Ireland resident dies fighting in Syria

Alaa Ciymeh (26), a Jordanian-born man who grew up in Ireland has been killed fighting with rebel forces in Syria. Source: Irish Times

Source: Irish Times

A Jordanian-born man who grew up in Ireland has been killed fighting with rebel forces in Syria.

The circumstances surrounding the death of Alaa Ciymeh (26) remain unclear given the difficulties of obtaining reliable information from inside the country.

His father, who lives in Dublin, was informed of his son’s death this week. Mourners gathered at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland in Clonskeagh, Dublin, on Wednesday to offer condolences to the family.

The Ciymeh family, who are Palestinian, moved to Ireland when Alaa was very young. He attended the Muslim National School in Clonskeagh, before going on to study at De La Salle College in Churchtown.

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Muslims find a welcoming home in famously Catholic Ireland

By Megan O’Neil for The Atlantic

Perhaps because of its strong religious background, the nation has been more accepting of Islam than many of its European neighbors.

A new 60,000-square-foot development is likely to generate friction in any urban setting, much less a mosque in the capital of a historically Catholic country.

And yet a proposal to construct a multi-use Islamic center — including a three-story domed mosque, school, and fitness facility — in the north Dublin neighborhood of Clongriffin has triggered little of the anti-Muslim blowback surrounding similar projects in other parts of Europe and in the United States.

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• Ireland’s largest mosque in Clongriffin set for construction (muslimireland.wordpress.com)

Irish ‘Hijabi Monologues’ breaks down stereotypes

‘Hijabi Monologues’ Source: The Journal

Source: The Journal (Ireland)

The experiences of Muslim women in Ireland will be explored when an Irish version of the Hijabi Monologues receives its European premiere in Dublin this month.

The council says the show can break down stereotypes and assumptions around Muslim women in Ireland, with personal and true stories being dramatised. The production is being co-hosted with the ICI, the British Council and axis theatre, Ballymun.

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Opinion: Which road will Irish Muslims take?

Source: The Egyptian Gazzette

What direction are the Muslims of Ireland going to take? Are they going to become totally assimilated into Irish society or will they be seen more and more as something foreign to the Irish way of life? Will they fit so well into Irish society that they are not seen as different to anyone else? Will their faith act as a leaven within their society? Or will they just become yet another religious voice, like so many others in Ireland, that is no longer of any relevance in a world that has grown sufficient on its own, without the need of religions or religious leaders?  Continued reading

Irish Imam aware of radical wing

Source: Belfast Telegraph

Ibrahim Michael Noonan from Co Waterford, who is the first Irish man to become an Imam, said last night that he had become aware of a small, militant element of Islam creeping into the country and called for increased vigilance.

“I have become aware in the last year or so of a radical wing of Islam converting young Irish men who have become disenchanted with Irish society.

“I must stress that 99pc of Muslims living in Ireland have absolutely no interest in this branch of Islam but there is small element of brainwashing going on of young, disenchanted men by some extreme people who have made their way into the country,” he said.

Mr Noonan, a former theology student and staunch Catholic, contemplated becoming a priest before converting to Islam.

He is now the head of the Muslim community in Galway.

“It is unsettling to hear that there are certain people in the country who are interested in the kind of mindset of Osama bin Laden,” he said.