Is Molenbeek really the jihadist hotbed depicted this week by the international media?
Decades ago, the relatively quiet Brussels district of Molenbeek was famous only for its football club, RWD Molenbeek, the eternal Brussels rival of its mighty neighbour Anderlecht. RWDM was champion of Belgium’s premier league just once, in 1975, but then struggled financially and competitively to survive, until it finally folded last year. While the name of Anderlecht is still linked to football, Molenbeek has obtained another reputation: that of a jihadist hotbed.Two cars used by the terrorists were rented there. Three local brothers, Ibrahim, Mohamed and Salah Abdeslam, had reportedly been involved. Ibrahim blew himself up in Paris; Salah fled back to Belgium (an international warrant was iss
19 November 2015, The Tablet
Tea houses, 22 mosques and radicalised youth
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