Today in Islamophobia: In the UK, anti-Muslim graffiti has been found on seven London buildings this month, including mosques, community centres, and a primary school, with the MPD investigating the incidents as hate crimes, meanwhile in the US, a public teacher in Pennsylvania was put on academic leave after allegedly calling a Palestinian American middle school student “an extremist”, and in Australia, Aftab Malik, Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia, says that Islamophobic incidents have increased by more than 600% since October 7, 2023. Our recommended read of the day is by Ali Harb for Al Jazeera on how civil rights advocates in the United States are raising the alarm over a directive signed by President Donald Trump that they say lays the groundwork for another Muslim ban, and this time used to target pro-Palestinian international student protesters. This and more below:
United States
Trump decree paves way for ‘Muslim ban’, targeting pro-Palestine students | Recommended Read
Civil rights advocates in the United States are raising the alarm over a directive signed by President Donald Trump that they say lays the groundwork for another travel ban targeting Muslim-majority countries. The executive order, released on Monday, may also be used to target foreign nationals who are already in the US legally and crack down on international students who advocate for Palestinian rights, experts say. Deepa Alagesan, a lawyer at the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), an advocacy group, said the new order is “bigger and worse” than the “xenophobic” travel ban that Trump imposed on several Muslim-majority countries in 2017 during his first term. “The worst part of it now, it’s looking to not just ban people outside the US entering the US, but also to use these same rationales as a basis to get people out of the US,” Alagesan told Al Jazeera. The new order directs administration officials to compile a list of nations “for which vetting and screening information is so deficient as to warrant a partial or full suspension on the admission of nationals from those countries”. It goes further, however. It calls for identifying the number of citizens who entered the US from those countries since 2021 — during Joe Biden’s presidency — and collecting “relevant” information about their “actions and activities”. The White House then orders “immediate steps” to deport foreign citizens from those countries “whenever information is identified that would support the exclusion or removal”. read the complete article
US teacher put on leave after allegedly calling Palestinian child an extremist
A public teacher in Pennsylvania was put on leave after allegedly calling a Palestinian American middle school student an extremist, the school district and a Muslim advocacy group said. Human rights advocates say there has been a rise in anti-Muslim, anti-Palestinian and antisemitic hate in the U.S. since the start of Israel's war in Gaza following an Oct. 7, 2023, attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas. The Central Dauphin School District said on Saturday it had learned about the allegations that the teacher made the derogatory comment last week in an after-school program. "The teacher involved in the alleged incident is on administrative leave pending our investigation," the district said in a statement, adding it had no tolerance for racist speech. The Council on American Islamic Relations said the allegation was that the teacher had remarked, "I do not negotiate with terrorists," when the Palestinian American student asked for a seat change. read the complete article
Harvard Quietly Resolves Anti-Palestinian Discrimination Complaint With Ed. Department
Harvard quietly agreed last week to resolve a 2024 federal complaint alleging the University failed to protect students from anti-Arab, anti-Muslim, and anti-Palestinian harassment and intimidation. In a Jan. 17 letter addressed to University president Alan M. Garber ’76, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights concluded that Harvard did not “provide a prompt and effective response to reports of a hostile environment.” The resolution — reached four days before Harvard announced it had settled two antisemitism lawsuits — will require the University to revise its anti-discrimination policies and keep better records of how it processes discrimination complaints. Unlike the settlements, the OCR resolution does not mandate that Harvard introduce new language specifically protecting Arab, Muslim, or Palestinian students. In the last weeks of the Biden administration, schools rushed to close OCR cases before Donald Trump took office. At least five other universities resolved Title VI complaints with the OCR in January, including one other complaint that a university failed to combat discrimination based on shared Palestinian, Muslim, or Arab ancestry. read the complete article
Trump Laid Groundwork for “Muslim Ban 2.0.” Here’s How Organizers Are Bracing.
