Vandalism, taunts and hijabs torn off: Muslim leaders in UK say hate crime hitting new levels

D uring the May local elections in England , a canvasser was out in the London borough of Barking and Dagenham campaigning for her party. At one doorstep, the occupant asked if she was Muslim. When she said yes, he told her she should be hanged. It is one of dozens of stories that Akeela Ahmed, head of the British Muslim Trust (BMT), the government’s official partner for monitoring anti-Muslim hatred, has heard in recent weeks. Ahmed said the scale of anti-Muslim hatred in Britain had yet to properly register with much of the public and political class, and admitted she had been shocked by what she had heard while travelling across the country. “We’re in an unprecedented situation since the Southport riots of 2024,” Ahmed said. “My parents suffered racism in the late 70s and early 80s after coming to this country. The violence we’re seeing now really reminds me of that kind of racism, but this is also another level.” Ahmed rejects the idea that communities should retreat from public life. Photograph: Akeela Ahmed Her concerns are echoed by Muslim leaders across the UK, who describe a growing sense of fear, as well as mounting frustration that an increase in attacks has not been matched by what they see as a coordinated response from government, police, the media and other institutions. For many, the official response to the attack in Edinburgh last weekend, in which five people were injured after a man began attacking people near a mosque, crystallised those concerns. …