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Islamophobic offenses reach record highs in UK, figures show
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Islamophobic offenses reach record highs in UK, figures show
Islamophobic offenses reach record highs in UK, figures show
arab.news
Arab News
October 8, 202611:41
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- Of all hate crimes, those targeting Muslims have spiked most, growing 15% in year ending March 2026
- British Muslim Trust warns of ‘unprecedented level of hate’
The spike is part of newly released figures by the Home Office covering all hate crimes.
In the year ending March 2026, 146,825 hate crimes were recorded, a rise of 7 percent in the past year.
Offenses against Muslims, however, increased the most, growing by 15 percent from 4,479 to 5,132.
The figures do not include data from London’s Metropolitan Police because of a change in the force’s recording protocol.
In September 2025, the Home Office recorded a sharp spike in Islamophobic offenses, coinciding with protests and public disorder.
After the outbreak of war between the US, Israel and Iran in March, a similar spike was recorded.
The British Muslim Trust, selected by the government in July last year to monitor Islamophobic hostility in the UK, reported a shift from hate focusing on mosques to “targeting Muslims inside.”
The trust recorded 78 incidents involving 64 mosques across the UK and the Channel Islands between July 21, 2025, and July 30, 2026, equivalent to an incident every five days.
In a report, “A Year of Division,” the BMT said: “There has been an unprecedented level of anti-Muslim hate during the last year … the momentum of growing anti-Muslim hostility is driving the attacks against mosques … the defining shift across this reporting period is a movement from hate aimed at the mosque itself to hate targeting Muslims inside it.”
The trust operates a seven-level scale to grade the severity of anti-Muslim incidents.
Since November 2025, 62.7 percent of recorded incidents fell into the upper four levels of that scale, covering threats and sustained harassment; weapon present or threats to kill; arson or direct violence; and alleged mass-casualty plots.
Earlier, from July to October 2025, only 22.2 percent of incidents were graded at that level.
The BMT said: “Political figures and commentators should take greater care when raising policy concerns regarding immigration or integration.
“Rhetoric intended as policy critique on immigration or integration can often become incendiary and difficult to distinguish from hostility directed at British Muslim communities specifically.”
In Watford, a planned mosque, Masjid Al-Ummah, has faced repeated attacks.
Ammer Amin, a mosque trustee, warned that it is “almost open season (on Muslims) and people feel emboldened by politicians.”
He added: “It’s easy to say it’s the Reform party, but it’s not just the Reform party. It’s the Conservative Party as well. I’m not party political, but they’re singing from the same hymn sheet. They’re almost competing.”
The mosque plans to construct a sports hall, gym, nursery and food bank. These facilities will be available for use by everyone in the local community.
In October last year, crucifixes were sprayed on the temporary perimeter of the mosque.
A man later admitted possession of a knife and an axe but was cleared of criminal damage. In February, the mosque faced another incident when model pigs were thrown into its premises.
BMT CEO Akeela Ahmed said: “Security needs are increasing … and many Muslims today are scared to go about their everyday lives. We need to reduce the need for protection and address the root causes of hate against Muslim communities.”
Islamophobic offenses reach record highs in UK, figures show
Islamophobic offenses reach record highs in UK, figures show
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