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Carrying a message of tolerance, the new imam of the Ottawa Muslim Association mosque has taken up his job with a commitment to advance the cause of moderate Islam, help the local Muslim community contribute more to the wider society and enhance interfaith relations.

“I have a mission of building bridges, helping the Muslim community to know the moderate approach of Islam and coexist with the wider community like we have here in Canada,” Imam Samy Metwally, an Egyptian Muslim scholar, told the Ottawa Citizen.

United States' Special Representative to Muslim Communities, Farah Pandith, was in Canada between Nov. 15 and 17 “engaging” with Muslim communities and organisations on behalf of her boss, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

On Nov. 16, at a meeting with ethnic media hosted at the US Embassy, Ms. Pandith spoke about her mandate and what her government is doing to reach out to Muslim communities in the U.S. and around the world.

A woman who pleaded guilty to assault after pulling off a Muslim woman's face veil at a Mississauga, Ont., shopping mall has been given a suspended sentence.

Rosemarie Creswell had been charged with pulling the niqab off Inas Kadri as her three-year-old son and two-year-old daughter children watched at the Sheridan Centre mall in August 2010.

Domestic violence is expected to be the core subject of Friday prayer sermons in mosques and Islamic centres across Ottawa on Dec 9.

Prominent Muslim   organizations, Imams, community leaders and activists from all over the country have added their collective voice to the fight against domestic violence.

Disabled Muslims in Ottawa say they get no help from the Muslim community.

They were speaking at a meet-and-greet event to launch the Ottawa chapter of the Canadian Association of Muslims with Disabilities (CAM-D).

Only thirty-five people showed up at the Sept. 25 event held at Carleton University.

The Muslim community still lacks a model of support and care, which every other denomination in Ontario has established, Rabia Khedr, CAM-D's Executive Director said at the meeting.

One of Ottawa's most popular Muslim prayer spaces has turned to the community for help.

Islam Care Centre, commonly referred to as the Da'wah Centre, is appealing for funding to demolish its present, dilapidated premises and build a modern structure to meet the community's growing needs.

The ICC is unique among Muslim organizations in Ottawa because of its location in the heart of the city.  Situated at 312 Lisgar St., the centre offers a prayer area and a library that serves Muslim men and women working or living in the downtown core, visitors to Ottawa, diplomats and non-Muslims wishing to learn about Islam.

Dozens of Libyan-Canadians gathered on Parliament Hill to celebrate the fall of Muammar Gaddafi, the man who maintained an iron rule over their homeland for 42 years, and who they blame for plunging the country into a state of abject poverty and social decay.

Gaddafi's death marked the end of a violent political drama that has absorbed Canadian-Libyans for months, ever since the Arab Spring uprising in the Middle East reached Libya and touched off a civil war that led to Gaddafi's ouster two months ago.

Thousands of Libyans lost their lives in the country's civil war. We remember slain Ottawa residents Nader Ben Raween, 24, and Abdel Hamid Darrat, 46.

Ahmed Ali and his family smile when contemplating their next move. The house they will move into isn't ready yet, but thanks to the Habitat for Humanity housing program, the house will be their very own. And it comes with an interest-free mortgage.

For a family with five children -- two having special needs -- sharing a three-bedroom townhouse has been a challenge. They desperately need more space for their growing family, and so when Ahmed heard on the radio that there might be a way for him to move his family into a home they could affordably own, he began the process of applying.

Habitat for Humanity is an internationally-known initiative that helps low-income families acquire their own homes, either by renovating existing properties for them, or by building brand new homes for the families from the ground up.

The first Voice of Muslim Youth provincial election engagement session took place on Sept. 10 at Ben Franklin Place. I decided to organize this session after attending the Voice of Muslim Youth's Town Hall Meeting in July, when concerns around the lack of Muslim political engagement were raised. I told Kauthar Mohamed, the co-founder of VOMY, that I had an idea of how to get Muslim youth interested in politics by showing them how the issues that concerned them most were linked to Canadian politics.

As the Ontario provincial election is taking place on Oct. 6, I felt there was a great opportunity to encourage Muslim youth to vote in the upcoming election by giving them the chance to meet and discuss their concerns with local provincial candidates. Thanks to the sponsorship of the South Nepean Muslim Community and the Ottawa Muslim Women's Organization, we were able to cover all the costs related to organizing this important event.

Are you a proud Canadian? Are you satisfied with the government? Is there anything you would change?

Remember how we felt when we heard that Jack Layton had passed away? What a loss for Canada! And then a second set of tears flooded our eyes when we read his letter. Throughout Canada, his words resounded; filling our hearts with pride and inspiring us to action.

