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Showing posts with the label Schengen Area

Arizona preacher who said ‘gays should face death penalty’ to be banned from most of Europe

An anti-gay preacher has been banned from entering most of Europe, Dutch officials have confirmed.  Steven Anderson, from Arizona, US, has previously called for the execution of gay people by stoning and said it was ‘good news’ that 49 victims died in the Orlando nightclub mass shooting.  LGBTI campaigners, Dutch MPs and Amsterdam’s mayor, Femke Halsema, called on the government to block the preacher’s entry ahead of his European tour, which included events in Ireland and Sweden.  Dutch security minister Mark Harbers announced he had taken steps to stop Anderson entering the Schengen Area, comprising 26 European countries, for a planned visit to The Netherlands on May 23.  In a statement issued to Dutch parliament on Wednesday, Harbers said: ‘There is no place in a democratic nation like ours for discrimination, incitement to hatred or intolerance and violence on any grounds. ‘Civil liberties are not a license for intolerant behaviour that limits t...

France adopts sanctions against 18 Saudi nationals in connection with Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi's slaying

As the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, M. Jean-Yves Le Drian, announced on Monday 19 November on the sidelines of the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, and in consultation with its European partners, particularly Germany, France has just adopted sanctions against 18 Saudi nationals in connection with the murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul on 2 October 2018. RELATED :  CIA believes Saudi Crown Prince ordered murder of Khashoggi: Report The measures, decided on by the Ministry of the Interior, aim to prevent those individuals from gaining access to France or the rest of the Schengen Area.  They are protective measures which may be reviewed or extended depending on the progress of the investigations under way. The murder of Mr Khashoggi is an extremely serious crime which is also in breach of press freedom and the most basic rights. RELATED :  Saudi Arabia to Seek Death Penalty for 5 Accused in Khashoggi Killing Fr...