Islamophobic crimes in London have risen by more than 70 percent in the past year, according to new figures.
Data from the Metropolitan Police shows that a total of 816 hate crimes against Muslims were recorded in the 12 months to July 2015, a 70.7 percent increase on the 478 crimes recorded in the previous year.
Islamophobic crimes are defined by the Met as any attack on someone known or believed to be Muslim. The BBC reported that the crimes ranged from cyberbullying to extreme violence. The Met said the increase was down to improved reporting of incidents, according to the BBC.
Tell MAMA, an independent group which monitors anti-Muslim violence, told the BBC's Inside Out London programme that around 60 percent of the victims were female and that women who wore the hijab or niqab—the headscarf or full-face veil respectively—were particularly suspect to abuse. A February report by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights said that 80 percent of anti-Muslim violence in France was against women.
The Met data also showed that anti-Semitic crime had increased by 93.4 percent, with 499 crimes recorded in the year to July 2015 compared to 258 in the previous year. In July, a Jewish charity said that the number of anti-Semitic incidents across the U.K. had increased by more than 50 percent between January and June 2015, compared to the same period in 2014. Anti-Semitic violence in Europe has led to calls by a senior European rabbi for Jews to be allowed to carry arms for self-protection.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Conor is a staff writer for Newsweek covering Africa, with a focus on Nigeria, security and conflict.
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
