No More Exceptions: Europe’s Historic Stand Against Sharia Law—Part 2

In January 2019, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted Resolution 2253 that demanded the abolition of Sharia law application in member states and the protection of human rights "regardless of religious or cultural practices" (PACE, Resolution 2253 (2019), article 9). The Resolution addressed the incompatibility of Sharia law with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) (Council of Europe. Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. European Treaty Series No. 5. Rome, 4 November 1950. As amended by Protocols Nos. 11 and 14. Strasbourg: Council of Europe, 2010).

Countries were given a June 2020 deadline to report back on their actions. It's now June 2026—six years later. What happened? The short answer: almost nothing.

The Compliance Scorecard

In January 2018 (before the PACE Resolution 2253 but after the Molla Sali judgment: Molla Sali v. Greece, no. 20452/14, European Court of Human Rights, December 19, 2018), Greece enacted Law 4511/2018, making Sharia law optional rather than compulsory for the Muslim minority in Western Thrace (Hellenic Republic, Law 4511/2018, "Reform on Mufti Jurisdiction and Sharia Law," Official Gazette, January 15, 2018)

Key provisions:

• Muslim litigants can now opt for Greek civil courts instead of Muftis
• Sharia application requires consent of all parties
• This was a direct response to the Molla Sali v. Greece judgment ("Greece Limits Islamic Sharia Law Courts for Muslim Minority," Deutsche Welle, January 10, 2018)

Greece

PACE demanded Greece abolish Sharia application entirely and limit Muftis to purely religious functions. Neither has been achieved.

According to a February 2025 report from the International Center for Law and Religion Studies:

“Adjudication within Muslim judicial fora in Greece exhibits conservative trends, which has led to increased pressure for ‘internal’ reform of traditionalist elements prevalent in the courts’ practice.”("Sharia Court Adjudication: Gendered Perspective," Talk About (blog), International Center for Law and Religion Studies, February 19, 2025)

The ongoing problems:

• Muftis continue to operate with judicial functions
• Women continue to face disadvantages in proceedings before Muftis
• The "optional" system still allows Sharia application, which PACE called to abolish entirely
• Gender discrimination concerns remain unaddressed (Nikos Koumoutzis, "Judicial Review of Mufti Decisions Applying Islamic Family Law in Greece," Laws 12, no. 3 (2023) : 58)

Assessment: Greece made the minimum legislative change to satisfy the European Court but ignored PACE's core recommendations. The Resolution called for abolition, not making it "optional."

United Kingdom

What PACE Demanded in the United Kingdom:

1. Ensure Sharia councils operate within anti-discrimination law
2. Review Marriage Act to require civil registration before/during Islamic ceremony
3. Enforce measures obliging celebrants to ensure civil registration
4. Remove barriers to Muslim women's access to justice
5. Implement awareness-raising campaigns on women's rights
6. Conduct further research on Sharia councils' practices (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Resolution 2253 (2019), "Sharia, the Cairo Declaration and the European Convention on Human Rights," January 22, 2019, article 14)

What Actually Happened: Nothing.

The UK government has implemented none of the key recommendations from PACE Resolution 2253 (2019) or from its own 2018 independent review into Sharia law (Home Office, The Independent Review into the Application of Sharia Law in England and Wales (London: Home Office, 2018), 11)

Sharia councils continue operating exactly as before:

• As of October 2025, Sharia councils continue to function as alternative dispute resolution bodies outside the formal legal system ("Sharia Law Isn't Taking Over Britain – It's an Inevitable Legacy of Its Colonial Legal History," The Conversation, October 30, 2025)
• No legislative changes have been made to the Marriage Act
• No enforcement measures have been implemented to require civil registration of Islamic marriages
• Discrimination against women in divorce and inheritance proceedings continues unchecked ("Islamic Law in the United Kingdom," Talk About (blog), International Center for Law and Religion Studies, September 2, 2025)

Public opinion is clear: October 2025 polling shows 84% of Britons oppose Sharia law application, with two-thirds concerned about women's rights ("The Majority of Britons Reject Sharia Law and Sharia Courts in the UK," Women Policy Centre, October 7, 2025).

Yet the government remains paralyzed by political correctness and fear of being accused of "Islamophobia."

Women in unregistered Islamic marriages remain legally invisible:

• No right to divorce settlement
• No property division
• No spousal maintenance
• No legal recognition of the marriage at all

They must turn to Sharia councils for Islamic divorce, where they face:

• Discriminatory inheritance rules (half of male heirs' shares)
• Unequal divorce rights (men can divorce unilaterally; women must seek permission)
• Limited child custody rights
• Intense social pressure (Home Office, "The Independent Review into the Application of Sharia Law in England and Wales" (London: Home Office, 2018), 11-15)

Albania, Azerbaijan and Turkey

PACE called on Albania, Azerbaijan and Turkey – Council of Europe member states – all signatories to the 1990 Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam (Organization of the Islamic Conference, Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam, August 5, 1990) – to:

1. Consider withdrawing from the 1990 Cairo Declaration
2. Make declarations ensuring it has no domestic effect inconsistent with ECHR
3. Adopt formal acts establishing ECHR as superior binding norms (PACE, Resolution 2253 (2019), "Sharia, the Cairo Declaration and the European Convention on Human Rights," January 22, 2019, article 12).

