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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In Spain, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez condemned Spanish football fans for making Islamophobic chants targeting Egypt’s national team and their supporters during an international match near Barcelona, meanwhile eight Muslim-majority countries “strongly condemned” Israel’s move to pass a law making death by hanging a default sentence for Palestinians convicted in military courts of deadly attacks, and lastly in the United Kingdom, a new report by the thinktank Equi has warned that wider failure to recognize the importance of faith-sensitive care for young people when it comes to mental health could risk “overlooking powerful protective factors”. Our recommended read of the day is by Andrew Lewis and Steven Grand for The Unpopulist, on how, in the face of MAGA politicians normalizing anti-Muslim rhetoric across the country, everyday citizens must speak out against such dehumanizing speech. This and more below:
United States
Georgia Is Fighting Its Islamophobic Politicians | Recommended Read
In our home state of Georgia, Republican state Sen. Greg Dolezal, a candidate for lieutenant governor, recently released a video that portrays Muslim Americans in a deeply offensive, dangerous manner. The video is amateurish, as if it was edited by a middle schooler. It depicts two black-clad individuals who look like ninjas fighting with swords, then a group of men on a suburban American street wearing Taliban-like garb firing Kalashnikovs into the air. It then closes with the dark message that Muslim Americans, who presumably are these cartoonish figures and represent but 1.3% of the population, are intent on taking over America. The caption accompanying the video was equally explicit: “London has fallen. Europe is under siege,” it declared, calling Muslim Americans “invaders who would rather pillage our generosity than assimilate” and closing with the message: “Keep Georgia sharia free.” Dolezal refused to apologize, saying he would not “take campaign advice from the Democrats,” and invoked President Trump, who had similarly claimed that “Sharia courts” were “adjudicating law” in London. Dolezal is not an outlier. Across the country, MAGA politicians have normalized anti-Muslim rhetoric—with members of Congress declaring that “Muslims don’t belong in American society” and senators calling Muslim elected officials “the enemy inside the gates.” As The UnPopulist has reported, Texas Republicans have gone further still, moving from rhetoric to policy: designating CAIR a terrorist organization, excluding Muslim schools from state voucher programs, and spending more than $10 million on anti-Sharia campaign ads this election cycle. What begins as a campaign video has a destination. read the complete article
United Kingdom
Young Muslims often don’t seek mental health support. A report found out why
While the government pledged a £7 million funding boost for youth mental health services in February, a new report by the thinktank Equi has warned that wider failure to recognise the importance of faith-sensitive care for young people could risk “overlooking powerful protective factors” and lead to “missed opportunities of broader, holistic, values-driven and patient-centred care”. Authored by researcher Taibah Al-Fagih, the report based its findings on a December 2025 poll of 1,200 young people in the UK aged 16 to 24, and interviews with 32 experts including clinical psychologists, academics, youth workers, faith leaders and policymakers. More than 40% of the 383 young people in the survey who identified as religious and had sought professional support for poor mental health said they might have done so earlier if they felt services understood their faith background. For Muslim respondents in this situation, a group of 253, the figure was 44%. “Mainstream provision too often fails to account for this dimension of identity,” the report stated. “Where faith is ignored or misunderstood, we risk creating barriers to access and undermining trust in services that are meant to support those most in need.” read the complete article
International
Eight Muslim-majority countries condemn Israel's new death penalty law
Eight Muslim-majority countries "strongly condemned" Israel's move to pass a law making death by hanging a default sentence for Palestinians convicted in military courts of deadly attacks, a joint statement released by Pakistan said on Thursday. The law, passed by Israel's parliament on Monday, will apply to Israelis convicted of murder whose attacks are aimed at "ending Israel's existence", meaning it would mete out the death penalty for Palestinians but not for Jewish Israelis who committed similar crimes, critics say. Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates said the law constitutes a "dangerous escalation" and emphasized the "urgent need to refrain from measures" that risk further inflaming tensions on the ground, Pakistan's foreign ministry said. read the complete article
Spain
Pedro Sánchez, Lamine Yamal slam anti-Muslim chanting at Spain football game against Egypt
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Wednesday condemned Spanish football fans for directing chants demeaning Muslims at Egypt’s national team and their supporters. The incident took place during a friendly international match in Cornellà near Barcelona on Tuesday night, when some fans were heard chanting: “If you don’t jump, you’re a Muslim.” The jeers were directed at players and supporters from Egypt, a majority-Muslim country. “Yesterday’s incident in Cornellà is unacceptable and must not happen again,” Sánchez wrote on X. “We cannot allow an uncivil minority to tarnish the reality of Spain, a plural and tolerant country — including our national team and its fans.” Spanish police on Wednesday launched an investigation into the chants. Lamine Yamal, one of Spain’s star players who is also a Muslim, likewise condemned the incident in a post on Instagram. “I know it was aimed at the opposing team and wasn’t something personal against me, but as a Muslim it is still disrespectful and unacceptable,” he wrote. “Using a religion as a joke in a stadium makes you look ignorant and racist.” Spain’s head coach, Luis De La Fuente, also denounced the chanting in an interview after the game, which finished 0-0. read the complete article