‘I’m too scared to leave my house’: Muslim fears as Islamophobic incidents skyrocket by 365%

Islamophobia Response Unit (IRU) data shows an increase in incidents since Hamas’s 7 October attack and Israel’s subsequent military action

Muslims in Britain say they are too scared to leave their homes after dark, as new figures show the number of Islamophobic incidents has skyrocketed since the 7 October attack on Israel by Hamas.

London charity Islamophobia Response Unit (IRU) says many of the incidents have involved people being targeted over their support for Palestine, as the Israel-Hamas war continues to rage.

Muslims who have spoken to The Independent said they have had bricks thrown through their windows for displaying the Palestinian flag, while one teenager said he was questioned by his teachers after he displayed a Palestinian badge at school.

<p>As the war in Gaza continues to rage, with airstrikes causing destruction such as this in Rafah, Muslims in Britain say they have seen a rise in Islamophobia  </p>

As the war in Gaza continues to rage, with airstrikes causing destruction such as this in Rafah, Muslims in Britain say they have seen a rise in Islamophobia (AP)

IRU says it saw a 365 per cent increase in reports of Islamophobia in October, following Hamas’s deadly attacks in Israel that left more than 1,200 people dead. Britain’s Jewish community suffered a surge in antisemitic incidents, with the Community Security Trust charity revealing earlier this month it had seen a record number in 2023, including 2,699 since 7 October.

Have you been affected by this? Email athena.stavrou@independent.co.uk

“Since October 2023 IRU has seen a sustained increase in reports to the unit,” said IRU CEO Majid Iqbal. “It is clear that this is now developing into a long-term trend and is having a profound impact on those affected by it. IRU calls on the press and politicians to not demonise legitimate Palestinian activism and, by extension, British Muslims, to avoid feeding into the serious societal problem of Islamophobia.”

The figures come after a report earlier this week from Tell Mama – another body that records anti-Muslim hate incidents – which said there were 2,010 incidents between 7 October and 7 February, more than triple the 600 reported during the same period the year before.

FULL ARTICLE FROM THE INDEPENDENT (UK)

It is time to articulate a Muslim approach to justice and liberation

The secularised framework of decolonisation has failed to bring true liberation to the oppressed. The Muslim community must come up with its own approach.

Millions of non-Palestinians have marched through the streets of the Americas, Europe and other continents demonstrating against Israel’s war on Gaza. Thousands of students throughout the world have also voiced their anger at the brutal occupation and mass killing. Recent outbursts of dissent against politicians at public events throughout the United States and other places also show the amount of disdain the world is feeling.

These voices and protests against the war have certainly changed global public opinion, and Israel has lost whatever semblance of a good image it previously had. And yet those who are in a position to stop the killing in Gaza remain stubbornly attached to the claim: “Israel has a right to defend itself.”

So what can or should be done to cause a major change or shift in policy? What can the Muslim community do for its part? Civic action and standing up against oppression are no doubt necessary to engage in. But they are short-term tactics and far from a comprehensive strategy.

What I propose is a serious look into a long-term approach towards liberation that is based on ayaat (verses) of the Quran that give us, Muslims, clear guidance.

The first important guidance to consider is that the Quran does not condone the art of the artist if it has no bearing on society and community affairs. Surah Ash-Shu’ara in verses 225-226 speaks about poets who “wander in all valleys” of the imagination and “say what they do not do”. In today’s context, the equivalent of such poets or artists in general are the “ivory tower” academics, whose art and intellectual effort do not come to terms with reality and civic engagement.

The Quran makes an exception and “commends” those poets who believe, do good deeds and thus translate their art into real action. They also remember Allah plenty and thus live with the Real and seek vindication when the oppressed are wronged.

The second guidance we find in the Quran is the idea of establishing and promoting academic engagement even in the face of civic struggle. Verse 122 at the end of Surah Taubah (9) says:

“It is not proper for believers to go out and fight (in the path of Allah) all together. If only a group from each group (stay behind) and exert themselves to understand the religion (through studying and research) so that they may advise their people (who go out and fight) as they return to them, so that they (the activists) may be well advised and take precautions.”