His message was full of love, hope and optimism: “My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we'll change the world,” his letter read.

Are you optimistic about the future of Canada?

Lateef Hussaini reviews Glimpses from the Life of Muhammad Rasul Allah by Anwer Kuraishi

“Lives of great men all remind us; we can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us, footprints on the sands of time."
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Indeed, there has never been a greater man on earth than Muhammad bin Abdullah, the Messenger of Allah, the last and final prophet of Islam, may infinite peace and blessings be upon him.

It was mostly a gathering of the youth, and their message was clear: Muslim community leaders should take care of the community's most vulnerable.

The first town hall meeting of the “Voices of Muslim Youth” (VOMY) was a moving experience. Some 85 people attended, mostly but not all youth, including a big number of sisters. The evening included presentations, maghrib prayers (sunset prayers) and questions, as well as comments from the floor. Some 30 to 40 people stayed until the end.

Muslim Link was given the opportunity to interview Sister Shawana Shah, who answered a few questions about the Neighbours, Friends and Family Muslim Project, a campaign that is rapidly gaining support, both on Facebook and throughout the Ottawa community.

What is the NFF project and how does it work exactly?

“Only by working together constructively will the Muslim community be able to uplift itself and serve the country effectively,” Mohammed Zakaria Khan told an iftar (evening meal to break the fast) gathering of students of Carleton University and the University of Ottawa.

The president of the Muslim Coordinating Council spoke at an iftar of Muslim students of the two universities, which was hosted by Human Concern International (HCI) and the Muslim Coordinating Council of the National Capital Region (MCC-NCR). HCI is one of MCC-NCR's member organizations and has previously hosted such iftars. MCC-NCR co-hosted the iftar for the first time.

In early July, Canadians engaged in an online conversation with the aim of increasing their understanding of Muslims, the main non-Christian faith community estimated by government demographers at 1.1 million in 2011 or 3.2 per cent of the total population. It was an initiative of the national daily newspaper, The Globe and Mail, which ran a series of articles on Muslims and invited readers to comment and ask questions.

In particular, readers were curious how Muslims reconcile their lifestyle, which is inspired and informed by a seventh century religion, with the egalitarian values of a modern, secular society. One key subtext was gender relations and the common misperception that Muslim women just get married, have babies and stay home to serve their men.

Heroes Saleh Moujally and Ibrahim Zreick were among six taxi drivers who received special awards from the City of Ottawa during its annual Taxi Driver Appreciation Celebration held at City Hall on June 14.

The awards acknowledge and celebrate great service provided by Ottawa taxi drivers. Customers and members of Ottawa's taxi industry nominated candidates for five award categories: Excellent Customer Service, Access for All, Driver Role Model, Heroism and Lifetime Achievement.

Saleh Moujally and Ibrahim Zreick each received the Heroism Award.

For Mohamed Sofa, helping and serving others is simply second nature.

So it came as no surprise to his friends and family when the Somali-born community activist and community builder was awarded the Mayor's City Builder Award.

In the 15 years since he arrived in Ottawa as a refugee, Mr. Sofa, now 29 years old, has helped initiate and implement dozens of community projects, including homework clubs, soccer teams, basketball leagues, sports nights, and celebrations for youth.

Eleven women and girls from the community of the Islamic Foundation of Toronto were recently honoured by the Government of Ontario.

On Wednesday, April 27, 2011 a ceremony was held at the Islamic Foundation of Toronto to present the women and girls with the province's Leading Women/Girls, Building Communities Recognition Award.

The award recognizes women and girls, who through their extraordinary volunteerism in their community work and leadership, have helped improve the lives of other women and girls in Ontario.

Canadian Muslims, used to frequent distortion in the media, were invited to have their say in a recent meeting arranged by CBC Radio.

“Bias and Belonging: Being Muslim in Ottawa” Town Hall filled the hall on March 15 but enabled only a few Muslims to express their thoughts. While other Muslims had been invited to speak of experiences on the radio prior to the meeting, the town hall on the whole served to underscore the difficulties and biases that Muslims encounter with the media.

It is because people have turned away from religion that the world is beset by so many conflicts. If Jews followed the teachings of Prophet Moses, peace be upon him, Christians followed the guidance of the Prophet Jesus, peace be upon him and Muslims obeyed the commands of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and followers of other religions did the same, there would be harmony and cooperation in the world. So stated Hujjatul Islam Sayyid Muhammad Rizvi, the Imam of the Jaffari Islamic Centre in Toronto.  He emphasized that the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, told his followers to always obey the Quran and be just in all their dealings with others ”“ family, neighbors, fellow Muslims and followers of other faiths.