlin.
They are worried that their German neighbors will blame all Muslims for the terror, and suddenly consider all Muslims anti-Western. Some expressed fears of becoming scapegoats.
In Friday prayers at mosques throughout Germany, imams, or prayer leaders, condemned the terrorist acts and prayed for the victims in the United States.
Mosques and individuals of Muslim or Sikh appearance have been attacked in numerous incidents in the United States since the deadly September 11 attacks in New York and Washington, Expatica news online reported.
There have been no similar attacks in Berlin so far. And Ashraf Elmekawy, imam at a Berlin mosque, said he hopes it stays that way.
Last week, a woman spat at him on the street. He did not press charges. He is urging other Muslims to adopt a cautious approach as well.
"I told my brothers at the mosque to remain calm and friendly if they are criticized or attacked in public," said Elmekawy.
He is especially angry that Islamic clubs are now attracting the attention of investigators after police discovered that some of the alleged hijackers in the U.S. terror plot had lived in Hamburg for several years.
"The suspects did not belong to any organizations. They lived quietly and in isolation," said Elmekawy. "People in Germany don't know enough about Islam."
As a result, misconceptions are rampant, especially these days, he added.
"From the first day onwards, Muslims were thought to behind the attacks, although there was no proof," said Elmekawy, but also warned against conspiracy theories that are currently all the rage.
Hamid, a Palestinian, said that "other forces" might have planned the attacks to harm the public image of Muslims.
Muslims in Berlin are also fearful of potential reprisals by the government, which may focus on Muslims as it moves to increase security.
The imam at the German-language mosque, Aly Abdelwahab, responds to this with considerable bitterness. He has lived in Germany for almost 30 years and is a German citizen.
"I'm not Osama bin Laden," said a Muslim, who identified himself only as Amer. "If people believe Muslims can do something like this, then they completely misunderstand Islam."
His friend Hamid, who holds a German passport, added: "When Protestants attack children in Northern Ireland, no one believes all Protestants condone this."
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