This is an obvious call for a dual duty of the Muslim community that reflects division of communal labour and activity. One department can be in charge of preserving peace and justice in the land, and the other can engage in learning and research – that is, writing, researching and formulating policy through educational institutions, think tanks and NGOs. These researchers and academics would then advise policymakers and lawmakers to reform and change laws that are subject to ijtihad and politics (siyasah).

FULL ARTICLE FROM AL JAZEERA

Ramadan 2024: How Muslims will mark the holy month

Muslims across the world are preparing for Ramadan, the holy month of fasting, reflection and community.

Ramadan is the ninth month on the Islamic calendar, when Muslims believe the Quran was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. The holy month is typically a time of piety and celebration, although this year it is overshadowed by war in Gaza and escalating tensions in the West Bank.

When is Ramadan?

This year, the holy month is expected to begin on Monday, March 11 and end on Tuesday, April 9. The timing of Ramadan follows the lunar cycle and is dependent on the sighting of a crescent moon at the first and end of the month.

Why do Muslims fast during Ramadan?

Fasting is one of the five pillars of Islam, or key practices that a Muslim is obligated to fulfill in their lifetime. During Ramadan, Muslims abstain from eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset. They also refrain from habits such as smoking and sexual relations from dusk to dawn.

During the holy month, Muslims wake up early to eat a pre-dawn meal called suhoor, and they break their fast with a meal known as iftar. Fasting is meant to heighten to self-discipline, strengthen faith and build empathy with those less fortunate.

Muslims focus on spiritual reflection and devotion during Ramadan with additional prayers, recitation of the Quran and acts of charity.

FULL ARTICLE FROM NORTHJERSEY.COM

The West Is Losing Muslim Liberals

Indifference to Palestinian suffering in Gaza is alienating moderates across the Islamic world and tarnishing the appeal of liberal democratic values.

FEBRUARY 20, 2024, 8:17 AM

Since the beginning of Israel’s catastrophic war in Gaza, triggered by the gruesome Hamas attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, policymakers in Washington have worried about containing the conflict. The military escalations—stretching from Lebanon through Syria, Iraq, and down to Jordan and Yemen—suggest that they may not have been very successful at that.

Israel-Hamas War

News, analysis, and background on the ongoing conflict.

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But there is another problem they may not be even fully aware of: Across the Middle East and even the broader Muslim world, there is an unprecedented level of outrage against the United States and its Western allies, which may have long-lasting consequences. It could be much worse than the impact of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003—the example that some have in mind these days—because the carnage that Israel has inflicted in Gaza seems much worse than anything that happened during U.S. military interventions in the Middle East.

Any close observer of the region can see this. Among them is Fawaz Gerges, a renowned expert on Middle East politics, who warned in December: “I have never seen the region as implosive, as boiling. There is so much rage and anger, not only against Israel but against the United States.”

As Pakistani journalist Umer Farooq observed, “The War In Gaza Is Changing The Muslim World”—and not in a good way. There is a widespread anger, he argues, that “will boost fundamentalist tendencies in Muslim societies,” and perhaps incubate new terrorist groups.

Why this outrage? Because millions of people are watching the horrific scenes from Gaza every single day—often on live television. Whole neighborhoods are bombed, with the dead bodies of babies and children protruding from the rubble. Innocent civilians are shot to death, even in the relatively calmer West Bank. Local health authorities report that more than 28,000 Palestinians have been killed so far, most of them women and children; 90 percent of Gazans have been displaced from their homes, and they are at the brink of starvation and disease.

FULL ARTICLE FROM FOREIGN POLICY

Biden aides meet in Michigan with Arab American and Muslim leaders, aiming to mend political ties

BY JOEY CAPPELLETTI AND COREY WILLIAMSUpdated 7:04 PM EST, February 8, 2024Share

DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) — Top Biden administration officials met Thursday with Arab American and Muslim leaders in Michigan in an effort to mend ties with a community that has an important role in deciding whether President Joe Biden can hold on to a crucial swing state in the 2024 election.

He is facing increasing backlash from Arab Americans and progressives for his vocal support of Israel’s war in Gaza since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas against Israel, although Biden has insisted he is trying to minimize civilian casualties there.

More than 27,000 people, mostly women and minors, have been killed in Gaza since militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-ruled territory. Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and kidnapped about 250 more, mostly civilians, in its attack.

