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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In the United Kingdom, over 350 people gathered in St George’s Hall on Sunday to break their Ramadan fast at the first ever Iftar hosted at the Windsor Castle complex, meanwhile in Canada, Amira Elghawaby, Canada’s Special Representative on Combatting Islamophobia, is proud to announce the government’s first-ever publication on Islamophobia – the Canadian Guide to Understanding and Combatting Islamophobia: For a More Inclusive Canada, and in Australia, police have launched an investigation after a new mosque in south-west Sydney received an online threat by a user who wrote: “about to christ church 2.0 this join[t]”, on the mosque’s Instagram page. Our recommended read of the day is by N’dea Yancey-Bragg for USA Today, who writes that while the number of hate crimes reported to police nationwide has fallen by 2.7% when compared to 2023, this is not the case when it comes to anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish hate, which both increased by over 10%. This and more below:
United States
Hate crimes in major US cities dipped in 2024. But the data doesn't tell the whole story | Recommended Read
The number of hate crimes reported to police in the nation's largest cities fell slightly in 2024 – an unprecedented and unexpected decline in an election year when experts predicted such crimes would rise, according to preliminary data from the Crime and Justice Research Alliance shared first with USA TODAY. At least 3,268 hate crimes were reported across 42 major cities including New York City; Los Angeles; Chicago; Boston; Portland, Ore.; Washington; and Philadelphia last year, a decrease of about 2.7% from the record high hit in 2023, the data shows. The report found the 10 most populous cities saw an even larger decline, but anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim incidents continued to rise amid the Israel-Hamas war. Unlike in 2016 when there was an "explosion" of hate crimes in the month of the election, some major cities saw a "significant decline" in hate crimes in the last months of 2024, Levin said. Levin said this could have happened because some people felt emboldened to express their bigotry in ways that wouldn't constitute a crime, particularly as social media platforms loosened curbs on hate speech. "I think a lot of people were expressing their prejudice in other ways, at rallies or online, and venting their frustrations," Levin said. Anti-Muslim hate crimes increased 18% across 28 cities, while hate crimes against Jews rose by about 11% in 35 cities and are projected to reach another consecutive record, according to Levin's data. This data reflects trends observed by advocacy organizations for both groups. read the complete article
Vigil against hate held in Berkeley after anti-Muslim graffiti at business
Pro-Palestinian activists held a vigil against hate Monday evening after a Berkeley business was vandalized with anti-Muslim graffiti over the weekend. City officials says Berkeley Police are investigating the incident as a hate crime. It happened Saturday morning at Berkeley Community Physical Therapy. On Monday, owner Negeen Mosaed was still trying to clean up. "The gold paint is still kinda there because it was really hard to get off," said Mosaed, pointing to the front door. The paint on the door said "F- Islam". Mosaed is an Iranian American and a Muslim. The vandalism happened on the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. "I called the police and as soon as the police got here they said, 'This is a hate crime,'" said Mosaed. But she said this isn't the first time her business has been targeted. It's the fourth in about a year. During the prior incidents, pro-Palestine ceasefire posters were targeted. read the complete article
United Kingdom
'Amazing atmosphere' at Windsor Castle Iftar event
For the first time in its 1,000-year history, an open Iftar event has been hosted in Windsor Castle's State Apartments. On Sunday, more than 350 people gathered in St George's Hall to break their Ramadan fast. "It's an amazing atmosphere - it just doesn't feel real," one attendee told the BBC. The holy month of Ramadan, which began over the weekend, sees Muslims fast and refrain from eating or drinking between dawn and sunset. The free event was organised by London-based charity Ramadan Tent Project. Simon Maples, visitor operations director at Windsor Castle, said the King had been "championing religious diversity and encouraging interfaith conversation" for many years. On Sunday the call to prayer echoed throughout the building to signal the time to break the fast. Dates were eaten and prayers said before the meal was served. "It's very kind of the Royal Family to open their home to us," one woman told the BBC. Another added: "We never thought we'd be here breaking Iftar. We've come a long way." read the complete article
British Muslim Network launches to fill a 17-year void between community and government
An organisation has been launched to serve as a bridge between Muslim communities and UK policy-makers. The British Muslim Network seeks to fills a void of 17 years after successive governments failed to engage with the Muslim Council of Britain, which was founded for the same purpose. The British Muslim Network (BMN) was launched in London when 60 people began by taking part in round-table discussions on social mobility, storytelling, Islamophobia, philanthropy, community infrastructure and health and wellbeing. The discussions were followed by a large reception with about 300 people, speeches from government officials including the health secretary, Wes Streeting; the deputy Commons Speaker, Nusrat Ghani; faith minister Lord Khan; and a former faith minister, Baroness Warsi. Mr. Streeting acknowledged that governments had let down Muslim communities in the past and insisted on the importance of tackling anti-Muslim hate crimes and Islamophobia. He said it was important that “the government gets this relationship right, to acknowledge with humility that successive governments have not got this relationship right“. The BMN seeks to convene expert panels to share information on the views and practices of Muslim communities to policy-makers. Its co-chairs are Akeela Ahmed and Imam Qari Asim. read the complete article
International
Israelis no longer blush at calls for Palestinian extermination