In the early hours of New Year’s Day, an individual in New Orleans killed 15 people and wounded dozens of others on the city’s famed Bourbon Street. When reports emerged that the alleged attacker was a Muslim American by the name of Shamsud-Din Jabbar, then President-elect Donald Trump quickly turned the tragedy into fodder for his Islamophobic, racist and xenophobic rhetoric. In the days after the attack, Trump took to social media to condemn the violence caused by “Radical Islamic Terrorism,” which he blamed on Biden’s “Open Border Policy.” Further reports soon revealed that Jabbar was not, in fact, an immigrant and was a veteran of the U.S. military. Neither of these facts, however, mattered to Trump and the narrative he has sought to cement, framing Muslims as foreign outsiders and claiming that Islam — not for example, Jabbar’s participation in one of the most violent militaries in the world — could have played a part in this violent transgression. While none of this rhetoric is new, an emboldened Trump promised to unleash even more hateful rhetoric, along with criminalizing and demonizing policies during his term, making these anti-Muslim narratives an important part of his arsenal. Less than three weeks later, in his inauguration speech, Trump delivered on precisely this promise. Coupled with the over two dozen executive orders that he signed on his first day in office alone — including an order that clearly lays the groundwork for an updated “Muslim ban” — Trump made it clear that when it comes to expanding repression and state violence against Muslims and other marginalized communities, he intends to do so at lightning speed. read the complete article
US Senate narrowly confirm controversial Hegseth for Defence Secretary
Pete Hegseth, US President Donald Trump's pick for Defence Secretary, which has been marred in controversy over allegations of sexual assault and violence, angry outbursts, and anti-Muslim statements, was confirmed by the Senate in a tie-breaking vote Friday night. In the hours leading up to the confirmation, as more allegations of misconduct were continuing to surface, the breakdown of the votes remained unclear, as several Republican senators seemed to have reservations about the important position. In the end, however, as expected, the majority party largely united in their confirmation vote. His confirmation was contentious from the outset, with civil and human rights advocates raising concerns over his background. In addition to allegations of sexual assault and domestic violence, Hegseth has called for the destruction of Al-Aqsa Mosque, has advocated for US military personnel accused of war crimes, and has made angry public outbursts about Muslims. The confirmation of Hegseth, who has no experience holding political office, is one of the first in a series of votes on Trump's administration picks, largely made up of loyalists, many of whom are seen as too extreme for Democrats and civil rights advocates. read the complete article
United Kingdom
School and mosques vandalised with anti-Muslim graffiti in London
Anti-Muslim graffiti has been found daubed on seven London buildings this month, including mosques, community centres and a primary school. The Metropolitan Police said it is investigating "several incidents of criminal damage" and is treating them as "shocking" hate crimes. The first incident took place on Monday 6 January, with the most recent recorded on Saturday 25 January. The force is looking into whether they are linked, including examining CCTV footage. The incidents are reported to have been fuelled by a Telegram hate group, which was offering £100 to people who committed acts of vandalism. The Met said its inquiries are continuing. The force has stepped up reassurance patrols in the affected areas and is in contact with local faith leaders. read the complete article
Unacceptable to use grooming gang scandal to smear all Muslims – faith leader
Using the issue of grooming gangs to misrepresent an entire faith is unacceptable, the newly elected leader of one of the UK’s major Muslim organisations has said. Dr Wajid Akhter’s comments came as he was chosen as the new secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB). “One groomer is one too many, Muslim or otherwise,” he said. The organisation, established in 1998, describes itself as the UK’s largest Muslim umbrella organisation, with more than 500 members, but successive political administrations have followed a policy of non-engagement. In his manifesto, Dr Akhter noted that international Muslim groups with which he was in contact during the pandemic did not know about the “fact that the Government did not speak to us”. He has vowed to “transform the structure, strategy, funding and culture” of the MCB, and for the organisation to be a “unifying force” in the Muslim community. read the complete article
New lobby group for British Muslims ‘won’t compete with Muslim Council of Britain’
