2019

• November 2019: Islamic After-school Instruction

Aftenposten, a Norwegian daily, published a feature report of a mosque offering Islamic after-school instruction in the Quran with overnight stays for pupils. The report sparked uproar among politicians across the political spectrum, with calls for bans against socially segregating practices. After languishing in parliament for several years, no such ban has so farbeen created (2022).

• November 2019: Burning of the Quran in Kristiansand

The anti-Islamic organisation SIAN (Stop the Islamisation of Norway) organised a demonstration in Kristiansand where their stated intent was to set fire to a Quran. Before the demonstration, local police authorities warned that they would intervene if the planned book burning took place. During the demonstration, a SIAN activist set fire to a Quran, counter-demonstrations attacked, and the police intervened with fire extinguishers, sparking a media debate on the boundaries between freedom of religion and freedom of expression.

• August 2019: Terrorist Attack against Mosque

Terrorist Philip Manshaus killed his adoptive sister and attacked a local mosque in Bærum with two rifles, a shotgun and full combat gear, but was overwhelmed by worshippers. Manshaus attempted to livestream his attack on Facebook, and his stated intent was to kill as many Muslims as possible. He was convicted for the attack, and sentenced to 21-year confined imprisonment.

• March 2019: Recognition of Astrology School

Early in 2019, the Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education (NOKUT) approved the formal registration and accreditation of Herkules, a vocational college for astrologists. The decision sparked a minor row in the media, with accusations against NOKUT for accepting unscientific and irrational alternatives into the educational mainstream. The legal framework for accreditation of vocational colleges has since been changed, and now requires that such colleges must justify their education ethical, scientific and pedagogical principles.