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Islam Week in Kiel: Salafism allegations cause a stir!
Serious allegations against the Islamic University Group Kiel during the Islam Week at the CAU: Salafist connections and anti-Semitic symbols.
Islam Week in Kiel: Salafism allegations cause a stir!
The Islam Week, which took place from May 5th to 9th, 2025 at the Christian Albrechts University in Kiel (CAU), is causing considerable excitement and new allegations. There are serious allegations surrounding the event against the Islamic University Group Kiel (IHG), which organized the week of action. Interior Minister Sabine Sütterlin-Waack (CDU) informed loudly kn-online.de that the IHG is “not free from Salafist influence”. The university did not miss the opportunity to shed more light on the incidents.
Although the Islamic Religious Community of Schleswig-Holstein (Schura) had advised IHG against inviting the Salafist speaker Sertac Odabas from Austria, he still gave a lecture. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution had already kept an eye on Islam Week in advance because it attracted the interest of Islamist and Salafist groups. Several speakers from the Salafist scene appeared at the event, and there was a book table with works on Salafist topics and Islamist missionary movements.
Accusations and conversations
The allegations of gender segregation and anti-Semitic symbolism cast a dark light on IHG. At the events, men were placed at the front and women at the back, which caused severe resentment. Prime Minister Daniel Günther spoke up and called for the incidents to be clarified quickly. “Such behavior has no place at universities,” said Günther ndr.de. The FDP in the state parliament joined the demand for clarification.
Of particular concern are the anti-Semitic stickers that some visitors displayed on their laptops. These shocking incidents led to IHG's board of directors being invited to meetings on July 7 to address the incidents. Vice President Dr. Catherine Cleophas clarified that the university has not yet identified any criminal violations, but the incidents are still alarming.
Impact and resignation
Due to the allegations, the CAU temporarily withdrew IHG's recognition at the end of June. In an act of responsibility, the IHG board announced that it would resign after a comprehensive review of the events. This decision comes against the background of existing internal complaints about anti-Semitic statements and other problematic behavior at past events.
The Office for the Protection of the Constitution explains in a publication that Salafism is the most dynamic Islamist movement in Germany. The goal of this movement, which also became breathtakingly visible in the context of Islam Week, is the establishment of a “caliphate” and the acquisition of new followers through missionary strategies. Loud verfassungsschutz.de The challenges for the security authorities should therefore not be underestimated.
The state parliament's education committee will address the issue and further steps today, July 10th. In times like these, educating and adhering to academic standards remains an important task in order to restore the trust of society as a whole to our universities.