Denmark adds Saudi cleric to list of banned 'hate preachers'
The Danish Immigration Authority has added Saudi preacher Abdullah bin Radi Almoaede Al-Shammary to a ‘blacklist’ of foreign clerics banned from entering the country.
The list, which now numbers 11 individuals, bans the preachers based on the accusation that they promote hate speech.
Two Saudis, a Canadian, a Syrian, and two Americans, including pastor Terry Jones who burned copies of the Quran in 2011, were named on the list when it was first published in May this year. With the exception of Jones, all the preachers listed were Muslims.
A further two names were added to the list in June and again in August.
Minister for immigration Inger Støjberg spoke in support of the announcement.
“Hate preachers have no business being in Denmark. They travel around spreading hateful messages to try to convince others to share their rabid views,” Støjberg stated in a written comment.
“I am therefore happy to see that the Immigration Authority (Udlændingestyrelsen) is doing a good job by continually discovering these hate preachers,” the minister added.
The sanctions list was originally passed by lawmakers from parties on both sides of the aisle in spring 2016 as part of a wider initiative against religious preachers.
The aim of the measure is to combat preachers who are accused of 'seeking to undermine Danish values and support parallel legal interpretations', according to the Immigration Authority's definition.
Though it does not specify individual religions, the majority of the preachers included on the list, which can be viewed here, preach forms of Islam.
READ ALSO: Controversial Copenhagen imam defends antisemitic sermon
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The list, which now numbers 11 individuals, bans the preachers based on the accusation that they promote hate speech.
Two Saudis, a Canadian, a Syrian, and two Americans, including pastor Terry Jones who burned copies of the Quran in 2011, were named on the list when it was first published in May this year. With the exception of Jones, all the preachers listed were Muslims.
A further two names were added to the list in June and again in August.
Minister for immigration Inger Støjberg spoke in support of the announcement.
“Hate preachers have no business being in Denmark. They travel around spreading hateful messages to try to convince others to share their rabid views,” Støjberg stated in a written comment.
“I am therefore happy to see that the Immigration Authority (Udlændingestyrelsen) is doing a good job by continually discovering these hate preachers,” the minister added.
The sanctions list was originally passed by lawmakers from parties on both sides of the aisle in spring 2016 as part of a wider initiative against religious preachers.
The aim of the measure is to combat preachers who are accused of 'seeking to undermine Danish values and support parallel legal interpretations', according to the Immigration Authority's definition.
Though it does not specify individual religions, the majority of the preachers included on the list, which can be viewed here, preach forms of Islam.
READ ALSO: Controversial Copenhagen imam defends antisemitic sermon
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