Islamophobic street attacks are on the rise in the UK as perpetrators feel “emboldened” by terror attacks and political discourse, a report has found.
Islamophobic street attacks are on the rise in the UK as perpetrators feel “emboldened” by terror attacks and political discourse, a report has found.
Tell Mama, which measures anti-Muslim incidents in Britain, recorded a 30 per cent rise in street incidents and a 16 per cent rise in 2017, taking the number of verified reports to a record of 1,201.
The group warned of a “marked shift” towards more serious offline incidents like physical attacks, vandalism and abuse, as hatred continues to spread on social media.
Fiyaz Mughal, the founder of Tell Mama, said Islamophobic hate crimes had been continually increasing over the past six years and fears the trend will continue.
A Muslim man travelling on a bus to donate blood following the attack was also called a terrorist by a passenger who said he would “happily kill” him.
Other victims were accused of direct responsibility in the Manchester attack, and abused while laying flowers in memory of the victims.
Children under 12 were among those attacked and in Rotherham a 14-year-old Muslim boy was beaten and stamped on by a gang of at least 15 white boys who called him “Paki” in an unprovoked attack at a bus stop.