The meetings began Thursday morning and stretched throughout the afternoon. State Rep. Abraham Aiyash, the second-ranking Democrat in the Michigan House, spoke to The Associated Press following a nearly two-hour meeting with the Biden officials Thursday afternoon in Dearborn, describing the conversations as “intense” but “direct.”

“I relayed the emotions and the concerns of our community, and we gave them tangible steps,” said Aiyash, who is also the state’s highest-ranking Arab or Muslim leader. “We want to see a permanent cease-fire. We want to be able to see restrictions and conditions on any military aid that is sent to Israel. And we want to see the United States take a serious commitment towards rebuilding Gaza.”Aiyash added that “there will not be engagement beyond this if we do not see any tangible changes after this discussion.”

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Thursday that the meetings were “private.”

“We want to give them the space to have a meeting that certainly has candor, certainly where — we can hear directly from them,” said Jean-Pierre.

FULL ARTICLE FROM AP NEWS

Amid the Israel-Palestine Conflict, I Feel Despair and Resolve

By Eboo Patel

(NOTE: Eboo Patel is one of America’s foremost promoters of interfaith relations. This was his initial reaction to the violence in Israel and the Gaza strip)

——————————

I find myself in a spirit of both despair and resolve. Despair about events in the world, resolve to do my part to make it better.  

The brutal attacks by Hamas that killed hundreds of Jews in southern Israel, including teenagers at a music festival, shocked me speechless. My teenage son went to his first music festival this past summer. My mind can’t even go there. 

I know people who know people who were personally affected, including Interfaith America board member Rabbi Josh Stanton, whose cousin is still missing and likely a hostage. The pain is deep and personal.  

Also, Hamas does not represent Palestinians, Arabs, or Muslims.  

Also, Palestinians in Gaza live in deplorable conditions that are getting worse by the minute.  

These are truths that should not be hard to say together.  

We have a focused and essential role to play at the organization I lead, Interfaith America.  

As our name suggests, we do not engage or comment on international incidents other than saying the humane and obvious. I will say some version of the above when I speak to the media, and not much else regarding the Middle East.

FULL ARTICLE FROM INTERFAITH AMERICA

What Palestinians in Gaza are teaching Muslims worldwide

They shouldn’t need to demonstrate resolve and strength. Yet they are, in ways that offer lessons to the rest of us.

The oppression and atrocities inflicted against Palestinians in Gaza have left us horrified. And indeed, we should be. Everything they have suffered has gone against human dignity, there is no doubt about that.

And yet, something else has been on full display in this very horrific time of genocide and exploitation, where people are being brutally tortured and killed: the resilience and faith of a people who refuse to concede.

Not only has their faith in God and conviction in their values remained unshaken – they have only increased in their dedication and resolve. We have seen this again and again, witness accounts of people in Gaza reaffirming their love of God and for the Prophet Muhammad, and using their beliefs as comfort during the most desperate circumstances.

Of course, Palestinians in Gaza should not be put into this position in the first place. They should not need to demonstrate such resolve and strength. What is needed is an urgent end to the war. The global community, and especially the US and the collective West, have much to answer for.

Yet, the people of Gaza are teaching Muslims worldwide invaluable lessons. In the face of adversity, the resolve of the people of Gaza can inspire us to not despair nor succumb to pressure to compromise on our beliefs and commitment to our faith.

This is a huge lesson for many of us in the United States, where Muslims are also being tested, as hate crimes and Islamophobia have increased, especially since the war broke out.

If we take a page from their book, we’ll be reading something which is nothing short of a miracle.

In the face of utter and total destruction, Palestinians are standing up and saying, “Allah is our Lord.” They are standing up and performing mass funeral prayers. They are still observing the tenets of Islam, even if it means using rainwater to perform ritual ablutions before prayer. They are standing up and still perform the call to prayer.