The British Muslim Network (BMN) will officially go live in London on 25 February with a series of roundtables inviting participants from across England to share their expertise on the challenges facing Muslims across a variety of sectors. The network, which will initially cover England only, has been set up by a core group of about 20 people, according to co-founder Akeela Ahmed — who is also chair of the government’s Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group. Other members include Imam Asim Hafiz, an adviser at the Ministry of Defence; Syima Aslam, the CEO of Bradford Literature Festival; and Julie Siddiqi, founder of Together We Thrive, a Muslim women’s network. Ahmed hopes the BMN will gather insights from Muslim communities and use these findings to improve policymaking. “Each roundtable will bring together experts from across the country working in each sector to discuss a set of questions,” she said. “The learnings of this will be drawn up into a report, which can then be shared with government, policymakers and other sector leaders.” Aside from speaking to Muslim experts across these fields, Ahmed said, the network will engage grassroots communities, activists and campaign groups, with a particular focus on underrepresented groups, such as people from refugee and newly arrived backgrounds. “Our hope is to help Muslim communities develop and progress, while helping the rest of society understand the positive contributions that Muslims make to the UK,” she added. read the complete article
‘This guy is dangerous’: British Pakistanis fear Musk is stoking racism
Azmat Khan, a British Pakistani taxi driver, is not usually much of a worrier. But recently, as he drives his cab at night through London’s ice-cold streets, he has become increasingly anxious. “We’ve just had a summer of unrest with misinformation fuelling far-right activists in this country, partly thanks to X, and now he’s back, fanning the flames again,” Khan said of the South-Africa born tech billionaire Elon Musk, who has used the social media platform he owns to rage about British sexual abuse convicts of Pakistani heritage. “This guy’s dangerous, and yes, I’m worried,” Khan, a 35-year-old father of three, told Al Jazeera, sharing his fears of collective punishment. “Our community has seen through this kind of scapegoating before. But with Musk’s platform and resources, the threat has reached an entirely new level.” Khan tunes in to the pulse of the city through his passengers and says he has noticed a troubling shift in back-seat conversations. Some passengers have talked about what they called the “threats” Muslims and migrants bring to the UK. That type of discourse could be linked to Musk’s inflammatory comments about historic cases of child sex abuse, Khan believes. “That was a horrific time when the news first came out more than a decade ago,” Khan said. “But to bring it up again now, while it’s being dealt with, and to finger-point at Pakistani Muslims specifically – it’s obvious he’s trying to cause trouble, a move towards the civil war he was trying to stir up last summer.” read the complete article
Yvette Cooper says Islamist referrals to Prevent are 'too low'. But critics disagree
British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has been widely criticised by rights groups after claiming that referrals for Islamist extremism to the controversial Prevent programme have been "too low". Data suggests that Muslims are more likely than others to be wrongly reported and questioned under the government's counter-extremism strategy. Cooper made the remarks in parliament on Tuesday after it was revealed that Alex Rudakubana, a teenager convicted of the high-profile killings of three young girls in a knife attack in Southport last year, was referred to Prevent three times as a schoolboy. Prime Minister Keir Starmer had singled out Prevent for criticism on Tuesday morning, saying that the failure of state institutions to prevent the Southport attack "leaps off the page", and promising a review of the "entire counter-extremist system". Rudakubana, who was 17 at the time of the attack, had first been referred to Prevent in 2019 when he was 13 after he used school computers to search for material related to school massacres in the US. But he was deemed not to be motivated by a terrorist ideology or to pose a terrorist threat. Cooper told parliament that she had ordered her department to review the thresholds for Prevent referrals, and said that referrals for Islamist extremism have previously been "too low". Jacob Smith of campaign group Rights and Security International criticised Cooper's statement, warning that "any lowering of the threshold for Islamist referrals will only exacerbate the existing discrimination Muslim communities have faced. read the complete article
India
Indian State Of Maharashtra Was Epicentre Of Anti-Muslim Rioting In 2024 – Analysis
India’s Western States, particularly Maharashtra, had emerged as the “epicentre” of communal rioting in India in 2024, according to an all-India study done by the Mumbai-based Centre for Study of Society and Secularism (CSSS). Maharashtra accounted for 12 of the 59 riots in 2024. India, as whole, witnessed 59 communal riots in 2024, a significant rise compared to 32 riots in 2023, an 84% increase. These incidents resulted in 13 deaths—10 Muslims and 3 Hindus, the study states. The “cow belt” comprising Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and others like Gujarat and Bihar, saw a higher number of communal riots along with Maharashtra. But, as per tradition, the southern states of India reported a far lesser number of communal riots. The same is the case with the state of West Bengal. There has been no change in this regional pattern. Since 2022, there had been a spike in communal riots in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. In 2024, Maharashtra had 12 riots, Gujarat 5, Madhya Pradesh 5, and Rajasthan 3. With 25 communal riots, these states accounted for 42% of the total cases of communal rioting in 2024. read the complete article
Canada
Trudeau meets with families of victims of deadly 2017 Quebec mosque attack
