Rising Islamophobia in France Sparks Outrage with Desecrations, Hate Crimes, and Legal Friction

Muslim communities across France are expressing deep concern following a wave of Islamophobic incidents, including the placing of pig heads at mosques and burning of the Qur’an — acts that experts say reflect an increasingly hostile environment.

According to The Times and other reports, at least nine pig heads were left outside mosques in the Paris region (including city arrondissements and suburbs such as Montreuil and Malakoff), often with graffiti such as “Macron” stenciled on them. Suspects are described as foreign nationals who fled France immediately after the acts, in what prosecutors believe was an attempt to provoke unrest, Anadolu Agency reported.

This development has not come without precedence. Quite recently in Villeurbanne, near Lyon, someone entered the Errahma mosque, stole a copy of the Qur’an, burned it, and left it outside the mosque entrance. The act was widely condemned by religious councils and local leaders as “Islamophobic” and “vile.”

Other alarming cases include vandalism at mosques in Cherbourg where pig-head graffiti was found on mosque doors, and incidents in Limoges where excrement was smeared on mosque doors alongside neo-Nazi symbols, according to the Türkiye-based DITIB association and Islamophobia observatory groups.

Data indicates a sharp upward trend in anti-Muslim acts: between January and March 2025, there were 79 Islamophobic incidents recorded — a 72% increase over the same period in 2024.

These incidents are unfolding against a backdrop of restrictive policies and social tensions. Government efforts to enforce France’s secularism laws (“laïcité”) — including bans on hijab in schools and public face-coverings — along with political rhetoric concerning “Islamist separatism,” contribute to a climate where many Muslims feel under siege.

French Muslim organizations and international observers have called for stronger legal protections, more visible condemnation from state authorities, better security at mosques, and greater accountability for hate-based crimes. Without concerted action, many warn, these incidents may deepen social divisions, fuel fear, and marginalize France’s Muslim citizens further.