Hostile environment for British Muslims peaks manifold amidst Israel’s Gaza carnage

Since Hamas' incursion into Israel on October 7, 13,000 Palestinians and 1,200 Israelis have been killed while Israel continues its onslaught in the besieged Gaza against Palestinians.

The conflict however is causing a ripple effect far and wide. In the UK, authorities are noticing an uptick in hate crimes “across the strands, particularly with the backdrop at the moment in the Middle East”.

According to Zara Mohammed, Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) an umbrella organisation working locally, nationally and globally, the situation in the Middle East is impacting Muslims in the UK.

“This year, we observe Islamophobia Awareness Month against the backdrop of the ongoing attack on Gaza, Palestine and an exceptionally hostile political environment for British Muslim communities,” Mohammed tells TRT World.

In October, London’s Mayor, Sadiq Khan held a roundtable meeting with leaders from the UK’s Jewish and Muslim communities. “The conflict is having a direct impact on London and Londoners, with increasing cases of abhorrent Islamophobia and antisemitism seen in the capital," he said.

According to Mohammed, “over the course of the now month-long attack on the Gaza Strip, we have seen a surge of hate crime at home, with a 140 percent increase in Islamophobic offences in London alone.”

Local media have reported on a range of anti-Muslim cases in the UK.

One of the most prominent cases in the north of the UK involved local police launching a hate crime investigation following a pig’s head being left at the site of a proposed mosque in the county of Lancashire. As a precaution, authorities stepped up police patrols. A local described it as “a clear intent to commit harassment and intimidation."

A spokesperson for Lancashire Council of Mosques (LCM) tells TRT World that “the council has already dealt with cases where places of worship have been vandalised, and they are actively assisting individuals who face hate due to their Muslim identity in reporting such incidents to the hate crime helpline."

The LCM also expresses "concern" about the increase in Islamophobia and hate crimes since October 7, acknowledging incidents are taking place beyond Lancashire and across the UK.

The observations are echoed by the Muslim Council of Britain who have the knowledge of detailed widespread cases.

“We have also seen Islamophobic attacks across the UK, including: the attempted arson on an Oxford Mosque in which the perpetrator threw a petrol can at the Mosque that had ‘IDF’ scrawled over it, a man attacking a Muslim woman with a concrete slab in broad daylight and alcohol being poured over Muslim worshippers praying at a protest,” says Mohammed.

Reportedly a man was also held over an alleged 10 cases of Islamophobic graffiti on bus stops in part of London.

Tell Mama, a UK charity recording anti-Muslim incidents, says students and staff at schools have expressed concern about wearing Muslim clothing or displaying pro-Palestine solidarity.

Another case allegedly involved someone placing a firework through a Muslim family's letter box, according to Tell Mama. The incident is believed to have taken place due to a Palestinian flag outside their home. The non-profit says the situation could have been "far worse," if a family member had not taken decisive action. The organisation said the person seized the firework, removed it from the letterbox. They later required hospitalisation due to burns on their hands.

Tell Mama also says it has seen a seven-fold increase in anti-Muslim cases in one month compared to the previous year.

Since October 7, the organisation has noted a total 701 anti-Muslim cases as far back as November 7.

Their figures include 326 cases offline, with the majority of cases, 209 taking place in London. The incidents include 212 cases of abusive behaviour, 28 of threatening behaviour, 29 of assaults, 24 of vandalism, 16 of discrimination, 17 of hate speech and 5 of anti-Muslim literature.

The organisation also documented 375 online cases across the same timeframe.

On social media, they describe a trend of dehumanising, racialised, and violent language against the Muslim community. The most “extreme” examples, they say, include calls for “genocide” among other dehumanising comparisons and “anti-refugee and anti-migrant narratives.” Such incidents could “inspire or motivate” individuals to enact harm against Muslims or other vulnerable communities in the UK, they say.

According to Abdullah Faliq, Managing Director of the Cordoba Foundation, a research and advisory group seeking to bridge the gap of understanding between the Muslim World and the West, anti-Muslim sentiment has steadily been on the increase.

"The menace of Islamophobia in the UK has been on the rise for some time, it peaks manifold during times of national and global developments such as the carnage inflicted on the Palestinians by the Israeli occupation forces. British Muslims are numbed by the UK government's support of Israeli actions in Gaza which breach international laws and conventions," Faliq tells TRT World.

Critics have pointed the finger at the former Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, sacked on 13 November by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for fueling tensions in the UK.

"Over the past five weeks, highly incendiary commentary from the now former Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, has served to malign people marching for peace in their millions, induce violent hard-right protests, divide communities and undermine the operational independence of the police,” says Mohammed.

In such time, Faliq says various far-right elements merged to target pro-Palestine activists, Muslims and non-Muslims including groups such as the English Defence League, the Henry Jackson Society. He says they have sought “to provoke tensions" against the diverse pro-Palestine movement that includes Jews, Christians, atheists and agnostics, among others.

Faliq describes the impact of this trend as “real” and “deep,” noting the organisation is pushing to challenge this and offer support where possible.

"Large sections of the mainstream media, politicians, and certain lobbies are openly being Islamophobic. They have been calling for a ban of the pro-Palestine marches as "hate marches'', they are trying to tar pro-Palestine activism as Antisemitic; they are pressurising Muslim organisations and mosques to self-censor so they don't talk about Palestine; and there has been a surge in Islamophobic attacks on religious places, individuals and so on,” he says.

Faliq says he is further shocked by the “blind” support of the Labour Party towards Israel and for it “not calling for a ceasefire”.

“Understanbly Muslim politicians are navigating a very difficult time, those with morals and principles are defying party positions to call for (a) ceasefire. Sadly this is not the case for all Muslim MPs," he says.

More broadly across the UK, Mohammed says Muslims remain consistently vulnerable to religiously motivated hate crime offences. The year ending March 2021 she says 45 percent of all recorded religious hate crimes in England and Wales targeted Muslims - a trend that follows a similar pattern 2 years ago.

The LCM underscores the importance for the Muslim community to report any racist incidents and "strongly condemns any form of hate directed towards Muslims or anyone else."

Mohammed says the MCB is ready to support Mosque communities potentially facing challenging security situations, encouraging anyone subject to anti-Muslim hate crimes to report them to the police.

She says, "now more than ever, it is imperative that British Muslims remain vigilant.”