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has met with the families of six men who were killed at a Quebec City mosque, days before the anniversary of the 2017 attack. Eight years ago, on Jan. 29, 2017, Alexandre Bissonnette killed six men at the Centre culturel islamique du Québec and this year the centre has planned several events to mark the tragedy. Trudeau met in the basement of the mosque on Saturday evening with men, women and children whose relatives were victims of the slayings, pausing to speak with each of them individually and at times could be seen placing his hand over his heart. read the complete article
Germany
Germany’s Reckoning With the Past Is No Longer a Model
Throughout the war, two countries in particular stood out for their unflinching support for Israel: its oldest backer, the United States, but also Germany. The leadership in Berlin has often cited a distinctive Staatsräson (“reason of state”), based on Germans’ historical responsibility for the Holocaust, to refuse to condemn or at least cease military support for Israel. Yet this, added to the fact that many credible international observers have accused Israel of genocide, has prompted millions in the country and around the world to ask whether Germany’s reckoning with its own dark past was as thorough, and as meaningful, as previously believed. Enzo Traverso, a historian of contemporary Europe, is renowned for his research on critical themes such as war, fascism, genocide, revolution, and collective memory. His latest work, Gaza Faces History, examines the Gaza war as a combination of colonial legacies and humanitarian crises. In the book, he also critiques the instrumentalization of Holocaust memory — particularly by Germany — and discusses its shift from a universal lesson against oppression to a narrative used to justify a current genocide. He spoke with Jacobin about the German state’s behavior since the war in Gaza began and what lessons he draws for developing a truly universalist and internationalist memory politics. read the complete article
Austria
Austrian far-right victory foreshadows dystopia for Muslim population
For the first time since the end of the Nazi regime, the leader of the Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) - a political party that was established by ex-Nazis for ex-Nazis, and that has grown to become a major force in Austrian politics since the early 1990s - has the chance to not only join a government as a partner but to actually lead the government, with its party leader becoming the future chancellor. My first and only encounter with Herbert Kickl, the current leader of the far-right FPO, took place in 2009. At the time, he was the party's general secretary, and we debated the Swiss minaret ban during a live TV broadcast. Unlike many other far-right politicians from his party whom I've debated over the years, Kickl stood out. Most of them, while espousing controversial views, maintained a level of personal approachability, and their positions seemed calculated rather than deeply held. Kickl, however, was different. His rhetoric felt deeply personal, laced with a palpable disdain - if not outright hatred - towards Muslims, accompanied by calls for discriminatory policies. He was the brains behind some of the first anti-Muslim slogans the party adopted following its stark focus on targeting Islam and Muslims in 2005. A talented writer, he came up with campaign slogans such as "Daham statt Islam" (At home instead of Islam) and "Mehr Mut für unser Wiener Blut" (More courage for our Viennese blood), playing with remnants of Nazi vocabulary that have been forgotten for many Austrians. Arguing that Islam has no home or place in Austria is what has marked the FPO's politics vis-a-vis Muslims since 2005. For the FPO, Muslims can only have a place if they become invisible as such. read the complete article
Australia
'Endemic and unreported': Special envoy says Islamophobia 'normalised' in Australia
Islamophobia has become normalised and is underreported across Australia, according to Aftab Malik, with Muslims regularly experiencing humiliation, violence, hatred and discrimination. Malik, who assumed the role of special envoy to combat Islamophobia in October last year, said these incidents are "endemic" in Australia. Malik feels Islamophobic incidents are becoming all too common in Australia. "My consultations revealed a landscape littered by Islamophobic brushes with humiliation and violence, and hatred and discrimination — and the ordinariness of it was what was very surprising," he said. "Islamophobia is taking place in very normal circumstances, in normal surroundings such as shopping malls, at the beaches, on public transport, even in schools, even amongst neighbourhoods. And so that scale was something that was quite surprising for me." According to the Islamophobia Register Australia, Islamophobic incidents here have increased by more than 600 per cent since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 2023. The register was set up in 2014 and is a platform where Islamophobic incidents are reported, recorded and analysed into a published report. Malik said the register had tracked 932 incidents since the Hamas attack; more than the previous eight years combined. He believes many more are going unreported and have become normalised. "In my conversations, the majority of individuals that told me their stories of Islamophobia also informed me that they did not report it," he said. read the complete article