Finding: No evidence that any of these states have taken any of these actions.

Azerbaijan's Troubling Direction

In April 2025, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev announced that Azerbaijan would no longer consider European Court of Human Rights decisions valid, citing inability to elect judges to the court ("Aliyev Announces That Azerbaijan Will No Longer Consider ECHR (i.e. European Court of Human Rights) Decisions Valid," OC Media, April 11, 2025).

This represents movement in the opposite direction from PACE's recommendations—not toward strengthening ECHR supremacy, but toward rejecting it entirely.

Assessment: Albania, Azerbaijan and Turkey ignored PACE recommendations entirely (0% compliance).

Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)

The 2021 Revised Cairo Declaration

The OIC did revise the Cairo Declaration, adopting a new version in 2021 with more detailed human rights provisions, expanded protections for women and children, and references to international instruments (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, "The Cairo Declaration of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation on Human Rights," 2021)

This sounds positive—until you read Article 25(a):

“Everyone has the right to exercise and enjoy the rights and freedoms set out in the present declaration, without prejudice to the principles of Islam and national legislation.”

The Fundamental Problem Remains

The 2021 Cairo Declaration maintains Sharia supremacy over universal human rights—the exact concern PACE Resolution 2253 identified.

Specific incompatibilities persist:

1. Gender Equality:

• Article 6: Women's rights "as prescribed by applicable laws"—allowing Sharia-based discrimination
• No explicit equality in inheritance or divorce

1. Freedom of Religion:

• Article 20: Freedom to manifest religion subject to limitations "prescribed by law"
• No explicit right to change religion or apostasy protection

1. Death Penalty:

• Article 2(b): Death penalty permitted for "most serious crimes"—no abolition

Assessment: The 2021 revision the Cairo Declaration represents cosmetic improvements but maintains fundamental incompatibilities with ECHR through its Article 25(a) "principles of Islam" clause.

The June 2020 Reporting Deadline: Ignored

PACE Resolution 2253, article 15, explicitly required countries to "report back to the Assembly by June 2020" on follow-up actions (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Resolution 2253 (2019), article 15).

Finding: Our research found no evidence that any of the mentioned countries submitted such reports.

This represents a complete failure of accountability.

Why This Matters: The Bigger Picture

Seven years after Resolution 2253, we face an uncomfortable truth:

European institutions can identify human rights violations clearly. They can issue powerful resolutions. They can set deadlines.

But they cannot—or will not—enforce compliance.

The Core Questions

1. What is the point of PACE resolutions if member states simply ignore them?
2. What does it say about European commitment to women's rights when governments allow parallel legal systems that systematically discriminate against women?
3. What does it say about the rule of law when Islamic courts operate outside the formal legal system with no accountability?
4. What does it say about universal human rights when European states endorse declarations (Cairo Declaration) that explicitly subordinate human rights to Islamic law?

The Women Left Behind

While politicians debate and institutions issue resolutions, real women suffer real consequences:

• Greek Muslim women in Thrace still face discriminatory Mufti rulings
• British Muslim women in unregistered marriages have no legal protection
• Women across Europe face social pressure to accept Sharia-based "justice"
• Under-aged girls are forced into marriages their countries' civil law would prohibit

These are not abstract policy questions. These are human rights violations happening in Europe today.

What Needs to Happen

The failure to implement Resolution 2253 demands urgent action:

Immediate Action

1. PACE must demand updated compliance reports from all mentioned countries
2. The Committee of Ministers should initiate infringement procedures against non-compliant states
3. The European Commission should investigate whether EU member states (Greece) are violating EU law
4. Civil society organizations must increase pressure through litigation and advocacy

Long-Term Reforms

1. Mandatory civil registration of all marriages before ceremonies (as already required for Christian and Jewish marriages in the UK)
2. Complete abolition of Islamic courts with judicial functions in all Council of Europe member states
3. Formal declarations from Albania, Azerbaijan, and Turkey establishing ECHR supremacy over the Cairo Declaration
4. Comprehensive legal protection for women in Islamic communities, with accessible remedies

The Fundamental Principle

PACE Resolution 2253 stated it clearly:

"...where human rights are concerned, there is no room for religious or cultural exceptions." (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Resolution 2253 (2019), article 9)