MES coaching in Islamic studies

DOHA, April 15th: The MES Indian School is offering free coaching classes in Islamic studies after the regular school hours. The classes would cover the Holy Quran, Islamic history, Akhlaqiyat, Aquaid, Fiqh, Tajweed, Arabic reading and writing, said a press release yesterday.

The classes for Malayalam and Urdu speaking students will be held separately on four days a week. Free transport will be provided for those coming from Doha and Wakra. Admission for the next batch will begin on April 25. Parents who wish to enroll their wards for the classes may register their names with the co-ordinator of Islamic studies at theMES School by May 5.

Taken From: http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/

French Muslims elect first formal council

PARIS, April 14 (UPI) -- The French government announced Monday the composition of the country's first Islamic council, representing some 5 million members of the country's second-largest religious community. Given the task of lobbying the French government for a hodgepodge of unmet demands, the council amounts to a personal victory for French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, and caps a two-decade long effort to cobble such a grouping.Roman Catholics, Protestants and Jews here all have representative bodies. Not so Muslims, whose leaders have sparred for years over the composition and selection of a formal, representative organization, Turnout was high during the two rounds of voting, which ended Sunday night. More than 85 percent of selected religious leaders participated in elections for national and regional council seats. But the results, announced Monday by the French Interior Ministry, and represented a setback for the influential, government-favored Mosque of Paris. The government had previously selected the mosque's ethnic Algerian rector, Dalil Boubakeur, as council head, and yet the Mosque placed second or third in the voting in regions where its members ran.

Taken From: http://www.upi.com

Gambia: Muslim youths complete camp sponsored by WIPO

Banjul, One hundred and fifty Gambian Muslim youths have completed here the second educational camp that was held in the city ofManakunku that was sponsored by Libya-based World Islamic Propagation Organization (WIPO). The three-day camp enabled the participants to discuss various cultural, technical, and social topics. The participants were unanimous that there is a need to teach Arabic and Islamic Studies inGambia on a larger scale and also called for the active involvement of the Gambian woman in all Islamic activities.

Taken From: http://www.islamicnews.org/english/en_daily.html