ZAGREB, February 9, 2019 - "Understanding Islam", a book by the head of Croatia's Islamic Community, Aziz Hasanović, was launched in Split on Friday, on which occasion he said the institutional form of Islam in Croatia was a Croatian brand which could serve as a model to the East and the West for regulating the status of minority communities.

"The institutional form of Islam in Croatia has existed for more than a century and is a big Croatian brand, and this book promotes the message that Croatia can serve as a model in resolving the status of Christian minorities in the East as well as Muslim minorities in Europe," said mufti Hasanović.

Croatia is a "bright example" of how to treat the Islamic and Muslim communities, he said, adding that there were "big campaigns against Islam" in the world, notably in Europe.

"This book is aimed at strengthening relations between people and strengthening dialogue between religions," the mufti said, adding that the book also analysed Sharia and "the difference between Islamic and Muslim countries."

Hasanović said he was proud to have attended in Abu Dhabi the signing of the Declaration for World Peace and Living Together between Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed At-Tayyeb.

Asked if the declaration would have a positive impact on Christian-Muslim relations in the Balkans, Hasanović said that it would. "I expect us in the Balkans to practice and follow the declaration too."

More news on the Islamic Community in Croatia can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, January 18, 2019 - Five Roman Catholic and five Serb Orthodox bishops met in Požega on Thursday ahead of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity and pushed for "joint statements in the Croatian public to encourage believers to promote unity above all national and political exclusiveness," the Croatian Bishops Conference said.

On Croatia's public scene, there are many negative views and ill-intentioned approaches as well as too much dealing with others' negativity while ignoring one's own, which divides people, creates mistrust and distances them from each other, the bishops said.

In a special statement, they mentioned the "grave plights of the Serbian and Croatian peoples and other citizens of Croatia in the recent past in wars, persecutions and killings caused by hate."

"We are aware that by accusing each other, manipulating the historical truth, interpreting wartime events for daily political purposes, insulting and humiliating on ethnic or religious grounds, we remain prisoners of the past and losers in the present.

We push for establishing the truth about the victims of World War II and of the 1991-1995 war in Croatia through scientific research and arguments, so as to stop speculation about the number of victims and giving them back the dignity they have as victims.

The dignitaries say, among other things, that they "deeply regret every innocent victim of any nation, faith or political view from our recent past."

More news on the religions in Croatia can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, January 15, 2019 - Opening an international conference on Muslim communities in Europe and their duties and responsibilities, the head of the Islamic Community in Croatia, Mufti Aziz Hasanović, said in Zagreb on Tuesday that the local community of the Muslim faithful had been showing for years that it could serve as a model for addressing the Muslim issue in Europe as well as for solving the status of Christian minorities in the Islamic world.

The conference was organised by the leadership of the Islamic Community in Croatia and the World Council of Muslim Communities.

"The Islamic Community in Croatia has been promoting for years the idea that it can serve as a model for resolving the Muslim issue in Europe and also the issue of Christian minorities in the Islamic world. In the same vein, we have today brought together participants from 25 countries in Europe to share our positive experiences and to send a message that all who want to make contributions to their respective societies and to Islam as a religion, need to consider certain experiences that have been confirmed in Croatia by the institutionalised work of the Islamic Community in the past 103 years in this region," the dignitary said.

I am happy to be the host of this gathering and I thank the World Council of Muslim Communities and our government as well as the Justice Minister, who is also responsible for religious matters, for cooperating in efforts to address the issues facing us, said Mufti Hasanović.

Every time has its own challenges, said Hasanović expressing satisfaction with efforts aimed at solving those challenges and at the fact that Croatia's Islamic Community has become a regional centre for sending messages about joint efforts to deal with those challenges.

Justice Minister Dražen Bošnjaković underscored the fact that a conference of this kind was taking place in Croatia.

More news on the Islamic Community in Croatia can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, January 6, 2019 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Saturday wished a merry Christmas to Orthodox Christians celebrating it under the Julian calendar, saying that diversity connects and enriches every community.

"Encouraged by the spirit of Christmas, let's remember that diversity connects and enriches every community. Love and tolerance instruct us to contribute, through mutual understanding, respect and joint action, to an inclusive and progressive society for the well-being of all citizens of our homeland," Plenković said in his note to Orthodox believers, calling Christmas a big Christian holiday of peace, hope and unity.

Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Saturday wished a happy Christmas to all Orthodox believers who celebrate it according to the Julian calendar, on January 7, saying he wished for the Christmas atmosphere to give everyone more unity and determination as well as cooperation, dialogue and tolerance in society.

Jandroković said in a note that Christmas "celebrates faith, hope and life, giving all believers strength and optimism."

"May the atmosphere of Christmas gift us all more unity and determination so that, in the spirit of cooperation, dialogue and tolerance in society, we can continue to build our homeland as a prosperous country for all our citizens."

More news on the religion in Croatian can be found in our Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, August 20, 2018 - The president of the Islamic community in Croatia, Mufti Aziz ef. Hasanović, on Monday sent greetings to all the faithful on the occasion of Eid al-Adha, underscoring that the feast was an opportunity for them to ask themselves why Muslims today were the victims of various global plots when "so much Muslim blood is flowing, mostly at the hands of Muslims themselves, that it worries all reasonable people regardless of what faith they belong to and confuses all of mankind."

ZAGREB, June 15, 2018 - The end of the Ramadan fasting ahead of one of the two biggest Muslim holidays, Ramadan Bayram, brought together in Zagreb on Thursday the highest political representatives in Croatia, representatives of the diplomatic corps, and the leaders of the Islamic and other religious communities.

ZAGREB, April 21, 2018 - A two-day international conference called "Religion and Politics" started in the Islamic Centre in Zagreb on Friday, bringing together 35 scientists who will talk about the relationship between religion and politics.

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