These are people who have either been killed or have suffered the killings of their loved ones. Many are simply waiting to die. They don’t know what’s going to happen to them. There is a lot they are showing us as history unfolds before our eyes.
FULL ARTICLE FROM AL JAZEERA (ENGLISH)

Interfaith peacemakers cannot remain neutral on Gaza

Palestinians arrive in the southern Gaza town of Rafah after fleeing an Israeli ground and air offensive in the nearby city of Khan Younis on Monday, Jan. 29, 2024. Israel has expanded its offensive in Khan Younis, saying the city is a stronghold of the Hamas militant group. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)

The war on Gaza is about to complete its fourth month of brutal and massive bombardment. As of late January, this campaign of destruction has killed over 25,000 people (two-thirds of them women and children), destroyed tens of thousands of homes and displaced over 1.5 million Palestinians, squeezing them into a small southern corner of Gaza. On the Israeli side, 1,139 people were killed in the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, and the war on Gaza has caused over 125,000 Israelis to evacuate their homes and settle in hotels or temporary houses.

The war on Gaza has reverted the Israeli-Palestinian conflict back to 1948, when the dynamics of hatred and displacement, especially the dehumanization of Palestinians, became a normal expression within the Israeli and many Western governments. Recently, there has also been an increase in expressions of antisemitism and Islamophobia around the world. And for the first time in the history of this conflict, the International Court of Justice, at the request of South Africa, has begun deliberations on whether the Israeli military and government have committed genocide against the Palestinians.

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There will be no clear victory for Israelis or Palestinians. This war has, in many ways, made victims of all of us: Palestinians, Israelis and everyone around the globe. The double standards and political hypocrisy of most European and North American governments in addressing this conflict have harmed the credibility and legitimacy of so-called international and multilateral organizations (including the United Nations, the European Union and the Arab League). They have also weakened the perception of these organizations as protectors of human rights, democratic values and other liberal or ethical norms. There is also a global crisis of polarization between those calling for solidarity with the Palestinian people, and recognition of their dignity and freedom, and those who refuse calls for a cease-fire and instead insist on supporting the Israeli military campaign against Gazans and Palestinians in the West Bank.

FULL ARTICLE FROM AMERICAMAGAZINE.ORG

How Arizona Muslims are fighting the ‘Islamophobia industry’

Opinion: The Arizona Muslim community and its advocates are countering those who see them as a threat — not with hate but with love.

Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal sadly chose to publish an opinion piece claiming Dearborn, Mich., is “America’s Jihad Capital.”

The author, Steven Stalinsky, is one of the stalwarts of the “Islamophobia industry.” According to the Center of American Progress and the Carter Center, there is an established network of funders, think tanks, social media influencers, and activists that peddle hatred and depict Muslim Americans as a threat to our national security.

On the day the op-ed was published, I was participating in a public forum in Scottsdale organized by the Muslim Public Affairs Council bringing together local Evangelical Christians and Muslims for “Visualizing Peace and Justice in America.”

The event highlighted that there is a different story, a different reality, if we only care to look and listen. 

Muslims work to strengthen our community

As co-chair of ASU’s new Center of Muslim Experience in the U.S., established in 2022, I am awed by the sheer extent of Muslims and their partners who are working tirelessly to strengthen the values inscribed in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution by struggling for justice, equality and democracy for all.

There are more than 100,000 Muslims in the Phoenix area, from a huge diversity of ethno-national backgrounds and social conditions. Many of them are active members of dozens of organizations working to strengthen our communities.

The Arizona Muslim Women’s Association, the Muslim Outreach and Volunteer Enterprise and the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Arizona represent just the tip of the iceberg of organizations doing amazing work interconnecting our diverse communities. 
FULL ARTICLE FROM AZCENTRAL.COM

Muslims and Jews in Bosnia observe Holocaust Remembrance Day and call for peace and dialogue

SREBRENICA, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — Jews and Muslims from Bosnia and abroad gathered in Srebrenica on Saturday to jointly observe International Holocaust Remembrance Day and to promote compassion and dialogue amid the Israel-Hamas war.

The gathering was organized by the center preserving memory of Europe’s only acknowledged genocide since the Holocaust — the massacre in the closing months of Bosnia’s 1992-95 interethnic war of more than 8,000 Muslim Bosniaks in Srebrenica.

The event on Saturday underscored the message that the two communities share the experience of persecution and must stay united in their commitment to peace.

“Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Jews are one body, our ties are intricate, forged in hard times and times of prosperity and interaction,” said Husein Kavazović, the head of Bosnia’s Islamic Community, in his address to a group of survivors and descendants of victims of the Holocaust and the Srebrenica genocide who took part in the commemoration.

FULL ARTICLE FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS