‘Compatibility problem between Islam and Europe’: Italian PM Giorgia Meloni

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has said that there is a compatibility problem between European civilisation and the Islamic culture and its values. She also highlighted that most of Italy’s Islamic cultural centres are financed by Saudi Arabia that reserves the strictest of punishments for homosexuality and adultery.

Meloni was seen saying in a video in Italian: “I think there is a problem of compatibility between Islamic culture or a certain interpretation of Islamic culture and the rights and values of our civilisation. It does not escape my mind that most of the Islamic cultural centres in Italy are financed by Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is a nation that at home applies the Sharia, and Sharia means lapidation for adultery, death penalty for apostasy, death penalty for homosexuality. I believe that these issues should be raised, which does not mean generalising on Islam. It means raising the problem that there is a process of Islamisation in Europe that is very, very distant from the values of our civilisation.”

The Italian Prime Minister said that they will not allow Sharia law to be implemented in the country. Meloni’s statement comes at a political festival organised by her far-right party in Rome, the Brothers of Italy, that was also attended by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and billionaire Elon Musk.

Sunak, in the event, warned that some “enemies” were deliberately driving people to their shores to try and destabilise their societies, as the leaders pushed for global reforms to the asylum system and the threat of the growing number of refugees.

"If we do not tackle this problem, the numbers will only grow. It will overwhelm our countries and our capacity to help those who actually need our help the most. If that requires us to update our laws and lead an international conversation to amend the post-war frameworks around asylum, then we must do that,” said Sunak.

(With Reuters inputs)

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