At the end of October 2023, Local Call published the full text of a plan formulated by Gila Gamliel, then Israel’s minister of intelligence, for the “evacuation of the civilian population from Gaza to Sinai”. The plan received extensive coverage around the world and was viewed as proof that Israel's real goal in its war in Gaza - at that time still in the aerial bombing phase before the ground invasion - was not to “eliminate Hamas” but to expel the Palestinians from Gaza. Sixteen months later, Gamliel's plan has effectively become the official plan of the Israeli government. The credit must first and foremost, of course, go to US President Donald Trump. But it is also undeniable that this process reflects the evolution of an idea long cherished by the Israeli public. Indeed, even after Trump and his people began watering down his transfer plan in recent days, terming it not a “forced evacuation” but rather “only a recommendation”, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has continued to extol “President Trump's groundbreaking plan to allow freedom of exit for Gazans” and Defence Minister Israel Katz is setting up an administration for “voluntary exit” from Gaza. These formulations are present almost word for word in Gamliel's plan. Therefore, it would be inadvisable to casually dismiss a call by deputy parliament speaker Nissim Vaturi stating that “the children and women should be separated and the [male] adults in Gaza should be killed”. Vaturi may be a more marginal politician than Gamliel, but he signifies a development in the Jewish-Israeli discourse. There are no more threats of a second Nakba, which took over the right-wing discourse even before 7 October and subsequently entered the mainstream. There is not just a "Generals’ Plan" of siege and starvation, which was actually implemented by expelling the residents of northern Gaza and demolishing their homes and was only halted because of the ceasefire. Rather, there is a blueprint for annihilation: for a final solution to the problem of Gaza and to the problem of the Palestinians in general. Vaturi’s words are noteworthy because they come against the backdrop of a normalisation of the discourse of extermination. read the complete article
Thailand condemned for ‘shameful’ mass deportation of Uyghur refugees to China
The family of one of dozens of Uyghurs feared to have been forcibly deported from Thailand to China have condemned the decision as “shameful”. The deportations came despite a UN statement saying those being sent to China faced a “real risk of torture” on their return. Thailand said they had returned voluntarily “to their normal lives” with their families. However, speaking to the Guardian, the family of one of those thought to have been deported said it was “impossible” that the men would want to be sent back to China. “Who wants their family to be sent back to a place like that, with no freedoms and where everything is monitored by the government? It’s a lie. “Their families in China know what hardships they face,” said Mihriman Muhammed, 38, who fled the country in 2014. There has been exodus of Uyghurs from China’s Xinjiang region over the past decade, where China is accused of committing human rights abuses including torture and the incarceration of an estimated 1 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities. China denies the accusations. read the complete article
Canada
A New Guide to Combat Islamophobia in Canada
Amira Elghawaby, Canada's Special Representative on Combatting Islamophobia, is proud to announce the Government of Canada's first-ever publication on Islamophobia - the Canadian Guide to Understanding and Combatting Islamophobia: For a More Inclusive Canada. Developed with extensive input from experts on Islamophobia, members of Canadian Muslim communities, civil society organizations, and government partners, this new guide serves as a comprehensive resource for combatting Islamophobia across Canada. This guide intends to raise awareness on Islamophobia, explain its various manifestations and provides practical strategies for Canadians to counter Islamophobia in their lives. The Guide supports the objectives of Canada's Anti-Racism Strategy 2024-2028 and the Action Plan on Combating Hate, to strengthen social cohesion and build a more inclusive society. The Guide provides a contemporary perspective on Islamophobia, exploring its adverse impacts on individuals and communities, and how these impacts can be compounded for people with intersecting identities. It spotlights the diversity of Canadian Muslims, addresses common misconceptions and challenges harmful myths. read the complete article
Australia
'Christchurch 2.0': Police investigate online threat against Sydney mosque
Police have launched an investigation after reports Australia’s newest mosque in south-west Sydney received an online threat by a user that they were "about to christ church 2.0 this join[t]". The threat was made in a comment underneath a post on the mosque's Instagram profile on Monday. It appears to be making a reference to the 2019 terrorist attack in Christchurch, when a shooter gunned down 51 people during Friday afternoon prayer. It was the worst mass shooting in New Zealand's history. In a statement, NSW Police said officers from Liverpool City Police Area Command "have commenced an investigation after a report on an online threat was made towards a religious centre at Edmondson Park yesterday". "The matter was reported to police today," it said. Hundreds of worshippers have visited the Australian Islamic House (AIH) since it opened in Edmondson Park ahead of the holy month of Ramadan last Friday. Places of worship need to be safeguarded from hatred and violence, the institution's president Mazhar Hadid said. "We are profoundly concerned by this threat and take it with the utmost seriousness," he said in a statement. "Our community deserves to feel safe and protected, just like any other citizen of this country." read the complete article
France
France Bans Muslim Players from Fasting During Ramadan
The French Football Federation (FFF) is under fire after banning Muslim players from fasting during Ramadan while training with the national squad — sparking accusations of discrimination and dividing the team. FFF reportedly told players observing Ramadan they can’t fast at Clairefontaine training camp. They can only make up for missed fasting days after international fixtures end. “Hijab bans for women, and now there is a ban on fasting for players observing Ramadan. France continues to be champions of anti-Muslim behaviour,” said Canadian sports journalist Shireen Ahmed on X. Most Les Bleus players come from Africa and North African backgrounds, like Ousmane Dembele, N’Golo Kante, Elias Guendouzi, Ibrahima Konaté, and Ferland Mendy. Last year, youth midfielder Mahamadou Diawara quit the under-19 squad in protest, ESPN reported. Some “They believe their religion is not respected and that they are not respected either,” an agent said. read the complete article